Trendy Wendy – Hot New Venue

by Trendy Wendy

Bar Basque

From the owners of China Grill and other New York City eateries comes Bar Basque, a chic new restaurant, bar and lounge, and event space in midtown. Housed in the Eventi Hotel this is the perfect space to party down and cuddle up this fall and winter. Wall to wall windows take you as close to the outdoors as you want to be in the cool weather, and the lounge boasts serve yourself wine. Think soda fountain but upscale. Insert your credit card, choose your wine, and press the button. Voila! Wine without the waiting. Enjoy Spanish tapas from the Basque region of Spain (a la the title of the restaurant) while sipping a mango lime cocktail.

See you next week for the hottest! xoxo Wendy

Yacht Club Birthday Bash!

Here is a sneak peak of the photos from last week’s event: Anne’s Birthday Bash at the Cedarhurst Yacht Club in Long Island. The weather was perfect, the ocean was calm, and the night was spectacular! DJ Gatsby kept the crowd on their feet all night! Private Receptions did the decor, floral, and planning of this event, “soup to nuts” as we like to say. For the full gallery of photos join our new Facebook page! Once you become a fan you’ll be able to see all the photos from our events right after they happen!

Photographs by Charles Roussel

The Sky’s The Limit

by Trendy Wendy

Oh Wednesdays, how you often leave me wanting more…not this Wednesday!  Excited to learn about a new hot spot whose official open date is TBA but now open for friends, family, and VIPs 😉 The Sky Room atop the Marriot encourages sipping champagne with strawberries, as it’s the highest rooftop lounge in New York, with 360-degree views of Manhattan over Times Square.  New Yorkers I know you’re doubting this soon to be hot spot, thinking, “Over Times Square?  It’ll just be another tourist attraction!”  Let me assure you, The Sky Room will be a New York hot spot welcoming socialites at all hours.

Exclusive Photo of the South Terrace

The Sky Room bi-level lounge offers 5 spaces with different vibes.  The 33^rd Floor supports The Times Square Lounge through a modern feel with LED light-up Bars, The Cube Balcony, and the Private Salon offering VIP seating.  The 34^th Floor is the home of the North Terrace, a rooftop experience for all year round with a retractable ceiling and the South Terrace offering an Oasis experience through private cabanas.

This New Yorker got a sneak preview of the Menu, which isn’t for the public’s eyes yet but I couldn’t keep it a secret from my readers! The Menu is loaded with unique appetizers and exotic cocktails.  My girls and I can’t wait to try the Mile-High featuring a sinful concoction of Bombay Sapphire Gin, peach liqueur, and Chambord, drowned in Prosecco and the Absolut Youth featuring absolut Vodka spruced up by muddled cucumber slices, bitters, and sour mix.

North Terrace

See you next week for the hottest! xoxo Wendy

White Hot Summer Fashion Finds

by Trendy Wendy

Happy Wednesday readers. As we know, usually the wedding world mimics fashion’s latest trends, but this season high fashion has the wedding bug with all things white hot. From the runway to the sidewalks of New York, this summer white is the new black and as a bride to be, I love it. Chanel, Dior, and Gucci to name a few, showed Summer 2010 looks on the runway.

Get inspired by the healthy dose of white this summer and think white for your venue as well. White wash your destination wedding by heading to Greece or getting married on a white sand beach. Here are some of the white items on this trend-sters shopping list:

clockwise from top left: Anthropologie necklace, American Retro dress, Gucci bag, James Perse skirt, Christian Louboutin shoe, La Mer watch, MIH jeans, Sheri Bodell dress

See you next week for the latest! xoxo Wendy

Dreaming of a (stress-free) Holiday Wedding?

Having a Holiday wedding can be stressful.  But  knowledge of the proper preparation and insight to the benefits can make your wedding planning journey less stressed. Let’s explore:

• First, understanding the possible obstacles when planning a holiday wedding will help you realize if you want to embark on a holiday wedding at all. A holiday wedding may cut down your ‘yes’ RSVP list due to guests who are not related to you wanting to be with their families during the holidays.

• Perhaps most importantly, if you decide to have a holiday wedding the number one way to cut down on stress is to plan ahead!! With holidays comes holiday rush.  The earlier your wedding invitations are sent out the earlier your guests can make arrangements to attend.  During the holidays hotels and flights may be costly so give your out of town guests a better chance for availability and lower prices with an early announcement. In addition, some vendors may be closed or booked early around the holidays, so be prepared with second-choice backups for your florist, photographer, and caterers.

• No need to stress over décor.  During the holidays many venues decorate accordingly.  When choosing a venue,  tailor your choices with your holiday.  If you are having a July 4th wedding choose an outdoor venue like a loft that brings in natural sunlight or that has a rooftop terrace. If you are having winter wedding choose a venue with a beautiful fireplace.

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  A 4th of July Wedding "Cake", Martha Stewart

  Keep it simple and go with the holiday theme!  This will alleviate much of the pressures of picking a theme.  Each holiday has a unique aura, smell, taste, and sound. Serve festive cocktails for a winter holiday wedding like spiced cider. Include a turkey carving station with all the trimmings for a holiday wedding around Thanksgiving weekend, and request your band or DJ to include some holiday themed songs into your play list.

How To – Discover Your Wedding Style

How To by Jennifer Crone

You’re engaged – let’s get the ball rolling! Start by deciding on a theme or style of decor. If you’re a bride-to-be who isn’t sure what she wants begin by exploring ways to find your wedding style–without flipping through an endless stack of bridal magazines.

Start in your home: is it a modern space with clean lines and colors that pop or classic and chic with a touch of elegance? This space is a reflection of you so start there.  Think of your favorite restaurant: vintage creperie or eclectic eatery with a vibrant palette? Get in tune with where you feel happiest and why. Take notes while you’re brainstorming and circle key words.

Here are some examples of how your decor tastes can translate into your wedding style:

photo sources (clockwise from left): The Plush Pod, Amy Atlas Events, Deborah Whitlas Lewellyn Photography, Martha Stewart Weddings, Martha Stewart, Tamara Lackey Photography, Brides, Better Homes & Gardens

If you’re about to comprise your two homes into one and don’t have a set style yet, think about items that are important to you. Is your favorite possession a handmade throw passed down from your great grandmother? Use a cherished item from your first trip overseas together as inspiration, like a painting from an Italian street artist or a teapot from Japan.

photo sources (clockwise from left): Central Chef, myweddingfavors.com, Impressions Are Everything, Federico Alfano painting, Delilah's Flowers, Paper Source, Weed's Floral, Martha Stewart Weddings, Anthropologie

Your wedding is a celebration of your lives coming together; remember to let that be reflected by choosing items that tell a story of you as a couple for inspiration.

Lights, camera, action!

If you’re like one of many couples, you may be having your reception in the same venue as your ceremony… maybe even the same room! There are many ways to transform your space from that plain area that you want to host your ceremony in to a fun and exciting place to have your reception. One of the main things you can do is to add or change lighting to your venue!

First, you must know what kind of environment you would like to have. Do you want a more classic and conservative feel? Or do you want to have more of a crazy and fun disco type reception area?

There’s so many cool things you can do with your lights:

• Moving lights
• Ambient area lights (lights coming from above and filter down)
• Changing colors
• Gobos (stencils or patterns)
• Uplights (for perimeter glow)

You could also find a place with a lot of windows. That will keep your options open to whether you want to keep them open for light and scenery or if you want to cover them up with heavy or light curtains depending on how much lighting you want.

Keep in mind that if you are going to transform your ceremony area into your reception area, you have to find a place for your guests to be while the change goes on. Two suggestions would be either to have a separate area for your guests to stay and mingle while the change is being done or simply have your area set up already but cover it up with some curtains so that it can be opened up once it is time for the reception.

However you decide to set up your venue for the night, make sure you are well organized. If you have a planner it may make things easier by making sure things run smoothly and by keeping guests comfortable, making sure they have a place to be while waiting!

Take me out to the ballpark…

Hey everyone!

Are you thinking of a place to have your son’s birthday party? Maybe you’re planning a bachelor’s party. Or maybe you’re looking to surprise your husband with an awesome party for his birthday. Whatever it is, you should definitely check out the new Yankee Stadium.

On Monday, we got to go to the stadium and check out the new ballpark as well as all their new spaces within the building. It was amazing. For any of you who have been to the old stadium… it’s nothing like it. With meeting rooms and halls to host thousands of people outside of the stadium seats,  there’s room to do almost anything you  want there.  There’s also several different lounges that can be rented out for parties with amazing views of the field. Also available are box suites that hold anywhere from 12 to 500 people. You can customize most of their LCD boards or banners, so you can wish Little Johnny a happy birthday with his name on the scoreboard and LCD on the field! You can even have the name of your company displayed during a trade show.

Enjoy their facilities while hosting and watching an event on game day or rent a space on a non-game day for other occasions.  Some ideas for events you can hold:

• Conferences
• Fundraisers
• Tradeshows
• Bar/Bat Mitzvahs
• Weddings
• Corporate Events
• Barbecues and Picnics

There was definitely a lot of thought put into the stadium, making sure there was a lot of history that was from the old stadium that was incorporated into the new stadium. For example, each of the suites has a number, and each room has pictures and names of the Yankees players to commemorate them.

I took some pictures with my phone, but they didn’t come out too clearly, the website has much better pictures of their facilities. The Yankees also hosted the event for us which included cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and a tour.

They also have in house catering and entertainment. They provided this photobooth for us as well as live music and bartenders! The service was amazing and I highly recommend using the Yankees Stadium.

Here are some of the views from the Yankees Site: http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/nyy/ballpark/panoramas_2009.jsp

And remember, if you want Private Receptions to help plan any of your upcoming events, check out our webpage and give us a call. Or shoot us an email! info@privatereceptions.com .