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[Love Fridays] Teen Party Expo with expected turnout of 5,000

I am happy to share that I am one of the hand-picked, exclusive vendors that will be featured at one of the premier teen party expos! We will have a table there displaying the finest and latest trends in party planning along with temporary tatoo artist, dessert table, and information on our services. I will also be showcasing a masterpiece by Melody Brandon of Sweet and Saucy. Our friends at Rock Star Entertainment with Rocky Whatule will be one of the DJ’s battling it out with another DJ to bring you amazing and live entertainment that is sure to make you want to rock out. If you or someone you know is celebrating their upcoming 16th birthday, quinceanera, bar/bat mitzvah, debut, please come by the event and stop to say hello!

We have also been heard all over multiple radio stations. LAist (even wrote an atricle on us already). Main stream media will all be present, i.e. LA Times, Channel 2, Univision, and more.

The 1st Annual Teen Party Expo (TPE) will be held on Sunday March 21, 2010 from 11:00a m – 5:00pm at the Radisson Los Angeles Westside Hotel, 6161 W. Centinela Avenue, Culver City, CA. The Teen Party Expo welcomes all teens, celebrating their upcoming rite of passage from childhood to adulthood, and their parents celebrating to preview the best and latest in the creating a memorable event.

“Exhibitors, leading vendors and thousands of teens and their parents around the country are early awaiting the first annual Teen Party Expo,” said Oscar Urrutia, Event Organizer of the TPE. “We will feature premier, hand-selected vendors that will provide products are services geared towards Quinceañera, Sweet 16, High School Prom, Bar/Bat Mitzvah, and Début.”

The event will also feature workshops that will provide the teen and their parents resources and cost-saving tips for their milestone event. These workshops will include: Selecting A Florist, Do-It-Yourself Invitations, Financing Options, Music Selection, and How To Save Money While Making Your Dream Event A Reality.

Exhibit areas are at 100 percent capacity, a partial list of sponsors and entertainment includes:

-       97.1 Amp Radio

-       93.9 Exitos Radio Street Team

-       Fashion Show featuring the latest styles of designer Maggie Sottero, one of the most recognized in gown manufacturers

-       Choreographed Dance Performances

-       An electrifying D.J. Spin off Contest

-       A Party Makeover Grand Prize Drawing

The first 100 teens will receive a special gift for attending and all attendees will be entered into the Grand Prize Drawing valued at over $1,000 courtesy of Anderson’s Prom and Uniquely Quince.

For more information, check out Teen Party Expo.

[Resource Mondays] Bar/Bat Mizvah Programs and Honors

Working with some clients recently to plan their child’s mitzvah, I realized that there are little resources out there for instructions on how to compose a program for a bar/bat mitzvah. Of course, each temple and congregation has it’s own rules and regulations, but for the most part the content below serves as a general guideline. I always recommend to parents to check with their Rabbi or Cantor for final approval of the programs and also when there is a doubt about anything.

Program Content

-       A short description of the worship service as conducted at your synagogue

-       A brief explanation of the meaning of a bar/bat mitzvah event, or an essay by the bar/bat mitzvah on the meaning of the day to him/her

-       Poems or special readings

-       A discussion of the current parasha, or torah potions

-       A list of description of the mitzvot performed by the bar/bat mitzvah

-       Comments from close relatives

-       Photographs of the Bar/Bat mitzvah, be creative but check with your Rabbi first before making copies to distribute

-       The program explains to the guests the order of the service, the haftarah portion, what it means, honors given, page numbers to follow, explanations of Mitzvah Project, what Hanukkah and Havdelah service is along with what the spice bags are for, thanks to the people who have made this day happen

-       On the back, provide directions for the driedel game

-       This helps make non-Jewish guests feel much more comfortable now that they know what is going on

-       It also serves as a wonderful keepsake of the special day.

Honors and Alliyot

-       Alliyot is plural of alliyah. One person is assigne one alliyah. The family of the bar/bat mitzvah (or the froom, at an ufruf) may get to assign several alliyot. It means to come to the Torah and recite the blessings before and after a section of the Torah is read (b’rachot). An honor is a non-speaking part. The chosen person performs the honor, for example, they may open or close the Art of dress the Torah.

-       Ask the Rabbi or Cantor how many alliyot you will be allowed. Consult with your rabbi or cantor regarding participation of non-Jewish friends and relatives

-       Ask about any restrictions of limitations before your approach anyone to perform an honor or alliyah

-       Attend other Bar/Bat mitzvah services at your synagogue to see how others do it.

-       Always ask relatives and friends if they would like to participate, but let them know that it’s perfect fine to say no. Those who agree to participate will be really honored, and the others will avoid what they may feel is uncomfortable.

-       Check with the Rabbi for written instructions, Hebrew and English transliteration, and even English prayers.

Real Bride: Monica – 57 days to go – Bridesmaids Love

I absolutely adore each and every one of my bridesmaids.  They are incredibly supportive and wonderful.

Despite crazy work and school schedules, we were all able to get together to choose the bridesmaid dress.  Choosing a dress that flatters six different body types is no small feat but everyone was in high spirits when we met at Aria Dress in Pasadena, CA.

I chose this place because they had cute dresses that are wearable for multiple types of occasions and comfy.  I would hate to wear a hideous dress for one day and I certainly wouldn’t want to subject my beautiful gals to some itchy satin number that would be trashed the day after my wedding!  Here are some pics of the event.  Kudos to my beautiful ladies!

My Wedding Published on YWD Magazine

My wedding was published in the Winter of 2007 issue of Your Wedding Day (YWD) Magazine. One of the very few wedding magazines still standing. I had the pleasure of meeting Thea, Editor-In-Chief of YWD, at one of their highly anticipated events in Santa Barbara and since then have been an avid supporter of all of their efforts and promoting their publication to my clients.

This Wednesday, February 24th, I am planing on attending their “Most Anticipated Event of the Season” held in North Hollywood. As I was RSVP-ing to the event and reviewing the event detail, I scrolled to the bottom of it, only to find my very own wedding published on their site! What a delightful surprise – it certainly brought back all the great memories of planning my wedding – two years of an engagement, planning from across the country in the East Coast while supporting my husband through medical school, then trekking back to California to get married. Of course, I have to give a shout out to my day-of coordinator Jennifer Johnson who I enlisted to help me bring all the elements together on my wedding day. (She recently had a baby and I’m just thrilled for her and her family with their new addition!) How time has flown by!

To walk down memory lane with me on my wedding day, feel free to visit here for the complete story. If you are a bride and would like to RSVP for the event, click here. If you are an industry expert and would like to join me on Wednesday, click here.

Real Bride: Anita – 45 days to go – Flower War 2010!

It all started months ago, when we were very early on in the wedding planning  – My fiancés cousin recommended a florist to me and told me great things about how reasonably priced they were and what beautiful  work they did. I was impressed so I went there to check them out. (Disclaimer: Keep in mind this was one of my first vendors I went to see, I was not yet accustomed to working with “vendors” and basically didn’t  know what I was doing ) The flower shop owner and sales associate were nice enough at first, but when I started talking to them about what I wanted , they got a little difficult. We went through three  or four iterations of possible centerpieces… finally  we settled on a centerpiece that most resembled what I wanted (It by no means resembled what I had hoped for, but I was somehow convinced what I wanted was not achievable)  and then before I knew it, I was being asked to leave a deposit, when I thought I was just going  there to look and get an initial consultation. Then, suddenly there I was, handing over a check for a deposit – ugh. Big mistake!! I should have waited and compared with other florists or at the very least found someone who was nice, but I felt bad that my fiancés cousin had recommended this place and didn’t want to hurt her feelings by not using them. I felt like I was stuck with them.

So now fast forward like 6 months to today. I had been thinking about my centerpieces for a while and I knew I wasn’t happy, so I asked Jemie for her assistance. We made an appointment and went to see the florist,  and see what we could change to make the centerpieces the best they could be. We started asking a few questions about options we could try and different sizes or arrangements and the difference between glass vases and  the black boxes they had originally quoted me. Before I knew it, it was an all out flower war!!  The owner and assistant who were fairly rude to me in the beginning were now super offended it seemed that I dare bring in a professional who actually knew what questions to ask and knew the difference between Manzanita branches and Curly Willow. I was moments away from just walking out and starting from scratch, but Jemie happily and calmly  stood her ground and stood up for me when they questioned my memory of past prices they had quoted me.  It was a battle (about 2 hours), but ultimately we ended up changing the flower arrangement to something that fit my vision and that fit our budget. What a nightmare !!!

I definitely learned my lesson on this one, shop around for your vendors, don’t get intimidated and always get a second opinion. Thank goodness Jemie was there to help me salvage a sinking ship!! (We still might end up using a different florist, because they were so difficult, but we’ll see).

Cheers — T minus 45 days!

Anita

Open Thursdays | One Valentine’s Day Solution for a Romantic Weekend

I am known among my friends as a person with a great palette for food. Whenever they are in need of ideas for good restaurants, I always inevitably get the call from them for recommendations. I’m happy to take the call because I love food — mostly, it makes me happy when I eat good food and I want to others to experience that joy as well. We work too hard in life not to enjoy the simple pleasures of it and I consider food as being one of pure enjoyments in life.

I personally have never been big on Valentine’s Day — not when I was single, not when I was dating, not even when I’m married. Call it whatever you want, but for me, isn’t the love that is shown and expressed on that one singular day suppose to be an every day occurrence? But hey, it’s great for the card companies, especially for one by the name of Hallmark.

However, there is one thing that will get me out on Valentine’s Day, besides being able to spend quality time with my husband, it’s delicious food that leaves me with a feeling of wanting more after I have already stuffed myself.

I was recently commissioned to design and produce the marketing material for The Kitchen. However when it came time to write the copy for the menu provided to me by Chef Kurt, I found myself recalling my last food tasting with him and his staff for a client of mine whose event is in June. My mind flashed back to the food I sampled with my client and I found myself salivating while trying to recall all the amazing food we had.

So for those of you romantics out there, if you are tired of trying to come up with something unique and want to experience mouth-watering food for Valentine’s Day — here’s a quick solution for you and your sweetheart to just get away and enjoy a one-of-a-kind dining experience in the beautiful City of San Diego.

My husband and yours truly have already made our reservations and we can’t wait to indulge in this decadent five-course wine maker’s dinner (each course will be complimented with a wine pairing). I can’t wait…

Design and Images by: Jemie Sae Koo

Executive Chef Kurt of Concept Catering By CK was recently selected to revamp the charming and historical Horton Grand Hotel’s restaurant. Spending countless of hours applying his talent and passion, he appropriated renamed the restaurant “The Kitchen”. His Americana-style approach and organic breakfast and brunch menu he crafted and integrated into The Kitchen has already generated tremendous buzz among the urbanites of San Diego — where they continuously see a packed house every morning for breakfast and brunch (Monday – Friday, 6am – 11am and Saturday – Sunday, 7am – 11am). Chef Kurt’s constant motivation to push himself and his culinary team has lead them to their next goal — a highly anticipated expansion of The Kitchen to offer evening dining, slated to open next week.

Real Bride: Monica – 86 days to go

3 months to go until my wedding day and I’m all smiles!  I’ll be honest…I’m a non-traditional bride and I don’t know anything about wedding planning.   I am not a fan of flowers, I don’t have a knack for color coordination, and I’m so busy with my job that I’d rather sleep than drive around looking for vendors.  For me, the whole wedding planning process seemed overwhelming.  I knew from the beginning that I needed help.

Thank goodness for Jemie!  Her husband is one of my colleagues and we met at a holiday party.  I was interviewing wedding planners at the time and had not found the right one.  Jemie and I clicked instantly.  She knows how to get things done which means less stress for me.  With Jemie’s help, I’ve also secured amazing vendors for my day and the whole process has been a great experience!  Since this is a once in a lifetime event, I’m glad that I’ve enlisted Jemie’s help.  I’m looking forward to dancing the night away without a care and can’t wait for this day to come!

Things to do this week:

Selecting Invitations

Dress fitting

Interviewing florists

Sincerely,

Monica

Real Bride: Anita – 60 days to go

We got our first wedding gift last week, we were like two kids on Christmas day! It was really fun to get a big box delivered to our door, it was also a big reminder that the day is almost here! Still haven’t found thank you cards that I like, guess I really need to pick some out this weekend. Every free moment is being devoted to wedding planning. My fiancé has been really great the last few months too, really wanting to help out and do whatever needs to be done. He even got a notebook to carry with him which he writes his to do list in. It’s been a huge help having him available to fill in the gaps on stuff I don’t have time to get to. In the beginning it was a little tough, we just didn’t have the same understanding of urgency. Stuff I wanted to get done early, he thought could wait, in talking with other brides I found that to be pretty common. We both seem to be on the same page now and are really working as a team to make our special day perfect.

This week we are going to get our marriage license, it’s good for 90 days and our wedding is 60 days away so we figured we should get it out of the way since it’s kind of a hassle to drive all the way to the recorder’s office. How exciting!

This week’s to do list:

Meet with the Church organist

Buy thank you cards

Get Marriage License

Update registries

Stay Tuned!

Anita

Jemie Sae Koo Launches New Website for Event Planning, Public Relations, and Wedding – www.jemiesaekoo.com

I just couldn’t wait another minute longer to make this announcement. I’ll probably indulge more of my process later, but here we go!

I am so thrilled to present to everyone the brand, spanking NEW website that I created for my company. This is such a great achievement for me since I really had to teach myself how to put the website together. For those of you out there who know the emotions that are going through me right now, can probably recall all the late, late nights into the early mornings, doing little jigs to celebrate that you actually made a function perform properly, and the rush of the thrill that goes through you when you type in your domain address and waah-laaah! — It’s pure magic and I’m just purely elated right now!

Please visit www.jemiesaekoo.com or click on the image below to sneak a peek.