Cupcake Alternatives!

I am loving these awesome alternative to the now (TOO typical) tiered cupcake display!

***Come on Brides....lets start a much needed NEW TREND!

Here are some ideas I Love:

Sprinkles Custom Cakes just introduced Cake Shooter, a push-up pop with three layers of cake and icing. The shooters are available in four flavors: Yellow Raspberry Swirl, Pina Colada, O.M.G. (a mix of raspberry swirl and chocolate buttercream icing), and the Sprinkles Signature (vanilla Bavarian cream and white icing). The label on each pop can be customized with a company logo or message for no additional charge, though a week’s notice is required They also have a super cute and interactive Sprinkles Mobile Another cute (and local) idea is your very own Ice Cream Truck like this one we did outside of Gotham Hall in NYC Cake Pops are decedent little cakes on a stick that are as yummy as they are cute. Each Cake Pop is made to order so you can make it any cake flavor, any color fondant on the outside and any design detail on top! And if you're not into cake at all...how about Ice Pops or Shaved Ice!Peoples Pops transforms local sustainably grown fruits and herbs into Popsicles (they do pretty awesome shaved ice too!)

What are some of your new ideas to do for dessert.... instead of the Cupcake? I'd love to hear!

xoxo

~Maya

Summer in the City means Weddings in the Hampton's!

This weekend marked the beginning of summer... and in New York City the official exodus of New Yorkers out to the Hamptons! And while I love having such a beautiful vacation-land so close to home.... in my world this weekend also marked the beginning of wedding season in the Hamptons!

The Hamptons offer New York couples the ability to have a true 'destination wedding' while still being extremely close to home. There are beautiful beaches, quaint churches, acres of farm land, vineyards and don't forget the magnificent mansions all available for rent for your special day! (or week if you want to really make it luxurious!) There are also a bevy of private yachts, yacht clubs, dance clubs and charming bed and breakfasts to choose from as well. Each has its own allure and offers your guests a different glimpse into the often talked about Hamptons experience!

There are so many great reasons to choose to have your destination wedding in the Hamptons.

· It makes for a great mini vacation weekend for your friends and family.

· There are great pre and post wedding activities to keep your guests busy. Shopping, Wine Tastings, Antique Shops, Biking, Water Sports....the list goes on and on!

· And when it comes to your wedding design concept, there are a ton to use as inspiration! From beachy, to shabby chic, to nautical, to rustic barn, the options go on and on!

But before you set your sites on getting married out there -there are some things to strongly consider.

· Traffic. When you try and take thousands of people in cars from a 4 lane highway gradually down to a 1 lane country what you get is TRAFFIC...a lot of traffic. As new yorkers we may be used to this concept but many of your guests will not be. So it’s really important to prep them. Make sure that you mention the length of time it may take to get out to the Hamptons on a Saturday morning (if they are not planning on staying out there the night before) Nothing makes for a grumpy guest quite like the panic they feel when they see they are going to be late for the ceremony or even worse miss it all together because they didn’t plan enough time for travel.

· Accommodations. The Hamptons is certainly not known for being “budget friendly”. So what you may think is an “affordable” option for a hotel or B&B night stay – your guests may think is a portion of their life savings. You need to know your guests and try and set their expectations or plan accordingly to make sure that everyone feels they have an option.

· Heat. You may have been dreaming about your beach wedding for months now, but make sure you consider your guests. East Coast beaches aren’t exactly like the palm tree lined beaches of the Caribbean. Rarely is there any type of coverage or shelter from the sun. So make sure that you provide sun & sand comforts in advance for your guests such as parasols, hand fans, ice water and even a shoe valet so guests don’t have to walk in the sand with their shoes!

· Transportation. While most of your guests will be driving and will have their car to get out to the Hampton (taking the train or the Jitney is also a great and convenient way to get out to there) Most party hosts worry about “getting” their guests to their event but not “leaving”. The Hamptons can be very dark and desolate at night. Lots of small winding country roads. Not the kind of place you want any of your guests driving after having partaken in your very generous open bar! The police in Suffolk County take drunk driving very seriously! So you may want to consider a bus or car service for the end of the night to help get your guests home safely.

· And last but not at all least...Noise. The biggest issue when planning a wedding in the Hamptons. While music is obviously an integral part of an amazing party, the Hampton’s are primarily residential areas. A lot of flat land and large open masses of water equals noise traveling FAR! It’s pretty amazing just how far the sound of amplified music and people having fun carries, and thus The Hamptons have instilled Noise Ordinances that are strictly adhered to. Most areas require that you substantially lower or completely shut off any amplified music by 9:30-10pm. And for most people who want to have a sunset ceremony and a late Saturday evening reception, 10pm is EARLY to be slowing the party down! And trust me, from years of experience, there’s nothing more stressful to a bride or groom than to have to deal with the police on the night of their wedding to discuss shutting the party down! Unfortunately there aren’t many ways to get around this other than to plan an early event that can wind down around that 10pm hour. One of the ways I have found to ‘pre empt’ the call from your neighbors to the police is to send a note in advance. Whenever we rent a home for our clients we usually send a hand written note (with a bottle of wine or champagne) to all of the neighbors explaining that we are having a celebration on this particular date and that while we will try and be mindful of the noise we produce, that they also please understand that this is a once in a life celebration. Inviting them to stop by for a drink and a dance is also a generous way of enticing them to celebrate with you instead of complaining about you.

All in all, the Hampton’s is an amazing place to throw an unforgettable “Destination Wedding” weekend. But like any other even, planning the details for the pit falls ahead of time is what ensures a flawless event that was enjoyed by all!

Here are some of my favorite Hampton Wedding Details!

This ones a bit X-RATED :)

This ones a bit X-RATED :)

So last friday my very successful & clever friend/colleague Zoe Alexander sent out this letter to all us DIVAS (if you're a fab business woman & don't know about it you should check out Divas Who Dine (www.divaswhodine.com) -but that's another post) Anyway, Zoe sent this out & I loved it! Not only because I do think its excellent advice but also because we... (busy women, newly engaged women, married women...ALL women!) sometimes make things more complicated then they have to be - and that goes for dealing with the men in our lives. I get asked for advice all the time by friends, colleagues and clients - especially when it comes to relationship issues- and this is exactly what I think but never thought to write down!) Well that's why Zoe is a well paid and published journalist!

So here's her letter.....I think it should become a popular mantra & hashtag like #FF - maybe we do #FYMF (F Your Man Friday):)
Like the title says - its a bit X-rated so you have been warned. But for any of you that know me....well you know me!
Anyway Enjoy!
xoxo ~Maya

It's almost Friday night here in LA and hopefully you're not still working, especially if you are on the east coast. I wanted to address something because it has been coming up a lot in private DIVA consultations...it's the issue of being so fabulous at work that when you get home you don't the time or energy to be fabulous to your husband or boyfriend. A couple of DIVAS even admit that they are so drained when they come home from work that they just want to be alone and not spend time with their men. Or they are so grouchy that they snap at their guys for small offenses. Is this you? Well, i remember something that Whoopi Goldberg told me years ago when I interviewed her. Valentine's Day was coming up and I asked her what she thought was the one thing a busy, working woman can do to ensure her man stays happy in the relationship. She said without missing a beat. "F-ck him!' She added: "Whenever one of my friends comes to me and says she's having problems in her relationship, I say,'Well are you f-cking him?' And 9 times out of 10, the answer is that they haven't been having sex regularly. Men are very simple. Just f-ck them and compliment them frequently."DIVA Lisa Lori of Lisa Lori Communications actually dispensed similar advice to me after I had Miles. I was telling her that I was so tired from late-night feedings that that the thought of having sex with my husband was not appealing. Lisa is pretty laid back so I'll never forget the seriousness of her tone when she told me the following:"Listen to me. You take one for the team. You have sex with him even if you don't feel like it right now. He needs to feel loved too and so often when we have babies and work, we focus so much on that and ignore him. That will slowly eat away at your marriage if you leave it too long. That's where some girl who comes along and showers a man with attention can get in. "So ladies, on that note, it's Friday night. Turn off your computer, I-phone and/or Blackberry and go f-ck your men! If it's been awhile and you're a little rusty in the sexy department... here's a song to inspire.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e82VE8UtW8A
Have a wonderful weekend!
All The Best,
Zoe Alexander

Swank Wedding in Israel!

One of the things I really LOVE about my job is that I get to travel to beautiful places to see people celebrate love "their way". Especially when it's somewhere completely different, like the Middle East! Different types of venues, different locals, different styles of dresses, different food...everything different! I LOVE IT!

I was recently lucky enough to be back in Israel (where I was born) for both business and pleasure and wanted to share these photos of our lovely couple and the beautiful wedding we created for them.

*Some Cool Facts about This Wedding:

The venue, STOA, is outside of Tel Aviv, and was actually an old indoor basketball court. Keeping the "bleacher" "levels" was a really cool element to play with.

The brides dress (as well as the dresses of all the women in the wedding party) was custom made and had a full skirt to cover her legs for the religious ceremony but then it was removable as she went into "party" mode!

(more photos to come on our site!)

Mazel Tov to all of you planning your wedding where ever it's going to be!

xoxo ~Maya

You Just Got Engaged! Now What?

Congratulations! You just got engaged!

I know its such an exciting time and you want to get started planning NOW.
BUT hold on! One thing I'm sure you haven't thought of is what if I loose my bling?!!?

I know....what do you mean? But yes things do happen. Diamonds do fall out of their settings and rings do slip off of fingers. What would you do if that happened? (other than sob)

So first things first! Call your insurance agent and get that bling insured! Doesn't cost much at all to add it your renter or homeowners insurance. But if the unthinkable happens knowing you were smart is priceless!

Cheers to your engagement!
~Maya

Non Floral Wedding Centerpiece

Don't get me wrong I have nothing against flowers! LOL
- some of my best friends are florists!

BUT I DO LOVE non floral wedding centerpieces
because it shows a real desire to be different (and sometimes quite budget friendly)
(and I say 'sometimes' because not always will flowers be less than some of the non floral centerpiece ideas we've come up with!)
One of my favorite non floral wedding centerpiece ideas is the Candelabra.

They can be purchased or rented. You can find them is all different shapes, sizes, materials and finishes. And like the ones we used for this wedding at The Edison Ballroom they can be painted any color that goes with your decor vision!
(these were a strange chipped antique gold so we sprayed them high gloss black)
This one is a particularly fun DIY centerpiece because the bride is a jewelry buyer for a popular chain store and so we used the necklaces she sells as embellishments on all the centerpieces! (which some of the guests that worked with her realized as they were complimenting us on the decor -too funny!)
While this particular wedding was very much a black & white theme
(as well as feathers - which will be another non floral centerpiece blog) :) We used white taper candles (make sure to ask your venue about flame rules) BUT in the past to really jazz things up you can buy (or even spay paint!) taper candles any color you want! (with non flammable paint)
Picture sunshine yellow, a soft violet....any color or combo of colors that you may find hard to buy. OR if you wanted to get really crafty and ombre would be outrageous!

Whatever you decide, just know that centerpieces do not have to include any flowers and can still be magical and elegant.

And as always, your wedding decor should be an expression of YOU!.... so be chic, be sassy, be be bold...be YOU.

Cheers to getting married in NY!
~Maya

Photos & Video by the awesome and talented Jorg Windau
Planning, Design & Production by Swank Productions

Congratulations on your Engagement!

CONGRATULATIONS on your ENGAGEMENT!