Tips for Event Planning Divas - Articles - Zimbio

A former White House Chef at your next party

Tue, 27 Aug 2008 02:07:00 GMT

posted by BonjourEvents

If you're looking for something unique, something for people to talk about at your next dinner party, consider hiring a celebrity chef. And not just any chef, but a former White House Chef. Walter Scheib was the White House Chef from 1994-2005, serving the Clinton's for two terms and Bush for one term.

Chef Walter Scheib is now available for several types of events: group cooking lessons for team bonding, prepare a "White House Birthday Dinner" for your special someone, cook in your home for an intimate dinner party, or be the chef (and star) of your large charity or corporate special event.

I had the pleasure of hiring Chef Walter for an event we held in Carmel, CA a few years back. It was a dinner gala with Chris Isaak as the entertainment, but Chef Walter, coming out before each delicious course to share funny stories about his days in the White House, stole Isaak's thunder. The meal he prepared using local ingredients was very impressive to this Manhattan based foodie crowd and his personal interaction during the dinner made it truly memorable for all the guests. They loved him.

Chef Walter is entertaining, charming and very presentable infront of your guests, they will be talking about him for months. Of course he has had years of experience talking with Ambassadors and heads of state so his ability to make interesting conversation in a welcoming manner seems to come naturally. Check out his site for more information on creating this experience and menus you can attempt to duplicate on your own... (and no, we're not on commission - just a very impressed event hostess who hopes you have the opportunity to hire him). Site: www.theamericanchef.com

Technology Providing Better Disaster Relief, IKE Relief

Sun, 15 Sep 2008 03:37:18 GMT

posted by BonjourEvents

When natural disasters hit our communities, like Hurricane Ike did this weekend, companies and individuals rise to help those in need. There is now an online tool to put donors directly in touch with organizations to make real time donations.

AidMatrix.org provides a platform for individuals and companies to find organizations that are looking for immediate help and contribute to their disaster relief efforts in real time. "AidMatrix does not receive financial gain from individual donations made through the AidMatrix Network. We simply help connect those who have with those in need, " said Scott McCallum, CEO.

A compelling feature of AidMatrix for corporations is the option to have a custom, branded platform built for your employees to make donations to the relief effort of their choice, and the company can then match all contributions. One of the best features of this "matrix" is that employees are not limited to a few choices that HR selects. They can select, for instance, Hurricane Ike relief efforts in Texas while another employee selects a food bank in Louisiana for Hurricane Gustav relief. Creating this empowerment for employee donations used to be very difficult to orchestrate. This is a terrific solution.

I hope you find their technology helpful in your corporate donation efforts.

Looking for "A few good vendors"....

Wed, 25 Sep 2008 20:50:51 GMT

posted by BonjourEvents

We are looking to build out the vendor directory and want to ask any readers who have had the pleasure of working with excellent event partners to submit these stars. Our goal is not to have a huge list, ala Yellow Pages, but to create a high quality directory of trusted event professionals submitted by readers. DJs, Photographers, Wedding Planners, Software Solutions, Caterers, Transportation, Decor, etc. are all welcomed.

The listing does not cost anything to the vendor, nor do we charge for leads. We simply want to promote good work and send business to those who work hard for their clients. I like to think of this directory as a list you would feel comfortable sharing with your best friend as she plans her dream wedding or first corporate event. So please, only submit outstanding vendors.

You can submit your proven vendors for inclusion by sending an email to rose.lanham@yahoo.com or use the vendor submission form located here. Merci Beaucoup!

Custom Stationery Resources

Mon, 9 Sep 2008 23:25:00 GMT

posted by BonjourEvents
A very creative (and stylish) friend of mine shared the news that two of her friends have started their own stationery lines and their work is simply beautiful. These are two regular California gals who have ventured out on their own and created incredible products. If you're looking for a unique event invitation, birth announcement or signature thank you card you may really enjoy checking these sites out first.

Jill Nieporte of Jill Cate Design specializes bringing a modern look to the antique art of letterpress. Receiving a wedding invitation, thank you note or birth announcement created by using this method is always a treat. The way the dye disperses into the soft cotton paper is so elegant and unique in this world of mass production. Jill Cate Design offers baby shower cards, birth announcements, party invitations and wedding invitations. Soon she will offer Holiday Cards that are sure to impress.

Another wonderful source for custom stationery began when Amy Howard's simple cupcake drawing on a little note card took off with friends nine years ago. Fast forward a few years and Amy started CAKE . Cake provides clients with custom stationary that incorporates her whimsical hand-drawn illustrations in every card. Cake has adorable note cards for the expecting mother (great shower gifts) and cute birth announcement and baby thank you notes. And how sweet is this, "cake " is an acronym of Amy and her event styling partner's little

Pingg, evites on steroids

Sat, 13 Jul 2008 21:42:59 GMT

posted by BonjourEvents

Have you heard of the new invitation software called pingg? This is a very robust invitation solution for the sophisticated party hostess or a corporate planner. The team behind pingg has taken the basic evite concept and created many practical, helpful features that can be applied to a wide variety of events.

What makes pingg so special?

Pingg software can send your invitation via sms, email, facebook, a website or even snail mail. Regardless of how the invitation is sent, all data including contact information and rsvp status, are kept in one easy to read report.
Pingg offers beautiful art designs for their invitations, literally millions of images. You also have the option to upload your own custom design and still benefit from their invitation management software.
Pingg has a team dedicated to designing, printing and mailing hard copy invitations to match your online version, providing consistant communication peices.
Contracts and software deployment are not part of this business model. This should be a dream come true for the corporate planner needing a fast, turnkey solution.
Pingg offers additional features such as the ability to upload videos, photos, gift registries and collect money.

I was really impressed with this software solution and could have used it for those last minute events the sales team asked us to pull off like invitations to a baseball game suite or golf tournaments. I love their beautiful artwork. Best of luck pingg - and Brittany thanks for contacting us.

If you've used pingg please feel free to share what you liked about the software by hitting the comment button below.