Vendor Spotlight; Little Brown Dog

As you may know, every so often we interview local vendors to learn more about their company and the different services they can bring to both bridal and corporate clients alike. Well hold onto your hats because this Vendor Spotlight is about to blow you away!

Instead of providing us the answers to our questions via the traditional route (a Word document), Little Brown Dog decided to go above and beyond. Rather than explaining to us what they do, they decided to show us. And in return, we're going to show you!

Getting to know LBD from Little Brown Dog Productions on Vimeo.

Recognize this crew? They put together our previous couple, Lindsey & Matt's, wedding highlight video! To refresh your memory, we included it below. Enjoy!



Lindsey + Matt [FEATURE] 6.7.14 from Little Brown Dog Productions on Vimeo.

Want to learn more about this videography team? Visit their website here or email them at littlebrowndogproductions@gmail.com.

Vendor Spotlight; TapSnap

With so many different photo booth options out there, how does a bride decide on just one?? Well, look no further. TapSnap is the hottest photo booth on the market for one particular reason, it's actually not a photo booth at all.

"TapSnap came about as a reinvention of the traditional photo booth," Bud Lehman, TapSnap 1086 Franchise Owner, said when describing this one-of-a-kind crowd pleaser. In other words, say goodbye to the "booth" in photo booth. TapSnap is an interactive, open-air design. With the choice of providing a green screen as a backdrop or not, TapSnap comes with a 42" touch-screen kiosk, allowing guests to actually draw on the image, change the background and add digital props to their pictures. Along with being able to modify your picture, TapSnap allows you to share it to social media accounts instantly. Simply tap, snap and share!

Bud explained the common wedding package includes, "One interactive TapSnap kiosk, access to standard digital props, wedding announcement/logo on each photo, unlimited lab quality prints, real-time photo sharing by email, Facebook or Twitter, wedding Facebook album shared on bride/groom's Facebook page, online gallery of all photos and a Phototainment Specialist (attendant)."

But the fun isn't just for brides, corporate and social events can take advantage of this photo experience as well. TapSnap is able to display company logos and have the green screen portray a background to further promote the event. Whether you're located in Ireland, Mexico and maybe even Puerto Rico, TapSnap is available in seven different time zones!

"One add-on that really sets the event apart is SnapCast. Our brand new SnapCast service streams photos live from the TapSnap system onto TV's and projection screens set up at your event. Promote your event hashtag to see guest pics from Instagram and Twitter too," Bud announced.

So why is it time to get rid of the old booth, and bring in the new? "TapSnap fits in with any event decor, takes up minimal space, and the open-air design makes it simple to take a picture of one guest or an entire family, while other guests have fun watching the action and sometimes, help create the final picture."

Take note, brides, add a simple message, a fancy frame, or use your and your hubby's monogram on the picture to make it an easy and quick wedding favor.

If you don't believe Bud, then believe us! The Center girls (and Alana's Fiance) tried out TapSnap at a previous ISES Cincinnati event and let me tell you, it was hard getting us away from the camera.

While our favorite part about this photo experience was definitely thinking of clever ways to pose with the digital props and booth-free space, Bud prefers the dinosaur digital props and backgrounds. "It is simply amazing some of the poses and messages guests come up with while in the clutches of a dinosaur," Bud confessed. We can only imagine what The Center staff would have come up with that night, and we think the whole ISES group would have to agree.

Thanks TapSnap for teaching us a different type of photo booth fun. You can learn more about TapSnap by visiting their website at www.tapsnap.net. Or contact Bud, who provides services in Cincinnati, Dayton, Northern Kentucky, Louisville and the surrounding areas. He can be reached at budl@tapsnap.net or 513-917-2726.

Pictures provided by TapSnap.

Friday Find: Uplighting!

On Monday night The Center's staff stopped by Vincent Lighting and found something we are now obsessing over! In case you hadn't noticed from all of our event photos, uplighting is the most popular option we see in The Center for décor. Bringing in a few boxes of LED lights to place along the walls in our ballroom really transform of our space. Just take a look...

So our Friday Find? It's the battery operated Freedom Par LED uplighting now available through Vincent Lighting. Why do we love this particular option? Vincent Lighting has the white option available, which blends in with our natural décor allowing a seamless look for your special event!

Interested in renting these lights? Contact Vincent Lighting today at (859) 525-2000.

Reds Opening Day!

Happy (two days after) Red's Opening Day! While the Cincinnati Reds kicked off another season, we kicked off an Opening Day Viewing Party for business executives and professionals. Everywhere you turned in The Center you could find baseballs, turf and of course, the color red! With help from some amazing vendors, we were able to hit a homerun with this event! Take a look at some of our décor, food, and flowers for a little baseball-loving wedding inspiration, along with learning about the different services each of our contributing vendors donated!


McHale's Events and Catering

McHale's provided a delicious ballpark meal! Including the ever-so-famous coney dogs, meatballs, sandwiches, veggies and fruit! This type of food really gave off a ballpark atmosphere.

Entertainment Unlimited Events

Entertainment Unlimited provided the spandex backdrop. If you are having a smaller reception and are feeling a bit overwhelmed with how to decorate our large, blank canvas space, this type of backdrop really catches guests' eyes and easily fills our space.

All Occasions Event Rental

 

All Occasions provided the red/chevron linens and white Milano chairs and bar stools. By ordering a larger linen with a table runner, you are able to create a unique cocktail table arrangement. The chevron pattern also makes a great décor statement for those quirky brides.


A Day to Remember Wedding and Event Rental

This red leather couch and white side tables belong to A Day to Remember. Along with the red couch, this wedding and events rental company also contributed the white lounge furniture, which we spread throughout the ballroom, and the wooden bar. Completed with our dome light turned red, The Center had the perfect Opening Day touch.

The Flowerman

Taking a closer look at the center pieces, you can see The Flowerman's personal touches. What is so great about The Flowerman is that the bride and the bridal party can walk into the warehouse and create their own bouquets and flower arrangements for their big day. We think these pieces rounded out the Cincinnati Reds theme perfectly!

Tres Belle Cakes

Along with McHale's, Tres Belle Cakes provided these delicious desserts! What better way to celebrate baseball than with cupcakes, cake pops, and cookies?!

While this is not décor, flowers, or food, take a look at our view from our window! It was the perfect spot to watch the parade go by!

 

We would like to thank these vendors, along with Simply Events  and Pottinger Photography for helping us make this event a success. We could not have done it without the team of these great vendors!

 

Pictures provided by Pottinger Photography. Check out their blog post to see more pictures from this Opening Day Event.

 

Food for Thought; Jeff Thomas Catering

Every Friday, we have decided to post a "Food for Thought' segment, where we introduce a local caterer or baker asking them to share their story and some wedding insights to our readers. Our last "FFT" post we let Daveed's NEXT Restaurant & Catering have the mic as they provided us with a brief description of their company. This week we decided to take the same approach and gave Jeff Thomas Catering a chance to provide  us with a little snippet of why Jeff Thomas is the Man! Take a look to see what Jeff Thomas Catering had to say about their extraordinary catering company!

"Enjoying 29 years of service to the Greater Cincinnati Area, we pride ourselves with the knowledge of world cuisine and the ability to customize menus to fit our client’s needs.  Whether it is 'farm to table' with fresh local ingredients to international flair, we rise to the occasion with innovative presentation and execution.
 We acquire this knowledge by 'forcing' Jeff to travel the world experiencing world cuisine from Indian, to Vietnamese, to Thai, to the Rjjstafel of Amsterdam.  Food is our passion. Creating memorable occasions for our clients is our mission.

Under the guidance of Chef Steve Waddell, Steve is assisted by two Sous Chefs, Scotty’s forte being world cuisine including world street food and Ali, a practicing Vegan, brings vegetarian and Vegan to a whole new level.  Our Pastry Chef, Megan joins us from the The Hamptons in New York and knows world pastries from her east coast experiences.

While a Jeff Thomas Catering experience is not inexpensive, we strive to bring as much creativity to our client’s experience as the budget will allow.  Sometimes this may be achieved by our very competitive floral and rental pricing.  As you know, it’s all about the bottom line in getting the experience you want and deserve. Being able to assist in these areas many times helps our clients upgrade the culinary experience to their desirable taste level. "

Now we're starting to talk wedding! Keep reading to find out what types of services Jeff Thomas Catering provides to brides when planning their perfect day.

 

"When planning the perfect wedding, we look at many aspects and consider your day a theatrical production.  We assist and advise with the floor plan, the timeline, other vendor recommendations and more.  But most importantly, we strive to set your wedding apart from all the others you are experiencing with creative menu items and presentation."

What types of "creative menu items" is the Jeff Thomas team talking about, however?

"If we were to site a few of our favorite’s ideas and signatures, one would be our salad wrapped in grilled zucchini and layered.  This architectural visual maintains the chill of the salad and holds the dressing in the condiments so the lettuce does not wilt.  It is also a much better visual to come to the table with a pre-plated salad than a typical banquet salad.  For fall and winter weddings we often suggest a cornbread crusted soup like roasted corn chowder served with a side salad. We bake the bowls and seal the top with cornbread keeping them piping hot at the table for a good 45 minutes. And once again, your guests come to the table with a surprise.  It’s just something different from all the rest!

Probably our favorite main course is a dinner prepared in parchment paper.  Cooking with parchment seals the juices and locks in the flavor.  Everyone gets a hot meal and fast!  We once served a party of 900 this main course in 19 minutes! The show of this execution is all on the front of house and a thrill to watch.

Very few of our weddings use buffet style any more.  It’s primarily seated or stations. If stations, is your preference, we have recreated the execution of this concept.  Early years of stations saw salads station, pasta or mashed potato bars and carving. Yawn! Yawn!  Now, our staff works from back stations and pre-plate mini meals on cocktail plates or martini glasses.  Often there is also a wine, beer or cocktail pairing at the station.  It’s much more sophisticated and you spend more time at your table than at the station as we can plate the meals on behalf of your guests.

Whether seated, buffet or stations, we suggest a pre-set salad and/or soup.  This allows time for all of the necessary ceremonial components to unfold.  During this course, we suggest everything happen from the bridal intro, to the blessing, father of the bride welcome and depending on the size, the toast.  All of this should happen before the main course or station’s open.

Also, when possible, we like to serve the cake as a course by painting a full size plates with crème Anglaise and raspberry hearts and with seasonal fruit garnish. Again, this is just something different than every other reception you attend.  It feels more like a special dessert instead of 'here’s your cake.'

Another thing to keep in mind is once the cake is cut and the first dance sequence unfolds, we are servicing your guests with cake and coffee service. At this point, many of your guests have started to celebrate…. by dancing of course!  We offer a complementary coffee station with whipped cream, shaved chocolate and caramel sauce.  In the spring and summer we also offer iced Caramel latte.  In the autumn, we switch to an offering of hot cider."

These types of services allows the bride to turn her wedding day into an out-of-the-ordinary, unique, classic wedding experience. Jeff Thomas Catering provides services you didn't even know a catering company could offer! Not only do we, at The Center, appreciate all the hard work they put in with brides, they also are accustomed to flipping our space from a ceremony to a reception area in minutes!

 "The Center is one of our more favorite venues.  We are quite used to 'flipping' the reception room from ceremony to dinner.  The open cocktail reception area makes it easy for both guests and staff as we recreate the room for a whole new experience.  They also spoil us with a very equipped kitchen facility that ensures hot meals for all guests.  Just remember that at The Center, you don’t have to settle for typical wedding food. A memorable experience is part of the package."

Thanks for all the info, Jeff Thomas Catering! We always enjoy working with this wonderful company and staff!

To learn more about Jeff Thomas Catering and the services they offer, contact them at events@jeffthomascatering.com or call them at 859-291-0286.



 

Know your Style

Now that we’ve discussed how to decide on a wedding budget, who to invite to the wedding events and what day your wedding should fall on, it is time to move on to the next step of wedding planning; deciding on the theme/style of your wedding! Or in our case, "The What" of your wedding (as described in our previous post, "He Just Proposed; Now What?!")

 

With a million different linens and rental décor out there, it’s almost necessary for a bride to choose on a general "feel" of her wedding and reception. In our previous post “Friday Find” we showed you  pictures from the past bachelorette’s engagement party and immediately you get the vibe that her party was a rustic, elegant affair.  If you want your guests to walk into The Center and say “Wow! This screams Victorian Vintage!” or “It feels like I’m on a tropical island!” then you must decide on a theme!

However, keep in mind that “themes” aren’t for everyone, and it’s completely OK if you’re the bride that mix and matches a whole bunch of different ideas (these tend to be the most colorful weddings)!

We talked through a couple of different wedding style ideas with Kristen Mueller, Event Consultant of All Occasions Event Rental, to get a grasp of what types of rental items are available to brides.

These Swarovski crystal chandeliers are one of
Kristen's favorite rental items!

All Occasions Event Rental features a broad array of rental items and décor, “including tableware, tables, chairs, tenting and the largest selection of specialty linens in the area,” making it a one-stop shop for the theme-loving bride.  

 “At All Occasions, we pride ourselves on staying ahead of the trends – constantly updating our product inventory and design ideas – through frequent buying trips, our extensive connections in the rental community, membership in professional organizations and continuing professional education,” Kristen explained.

 To prove this rental company stays up-to-date on the latest wedding haps, we asked Kristen to recommend pieces that would look great for a rustic and vineyard wedding theme, a modern/contemporary wedding theme, and an elegant/glamorous wedding. Her recommendations were nothing short of amazing!

Rustic & Vineyard Wedding

"We have an amazing variety of items to choose from that are unique to All Occasions such as: our vineyard tables, chairs and stools, custom-made authentic barn wood light fixtures, bars and screens, wooden benches and barrel bars. For the tabletop, we have the perfect accents including our light blue, green or white fleur de lis china, burlap linens and runners, brown metal lanterns and jute and linen flower napkin rings - to name a few."

 

 

Modern/Contemporary Wedding

"Our sleek white or black milano chairs and stools, as well as our clear mirage chairs would be great seating options. We also carry a wide variety of linens such as our Metallic Chevron as well as many more. The Schott Zwiesel crystal glassware and Tivoli flatware would accent the table handsomely."

 

Elegant/Glamorous Wedding

"Our chiavari chairs come in a range of finishes complete with a padded cushion that comes in a variety of colors. Our crystal silver & gold napkin rings and luxurious satin napkins and linens add that special detail to the table. Damask overlays in a variety of colors, including our new blush and champagne option or our shimmering overlays like the Navy Blue Sprinkle Sequins add a layer of decadence to any table. Complete with a set of our Elegance china, cut-crystal glassware and silver-plated Vanessa flatware would make a table set for royalty."

 

 

No matter what theme/style you decide on, All Occasions is sure to have something to fit your taste! Which brings up a very important matter -- don't feel pressured by Pinterest or wedding blogs to have an over-the-top, extravagant wedding theme, instead focus on a style that is representative of your own taste and personality, as Kristen advised.

If you want to have a very simple wedding, then have a simple wedding! If you want to have each table linen be a different color of the rainbow, then go for it! It's not about what the hottest trend is, it's about what you feel comfortable with. "A wedding is an extension of the couple," Kristen added.

And you're sure to feel comfortable working with All Occasions Event Rental. All Occasions is nationally recognized as having the highest number of Certified Event Rental Professionals (CERP) of any rental company in the United States and Canada, "with nearly 100 percent of our event consultant and service staff earning this designation or working towards earning it. Plus, a large majority of our consultant and service team members have 5 years or more in the event rental business. All this translates to top-notch service for you," Kirsten exclaimed! Wow! Now this is a rental company that knows their stuff!

Are one of these wedding styles tickling your fancy? Contact All Occasions to learn what else they have to offer for your perfectly themed day. Call them at 513-563-0600 or stop in their showroom located at 10629 Reading Road Cincinnati, OH.

 

Vendor Spotlight; Say Cheese Photo Booth

Lights, camera, action! This week we are setting the stage for Say Cheese Photo Booth; a family owned and operated photo booth company located out of Florence, KY.

 

Patrick Callahan, Marketing and Operations Director of  this photo booth company, let us in on why brides can't wait to "Say Cheese!"  Starting off as a company, which maintained a number of arcade machines and photo booths in movie theaters around the region, Say Cheese was developed in 2006, “thinking that people would enjoy renting [photo booths] for weddings and all sorts of parties,” Patrick said.

And the Say Cheese family was right! Photo booths are now becoming a popular trend at weddings, as they allow brides to collect memories from their big day with a simple snap. Literally! Say Cheese Photo Booth offers a new service called “Snap N’ print,” allowing guests to take pictures they catch on their cell phones and print them in a 4x6 format while at the reception. “These pictures can be placed in the scrapbook, along with photo strips, or the guests can take them home,” Patrick told us.

Not only do brides enjoy having photo booths available at their weddings, but Say Cheese Photo Booth enjoys being there as well. “Weddings are parties, so typically you don’t work in a ‘stale’ environment,” Patrick explained. “There is music and I often meet interesting people. I also enjoy seeing familiar vendors and getting a chance to catch up and deepen relationships with them.”

Say Cheese doesn’t just provide your typical photo booth, however, Patrick mentioned that this company offers a complete wedding package including 4 hour rental, a personal attendant, a digital copy of all photos taken at the event (via Drop Box), magnets to place on the back of each guest’s copy of their photo strip as a great party favor, a scrapbook, and props for photos. Included in these props are hats, glasses, stick props, and a Vikings helmet, which Patrick admitted is his favorite. However, brides should feel free to bring their own props as well. “I remember one bride supplying a gorilla head and NASA helmet that the guests wore.”

Say Cheese Photo Booth can also provide a themed boarder to each picture. “The ‘I am with stupid’ border always produces some laughs,” Patrick said. “Finally, our booths can digitally give you a new hair color and style.” Which Patrick acknowledged, becomes a popular choice around 11 pm.

We encourage brides looking to provide this fun entertainment to book soon! As of right now, Patrick told us that brides can receive a free photo mosaic or “Save-the-date” photo strips when reserving this package. “Our photo mosaic allows us to recreate a favorite wedding day photo (or any photo for that matter) using all the photo booth pictures of your guests. It’s really neat to look at.” And we happen to agree! How cool is it to see all of your guests pictures put together to make a giant print of you and your hubby? We think it’s photo-tastic! (OK- that was cheesy)

“Our save the dates offer an affordable alternative to traditional save the dates. With this option, we will create a personalized message at the bottom to send out to guests and we will mass print them on the spot at our showroom. Brides and grooms walk out the door in 45 minutes with pictures and magnets to mail out to their guests,” Patrick exclaimed!

That’s not all; Say Cheese Photo Booth can also provide a “drop off” option.  This includes dropping off and picking up the photo booth and is intended for the bride who wants to save a bit more money by providing her own scrapbook and photo booth attendant. Patrick confessed that, “If you graduated the 2^nd grade, you can operate all of our photo booths.”

The Say Cheese Photo Booth family didn’t stray away from movie theatres completely, however, their “traditional style” photo booth can still be found inside all the Regal cinemas in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.

With competitive pricing, a la carte services and discounts for Fridays, Sundays and during the week, this photo booth company is a great bang for your buck.  Get ready to “Say Cheese,” brides!

Learn more about this fun service by calling them at (513)256-3460, email them at deb@saycheesephotobooth.com or visit their website at www.saycheesephotobooth.com.

Pictures provided by Say Cheese Photo Booth.