Have you walked into an event and been hit by a wonderful aroma?  We always think about lighting, music and certainly food & drinks, but scent is also an important component to a dinner party, casual soiree, or corporate function.  And it's easy to add an appropriate scent to your event.   
Scent an Event, Jo Malone

Jo Malone, the luxury London fragrance company, has a collection of tea candles called: Scent an Event.  Their strong fragrances can quickly transform a room and add a beautiful warmth to an environment.   Whether in your home or a conference center, candles evoke a sense of celebration.

If candles are not allowed in your venue, a more subtle way to add scents is through a spray or diffuser sticks.   Archipelago is another brand that has very strong, yet tasteful scents and offers many beautiful options.

Enjoy selecting your next event scent. 
 

BTW, Jo Malone provides a corporate gift giving service if you're looking for a nice luxury gift ( they provide free gift wrap and shipping).  Not the least expensive option, but may be a right for certain clients. JoMalone

If you're planning weddings or based on the west coast you're probably familiar with the amazing works of floral art Mark's Garden has produced.  For more than a decade, Hollywood celebrities have enjoyed Mark Held and Richard David's creative visions for their weddings and major celebrations. 

If you're looking for inspiration for your next soiree, consider their new book, Fabulous Parties, featuring hundreds of elegant decor ideas for the event hostess.  As one would expect, the book offers top-notch tips on arranging stunning floral centerpieces, but Fabulous Parties also provides the reader helpful guidance on how to tastefully work a theme into the menu, food presentation, table settings and aperitifs.     

And if reading the book just isn't enough for you....Mark's Garden does take their floral production anywhere in the world.   Marks Garden.  Simply Inspirational.

The Internet has absolutely improved communication and our ability to quickly and easily "get the word out" to large numbers.  Too easily sometimes.   When sending an email invitation for an event there are a few steps you can take to minimize the chance you'll create an OMG moment after hitting send...

• Protect your invitees names.  The easiest way to do this is to place the recipient's names in the BCC field of an email.  To outsmart the spam filters put your name, or whomever they are to reply to, in the TO field.  Another way to send mass emails, which I prefer, is to use a mail merge system.  This way the email is addressed to your guests, but only their name appears in the TO field.  
• Keep it short.  The email invitation should have enough information to hook them, and your landing page will have all other details.  The invitation is the first impression for the event you're throwing, so give some serious thought to the graphics and colors. 
• Critical information to provide on the email invitation or landing page:  Date of the event, start & end time, the host's name, the venue name & address, where to RSVP, your phone number and suggested attire. 
•  Make the URL simple.  If you're providing a URL for RSVPs and will be sharing this to people, create a short URL.  IT depts can help create an alias, while your site is actually hosted on the longer URL.   If you're creatting a website for your wedding and you are the IT dept, consider purchasing a short domain name for $10/yr and have it redirect to the actual wedding site.
• Consider an Alias.  If your host is well known and it fits with his/her personality, consider sending the invitation from their name.  Clients feel special and the open rate will greatly improve.    
• Check the RSVP email account daily.  If a guest takes the time to write to you best to respond within 24 hours.
• Test the email on several people outside of your corporate intranet.  I can't tell you how many emails my mom's opened with me on the phone asking, "What happens if you click on the picture, do you see red flowers?  And "who" does the message appear from?  Hit reply, where does the reply say it's going?"  Clients expect professional messages.

Good luck Diva, and may the email gods be in your court the next time you send an email to 2000 people.  Please add your tips to the blog...

Are you looking for an elegant wedding invitation that doesn’t look like the last five invitations your guests received?  TinyPrints has launched a sister site specializing in letterpress wedding invitations.  Their styles are just as modern and elegant as their birth announcements, and the new letterpress collection is gorgeous.  The site is called Wedding Paper Divas. Below is their company write up, tres chic.

Wedding Paper Divas luxury Letterpress Collection features our exclusive designs printed by fine stationer William Arthur on their custom-milled white and ecru papers. The substantial weight and creamy texture of their signature paper and the exquisite quality and fine craftsmanship of their printing married with Wedding Paper Divas contemporary, elegant designs and easy personalization options create wedding stationery that is truly divine.

Nothing is classier than a handwritten welcome note.  It's a great idea to include a note card from your host in the room of every guest speaker or wedding party attendant.  Note cards are also a very friendly way to remind guests of a special reception or dinner party that takes place during a larger event.  I like to come up with some clever copy that ties into the event and have fun with the notes. 

Hand cramps? If you chose to print your notes rather than hand write them consider doing so on nice note cards, rather than 8.5x11 sheets of paper.   We have a notecard template ready to go under "Helpful Planning Templates".  The template will work on standard 3.5x5 inch cards.

If you're looking for cards, Cranes paper is typically heavy, nice quality with many classic design options.  You can buy some with a Pineapple on the front if you're hosting an event in the South (symbol of hospitality) or a saavy golfer if you're hosting a Tournament.  If you're looking to portray a more contemporary image consider Tiny Prints or Iomoi which have great designs and can be customized with your name. Or better yet, work with a designer to have cards made up with your logo. 

Chocolate Fountains make a great addition to any cocktail party.  This is a fun  conversation piece and encourages guests to congregate,  besides, who doesn’t love chocolate at the end of a day?  Chocolate fountains can be rented from most caterers and you can offer pretzels, marshmallows, the classic strawberries, cantaloupe, or really any fruit that guests can place on a long stick.  I do recommend renting rather than buying these machines, the only thing harder to clean could be one of those turkey deep fryers – no thank you.