The First Birthday Party!!

I can’t believe it’s almost here- my baby girl’s first birthday party!! Of course you know I never do anything small-it’s just not in my nature {or Social Butterfly style :) }! So Juliana’s first birthday is going to be no different. I decided on the theme of “Alice and Wonderland & the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party.” Since this is a party primarily for one year olds, I had a lot of ideas and activities that I knew Juliana and her little friends would LOVE based on this Disney classic. And Jules loves her tea set so it was the perfect theme for a February celebration.

Here is a preview of what I’m planning as of now and there will be more to come all along the way!Location is still TBD- but I’m looking at a venue that will have the outside garden feel-inside.
Theme/Décor-although it’s Alice in Wonderland and Mad Hatter style, Juliana is the “Queen of Hearts” as the birthday girl and we will go with lots of reds, pinks, black and white, butterflies (of course!), hearts, roses, and crazy-off the wall touches of whimsy!
From the venue entrance guarded by “Card Soldiers” into the garden style tea party- I will have rooms that entertain all age groups at the party. Pink Flamingo Crockett for the older kids and a mystery tunnel and crawling maze for the babies will keep them active-while Alice and the Mad Hatter themselves join us for a very “UN Birthday” tea party with cake and ice cream!! I’m thinking a live bunny petting area might be a good idea as well- because who doesn’t like bunnies!!
A face painting station and a big screen with the Disney version of the movie will be playing for additional entertainment.
And here's a sneak peak at the sketch I drew for our invites and cake!

Flutter back by for the details on invites, cakes,favors and special touches I’m working on!

Eventfully Yours-Michelle

Pic Flips - Latest craze in custom party favors!

One of the best things we saw at the The Special Event trade show was Pic Flips! They are so unique and give a new twist to photo booths. So instead of jumping in a photo booth you get in front of a video camera and dance/sing/goof off for seven seconds. They record your actions and then turn it into a printed flip book. It only takes them 90 seconds to produce the books. They can usually make up to 50 books an hour. These are great to give to guests as a personalized keepsake!

These are great for Bar & Bat Mitzvahs, Weddings, Corporate Meetings & Events, Proms, Holiday Parties, Milestone Birthdays, College Events and Non-Profit Galas!

Not only are they fun but they are super affordable and comparable to photo booths. Check them out at http://www.iloveflipbooks.com/. You will want them at your next event!

Can't wait to bring new party ideas home to Memphis!

Elegant yet trendy...Posh!

Well we can tell the Recession has hit the industry at this year's tradeshow. Three years ago in L.A. there seemed to be endless vendors. This year, the show was much smaller, although some of our favs were back and looked great! Despite the smaller size, we still found some great ideas to bring home to our clients.

So many choices!

We loved all the great new lines of designer linens and chair covers. New colors, textures, fabrics and shapes jumped out at us and we are excited to put them to use. There were also lots of cool new vendors offering party activities and entertainment! Can't wait to see them all in action with our clients and introduce these new trends to the Memphis party scene. Get ready Midsouth, the Butterflies are poised for yet another year of creative, trend setting design and innovative party ideas! Check out some of the stuff we loved:

Bedazzle my Bon Bons! Super yummy chocolates and lollypops with extra glam

Loved this frame as a photo op at receptions

So many new textures, styles, and chair covers!

Loved the whimsical feel of these lamps

Stay tuned for more tips, ideas and trends from The Butterflies...

Day Two: TSE Trade Show and Luncheon

The Butterflies get a sneak peak at what the 2010 Wedding Season Trends have to offer!

It's day two of our TSE New Orleans experience, and after blogging about our FAB night we hit the convention center to check out the vendors. There we some beautiful table displays and we are excited to bring new ideas to our clients! We also got "bedazzled" by our friend Sasha Vincent with Bedazzle My Bon Bons and I had a flattering sketch done by Butt Sketch. We lounged on the fabulous new furniture by Cort, and snacked on liquid nitrogen made ice cream. We are SO bringing liquid nitrogen treats to our clients back in Memphis!

After idea shopping at the trade show we headed to the Wedding Luncheon. The room decor was fabulous; the theme was a landscape painting. The center tables were serpentine with mermaid payettes topped with intricately stacked shallow circular vases, resembling a river. Surrounding the "river" were long tables topped with sage green cut velvet linens and rows of tulips nesting on hydrangeas. These tables resembled the rows of tulips on a tulip farm. To add height to the room and portray the wooded areas in the landscape painting, there were tables on raised stages to the far right and left of the room. The centerpieces were tall branchy "umbrellas." Below are pictures of each theme:

Although the room design was creative, there were logistical problems that we could not stop dwelling on. Tip #2: It does not matter how breathtaking you make your event space if the event logistics do not run smoothly. First of all, they oversold VIP seating tickets (unfortunately, we bought them!). When we arrived there were no more VIP seats for us, even though we paid substantially extra for them. When we told one of the coordinators, she simply told us that there were seating design flaws and that we needed to take a seat off in the corner. As experienced event coordinators, this really peeved us. The next logistical flaw was the entertainment; for a luncheon, the mic'ed horns and drums were far too loud to make conversation over. Although the food was gourmet and delicious, we were never offered rolls and the service was blah. We had to actively ask for coffee with dessert, rather than be offered. The speaker, Darcy Miller of Martha Stewart Weddings was wonderful, but after she spoke no one thanked her immediately and there was awkward silence.

This is living proof that no matter how fabulous your food, decor, or entertainment is, the effort will be lost on your guests if they do not work together to enhance the event. Logistics are everything, and the comfort and enjoyment of your guests should always come first!

TSE Starts Here Cocktail Reception!

Tip No. 1 - Always hire a party starter as your wedding planner. We definitely know how to have a good time!

A phenominal job by Nick Nevaras and his team who executed last night's cocktail reception for The Special Event Show! Generations Hall was a great location, the food was awesome (perfect taste to New Orleans), and the band, Mo Jeaux, was a show stopper! They rocked "us all night long", literally! They did Beyonce, Micheal Jackson, Swagger, Def Leopard, Black Eyed Peas, Flo Rider, and all the other Top 40 singers. When your abs and legs hurt, you know you've had a great time on the dance floor.

The decor was a magical bayou like atmosphere with stretch lighted trees, stars and billowy clouds above your head. But once you journey into the back room where the band was you were transported to a New Orleans dance club with multi-levels (balcony viewing area) and exposed ceilings.

We can't wait for tonight's Welcome party given by NACE, they have a lot to live up to.

We're HERE!

We made it to New Orleans for The Special Event Show! Thought it started out rough since we did not have a reservation at the Hilton (that's what happens when you do online booking!). Then this morning my shower was cold, didn't think hotels ever had cold showers, but this one did! Lucky for Addie and Michelle that I warmed up the water heater for them because they had hot showers. Then to make matters worse, our hotel WAS NOT connected to the Convention Center even though it is the HOST hotel. We had to walk five blocks down the street to the Convention Center only to find out that the Embassy Suites is right across from the street. So we checked out of the Hilton and moved to the Embassy Suites. So now we are saving money on the hotel, valet parking fees and as an added bonus, we have Continental Breakfast! YAY! Life is so much better now. We are so excited to be here to learn new trends, see new sites, glean new inspirations from the Exhibitors and so much more.

Looking forward to tonight's cocktail reception to see all of our friends in the industry from around the nation. Tomorrow will be even more fun because we will be attending the VIP Wedding Luncheon....will blog tomorrow about that!

Bridal Show

Looking for the latest ideas for your wedding, feeling stressed that you don't have enough time to plan your wedding, just looking for someone to help you on your wedding day, then come see Social Butterflies at the Jan. 10th Hilton Bridal Show. We will be showing new trends in furniture, colors, flowers and lots more. We will be on hand to discuss how we can save you money and time by letting our qualified bridal consultants help you plan the most important day of your life. Not sure where to start or who is the best in the business, we do! Don't settle for someone who does this on the side and can't committ to helping you during the day. This is our FULL TIME job and we love it!