Style Me Pretty has been very kind to us in the last few months!  Thanks to this fabulous wedding blog for featuring yet another jill gordon celebrate event on in their posts.  This time, the talented and lovely photographer Jennifer Davis captured Kerry-Lynne and Ramin’s May wedding at East Hampton Point.  Hard to believe that was almost a full year ago (and happy to report that Kerry and Ramin have enjoyed a great first year of marriage!).  Here are some shots from that beautiful Spring day; for another view, check out the Style Me Pretty post.

From top, left to right:  menu cards by The Village Invites; ceremony at Most Holy Trinity, East Hampton; alliums on the bar – all flowers by Amagansett Flowers by Beth; peony bouquets for all; gorgeous spring table flowers; the bride and groom enjoy a toast in their vintage Rolls Royce; alliums on the escort table; the entrance at East Hampton Point; garlands on the bride and groom’s chairs; Kerry and Ramin enjoy a romantic moment on the dock at East Hampton Point; dessert trays; wedding cake by EH Point

Same tale, different narrative.

ease into it…

Photos:  via atelier joya; via this is not new; via crush cul de sac; via rusty break; via vogue & coffee; via sailacross-thesun.tumblr; Victor Moscoso 1967; via loveliberally.tumblr; via they all hate us; via white–tiger.tumblr; Gloria Petyarre; Tina Chow, Warhol.

or feel the pop…

Write your own story.

You’re hot and thirsty.  Maybe you’ve just completed a 6-mile run on East Hampton’s back roads.  Or perhaps you’ve spent 4 hours fighting traffic on the LIE to get here.  If you’re lucky, it’s Sunday morning and you’re feeling slightly hungover from the wild Saturday night you’ve had dancing and partying at a jill gordon celebrate event.  Whichever the case, you are THIRSTY.  It’s time to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!

Hamptons Water Company is going to quench your needs.  We are excited to welcome this new (soon to be huge, we predict) company to our shores.  Because jill gordon celebrate believes in keeping it local, Hamptons Water will be found at our parties this season and in the gift bags bestowed on wedding guests upon their arrival in the Hamptons.

This natural spring water is vapor distilled and then – brilliantly - bolstered with electrolytes to bring your body back into the balance it deserves.  It’s clean and fresh, and we’re drinking it by the gallon.

Hamptons Water Company is donating a portion of each sale to local charities.  Proceeds from the first sales will be going to the Max Cure Foundation which is helping fight pediatric cancer.

If all that weren’t enough reason to buy this product, each bottle features a bar code on its label which - once scanned with your phone or other device - takes you to  their “What’s Happening in the Hamptons” website.   We predict lots of folks will be sitting on the Hampton Jitney perusing this fun-filled site  (the Jitney will be serving Hamptons Water from Memorial Day thru Labor Day on all of their rides!).

To sample some of this refreshing goodness, come to one of our events or pick  up a bottle at one of these locations already found on this blog:  Mary’s Marvelous, Round Swamp Farm or Hampton Seafood Co.,  Also found at these great places:  Montauk Bake Shoppe, Botwick’s Chowder House, Indian Wells Tavern, D’Canela, Stuarts Seafood, Main Beach Surf & Sport and White’s Pharmacy.  Soon to be seen everywhere!

Amy Atlas is a baker, a crafter, a designer and an inspiration.  In Event Land, she’s the originator of the highly-stylized themed dessert table.  We congratulate Amy today on the release of her new book:   Sweet Designs: Bake It, Craft It, Style It.

At jill gordon celebrate we think a presentation of treats -  a dessert table, pie buffet, candy bar, popcorn station – is a brilliant end to any party or wedding.  Who isn’t a kid in a candy store when it comes time to celebrate?  Over the years, we’ve assembled a collection of candy and apothecary jars, cake stands and glass containers to make any display complete.  When planning a dessert display draw inspiration from color stories, your party theme, the desserts themselves – or from Amy Atlas.

Shopping for her own wedding dress in the late ’80′s, Vera Wang reportedly found a “sameness to everything.” She’s been breaking the mold ever since with her luxury bridal collection. In a corner of the fashion industry once quite uninspired, Wang has brought sumptuous fabric, detail and even color. She has played with “illusion netting,” gowns in pastel shades and last year’s taupe and black collection. Taking things one giant leap further, the newly revealed Spring 2013 line features dresses in shades ranging from tomato red to deep crimson. We’re eager to see how many of these beauties show up at Hamptons weddings next season!

Cardinal strapless ballgown with hand-rolled floral detail skirt and horsehair trim | Photography: Dan Lecca

Scarlett strapless ballgown with tulle panel skirt and embellished flange appliqué and hand-rolled floral, Chantilly lace detail  |  Photography: Dan Lecca

Crimson strapless ballgown with hand-draped tulle bodice and honeycomb tulle skirt with embellished floating Chantilly lace and bias-cut organza ruffle detail | Photography: Dan Lecca

Dahlia strapless open back, V-neck ballgown with lifted tulle skirt and tiered flange, hand-cut petal embroidered detail | Photography: Dan Lecca

The collection is being previewed at the New York flagship store (78th and Madison) today April 19th through the 22nd.  Make an appointment to see and touch these dresses in person: 212-628-3400.

We love photo booths! It’s just a fact: photo booths make any party better. Guests love to dress up, pose and play. Remember running into the five-and-ten with your best friend and squishing into the booth only to fight over that strip of photos? It’s no different as adults. We still love photo booths!

We have no prejudice when it comes to photo booths. We’ve used many kinds at weddings and parties, and they’re all good. We like the classic ones that make us a feel a bit nostalgic. We like modern ones with swank velvet curtains in our choice of color. And we are crazy about the digital un-booth ones, out in the open with a simple (or not-so-simple) backdrop.

Today we’re featuring a vendor we adore: Jerome Jakubiec of Photomatonchic. Part of what we dig about Photomatonchic is Jerome himself: he’s French, handsome, charming, professional and utterly kind. Because he loves his work, Jerome brings a sense of ease to the setup, and guests have a swell time.

The other thing we love – a lot – are the stop motion films which clients receive after the event. They are like electronic flip books (with music) and really bring the photos to life. You’ve got to check them out – you won’t stop laughing, I promise!

We will be writing about our favorite vendors on this blog. A note on that subject: just because we feature one doesn’t mean we don’t cherish the others dearly. We hope to invite them all.

Jill Gordon: Tell us a little about yourself – where you grew up, what you’ve done until now, etc.
Jerome Jakubiec: I grew up in the south of France, in Provence, not far from Avignon. I originally went to law school in France but I quickly realized that I wasn’t particularly talented for that. I’m passionate about photography. This is how I live my life, I take pictures every day – with my iPhone, my cameras… I’m a bit obsessive that way, I suppose.

JG: You always seem to be really enjoying your work. What makes this business fun for you?
JJ: I love the high pace, interacting with people who are there to party, the instant gratification of seeing guests walk away with some awesome pictures… My clients are (almost) always in the best mood!

JG: What do your clients “take home” at the end of the day?
JJ: They take home some beautiful 4 by 6 prints (or their guests take them home), plenty of fun memories and the assurance that their guests had an amazing experience. 24 hours after the party ends, they can log in to my website and browse their photos. And last but not least, about a week later, I upload a little stop motion film made with the frames from the party and a soundtrack of their choice.

JG: That’s my favorite part of what you offer. How did you start doing these little films, which are so fricking FUN?
JJ: This is something I’m very proud of and that I started offering about two years ago. Those little films are very artsy and look amazing. They are perfect for Facebook and blogs, and the feedback I’m getting from my clients is amazing. It’s become a very important aspect of the service I offer and I don’t think anybody else is offering anything quite like it.

JG: As you know, I’m not wild about being photographed. You see a lot of people being photographed. Do you have any tips for posing, getting a great shot?
JJ: Ha! Good question. You know, it’s all about momentum and energy I think. It’s a give and take moment. Once the first guests set the tone, it all becomes instinctive and I make sure to give a few ideas or some directions when that’s needed. I’m mostly blown away but people’s spontaneity. A couple of cocktails never hurt either.

JG: That’s for sure. What’s the funniest thing you’ve seen on the job?
JJ: Someone from the cast of Saturday Night Live was a guest at a wedding I shot. I can’t name him. He had one too many drinks and started art directing the photos. That was very fun.

JG: I bet that was hilarious. You know that I’m a big fan of having props on-hand for photo shoots. I think it really helps people relax. What do you think works well?
JJ: I think confetti looks beautiful. Picture frames are nice. Boards to write messages to the couple are neat. Massive wigs are my personal favorite (and you know what I’m talking about!).

JG: Where do you prefer to be set up at an event? We’ve done some many different setups – sometimes at the cocktail hour, other times in the dinner or dancing tent. Do you have a preference?
JJ: The best spot is in the heart of it all – next to the dance floor, not too far from the bar can be nice. I see it as a visual treat for everybody, you can’t go wrong with a treat.

Photomatonchic
www.photomatonchic.com

There are a few glorious markers of spring in my world:  cherry blossoms bloom, fresh green buds appear on trees, a daffodil or 100 pop up here and there and - happy  day – Round Swamp Farm re-opens for business.  The earth revolves smoothly once again.

Until recently, I was lucky to live within walking distance to this mecca of tasty treats.  When I bought my new house, an early task was to determine the quickest route to this  farm stand on Three Mile Harbor Road.  I’ve got it down – should take me no more than two minutes to get there barring any slow landscape trucks in my path.

We are blessed with field-upon-field of beautifully grown vegetables and fruit in the Hamptons as well as a bevy of wonderful farm stands selling said freshness.  So what makes this country market so notable?  Round Swamp is truly a family affair, started by Carolyn Lester 40+ years ago on her father’s farm land, whose logo is “Farmers of Land and Sea” – and they truly are a family filled with farmers and fishermen (and great cooks).  I’ve never seen a harder working group who, despite the hoards of pesky New Yorkers lining up on holiday weekends, always offer a smile and “how ya doing, Hon?” as they hoist your 50 lb. shopping basket onto the check-out counter.

Why, you ask, is my shopping basket quite so heavy?  There is so much goodness!  The family grows pretty gorgeous produce – particularly (for me, at least) their  peppery arugula, spring asparagus, radishes, snap peas, lettuces, a variety of potatoes, some of the best local corn and outrageous heirloom tomatoes – and catches some dang fresh fish and seafood.  Autumn brings fat stalks of brussel sprouts, beautiful winter squash, fluffy white cauliflower, beets and other root vegetables.

It’s the prepared food, though, that makes this place a standout.  A summer dinner party doesn’t pass at my house without Round Swamp’s blueberry crumb pie for dessert (or peach or tri-berry for that matter).  It’s, quite simply, the best pie ever.  Weekend house guests can anticipate chock-full-of-blueberry muffins, pecan sticky rolls, health muffins or farm-fresh organic eggs for breakfast. The fabulous guacamole, seven-layer Mexican dip and assorted pot-stickers are cocktail hour staples.  Spicy jalapeno cheddar corn muffins can’t hit the shelves fast enough for my liking in October.

Because my life is crazy-busy in the summer (or maybe because I’m a tad lazy), my kitchen is stocked with an ever-rotating inventory of Round Swamp items:  curried chicken salad, Dijon potato salad, “picnic” chicken, barbequed spareribs, grain and lentil pilafs, seared sea scallops, awesome crab cakes, skewers of grilled shrimp, Caprese salad, sesame snap peas, fresh lemonade and sun tea.  Lunch is perfect when it’s a thickly sliced beefsteak tomato topping a sandwich of their best-ever chicken salad. The jams, fruit butters, farm-fresh jarred tomatoes, bread-and-butter pickles and other pantry items are worth keeping around.  As the season turns a bit chillier, I look forward to their Boeuf Bourguignon and truly sinful whipped potatoes.

Round Swamp Farm will be opening  for weekends this Friday, April 20th.

Round Swamp Farm, 184 Three Mile Harbor Road, East Hampton.  Tel.  631-324-4438

Entertaining is all about being gracious and keeping guests engaged from the beginning to end of an event.  What lovelier start to a hot summer soiree than a cool and refreshing beverage?  We like to offer guests a “welcome drink” upon arrival, alcoholic or non.  Sometimes these drinks are butler-passed on trays by waiters standing at the party entrance; other times we set up a drinks stand or station.  Either way, the presentation should look lovely and taste like a delightful reminder of the season.  Here are some fun recipes we’ll be trying out at jill gordon celebrate parties this Spring and Summer.

Elderflower Champagne Cocktail

St-Germain is a delightful French liqueur of elderflower blossoms. It tastes of pear and lychee and lemon, and the sweetness of the liqueur is cut here  by the Champagne bubbles and cool cucumber.  Added bonus:  the St-Germain bottle looks gorgeous on a bar.

Recipe: Fill a tumbler with ice. Fill three-quarters of the glass with dry champagne or prosecco. Add thinly sliced cucumber and fresh mint. Top off with a good splash of St-Germain.

Photo & Recipe via Zested

Barefoot Contessa’s Pink Grapefuit Margarita

Everyone loves a margarita, and what better way to kick of a Hamptons event than with a gorgeous pink drink concocted by East Hampton’s very own Ina Garten.  Who can resist that color?

Recipe: Combine 1 cup of Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice, 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lime juice, 1 cup Triple Sec Liqueur and 3 cups of ice in a blender.  Blend until slushy and add 1 cup silver tequila.  Pour into glasses that have been rimmed with a cut lime and then dipped in Kosher salt (alternatively, skip this step and sprinkle a touch of salt into each drink). Garnish with a lime slice.  Yields 4 drinks.

Photo and recipe via There Goes the Cupcake

Homemade Ginger Ale

Ginger Ale is a fan favorite, and this recipe from Aran Goyoaga (blogger of Canelle et Vanille) is super easy.  Happily served on its own, this ginger ale can be revved up a bit with Aran’s Strawberry Consomme and a hit of vodka.

Recipe: In a small pot, add 2 Tbs grated fresh ginger, 1 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water.  Bring to a boil and allow sugar to dissolve.  Remove pan from heat and let the syrup steep and cool for about 30 minutes.  Strain the syrup through a fine sieve.  Mix with juice of one lemon, 1/8th tsp active dry yeast and 2 qts water.  Whisk together and, using a funnel, pour into a plastic bottle (not glass, as fermentation can crack the glass).  Screw top on bottle and allow to ferment at room temperature for about two days until carbonation forms.  Be sure to refrigerate once it carbonates.  Strawberry Consomme: Toss 1 lb fresh sliced strawberries and 1/2 cup sugar together in a bowl.  Cover and allow to macerate for 24 hours; the strawberries will release their juices.  Strain through a fine sieve without pressing excessively.  Mixology: In an iced rocks glass, mix 1/2 cup ginger ale, 1 Tbs strawberry consomme and 1 Tbs Vodka (to taste – or not at all).  Garnish with fresh lemon slices and sliced strawberries.

Recipe and photo via Design Sponge

Sip and enjoy the season!

Congratulations to our friend Pete Ambrose who just grandly opened his new food emporium, Hampton Seafood Co. on Race Lane, East Hampton. The space, formerly Claws on Wheels, has gotten a brilliant facelift and looks fantastic. In addition to the freshest fish and seafood, the shop offers an array of packaged foods (including the “Pete’s Endless Summer” line of sauces and marinades), sweets and treats from the likes of our friends at Mali B and Sag Harbor Bake Shop, lovely fresh produce, baguettes from Blue Duck Bakery and an array of high-end pantry items. The display cases are filled with Pete’s stellar prepared food (which you’ve sampled at any of our past parties catered by Food for Forks or the Wainscott Seafood Company). We’re so excited to welcome Pete to the neighborhood; lunches just got a lot more fun!

photo Joshua Zuckerman Photography

Once upon a time,  “Saturday Night Wedding” meant one thing: seated dinner, choice of beef or fish.  Times have changed, and weddings are taking on a variety of different formats.  A wave that we’ve been riding over the past few years is a preference for a more casual, unstructured party – what we call a Lounge Party.  Rather than tables of ten, rooms are designed around clusters of informal seating, often lounge furniture mixed with smaller cocktail tables and airport tables (tall cocktail tables).  Dinner – instead of the typical progression of plated appetizer, salad, entree, dessert – is served either in the style of a heavy cocktail party, a “station” event comprised of several small buffet set ups, or a combination of both.

I’m a huge fan of these types of events, but there are some real pitfalls to avoid.  Weddings are long – typically five hours or more – and the goal is to keep guests both comfortable and interested.  Here are some tips entertaining some happy lounge lizards.

Scheduling: Because a Lounge Party is by nature less structured than a more formal wedding, it’s important to create a progressive flow to your day.  There’s nothing more boring that a five-hour cocktail party!  Keep the structure of a cocktail hour, dinner hour and dessert hour so your guests are constantly getting to experience new food and drink. Don’t assume that you’ll just “fit in” moments for toasts, first dances, dance sets and cake cutting; create a timeline and schedule them at varied intervals throughout the wedding.

Seating: The goal of a Lounge Wedding is to keep mingling, fun and dancing to a maximum.  While you want to make sure that guests have places to plop down, rest, eat and chat you don’t want to encourage anyone to permanently plant themselves for the duration.  Keeping the balance of seating is the key.  I suggest seats for no more than a third to half of your guests at any given time.  Be sure to mix upholstered furniture and tables, which will encourage guests to move around.  Utilizing smaller tables will deter large groups from setting up camp for the night.  Ottomans are a great option, as there’s always room to squeeze one more friend.  It’s fine to set up a couple of reserved tables for grandparents or other adult VIP’s who might need the security of a permanent seat.

photo Parris Whittingham

Food: While it’s tempting to think of a Lounge Wedding  as a long cocktail party, it’s not.  People will need to be fed in a substantive way if the party is longer than two to three hours.  It’s nice to start with a cocktail hour offering lighter fare in the form of passed hors d’oeuvre.  Once you move into dinner, think small plates – either actual passed small plates of mini meals (for instance, one grilled lamb chop with tabouleh and cucumber raita) and/or a variety of food  stations.  Stations differ from a buffet in that they are small, offer smaller plates of food and feature a specific fare (for instance, a taco station or fish grill).  Again, the key is to keep guests moving around and tasting little bits of many things.  Work with your caterer to create a fun but cohesive variety of food flowing throughout the night.

Music: Lounge Parties are often a simulation of a club environment, so a DJ is  the perfect choice to get this kind of party going. However, just because the dance floor is open all night doesn’t mean that guests  want to shout over the beat as they’re enjoying their dinner or chatting with friends.  Like all the other elements we’ve discussed, the key with music at a Lounge Wedding is to allow a progression of energy to build throughout the event.

Decor: Designing a Lounge Wedding is an exercise in Macro Design.  Rather than selecting center pieces for tables of ten, the focus here is on the overall room – vignettes of furniture, textiles and pillows for punches of color and texture,  trees and props to bring intimacy and comfort to the space.  Lighting plays a huge role in creating ambience and a fun dance atmosphere.  Candlelight and reflective elements (mirrors, metal, water) can create a sense of style and personal touch.  One note:  creating a to-scale floor plan of the room or tent is essential to ensure that there’s enough room for stations, bars, furniture, tables, dancing and guests to mill around.  Don’t try to wing it on the day!

A Lounge Wedding is the perfect approach to a relaxed summer wedding, particularly in a setting like the Hamptons.  Enjoy the day, but make sure to do your homework before!

photos Joshua Zuckerman Photography, Parris Whittingham, Mallory Samson, Mallory Samson