Catering By Robert . Event Concepts : Catering By Robert

Showing posts with label Catering By Robert. Show all posts

Sunday, July 30, 2017

Eternal Love Knows No Bounds

Ebony and Jelani
* Selected Photos By Alfred Dixon, Shyne Photography

After 30 years in the wedding business, I felt I could predict everything that would transpire the day of a wedding. I was wrong. This particular event involved a very special celebration at a private home venue where the bride, groom, their family, and close friends spent four days immersed in wedding splendor.

It was raining everywhere within a mile of their location most of the day.
It was seasonably hot and muggy - Felt like 110 degrees.
More guests showed up than expected.

Under normal circumstances, this might have been a series of things that
might make any couple extremely nervous.
Not Ebony and Jelanie.

They took everything in stride and this was all the assurance myself and my staff needed to move forward to the challenges of this August day.

As we found out later when reviewing pictures we took of the day's happenings, a heart had formed in the clouds above the estate.

Ebony, the bride, was a seasoned wedding designer from Atlanta, marrying her sweetheart, Jelani, during a full destination wedding here in Tampa Bay. I respected Ebony's experience in the wedding industry which made me a little nervous at first.

Here in Florida, we aren't as event savvy as Atlanta. It was refreshing to know that Ebony recognized this and was willing to work with me one - on -one to incorporate some forward-thinking design ideas from her personal experiences in Atlanta.

The week of the wedding, Ebony brought a ton of centerpiece items, accent table accents, and ceremony décor with her via the trek from Atlanta.

It was understood that a lot of detail needed to be implemented in the set up of the ceremony and reception. While Ebony had wanted her and her family/friends to be more involved, she trusted our staff to take over the construction of centerpieces, ceremony components, and prayers to ensure the afternoon summer rain held off.

With rain on the horizon, we had to reset the ceremony seating set up several times before Ebony declared that no chairs were needed and the wedding needed to move forward with everyone just standing.

Her venue was Villa Adriana, and her focus for the ceremony was facing the back of the mansion. Thankfully, her plans for a 50-person reception was focused indoors with a casual social hour under partially covered areas facing the pool. Her dj set up was protected under an elevated pavilion within an ear-shot for the ceremony, social hour, and subsequent "party time" around the pool.

Ebony took advantage of the bridal suit master bedroom for she and her female bridal party members to get ready.

Jay and his guys situated themselves in another area of the large house for their wedding preparations.

Several hours before the ceremony, Ebony and Jay did a balloon release on the pool deck to recognize loved ones who could not be there to share their joyful day.

The wedding party consisted of more than half of the anticipated guests in attendance. Everyone wore white with many beautiful interpretations of gown designs and attire.

Here are some beautiful details of Ebony and Jay's gorgeous wedding day:

Ebony designed a variety of guest tables ranging from a 24-person bridal party table in the center of the indoor family room, to a family table in the adjoining formal dining room. She utilized a variety of ivory, gold, and blush décor components with different sheens and textures. Centerpieces ranged from tall to small with candles a major focus.

Planning, Coordination, Catering: Catering By Robert /Event Concepts. FL

www.cateringbyroberttampa.com

Photography: Shyne Photography, Atlanta

DJ: Spontaneous Entertainment, Atlanta

Wedding Cake: Sweet Tweets Cakery

Sunday, July 16, 2017

Posh Celebration at the Tampa Garden Club

Jessie and Joe

Family, Friends Lovingly Contribute to Personalizations

Although Jessie and Joe resided on the East Coast of Florida, family and trusted friends stepped in to help with the planning side here in Tampa. Whenever Jessie had the opportunity, she attended meetings and open houses. Joe's mom, Sandy and her close friend, Linda, pulled together all of the final details to make this couple's May celebration a reality at the Tampa Garden Center.

You see, Linda is a veteran Tampa interior designer who also had experience in creating many beautiful wedding events throughout her many years in the business. When we first met at our studio, Linda's ideas spun into action as we discussed all of the components we included in our packages.

This included over 20 guest table centerpieces we had in-house. Linda and Sandy took the reins in putting together a an over-all décor plan for the blank slate of the Tampa Garden Center.

With Jessie and Joe's input, Linda designed a motif with turquoise, white, platinum, and varying shades of pink - mostly in the dramatic florals she created.

It was Linda's goal to accomplish as much as she and a small group of volunteers could do themselves. This was a big order considering that Jessie and Joe had their hearts set on ceiling decorations and an extensive amount of decorations for their outdoor wedding.

Linda, with Sandy at her side, made it all happen!

Photo by Renee Nicole Photography

Jessie was exceptionally relaxed knowing she had the bridal suite at the garden center to finish final touches.

She and Joe did a "side-trip to the University of Tampa for some private moments and candid shots from Renee Nicole Photography

Inside the small lobby of the garden center, Linda had thought of every possible décor accent. Special items were also placed inside the ladies' restroom.

Photo by Renee Nicole Photography

Linda arrived at the garden center early the day of the wedding to tackle the extensive floral décor on the aisle arbor, the aisle, and the ceremony pergola. Early in our planning, our tall silver candle holders caught Linda's eye. We added our hurricane shades to each so candles could be lit.

Photo by Renee Nicole Photography

The cocktail hour that followed the ceremony was held both outside and inside the conservatory. High top tables held small arrangements and were scattered between both areas.

Jessie and Joe looked forward to a fun celebration so the photo booth fit right in with their expectations.

Our staff offered hand-passed hors d'oeuvres in the conservatory area. This ranged from marinated mushrooms to fresh fruit skewers and traditional Italian bruschetta.

We also featured Cajun chicken skewers and Joe's favorite, Nacho Cheese with Pretzels.

All guest tables were covered with white floor length linen with silver charger plates, white spandex chair covers, turquoise sashes and napkins. We placed wide turquoise runners in the centers of the table flocked by a single silver organza damask runner on top.

Miss Linda made sure each guest table had a great deal of small details at the base of each tall centerpiece. Featured were faux ice crystals and pearl stems.

No table or station was without detail including the bar where a framed bar menu was displayed and extra floral pieces were added.

The three tiered wedding cake was from the Greenwise Publix in South Tampa.

Linda and her crew installed a unique chandelier with 8 ceiling swagged extensions.

The couple opted for a large bridal party feasting table positioned in front of the Bayshore windows.

All of the massive guest table centerpieces were silk. Linda provided many fresh flower pieces for personal and selected reception arrangements.

The dinner menu for the evening ranged from Herb Crusted Pork Loin to a performance station featuring Tequilla Flamed Southwest Chicken with pasta and Mediterranean Marinated Vegetables.