Wedding Ceremony with Personality

One of the things I often tell my clients is to infuse their personalities into the wedding ceremony. It doesn't have to be so serious and so formal. Have some fun. Show your personalities. Try using some cool music you love instead the usual classical music or traditional church organ. Do something different or unique that stands out. Wedding ceremonies can sometimes be boring for the guests, so make it fun! (laughter is the best). The day will be much more memorable for you and your guests. Here is a great example.

Wedding Vendors Giving Back

What a SUPER event! I have been wanting to organize a volunteer event for professionals in the wedding industry for a while. Well, it finally happened! Yesterday, 25 of us gathered at the Second Harvest Food Bank in San Jose to help sort food that would be distributed to people in Silicon Valley who really need it. It was a lot of fun and a very worthwhile cause. It was great to see how enthusiastic everyone was about giving back to the community.The photo below is of me with some of my fellow members of NACE. (National Association of Catering Executives) From left to right: Robbie Schlosser of the Magnolia Jazz Band, Amy Frugoli from Twitterpated Weddings, Photographer Claudia Akers, L.T Beaton from Palo Alto Hills Golf and Country Club, (and of course me in the back towering above!) The event was such a great success that I will be starting a new volunteer group solely made up of Wedding Industry Vendors who will volunteer once a month. I am so excited! I will have a new website and Facebook page for this group very soon. Here is another photo of me being silly with my buddy Jessie Garcia from PlayitLoud Productionz. Jessie is an awesome DJ and so kind to volunteer for this event.

Magnolia Jazz Band

Here is a clip of the wonderful Magnolia Jazz Band playing at the "Over The Top" NACE event (National Association of Catering Executives). This band is well-known in San Jose and the Bay Area for providing very cool music for wedding receptions and parties.

A Peacock Wedding Dress? NO WAY!

I am beginning to realize that I HAVE NOT seen it all. (And I thought I had) Here is a "stunning" peacock wedding dress. This unique dress took eight handicrafts men two months to finish and had a price tag of $1.5 million. It is decorated with 2009 peacock tail feathers and 60 Haitian jades. I know some cultures consider peacock feathers to be lucky but...come on! I would rather have my bride dressed up as Big Bird.

Advice: Pictures During The Reception

For most couples, the majority of their pictures with the family and bridal party are taken directly after the ceremony while the guests are enjoying the cocktail-appetizer hour. However, some photographers like to take the Bride and Groom away from the reception to snap a few photos or to capture a sunset shot. This is okay but please be aware of the time and don't stay away too long. Remember, your guests want to have a great time and party with YOU. If they don't see you, they may assume that you have left and that the reception is ending soon. This kills the energy in the room and people will start to leave. This can be easily avoided. Simply schedule the majority of your family and bridal party photos before your grand entrance. Always let your DJ know ahead of time if you are going to leave the reception area for photos so that he can plan something to entertain the guests while you are gone. Remember: Your wedding reception is going to fly by very quickly. Make sure that you are there to enjoy it!

7 First Dances

Jan and Russ decided that their wedding day wouldn't be just about them. They also wanted it to be special for their 125 friends and family who joined them at the Hotel De Anza in San Jose. For starters, Jan's Mom, Betty, was her Matron of Honor! How cool! Apart from their own First Dance, Jan and Russ also asked me to play the First Dance songs of 6 other married couples who were at the reception. Of course, I didn't play them all back to back. (I just kind of sprinkled them in throughout the evening) It was neat to see the expressions on their faces as I played each song . For some, I'm sure it was the first time they danced to their special song since their actual wedding day. Photo by Kimberly Parish.Special Dance Songs For Jan and Russ:

First Dance: "Making Memories of Us" by Keith Urban
Father-Daughter Dance: "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong
Farewell Dance: "When You Say Nothing At All" by Allison Kraus

No Beating Around The Bush.

Keeping with the Halloween Theme, I thought I'd share with you a super-funny picture from my friend Stacie Tamaki, creator of The Flirty Guide. Her dog, Kitai, is one of the coolest and cutest dogs I have ever met! Every year, he wears something different for Halloween. He has been featured in numerous newspapers and websites. He was flown to New York to appear on the Today Show on NBC and he even has his own website! (http://www.cutestdogever.com) You can see more of his cute pics there. He is famous! I need to get his Pawtograph. How cute!

May The Force Be With You!

I've done all of types of themed-weddings over the years. Although Hawaiian and Disney Weddings are the most popular, I've also done many others including a Halloween Wedding where all of the guests dressed in costumes. (see http://richamooi.blogspot.com/2007/10/spooky-wedding.html) But every now and then, someone takes that idea to another level! Hey...how about a Star Wars Wedding!

Falling in Love at the YMCA

I guess you are probably expecting a joke right about now but there isn't one! Tim and Marissa really did fall in love at the YMCA. (They both used to work there) 200 Guests joined them for a celebration of their love at the Opera House in Los Gatos. Of course, I was not surprised that YMCA was the top song on their request list! Here are the Bridesmaids having some fun to that song. Photo by Deanna Graham
Since Tim is obsessed with sports, Marissa surprised him with a special 49er Cake that was the shape of a football. The guests got a kick out of that. (No pun intended) Here is a shot I took from the balcony of the guests having fun on the dance floor. They were a lively bunch!Special Music Selections - Ceremony:

Weddng Party: "Canon in D" - Pachabel
Bride's Song: "Always a Woman" - Billy Joel (instrumental)
Kissing Song: "Friday, I'm in Love" by The Cure

Other Special Songs:

First Dance: "These are the Days" by Van Morrison
Father-Daughter: "I Loved Her First" by Heartland
Groom-Mother: "The First Lady in my Life" by Paul Todd
Farewell Dance: : "These are the Days" by 10,000 Maniacs

Side Note: The song titles of their First and Last Dances were the same! (Different Artist though) That was a first for me.

Holiday Parties

It's that time of year already? It's amazing how time flies. Many companies are now planning their annual Holiday Parties. It's nice to see that, even with the economy, companies know how important it is to reward their employees for a year of hard work. I am looking forward to another wonderful Holiday season. (It is one of my favorite times of the year) Here is a picture of a fun corporate party that I did for Equity Office in San Jose. This event was held at the Corinthian Event Center.

What a Unique Wedding Date!

Looking for something cool to make your wedding day stand out even more? All you have to do is get married on October 10th of next year. Why, you ask? Because the date of your wedding would be 10-10-10. How cool is that!

Second Harvest Food Bank in San Jose

My favorite local non-profit is the Second Harvest Food Bank in San Jose. I volunteer there as a Team Leader a few times of month and it is very rewarding. They are always looking for volunteers and/or donations of food and money. If you can help out, that would be awesome! Here is short video about the food bank and what they're all about.

Ritz-Carlton - Half Moon Bay Wedding

Annie and Greg told me that there was only one thing that they wanted to do on their wedding day. (besides kiss a thousand times) They wanted to dance! It was very clear to me how much they valued the DJ. They had a wonderful reception at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay. As you can see by this photo, they accomplished their goal of being on the dance floor non-stop! Now that's what I like to see!

The Bride's Unforgettable Surprise

Spanish people are known for being very passionate. I know that first-hand because my girlfriend is from Spain! Check out the video of this Spanish Bride (Venesa) who surprised her husband-to-be (Jose Carlos) by singing to him during their wedding ceremony in a church in Andalucía. Her voice is absolutely amazing. You may not understand what she is saying, but you certainly will be able to feel the emotion. The song had the guests (and the groom) in tears. (Happy tears!)

Size Doesn't Matter

Andreea and Robert had only 45 guests at their wedding reception at Palo Alto Hills Country Club. Some people think that it is not necessary to have a DJ for events of this size. I am so glad that Andreea and Robert did not feel that way! (I can't imagine going to a wedding reception without dancing!) Here is a picture of me with the happy newlyweds at the end of the evening.This was the first Romanian-Scottish reception that I got to DJ and it was such a treat. The guys in the Bridal Party wore the traditional Scottish Kilts. I also had a chance to play music from both countries as well as many of the usual fun dance songs that you would hear at an American Wedding. Here are there special dance selections:

First Dance" "Fly Me To The Moon" by Frank Sinatra
Bouquet Song: "Single Ladies" by Beyonce
Farewell Dance: "Come Away With Me" by Norah Jones

Funny Stuff: The Best Man Christopher gave a very entertaining toast. He started by saying "My toast will be the "Kilt Version" ...short enough to keep it interesting...but long enough to cover the important bits".