Laura and Richard Marquez

Congratulations Laura and Richard Marquez! On May 10th, 2008, Laura and Richard had the most beautiful, spectacular wedding at the gorgeous Biltmore Hotel. The entire vendor team agrees that this is one of the most amazing weddings that the Alhambra Ballroom has ever seen. I can’t talk enough in how amazing The Biltmore Hotel and their staff (including but not limited to Bruce Barbaree, and Deborah Howard) were with us from the second we started planning up to the wee hours of the morning when we were still breaking down. Thank you from the bottom of all of our hearts- outrageous job guys!

Six weeks before Laura and Richard were due to wed, I got a call from Laura; I heard the sweetest voice on the line a bit frantic, nervous, and very anxious. Laura was very stressed and overwhelmed with the wedding and had no idea where to start or what she wanted, she had planned the wedding for 2 weeks and the big event was less than 2 months away. I calmed her reassuring her that it would all get done and better yet, it would be the most perfect day she could ever dream of! Talk about TURBO PLANNING….all we had was a venue, we needed everything else- We had a lot to do and we had a BLAST planning it. There were some bumps in the road of course; their church burned down shortly after the couple had hired me, but thankfully the Biltmore was able to offer a space for us to put up at tent and house the ceremony at the venue.

All these outrageous photos were taken by Martha and Jesus Ramirez for UDS http://www.udsphoto.com/. You both are truly amazing! Thank you.

Meet the Bride and Groom ...

Laura Dajer

Richard Marquez

I love this image... Amazing job Martha!

The Roudy Bunch.... We had such a great time with this

Bridal Party... they are all such Party Animals!

The Groomsmen and Carlos and Barbara Marquez

(Parents of the Groom)

The Bridesmaids and the Beautiful Bride Ceremony Decor
We designed a crisp, modern look to the ceremony. By using a tri-colored draping design for the ceiling of the tent, it made the ceremony have life and more of a cozy, intimate feel.
Magical Moment!
The Place Card Table
Everyone knows how I LOVE to come up with unique and creative place card ideas. Laura and Richard love Disney World! They go for vacation every chance they have. However, it was the general opinion that Disney should not have been added to the decor of the wedding. In visiting the bride and groom at thier new home, I noticed tons of pictures of them... so how could I incorporate thier love for Disney and thier love to take pictures of their every memory? Caricatures! We found an artist that specialized in this type of picture rendering and we had him artistically re-create pictures of Laura and Richards favorite moments together (many of which were at Disney). They came out soooooo cute! Paper Studio miniturized them on place cards and on the back printed some fun facts about the bride and groom including pet names for eachother and how they met.... All of the guests loved this small detail.

Each table had an enlarged version of the picture so that guests could find thier designated tables. each picture was in a matt with a sharpie so that guests could leave Laura and Richard a message.
Here are some pictures of the reception... I apologize for the amount of pictures there are but I love them all and I couldn't chose which ones to post!
We used intelligent lighting to light the entire perimeter of the room in amber and lit the chandeliers and the ceiling in blue to create a romantic star-lit ambiance to the dinner.
The key to decor is to bring it all together from the bottom to the top. From the linens and rentals to the flowers and lighting, it should all come together perfectly. We carefully Chose each detail to assure that it was the perfect look for Laura and Richard's dream wedding. Lighting is essential when desinging your romantic reception. Even if it is a little bit, the enhancment of the lighting truly transforms the room and the mood of the wedding.
Our florist ROCKED! Amazing Job guys! Exactly what we wanted... PERFECTION!
Each guest received a calla lily bookmark with a small note from the bride and groom.

We chose glass beaded chargers to make the table more elegant and further compliment the of the glass that was used in the decor.

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Richard and Laura Marquez

How amazing is this picture? Thier first dance as husband and wife...

Laura and her Daddy Dancing Salsa

The Love Tent "Chuppah" was turned into the most picturesque location for the cake. We added two pin spots to enhance the beautiful creation in the after dinner lounge.

The ceremony tent was transformed into the after dinner lounge with pictures of the bride and groom, cigar rollers, bars, and tons and tons fo romantic candlight. We added amber lighting once the night fell to enhance the romatic mood.

Modular sections were placed throughout the 2100 sq ft tent. Guests frequently visited to casually talk, smoke, and just take in the night breeze (which was so yummy)

Once dinner ended, Miami's own Willy Chirino joined his 16 piece orchestra for a spectacular performance. He played all of his greatest hits include a personal favorite of mine, Soy Guajiro.

The entire ceiling of the ballroom changed colors with multiple patterns throughout the night.

A picture from up above. In order to create the perfect look for each table, we double pin spotted each centerpiece for the maximum enhancement to the overall decor.

Lemon Drops anyone? Richard and Laura are somwhere in there.... LOL

Dancing the night away! This wedding was Beyond Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jackie Ohh... Events, UDS, and the Newlyweds!

The Wedding Team: Wedding Planner Jackie Farah Fernandez and day of assistants, Jessica Vega and Yilena Ramirez for Jackie Ohh... Events, Martha and Jesus Ramirez for UDS Photo, and last but definatly not least, Bruce Barabree for Biltmore Event Design. To the ENTIRE wedding DREAM team, all of you were great! The execution of the entire wedding was flawless! I cannot thank you enough. Thank you a million times over!

I received an e-mail from Laura two days after the wedding and I wanted to share it with all of you.

Jackieeeee! Mama we are in the middle of our honeymoon but could not wait to come back to thank you for all your hard work. We have to congratulate YOU for the success of your work. You are amazing at what you do and from the first day I met you I knew things were gonna come out more than perfect. You overexceeded all of our expectations and we do appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts. I am happy to say that everytime we speak about the wedding you come to the conversation and how you made it happen.From both of us thank you and from me, thanks for being more than my wedding planner. I know how special you are and I am happy you were part of one of the most special days of my life and please expect to continue to form part of it. I look forward to meeting your husband and getting together all of us to grab dinner or something.Please extend my thanks to UDS. I cannot wait to see the pictures!Talk to you when we come back!

Love,Laura Dajer

Roberto Says Hello to Retirement

On the Evening of April 26th, 2008 Roberto celebrated 30 wonderful years with the FBI. Together with his family, friends, and colleagues, he enjoyed a cocktail reception by the water in celebration of all his hard work and years with the Bureau. Roberto called me three weeks prior to his event an wanted to me plan very detail from start to finish. It was a challenge, but after hearing his expectations and visions on how the evening would be, I quickly got to work. As soon as his guests drove into The Wave in Hollywood Beach, they were greeted by valet and a private attendant greeting them at the door. Upon entering to the Piano Room, the decor was simply chic giving the event the sense of comfy and elegant. The cocktail tables wee various heights dressed with soft blue shantung silk linens and enhanced with mahogany chiavari stools and chairs with deep espresso cushions. (I really like using dark brown cushions with mahogany chairs; it makes the chairs look more like furniture). Each centerpiece was distinct from the next. The florist incorporated soft and medium shades of flue stock and hydrangeas and incorporated dark brown leaves to give them a chic look. To enhance the décor on each table, we added candles for ambiance and elegance. At the left hand side of the room, we set up an “L” shaped bar where guests were served an unlimited variety of specialty drinks made to order. The caterer prepared delicious cocktails throughout the night. As the night got later, the food got heavier until an hour before the set to end. They then started to pass gourmet mini desserts and “cafesito cubano”. The food was beyond delicious and the presentation was phenomenal. Roberto and his guests were beyond pleased and that makes me more than happy. Roberto, thank you for letting me and my team create the perfect event as you bid a due to your career and hello to enjoying your “beach time”. =)

FIU Women's Studies Tropical Day in Paradise

April 6th, 2008 in the Esserman Estate in Coconut Grove the FIU Women's Studies Organization hosted a Tropical Day in Paradise. The night before was so rainy, but Sunday couldn't have been better for a day event. The colors were fuchsia and Teal with accents of yellow, lime, and plum. The guests enjoyed cocktails while listening to a live steel drum player and looking out to the ocean. The silent auction was very successful and the event overall was a total hit! I look forward to many more events with FIU and the Esserman Family.

Special Thanks to: Lynda and Jim Esserman and the Esserman Family and FIU Women's Studies for all of their hard work.

Event Coordinated by: Jackie from Jackie Ohh... Events. To all of the event team: You guys pulled it off perfectly. Thank you.

Caja Madrid Cocktail

I had the great pleasure of working with Borja and Ana Morube on Caja Madrid's Bank Conference Cocktail at their private home in Key Biscayne. The house is a zen inspired home with amazing modern architecture and a view of the ocean that leaves you speechless. The night of April 4th was great and breezy... perfect weather for a party!

As the guests entered the home, they were greeted by Caja Madrid's logo and a beautiful pathway decorated with tons of hallow candles.

We designed a great layout for this outdoor event. Half of the pool was covered with an acrylic floor that was lit from the pool changing colors every 15 seconds. The production company did all of the production of lighting, draping, tenting, and the pool cover. On top of the pool cover was an all white, grand circular bar. The smaller cocktail rounds were covered in white dupioni linens and the high boys were covered in lime green dupioni linens to add contrast and to match the color of Caja Madrid. Mahognay chiavari stools and chairs were used for seating and added an elegant and modern touch to the decor. The house was lit in chocolate lighting to add color contrast and for a ambient look. Our florist for the event did a great job at all of the floral decor. We used a variety of all types of white orchids to enhance the event and to match the modern look of the house. One of my favorite elements was the hundreds of handles hanging from the banzai tree in the garden.
The furniture rental company that we used provided all of the acrylic bars white, modular furniture we had spread throughout the lawn and the dock. We had them make us green pillows to accent the furniture and to further accentuate the green theme for our clients.

The food was amazing! The Catering company and her staff did a great job! The food was not only scrumptious but what an amazing presentation!

Event Designer and Coordinator- Jackie from Jackie Ohh... Events. To all of the event team members: thank you thank you thank you. It was gorgeous! Another event flawlessly done and executed!

Cristy and Mark Williams

Congratulations Newlyweds! Cristy and Mark Williams got married on March 15th, 2008. After many months of planning, the big day was finally here. Our first stop, the beautiful St. Patricks Catholic Church in Miami Beach where the couple started promptly and said their "I do's". Next stop, the JW Marriot for the much anticipated reception. Cristy and Mark wanted a fresh, romantic feel for thier room using hues of pinks, greens, whites, and chocolates. Enjoy!

All Photos are by Unique Design Studios www.udsphoto.com

HIS & HERS

At 6:30pm on the dot, Cristy walked down the aisle with her dad to meet her groom. The church was filled with family and friends and the ceremony was gorgeous. We still aren't sure what happened to Mark, but he started sweating profusely throughout the ceremony. The priest got a bit worried about him so he asked the church assistant to get him some water. A couple of sips afterwards, the ceremony was back on track. Phew! You gave us quite a scare there Mark! Glad you were okay. A couple of minutes and a long kiss later, they were married!

After they took quick pictures with their family, they were off to JW. Jessie and I awaited them downstairs where they had a private cocktail hour to relax and take some time to take it all... they were finally married. As the guests got to the main floor of the ballroom, they were greeted by a gorgeous arrangement of green apples and baby pink hydrangeas. The table was filled with tini green apple candles with each guests names attached to it. It was an amazing table presentation; every guest had something to say about it.(Sorry about the picture above. It was was taken by me on my digi =p)

After walking into the cocktail hour, guests were enjoying the live piano, eating, drinking, and watching the cigar roller roll cigars for the wedding guests. All of the men were around that table at some point within the hour. It was great! Some Details of the Reception
The custom designed menu cards and the CD favors After their private cocktail, Marlyne took Cristy and Mark downstairs to the lobby for some pictures by themselves. Our lighting company provided us with the uplighting and pin spots around the ballroom. We almost always use lighting at every wedding/event we do. It adds such an amzing touch to the ambaince and the feel of the wedding. Shortly after, around 8:45pm, Cristy and Mark walked into their room for the first time. I'll never forget the looks on their face when they saw how it had come together. (This probably is one of my most favorite moments at a wedding.) They stopped on the dance floor and just starred out to the ballroom as the band played a romantic love song. They were in wow, gave me a big hug, and started walking around the room to see everything. They loved it all and so did their guests. "Wow" was defiantly a word I heard a lot that night. We could not be happier that everyone was over joyed with the wedding and how it came together... beautifully.

The florist did a great job in the arrangements for the wedding. It was exactly what Cristy and Mark wanted. The linens and specialty rentals were just the perfect combination to tie it all together. We rented off white shantung underlays with white palette overlays, mahogany chiavari chairs with off white shantung cushions, off white shantung napkins and they accented it with a beautiful green, satin bow to match the decor.

During Dinner Jessie and I transformed the Place Card table into a To-Go Breakfast in Bed Table. Each guest took one box on their way out. The box was filled with delicious cuban pastries including Pastel de Guayaba, Queso, y Carne with two Croquettas (uno de jamon y el otro de pollo). The Guests loved it and it was delicious. The wedding overall was beautiful and al of the guests had a great time. Cristy and Mark and their families are super happy which makes me even happier! Wedding Team: Wedding Coordinator: Jackie Farah Fernandez and Day of Assistant Jessica Vega for Jackie Ohh... Events, Unique Design Studios, Florencia de Salvo and JW Marriott Miami, St. Patricks Miami Beach. To all the wedding vendors: You guys all did such a great job. Thank you!