Real Wedding Connecticut

Planner: Davii Mandel and Chany Kleinberger, Mi Chicas Celebrations, Spring Valley, N.Y., www.michicas.com, davii@michicas.com and chany@michicas.comYears in Industry: 25Photography: Eli RobinsonBusinesses: Eric Suazo Events (floral), Rentals Unlimited (tables & chairs), Lil Miss Cakes (wedding cake), Events by Tee (catering),Lighthouse Point Park in New Haven, Conn. (venue)wedding date: June 26, 2016Guest count: 50Involvement: Full consultingThe couple: This was a vow renewal. The couple has been married for 10 years. They have two children. Overall, they felt their first wedding was more for their parents' and parent’s friends, so they wanted a chance to do it over in their own style.Inspiration: They wanted a modern, chic, sleek, and breezy event.“Aha” Moment: What particularly influenced the design of this event was the beach, sand, wind, and surf. We wanted it to feel light, white, and breezy. The long swaths of organza that were hanging from the ceiling and blowing around in the wind gave it a dreamy, ethereal feeling that the guests really loved!Most Unique Design Element: The birchwood chuppah on the beach and the gorgeous chair backs that helped make the large room feel fuller were the most unique elements of this event’s design.Color palette: White, silverBudget: $25,000Staff hours: 12 on the day of the eventPlanning time: 8 monthsClient meetings: We held two in-person meetings but had many phone calls and texts.Set up/strike details: It was a nice, hot day and the beach was full of people. Many were curious and kept coming to the windows to watch as we set up. When the music started, strangers on the beach were dancing along!Revenue breakdown: 100% planningBiggest challenge: The bottom tier of the cake completely fell apart while sitting in a warm truck for two and a half hours! We had to do emergency surgery by putting the top two tiers on a glass riser and using only the front half of the bottom tier—covering the back with flowers. It was disappointing, but guests didn’t know the difference by the time we finished.Hindsight: In the future, I will make sure the wedding cake is situated directly in front of the truck’s air conditioner. WPM