Go Support the Luke Pier Foundation on Saturday!

Are you looking for something fun to do on Saturday? Go by and support one of my favorite charities, The Luke Pier Foundation, by being a spectator at the 3rd Annual Softball Tournament at the Renaissance Park on Tyvola Road in Charlotte. The Luke Pier Foundation is a not-for-profit organization committed to provide funding for life-saving scientific research focusing on, but not limited to, connective tissue disorders.

I was actually there for the 1st tournament and because of an event I can not make it to the tournament this year, but I am hoping for a wonderful turn out and hope everyone has a great time!

Fashion For a Cause

Are you looking for something fabulous to do this week? Well, Hayden Olivia Bridal presents Dress in the City: A fashion show to benefit Dress for Success of Charlotte on Thursday March 5th. Walking the runway at this event will be the beautiful gown worn by our pretend friend Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City the movie. So if this sounds like a fun time for you, be sure to contact Hayden Olivia for tickets to this great event. I hope to see you there!

Calling all Charlotte-area brides....

I get so excited when I have great info to share. Starting next week J Major's Bridal Boutique, located in Charlotte, NC, will be having trunk shows until the end of March. There will be discounts on gowns as well as accessories. Now, remember ladies with trunk shows they work by appointment only so please call for an appointment (704.372.0082 ) so you do not miss out on the opportunity to actually go in and touch and feel gowns made by some of the best bridal gown designers in the industry.

Here is the trunk show schedule:

Anne Barge Trunk Show
January 16-18, 2009

Lazaro Trunk Show
January 30-February 1, 2009

Romona Keveza Trunk Show
February 20-22, 2009

Novia d'Art Trunk Show
February 27-28, 2009

Renella de Fina Trunk Show
March 6-8, 2009

Melissa Sweet Trunk Show
March 13-15, 2009

Lea-Ann Belter Trunk Show
March 27-29, 2009

Here is a little of what you have to look forward to!

Lazaro


Romona Keveza


Renella de Fina

Portrait Sessions in Uptown Charlotte

Cheyenne Schultz Photography has teamed up with The Beautiful Mess to offer portrait sessions in Uptown Charlotte on November 9th. Hurry and schedule your session before November 1st at portraitsintheparknc@gmail.com or call (704) 421-2014.

J. Major's Bridal Gala for Breast Cancer

I absolutely love to find out about exciting events going on in my own area. J. Majors Bridal Boutique, one of the premier bridal salons in Charlotte, is throwing a fun evening of fashion, food, drinks and music. This event is to benefit the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Not only will you be able to see the city at night at one of the best locations, A Roof With A View, you will also enjoy a fashion show featuring gowns by Melissa Sweet and Priscilla of Boston. You can get tickets for this October 10th event by contacting J. Majors at 704.372.0082.

A Little Christmas Inspiration

I'm working with my great friend Carolyn, who is an amazing event decorator, on an event design for a private Christmas party next month and what better place to go and get inspired than the Charlotte's Southern Christmas Show. Well, personally, it's a little early for Christmas for me. When I was shopping for our Halloween party they had Christmas stuff out already, which is REALLY to early for me. But anyway, we had an enjoyable afternoon looking at the decor and taking photos of little elements that we may want to add to the decor of this event. Christmas, this year is definitely more than red and green. There are so many beautiful rich hues that you can use that still give off that holiday feel. Hmm, this is giving me an idea, maybe I'll start posting some lovely design ideas for holiday parties, hopefully to inspire you guys to invite some folks over and celebrate the real meaning of Christmas. But anyway, let's get to Thanksgiving first! :)

NACE Crystal Ball

The Charlotte Chapter of National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) will be having it's annual fundraiser entitled the Crystal Ball, to benefit the Alexander Youth Network. This is such a wonderful organization that helps so many of our local area youth who deal with serious emotional problems, due to abuse and neglect. This wonderful event will be held on Friday November 16th at the Embassy Suites Charlotte. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you about our wonderful theme: Moulin Rouge: An Evening of Spectacular Splendor! Fabulous!

If you are in the Charlotte area and would like to enjoy a wonderful evening full of beautiful decor and of course delicious food, please contact me at info@sjbweddingsandevents.com, for ticket information. Also, I can't forget our silent auction, if you'd like to donate an item for this wonderful cause please contact me. We want to raise a lot of money for this worthy organization, please help us!

Friendly Competiton for a Great Cause!

On this past Saturday, The Luke Pier Foundation held it's First Annual Softball Tournament. If you are a ball player and you missed it be sure to contact them to be included in the next tournament. It was great! I am so happy to have been apart of this wonderful fundraiser and am extremely grateful for the hands-on experience it gave me in doing some planning for a sports related fundraiser. I had a great time getting to know the Pier Family and hanging out with my partner in crime Kim Marshall (see below)!

By the way, if you are having a wedding coming up and want to make a donation to a nonprofit organization on behalf of your guests instead of buying wedding favors, please consider The Luke Pier Foundation as the beneficiary.

Giving Back Feels So Good

On this past Friday, I had the distinct pleasure to participate in a Celebrity Book Reading for a local elementary school. Wait, I of course am not a celebrity, but there were local celebrities there taking time out of their day to read to classes. This event as well as the book drive was organized by high school senior, Arthur Hairston for his senior project. We didn't have those when I went to high school. But anyway, this was a great event and it definitely shows the maturity of some of our youth. The goal of this project was to create more awareness of how poverty and a lack of resources can affect children's ability to learn to read. This was an excellent project and I walked away feeling great about myself and being inspired by those students a read to. Arthur raised over $1100 for the school and collected 1000 books. I'll say that is an A+++ for his project! Great job Arthur!

Here are a couple of pics from the classes I visited and they truly made me feel like a celebrity!! :) By the way, taking pictures of kids is a very hard task to accomplish. : )

Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden Fall Festival

I heard about this fun event on the radio and have put it our family calendar for the weekend. If you haven't had the privilege to visit Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens this would be a wonderful opportunity for you and your family to enjoy the fall (excuse me, summer) weather! :) Check out the link for more information, but it sounds great. A day filled with hayrides, pumpkin decorating, the botanical zoo (Wow, animal shaped topiaries! I'm looking forward to this one) and the beautiful maze. This place is known amongst brides as one of the most beautiful places in this area to be married and a great place for family fun this weekend!