Sound the trumpets…it’s Friday!! Also, when you have a kid that is as talented as Elias you can not not have a music themed Bar Mitzvah for his special day! Not only is he an amazing musician, he is the most kind-hearted 13 year old we know! We loved being part of his special day and we can’t wait to see what wonderful things he does in his future!
A fun music themed event can go many different directions. Our favorite is of course a more eclectic style, mixing new and old pieces that all work together. The event kicked off with a music shop idea with guest’s names and table numbers printed on vintage records placed in white sleeves. The records were then put in alphabetical order (of course) so guests had to flip through records to find their record…just like a real record shop! We used different music inspired decor pieces to create this entry moment.
Elias’ mom, Joyce, had found the perfect sparkly music notes that inspired our hanging fixture for the head table. From there, we also hung vintage records and created a runner of records down the center of the table! This fixture added great height to the room and a fun visual aspect.
The dessert table set up was nestled in the corner of the room with great draping detail to make it extra special. The candy bar was filled with favorites and since Elias plays the piano we couldn’t resist but add a white baby (baby) grand piano onto the dessert table! Congratulations Elias on your special day!!
Good morning everyone!! Have Friday the 13th…nothing scary going on here just our usual event planning, photo spreading and some truth sharing about fear.
Last October we had 5 events in two weekends, 3 of which were WEDDINGS! I believe it was the first time in a very long time I had a nervous breakdown, by this I mean, I was so nervous making sure everything was perfect that I lost sight of all the beauty in each event and all the planning we had put beforehand was lost on me. I was so overwhelmed with anxiety that the morning of one of the weddings I could not use my fingers to make the boutonnieres, they were just numb. A few of you out there may know this about me but I cry…a lot. I cry when I am happy, I cry when I am sad, I cry when I mad, it is quite annoying most of the time and something I have been trying to overcome for YEARS!!!? Anyway, let’s say there was a lot of crying happening for two weeks straight. I have to tell you though, if it wasn’t for my partners in crime, my business team and what they were first called before Limani, my family I don’t think I would have survived another event.
As soon as we arrived to the first venue, everything I feared just snapped out of me. We had a job to do and I was not going to let our wonderful bride and groom down just because I could not control my fears and nervousness We put together a lovely wedding, if we do say so ourselves, and the no one had a clue that inside I was a huge ball of mess! The next day we went to two events back to back and the following day we went to start prepping for the following week’s two wedding.
The wedding images above our from our first ever 400 person wedding. The design elements are simple clean lines with pretty touches of fall. The fall leaves were placed on all branches, painted a dark rich brown and hanging candles added a soft touch. All the tables had candle pillars in various heights so when the lights were dimmed all you saw was beautiful candlelight and deep redish-orangy calla lilies and fall leaves. Though it may seem simple and elegant, there were 17-19 pieces on each table times 40 tables equals a lot of pieces, a lot of packing, a lot of unloading and setting up! I don’t want you to think I am complaining about a job I choose to do and create a design for -trust me, I hear that enough from the Limani Team 🙂 but it feels good to just let you into our world a little bit deeper. All the events we work on are custom made to create unique and individual events for our clients. Yes, certain design elements are found through many of our events but we try to create an event your guests have not been to before and make sure our clients are in love with their event and that in the end makes us the happiest!!
After the last wedding the next day, I had to really think what was it that made me feel that way and why. It took a long time for me to feel comfortable again after that, I still get a little panicky before a bride sees her bouquet, it is a piece of me that I created and I think I am just a bit nervous that she might reject me through her bouquet…crazy I know but when you plan and plan and plan some more you are in your head a lot. I since then have learned to be more relaxed (on going struggle with my crying game) and to really enjoy every minute of the design process and execution. I know I say this a lot but we really are lucky to do what we do. We have so much fun putting these events together that after all the hard work is done it is nice to step back and say, we did this. There are endless amount of designers and florist out there with the most breathtaking events but we have to say we love our design aesthetic and we love our clients even more who appreciate it as much as we do!
Working with Jessica, Cesar and his Mom, Alma was not only fun but proved that weddings don’t necessarily need years of planning in advance;) Wishing the happy couple a lifetime of happiness, love and joy!
Thank you for letting me share with you my long journal entry! Even now writing this post, I realize what a different person I was last year and I am excited for the year to come because that means another year of growing up, learning and trying new things! Have a great weekend everyone!
It’s Fri-Yay and what better way to celebrate than with pretty event photos?! 3/4 of Team Limani celebrated Vasiliki’s Baptism celebration in Australia and even though we were not all together, we couldn’t be happier for this lil’ munchkin! We love her so much and she makes us smile and our hearts so full!
Vasiliki’s Very Green Herb Garden was inspired by her name. Vasiliki (Greek: Bασιλική) is a Greek female given name, meaning “royal”. Its male version is Vasileios, whose English equivalent is Basil, so basil seeds as favors and fresh basil plants along with other wonderful herbs were used as centerpieces. We started with her custom invitations in a pretty green and floral design backing and envelope liners. From there, the custom witness pins, favors and Baptismal candles all were created with coordinating ribbon and burlap details in a lovely pink and green color palette.
The natural elements of this event were found throughout the decor including the pretty cake. Burlap favor bags, twine wrapped around clay pots, custom Baptismal candles and burlap runners were softened with girly details like lace and touches of pink. Vanilla Upstairs was the perfect venue for this natural event design, with the open airy design and lots of windows, the sunlight on this ‘winter’ day was nothing to complain about!
Clusters of similar items down the center of the table always make for great statement pieces. This monochromatic style makes a big impact and is not overpowering on smaller tables. We love how fresh and clean this event design turned out.
Wishing Afroditi and Theologos congratulations on their daughter’s special day!! We can’t wait till Vasiliki is older so she can officially be part of the team;) Love you guys!!
We kick off the month with this fun Noah’s Ark themed event. It was so much fun working with Denise on her second son’s Baptism, baby Niko. The invitations kicked off the party with a super cute Greek poem at the top and then continued in Greek and English navy blue text. In Greece, Baptism invitations are the sweetest with little poems not revealing the name of the baby until you arrive at the actual event. This was such a nice touch since many invites were mailed to Greece as well. Baby animals adorned the bottom of the invitations, response card post cards and table number frames. Since baby Niko is a Leo, the baby lion was the most symbolic animal found throughout the invitation suite and decor. By now you must all know how much we love textured paper with contrasting shimmer card stock and baby Niko’s invites were no exception, these large invitations were just the right amount of elegance and nature.
From there a pretty blue, grey and light green color palette was formed with touches of baby animal figurines, the adorable Tales of Glory Noah’s Ark toy set and lots of dark wood accessories. We used light blue hydrangeas with pops of blue spiky thistle and vibrant blue orchids. The burlap covered risers and wrappings around the glass vases were rustic enough that they played off the lighter ribbon details perfectly. Denise had cute “Born to be Wild” favor boxes at each place setting and we made sure to find the perfect pale green ribbon to coordinate.
Of course our favorite looks include the tall olive branches with a hanging white dove to coordinate with the Biblical story. A lot of clients tend to shy away from greens in their event florals but we think they add just the right amount of textural contrast and an abundance of fullness to the overall look. We were really excited Denise was on board with all the design elements and of course with lots and lots of candles, the room at Maggiano’s Little Italy in Oak Brook was the perfect setting. Denise also had Animal Cracker boxes for all the little guests at the event that were just the perfect touch of something sweet!
Wishing the family congratulations on Niko’s special day and wishing everyone a very happy Fall!
We start off the week with pretty images of Ioanna’s Baptism Celebration. Eleni, her mom, wanted a beautiful pink and gold color palette and the whole design came together nicely.
We started with custom pretty pink shimmer card stock invitations with ribbon detail on the side and gold text to match the deep gold envelopes. From there a fun Sleeping Beauty inspired theme event came to life with wooden spools found throughout the room with pink and gold ribbon details. Each of the spools were custom made to fit the color story. Different shades of pink ribbons and even sequin details for a pop of shine were found on the gold and wood spools.
Gold candle holders and our favorite custom pink lace burlap runners completed these looks. The room transformed to a little girls party and was so warm and cozy. Our signature name spelling of the guest of honor on the dessert table was accompanied by the well wishes vase decorated to coordinate with the theme.
Wishing Ioanna congratulations on her special day! Eleni it was so much fun working with you!
