Event Planning Ideas, Trends & Inspiration

Last night, two WM Events occasions took home awards at the 21st Annual Allie Awards. Our event for Microsoft won Best Themed Event Decor, and our Tuscan Autumn Wedding won Best Floral. The Marriott Marquis downtown played host to the Night in Havana  award show that sported all of our favorite local industry stars. A big THANK YOU to everyone who helped make these events possible!

-William Fogler
WM Events

Founded in 2008 by the husband and wife team of Mark Sopchak and Jenna Park, Whimsy and Spice is what you get when Culinary Art collides with Graphic Design (or, at least marries it). I recently discovered this amazing pair at the Brooklyn Market on my recent visit to NYC, and was surprised and delighted to find that everything they make is simple, beautiful, and crafted in Brooklyn. And speaking of surprised, think about rose and black pepper thumbprint cookies, cog-shaped honey lavender shortbread, and chocolate chili biscotti. Pictured below are their Biscotti, Chocolate Marshmallows, Chocolate Gingersnap Cookies, and Chocolate Butterscotch Bars. If you won’t be in New York City anytime soon, have no fear- their products are available online at their gorgeous website. When you’re done drooling over these delicious sweets, leave us your thoughts in the comment section underneath!

-William Fogler
WM Events

The Denver Post recently interviewed me as a local expert in their Style section. Here’s an except, but be sure to check out the full post (and recommend it on Facebook!)

“Over the past six years, since his business started, he’s handled about 20 weddings.
Whether it’s a modest ceremony or a gala that costs $800,000, he encourages people
to cling to common sense, especially during the nerve-wracking few months before the
big day.

“Most people panic at the last minute,” Fogler says. “They decide it’s not enough. But at
two or three months out, you stick to the plan. Don’t create situations that will stress
everyone out.” He offers advice to brides, grooms and their families on what to do, and
what not to do, as you’re heading toward the home stretch.”

-William Fogler
WM Events

We have a found a great way to transform standard cupcakes into virtually anything – like hamburgers, baby bottles, sushi or even mini margaritas! With over 70 designs to choose from, Roundabouts Cupcake Wrappers can bring your cupcakes to life! Ranging from $8.99 to $15.95 per dozen, these wrappers will surprise guests. Add your own touches of creativity to make your cupcakes a bit more funky or elegant. They even have bulk packaging prices. Let us share these wonderful ideas with you andyour next party.

-William Fogler
WM Events

I recently ran into the guys at Inflate at the Event Solutions Convention in Las Vegas, and they had some pretty stellar products to showcase. These are wonderful lightweight and durable alternatives for your upcoming event that add interest and surprise. You can also project onto their surface to increase their utility and impact.  Below are a few of my favorites.

-William Fogler
WM Events

Don’t play with your food! Ok, well maybe you can with these really unique utensils. Today’s blog post is all about fun, and different ways to eat. These are great additions to your bar and bat mitzvahs, birthday parties, and fun celebrations. Don’t feel like you have to settle for traditional silverware when the place setting more obviously calls for a wild, inventive option!

1. The Chork

The Chork is cost-effective for restaurant owners and engaging for everyone from chopstick aficionados to virtual newbies. Use the Chork as a fork, as chopsticks, or as a chopstick trainer! These are great for a large party serving Asian cuisine  because everyone can use them!

2. Join Cutlery

Slawinski’s  2011 Interior Innovation Award Winning design comes with instructions. This creative approach transforms the common utensil into a decorative piece that will both delight and puzzle your guests. In 8 different colors, you’ll be sure to find a Join set that matches your party.

3. Foodle

Great for a kid’s birthday party, Foodle brings oodles of fun to doodling on the dinner table. The set consists of fork, knife and spoon heads that fit snugly over color pencils, and a pad of paper place mats that double up as a doodle board.

4. Link Kitchen Tool

Link is a practical and simple kitchen utensil that can change different utensils into gripping devices by attaching a flexible plastic hinge. With this ingenious little device, two forks can be combined as an salad tong or two knifes as an barbecue tong. It’s the perfect little contraption.

-William Fogler
WM Events

Earlier this week, we mentioned French vertical garden designer (read: genius) Patrick Blanc and his amazing work. Today, we thought we would show you some more of his beautiful work. But how does it work? Using a metal frame against a load-bearing wall, a framework of PVC pipe and layers of polyamide felt deliver water and nutrients to the vertically grown plants in a closed circuit system. Patrick Blanc has showcased his work in public and private spaces world wide. The following are our favorite spaces. What are yours? Comment below!

1.Pont Max Juvenal, Aix en Provence

2. Musee du Quai Branly, Paris

3. Pershing Hall Hotel, Paris

4. Marche de Halles, Avignon

5. Qantas Lounge, Sydney

-William Fogler
WM Events

Innovative urban planning projects like The High Line in New York’s Funky Chelsea Neighborhood and any of the vertical garden masterpiece Patrick Blanc puts his hand in have refueled our urban gardening kick. Below are some really innovative ways to integrate small town green into your big city lifestyle. How have you brought the outside in? Comment below- we’d love to hear from you!

1. Balcony Flower Bags

Made from a biological cotton, the “hanging gardens” by az&mut, are cloth bags that are a good solution for planting balcony plants and flowers. Doubling as a fashion accessory, they simplify the transportation of greenery from the florist or nursery. A new smaller concept of the ‘hanging garden’ can also act as a means of preventing excess packaging, which occurs when you buy flowers in a standard pot.

2. Vegetables on Aisle Three

“The Farm Proper” is a mobile, urban farm under development by interdisciplinary creative studio set & drift in collaboration with mi-workshop in San Diego. Maintained by artists, designers and backyard growers, this experimental project uses abandoned and repurposed shopping carts as the main tool in growing organic vegetables.

3. Packing up for Eating In

Eindhoven-based Italian designer Gionata Gatto of studio atùppertù‘s “Urbanbuds” project showcases a portable garden, shaped in the form of movable suitcases and filled with soil. Each one of them allows the growth of about thirty-six different plants, which can sprout vertically along the fabric. The design of this project involves the metaphor of a suitcase as a symbol of cultural background.

4. Art Lives

Mosstika is the studio of Edina Tokodi who creates artwork from plants. For her artwork, Tokodi uses the growing material to create silhouettes and other designs that she often installs on the street. her latest project moves in a new direction, integrating a wood frame and irrigation system to create a living wall. The project was installed in Brooklyn earlier this year and features a large
wooden frame that is layered over a field of green succulent plants.

-William Fogler
WM Event

Sometimes you just want one glass of chocolate milk. Instead of buying a separate container just for a different flavor, why not try Magic Milk Straws? Magic Milk Straws are a fun, mess-free way to enjoy a cold glass of flavorful milk. The rich, all-natural cocoa, vanilla, cookies and cream, and strawberry flavored milk straws magically transform your regular dairy, soy or lactose-free milk into a delicious and nutritious treat. And no refrigeration is necessary, so you can pack them in a lunch-box or just pull one out of the cabinet. Also, what a fun addition to any bar and bat mitzvah celebration‘s milk and cookie bar. We recently had some fun with them in the office here at WM Events. Order them today, and tell us what you think.

-William Fogler
WM Events

With an expected 50% smartphone penetration in the mobile market by the end of this year, there’s never been a better time or creative outlet for interesting applications. Obviously we use our Facebook and Twitter apps daily, but here are some other fun and innovative ways to use your smartphone. Our top 10 list runs the gammit from wacky to scientific to helpful in just a few short strokes. What is your favorite app? What can’t you live without? Leave your comments below.

1. RuPaul’s Dragulator

Snap a fierce head shot or upload one from your photos library. Then line up your face by resizing and positioning your photo. Next, glam up your eyelids and lashes, pick your lips and mouth, apply some blush, choose some earrings. And don’t forget the wig! Play around with your look as much as you want! Finally, upload your completed image to Facebook and Twitter, email it to a friend, and save it to your photos library

2.Scoutmob

Available for the iPhone and Android systems, this fun and helpful app will pay for your phone in no time! For a quick and easy 50% off your favorite restaurants, salons, and boutiques around town just show the specific deal when you’re checking out. There are also great return perks and quirky write ups to tell you what kind of pricing and specials to expect. Use the “Nearby” option to find out which deals are closest to your actual location.

3.Run Keeper Pro

Track the time, distance, speed, pace, calories, and path on a map for their fitness activities using your GPS enabled mobile device. The RunKeeper Pro running app lets you track your workout performance over time, while connecting with your friends to make your workouts social (if you want). This motivating app has GPS activity tracking, manual activity tracking, audio interval cues, iPod integration, activity sharing on Twitter and Facebook, and data syncs with RunKeeper.com. What a smart way to get in shape.

4.Scrabble

Enjoy the fantastically fun game you know and love with stunning HD-quality graphics, quick, easy play and incredible exclusive features. America’s favorite word game is a smart phone essential – now more than ever!

5.Google Sky Map

Point your phone at the sky, and Google Sky Map will show the stars, planets, constellations, and more to help you identify the celestial objects in view. You can also browse the skies in manual mode. Users can zoom in and out, and switch various layers such as constellations, planets, grids, and deep sky objects, on and off, choosing to make these elements visible or not. Users can also determine the locations of planets and stars relative to their own current locations with the search function. Inputting the name of a planet or star will direct users towards this object.

6.Key Ring

Key Ring is the app that “brings ’em all together”. Use it to scan & store your existing loyalty cards, enroll in new loyalty programs, and access exclusive coupons and discounts. Key Ring is a free app and was created to provide people with a hassle free solution to save time and money while on the go. No more wasting time fumbling with your keys. No more wasting space on your key ring. Problems solved!

7.Square

We talked about Square a while back. And we’re still in love with it. A must have for any small business or yard seller, Square is now processing millions of dollars in mobile transactions every week. Set up shop and simply swipe or key in the card number and you can easily charge debit and credit cards from your phone. You can even accept cash! The deposit is secure, immediate, and even offers paperless receipts with a google maps tag of where the purchase took place. Customers can leave a tip in the tip jar and see all of your beautiful items just like they would in a real store.

8.Pandora

Now you can listen to Pandora on your mobile phone – in the car, at the gym, on the train – wherever and whenever you’re in the mood to listen to great music. Enjoy all the stations you’ve created on the web – and create new ones right from your mobile phone. You can also rate songs using thumbs up and thumbs down, and bookmark favorite artists and songs. Pandora on your phone is fully integrated with Pandora on the web, so everything you create, rate or bookmark on the phone also appears the next time you’re back on the web.

9.Piano

Really any piano app will do. From concert pianists to curious cats, these apps have captured the imagination of the world. Create your own music or enjoy the free classic and popular tunes. No practice or patience required! You can even record and playback your own tunes- a perfect way to teach someone how to play a song, or waste time at the DMV.

10.What The Font

Ever seen a great font in a magazine ad, poster, or on the web and wondered what font it is? Whip out your iPhone and snap a photo, and WhatTheFont for iPhone will identify that font in seconds! WhatTheFont for iPhone connects directly to MyFonts’ acclaimed font identification service, which has been helping customers pinpoint mystery fonts for 10 years. Get your font fix right there on the spot.

-William
WM Events

Are you looking for a high tech, interactive and current idea?  The answer is as easy as picking up your phone and sending a text.  POLL Everywhere is an online service which enables event planners to set up all type of polls allowing guests and attendees to dial in and make their voices heard. Anyone can vote by sending text messages (or Tweeting!) to the corresponding numbers.

Users can even text questions to presenters or presenters can use Poll Everywhere to learn more about their audience. Votes are secure and can be submitted without an internet connection.  Real time results can be tracked and presented through a variety of professional looking platforms including power point.

Charities can incorporate Poll Everywhere too, allowing guests an option to text to pledge at a fundraising event.

Let WM Events assist you with incorporating this and other great concepts into your next corporate event.

-William Fogler
WM Events

WM Events wants to put in our two SCENTS on how to make your upcoming affair appropriately aromatic! BLEND is a custom parfum studio with locations all over the world (including one in Atlanta) that creates custom fragrances with individuals, groups, brides, and organizations.  Their Custom Formulation Process is a patented interview procedure which takes into consideration a client’s total sensory history, chemistry, lifestyle, origin and more to assist in designing a fragrance that is uniquely their own. Custom packaging and distribution services are also available. BLEND has worked with celebrities, Royal families, delegates, and even designed an official fragrance for the country of Lithuania!

BLEND offers fragrance parties whereby each guest can create their own petite 20 ml bottle of custom scent. With a minimum of 4 people, these parties are popular for birthdays, girls nights out, anniversaries, bridal showers, attendant appreciation and more. BLEND can even recreate discontinued or hard to find favorite scents in perfume, body lotions, shower gel, soaps and powders.

-William Fogler
WM Events