Linda and James had been together for 11 years and wanted to create a sacred ceremony
celebrating their relationship and including their grown children.  When Linda first called me, she had booked Gurneys as a location for their weekend celebration and was looking for help creating an environment and menu that reflected her vision.    The goal was to create a beach wedding and outdoor reception that felt festive and elegant, yet casual.   She loved an organic look but also wanted to incorporate punches of color, specifically orange, pinks, yellow and greens.

The ceremony was an important moment to welcome their guests, 120 close family and friends.  Because the day was hot and guests were invited to a mid-day beach ceremony, we welcomed them with chilled water bottles (via Hamptons Water Company) and flip flops as well as bags for their street shoes.  When guests arrived at the ceremony benches, they found hand fans and parasols in beachy earth tones, greens and lavenders to match the tulle fabric ribbons strung from the driftwood altar structure.

Hand sewn ceremony programs featuring the couple’s insignia Sneha symbol were anchored by a river stone at each seat. As part of their ceremony, the couple and their children performed a sand ceremony, each helping fill a keepsake bottle with sand they had collected from the Montauk beach.  The bride looked stunning her blush-colored Vera Wang “Farrah” dress.

For cocktails, Gurneys passed hors d’oeuvre and created abundant food stations featuring raw bar items, sushi, antipasto, cheese, crudite and fruit as well as a colorful punch station to augment the bar.  We designed the decks with seating vignettes of outdoor furniture and airport tables utilizing big punches of bright orange and celery-green.  Lots of market umbrellas were placed around the decks to keep guests cool and comfortable.

As guests entered the dinner tent, they were seated at long tables covered in ivory cotton with a taupe runner.  The centerpieces were custom-made wood boxes running the entire length of the table filled with wheat grass and local summer zinnias in punchy bright colors.  Square rattan chargers and square white plates were found at each place setting along with either a lime faille or lavender linen napkin and menu card featuring each guest’s name.

Gurneys chef was ultra-accommodating and  created the exact custom menu we requested:  Chilled Montauk Lobsters with Lemon Tarragon Aioli; Sliced Grilled Sirloin Steak with Chimichurri Sauce;  Farro Salad with Fresh Corn. Tomato, Cucumber, Feta and Parsley; Grilled Asparagus dressed with Olive Oil and Lemon.  The bride supplied a recipe for a Pink Champagne wedding cake filled with Raspberry Mousse and Fresh Raspberries, which was delicious!

Age-old friends toasted the couple with beautiful, heartfelt memories and wishes for their future.  As the heat of the day dissolved into thunderous rain, guests danced and partied until the bitter end, most leaving with heaping boxes of gummy candies, M&M’s and assorted goodies from the candy display.

James and Linda, you’re a gorgeous, loving couple with amazing family and friends. We were so honored to be part of your day.

 Photos:  www.joshuazuckerman.com

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Thanks to KDHamptons.com writer Christine Morrison and founder/editor-in-chief Kelli Delaney Kot for featuring jill gordon celebrate as the “Haute Hamptons Wedding Planner!”  With her probing interviewing style and wonderful writing talent, Christine generously took time to chat with me about the Hamptons, the wedding industry, tips for wedding planning out East and my personal history in the business.  Kelli has created a phenomenal blogspot focused on the Hamptons luxury lifestyle – who’s here and doing it best.  If you haven’t already, definitely take a visit to the site!

To see the post, click here.

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Memorial Day Weekend

East Hampton

The beach at Old House Landing Road, East Hampton.  Memorial Day 2012.

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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

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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.

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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!

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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.

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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.

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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

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