While a wedding is not on the horizon anytime soon for me, I decided to check out Debi Lilly’s “Cheers to the Bride” event at DL Loft. Plus it’s never too early to start planning your wedding. I figured that I’ll save the trickiest part of finding a groom for last. Here are some helpful tips I learned from “Cheers to the Bride” at DL Loft.
Catering with a Theme
With all of the catering options out there, it can get very overwhelming to decide what to serve your guests. One thing you can do to keep it centralized and focused is to cater with a theme. For the “Cheers to the Bride” event Pure Kitchen Catering provided light bites with a Filipino flair. Our evening of deliciousness was appropriately entitled Filipino Fantasy. There were servings of sweet rice balls, sausage and lumpia rolls. These dishes were complemented with pickled watermelon radish, banana ketchup (made out of banana’s; crazy right?) and preserved bamboo shoots. By having the theme focused, you aren’t overwhelming your guests with too many flavors on their palate. All of the dishes perfectly complimented one another without overpowering the other.
Personality Cakes
Aside from the wedding dress, the wedding cake is the centerpiece of any wedding. I’ll be the first to admit that I judge a wedding based on the quality of the cake. With that being said, everyone likes to go for the pretty elegant cake. One cake through my adventures of attending wedding’s that stood out to me the most was my sister’s wedding cake which featured a lavender hue and edible pearls and seashells adorning the cake. At the “Cheers to the Bride” event there were 2 types of cakes present made by Toni Patisserie. There was the traditional Mr. and Mrs. Cake which was simple yet elegant in design. Then there was the True Love cake which featured a pastel color palette and a chalk design. The chalk was created with edible chalk and black fondant. I thought how cute would it be if 2 teachers got married and had a chalk board themed cake. The cake should reflect both couples without being cheesy, and I think cakes like the chalkboard cake or my sister’s lavender pearl cake do the trick.
Beautiful Desserts and Favors
The talk of the night at “Cheers to the Bride” was the beauty of Toni Patisserie’s desserts. They were almost too pretty to eat. I say almost because as soon as I took a bite out of the delicious desserts, I did not regret messing up the arrangement just to have a taste of heaven. The dessert table had ornate cookies, petit fours, cherry pie pops and miniature cupcakes. Not only were they gorgeous, but everything was incredibly delicious. I’m sure we’ve all had desserts that were beautiful but we were disappointed with the lackluster taste. However, Toni’s treats lived up to every bit of the hype. When leaving the event guests were parted with a cookie from Toni Patisserie. This was a great memento from the event and for a wedding it’s like taking an edible and tangible memory of the wedding home. Let’s be honest, bubbles are thrown away almost immediately which is why a treat from the wedding would better suffice. Plus it gives more potential business to your caterers if you throw their business cards into the mix.
Trendy or Traditional Table Decor
Arguably one of the most important aspects of your wedding outside of the food for your guests is their seating arrangement. Table decor is the first impression guests will make at your wedding reception. If I’m seated somewhere where the decor is unimaginative or worst case scenario plastic table coverings, I’m not so sure how the rest of the reception will turn out. Presentation is everything. Which is why care and attention to detail is crucial when preparing the table decor for your guests. Located in Debi Lilly’s A Perfect Event store was a setup of wedding table trends. There was a Marsala table which featured hints of Pantone’s color of the year throughout the decor. There was a traditional table which was minimal in design yet elegant with pops of color from the flowers. However, my favorite table was the garden theme which featured plenty of greenery and golden accents throughout the table. All elements from the plates to the utensils need to compliment the decor on the table. One thing that is an absolute necessity and adds a touch of glam to any table are decorative chargers. Chargers guarantee that just this small feature can make all the difference in your table decor. Show your guests that you care about them by putting some careful thought and consideration into the table decor.
Custom Cocktails
A moment of honesty, many people love weddings for the open bar and the plethora of alcohol made available. With that being said, try to have a little fun with your guests drinks options. At the “Cheers to the Bride” as a continuation with the filipino fantasy theme, there were tiki wedding inspired cocktails. They were topped off with umbrella’s and tropical flowers which allowed guests to feel as if they were on a tropical getaway. What made these drinks show stoppers was one simple element that had all the guests talking and that was the dry ice. The tropical tiki drinks were suddenly overflowing with smoke creating a volcanic cocktail. It also doesn’t hurt that each drink was delicious without being drowned in alcohol. I had to remind myself that I indeed was drinking cocktails and not punch. Every single cocktail was a treat. Fun creative drinks are a surefire way to get your guests to speak highly of your wedding. It’s still helpful to have the champagne and the bar but spice things up with your own concoctions.
Hopefully, these helpful tips bring ease to the planning process of either your imaginary wedding or your wedding that’s right around the corner.
