Archive for May, 2010

To Rent or To Buy … That is the Question.

Posted in Uncategorized on May 25, 2010 by fivestarevents

No matter what your vision is for your dream wedding reception, you will probably have to rent some decorations. Candles, flowers, table settings and extras can make all the difference in transforming an ordinary hall or banquet space into a romantic reception. Renting decorations such as vases, centerpieces, votives and chair covers will save you money and time.

In general, we are accustomed to renting things that we need only for a limited period of time or for a limited purpose.  We buy things that we know we’ll use over and over and over again.

For example:

  1. We rent a car to drive around while we’re on vacation instead of going to the effort to buy a car for the week.
  2. We rent a hotel room or condo on vacation instead of going to the hassle to rent an apartment when we get there.
  3. We rent a movie from Blockbuster or your local video store if you think you’ll only watch it once.
  4. We rent a carpet cleaner to steam clean the carpets as needed.
  5. Guys rent Tuxedos for the once or twice in their life that they think they will need one, rather than investing into owning one.

Also:

  1. We buy a house knowing that we’ll need a place to live for a very long time.
  2. We buy a vehicle to drive around – again, knowing that we’ll need it for a long time.
  3. We buy movies if we know we’ll watch it more than once …  Disney movies are always a hit with kids and they like to watch them over and over and over again.
  4. We invest in a carpet steam cleaner if we know we have a messy house – or for the rest of us, we have dogs!

So, it just stands to reason that you would rent your wedding linens and decor from a reputable supplier instead of buying them.  Brides know that you’ll only be using them once so why invest extra money into something that you’ll either try to get rid of (and that’s a hassle) or have to give away.  Sometimes brides will spend extra money on centerpieces (fresh flower ones, to be exact) in order for their guests to take them home.  That is quite common in some areas of the country and with certain groups of people.

Don’t believe the hype that you’ll be able to sell your decor items.  Seriously, who would want to buy the used stuff that you had at your wedding?  Also, if you own the linens and decor, now you have to launder it, press it and present it in such a way as to be appealing to a potential buyer.  What if you can’t sell it?

The free classifieds are cluttered with brides who are wanting to  sell their wedding decor items.  They “hope” to recoup the cost, but of course that doesn’t happen.  Here are some examples, just from the Calgary area:

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-Wedding-W0QQAdIdZ207147478

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-Country-Rustic-Wedding-Decorations-Up-for-Grabs-W0QQAdIdZ182031793  (this poor bride has had 1332 views, to date, on her free ad and is still trying to sell it – goo d luck)

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-Table-Runners-and-Center-Pieces-W0QQAdIdZ207064677   (this bride says to “save money on your wedding day by avoiding costly linen rentals “- well, she didn’t save any money at all, did she?  She paid full price for stuff she no longer wants and now has to go through the hassle of trying to sell it)

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-30-rolls-of-NEW-RIBBON-for-sale-perfect-for-a-wedding-W0QQAdIdZ206637275

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-6-New-Beautiful-Wedding-Bouquets-For-Sale-175-00-OBO-W0QQAdIdZ205767547

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-IKEA-tea-light-holders-W0QQAdIdZ146247932

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-Wedding-Card-Box-For-Sale-W0QQAdIdZ206098034

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-Chair-and-Table-Covers-W0QQAdIdZ206002950

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-services-wedding-White-Pew-Bows-12-W0QQAdIdZ192728747

…  and the list goes on.  These are the listings that I just found “today”.  There are more and more every day with brides investing heavily into their wedding decor and then trying to get rid of it because they no longer have a use for it.

Take a look at the online classifieds to see how many brides are trying to sell their wedding dress!

Remember – YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!  Quality linens are expensive to buy, but affordable to rent.  Quality chair covers are too.  Enlist the help of a decorator and event designer – they will save you money on the front end by providing you with good quality linens at fair rental prices, and on the back end as well knowing that you have a beautifully designed event that has been put together especially for you!

Call us today for a complimentary consultation and we can show you the difference that quality makes!

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Everyone loves a Chocolate Fountain … right?

Posted in calgary wedding planner, five star events, wedding coordinator, wedding receptions, weddings on May 23, 2010 by fivestarevents

These days, everyone knows what a chocolate fountain is, and it is a big hit at parties, including weddings.

Here are some tips to make including a chocolate fountain into your event a huge success:

Chocolate

  1. If you are having only one chocolate fountain at your event, serve Milk chocolate.  Milk chocolate is the most popular because it’s the sweetest.  Dark chocolate isn’t sweet at all and doesn’t taste great on fruit etc.  White chocolate tends to be unpopular because it doesn’t really have much of a taste to it.
  2. If you are having more than one fountain at your event, feel free to have more than one type of chocolate, like dark chocolate or white chocolate.
  3. If you have lots of diabetics at your event, serve up a specialty dark chocolate fountain for them.
  4. The chocolate needs to be in liquid form, not solid.   Professional chocolate fountain vendors purchase their chocolate in chip form and have a professional melter, and they provide the chocolate to you in a bucket.  Your chocolate should not be filled with filler, such as milk or oil (yuck!).

Dippings

  1. Serve a variety of dipping options.
  2. Fruit is very popular but you can also have things like pound cake, banana bread, marshmallows, graham wafers (mmmmm…  s’mores), icewafer cookies, cinnamon coffee cake, biscotti etc.  Some people even like to serve pretzels.
  3. Be sure to follow appropriate food service guidelines at your event.  The perishable dipping items (fruit, for example) should be on display at room temperature for no more than one hour before it is discarded and replaced with fresh.  Non-perishable things like pretzels, biscotti, marshmallows etc., can stay on display for many hours without becoming contaminated.

Service

  1. Always, always, ALWAYS have skewers or forks available for service.  I cannot stress this enough!  You need to provide your guests with a way to dip their food into the chocolate without using their fingers.  Once a person’s fingers get into the chocolate the whole fountain is contaminated and must be discarded according to food service and safety rules!
  2. In addition, you must provide appropriate serving tools on each of the dipping items.  At no time should a guest’s hands or fingers touch any food or chocolate at the service stations.
  3. Serve the chocolate fountain as a snack and not the dessert.
  4. Have at least one fountain for every 50 to 60 guests, otherwise there are long line ups to get to the fountain, and NO ONE likes to wait in line for food.
  5. If you are waiting to have your speeches and people are still waiting in line for their dessert, you’ll either have to wait for them (which can take forever) or else you have to start the program when people are standing in line – either way, its not a good thing.
  6. Set up the fountains at various stations to allow for easy access for the guests.  Best case scenario is you have the fountains on large round tables, or at least rectangular tables with guest access on both sides – this will speed up the process.
  7. Come prepared with extension cords so that you can plug in the fountains in the middle of the room instead of plugging them in against the wall.
  8. Take a look at #1 again and make sure there are skewers!

Presentation

  1. There are lots of ways to design your chocolate fountain table.  Position the food nicely around the fountain and offer a good variety of items to dip.
  2. The fountains always come with the base uncovered.  Its up to you if you want to cover that base or not – its not very attractive though.
  3. Always – always – ALWAYS put a plastic tablecloth on the chocolate fountain table.  It can be clear so as not to be too noticeable, but always use a plastic tablecloth.  The chocolate will certainly make a big mess and if you’re using rented linens, you probably just purchased yourself a tablecloth because quality chocolate stains really badly and is especially difficult to get out after its been sitting untreated for several days.
  4. Alternately, purchase your own table coverings for the chocolate fountain table so that you won’t be charged full replacement fees from your linen rental supplier.
  5. Its also a good idea to put a plastic drop cloth on the floor around the fountain tables.  Check with your venue – if they have carpet flooring they might insist upon protective covering.

You can find chocolate fountain vendors in your area easily by searching with Google or your local bridal network.  In Calgary, the best chocolate fountain vendor is The Chocolate Fountain.I have used them at many events and definitely recommend them.

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Before and Happily Ever After

Posted in calgary chair covers, calgary wedding planner, calgary weddings, five star events, wedding decor on May 17, 2010 by fivestarevents

This weekend we did some decor at the Carriage House Inn on MacLeod Trail South.  They have a nice, small ballroom there.  The bride chose burgundy napkins and provided her own centrepeices.   We added the ivory chair covers with silver organza sashes.  Also, we installed the head table decor and the backdrop behind the head table.

Take a look at the difference!

All photos by Sue Homik www.suehomikphotography.com

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