Why My Neighbors Think I'm Nuts

Many years ago, when I had my first full time employee who came to work every day in my little NYC apartment (Dana, if you are reading this, I still think you are a superhero), my business was just starting to boom and we were quickly outgrowing both the amount of space we needed to produce the events on the calendar as well as the number of hours it took to actually get all of the work done. For one Bat Mitzvah, with painter's tarps on my new couches, we hand-cut nine Caribbean Islands from foam core, spray painted them showing correct topography and mounted them on wooden beams covered with fishing nets. Then, since we were running late to the event setup, we blew up about 75 inflatable guitars and microphones in my tiny little Ford. At the time (before blogs), we joked that my first book would be entitled "100 Things You Never Knew You Could Do In A Moving Car." I still might write that book...

Now, about six years later, I have a bigger office and a bigger car, but some things never change. With only hours to go before hitting the road for a destination wedding in Vermont, I had to find a way to transform zinc tags into chalkboard placecards. When I ordered them to start with I thought I'd like the zinc, but when they arrived I had to make a game-time decision to change up the plan (with the bride's blessing, of course). Anyway, now that I have kids and a dog, spray painting in my living room is no longer an option, so I had to move my craft project outside to my driveway. On a cold fall morning, as my neighbors walked their dogs and picked up their morning papers, I suited up in surgical gloves to get my craft on! With no shortage of strange looks, I danced around my driveway avoiding the excess paint blowing towards me with the gusts of wind and made it happen.


This is how the zinc tags came.


And after the initial coat of paint began...


Done, but wet!


Loaded up to dry on the way out of town!


The finished product.

I figure that the work in the driveway is like free advertising - everyone on my block knows what I do for a living, that's for sure!

Til next time,
L

Ali and Gene's Vermont Wedding

Happy new year! Though fall seems like a distant memory amidst the ice and snow, it was just a few months ago that we had the honor of planning and designing a beautiful country wedding for Ali and Gene in Southern Vermont. They wanted to maintain an atmosphere that was true to the rustic landscape of the Inn at Weathersfield, but elevate the ambiance to add a refinement that was a reflection of their cosmopolitan tastes. After months of working long distance (bride and groom in Boston and me in NYC), I think we achieved a perfect balance that made for an outstanding wedding weekend. Thank you to Elizabeth Antunes for all of the photographs below.

The quaint Inn at Weathersfield

Guest found their table assignments on chalkboard markers arranged in moss

2009 was the year of the rain... but the couple was undeterred!

The Inn at Weathersfield has one of the most well recognized chefs in New England, so the family-style menu was a highlight of the event.

Before the sun set and the candles were lit...

The table landscape was comprised of birch wrapped pillar candles and vases with a mix of white, green and eggplant purple blooms.

Zinc tags sprayed with chalkboard paint and handwritten with chalk pens directed guests to their seats.