Sneak Preview

Viola of Chewing the Cud just sent me a few photos of the paper goods that she is working on for the amazing tablescapes in the decor room. I'm so excited to post them here, as a sneak preview....wait until you see EVERYTHING on the 8th! It's going to blow you away.

Some tools Viola has been playing with to create the paper goods:

wax seals, aged papers, gold textures, tassels etc.

She is a fan of using the ordinary objects in unordinary ways!

TWU Preview: Design Case Study

TWU's design team consists of Nancy Liu Chin, Gloria Wong Tritasavit, John Woods, and Viola Sutante. Together, these four remarkably creative and talented professionals will be presenting to TWU students a 'case study' of how to thread a concept throughout your entire wedding. Their presentation promises to be incredibly interesting and fun, and students will learn great tips for their own weddings! As a sneak preview, here is their 'Mood Board' for their case study, called 'Love Letters'!

Featuring: Cynthia Glinka of On the Dance Floor

I first met Cynthia Glinka about 5 years ago, at an industry networking event. I still remember quite vividly her amazing energy, and the spark in her eyes when she described herself as a dancer. Thereafter, I began to send her my clients that needed dance lessons. As I saw the way she transformed my clients' confidence level on the dance floor, I was in awe. Even the shyest of the grooms who swore they had two left feet could be seen gracefully spinning his beautiful bride on the dance floor after just ONE lesson with Cynthia! It was magic!

Shortly after getting the fabulous feedback from my clients, I now encourage ALL my clients to do dance lessons with Cynthia. Even if they do not feel like they need it, it's a really fun part of the wedding planning process. One of my brides last year literally said she laughed so hard at the very first lesson that her stomach hurted for the rest of the night. She scheduled two more lessons with Cynthia after that, just to have fun!

More on Cynthia:

Your first dance can either be...

A honeymoon or a nightmare:

Brides and grooms like you

want their first steps in life together to be perfect.

Why not start with your first dance at your wedding?

Take ONE session and I guarantee you'll be dancing down the aisle.
That's right, ONE session!

If you can walk, you can dance! We’re not going for a trophy here folks, says Cynthia.

Spin, dip and dance to the bedroom . . .

I've transformed countless wedding couples into confident,
elegant dancers for their ‘first dance’ and the rest of their lives.

You think the wedding day will be romantic? Wait until you start dancing!

With Glinka's tips and tricks,
you'll be dancing for a lifetime.

Come meet Cynthia and see her in action at The Wedding University. She'll be spinning couples down the aisle and offering you valuable tips for your first dance!

For More Information.....

Please also check out the following blogs, dedicated to featuring more insights on our TWU professors!

http://nancyliuchin.blogspot.com
http://savadelis.blogspot.com

Featuring: Geoff White Photography

I'm really hoping that this blog is giving you a good sense of the caliber of the Event Professionals that will be speaking to you on February 8th. We have selected an amazing group of people, all experts in their fields but at the same time very personable and approachable. This is a great opportunity to ask questions without being judged!

Our photography team for The Wedding University is pretty awesome. I'm going to start with Geoff and Lara White, another dynamic husband and wife team that has captured the hearts of many couples with their amazing photos. They will be talking about the different styles of photography out there, what photojournalism REALLY means, and what couples should truly look for when seeking their perfect wedding photographer.

Here is their story...

Geoff White has established himself as one of the premiere wedding photographers of the Bay Area, employing a style that combines the crisp, contemporary elements of photojournalism with a lovely, perceptive artistry.

Geoff fell in love with photography when he got his first camera at age ten. Photography remained a hobby while Geoff and a former classmate decided to start a business in Silicon Valley using Geoff’s technical savvy and background as a computer engineer. The pair’s entrepreneurial vision took them from living out of backpacks on a friend’s couch to selling their wildly successful company to a Swedish firm after only four years. This left Geoff with the time and resources to pursue his real passion: photography. After a three month tour of North America with nothing but a camera and a Winnebago, Geoff was certain that photography was the perfect expressive outlet.

To learn the craft, Geoff apprenticed himself to a professional photographer (who would later join the Geoff White team). At the same time, he indulged his love of cutting edge technology by being an early adopter of digital photography, which allows him speed and tremendous post-production flexibility. Ultimately, Geoff is distinguished for his combination of technical prowess and artistic vision. With his wife Lara, who shares his business acumen and meticulous attention to detail, Geoff has grown Geoff White Photography into a unique Bay Area brand, where a deft understanding of cutting edge technology meets a detailed and visionary eye for design.

Geoff comes highly recommended by his clients as well as a variety of professionals. His work has been published in Wedding Bells, Professional Photographer, Wedding Guide, American Libraries, and a Destination Weddings book. TITLED? Geoff is also an active member of Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (WPPI), Professional Photographers of America (PPA), Professional Photographers of the Greater Bay Area (PPGBA), National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP), The ShortList and By Recommendation Only (BRO).

Lara White is half of the original Geoff White Photography team, bringing professional expertise from her background in wedding and non-profit event planning. Lara’s passion and skill for growing a company from the ground up has been integral in making their business stand out in the field. Her sense of professionalism and her dedication to exceptional customer service round out the artistic excellence that Geoff White Photography has come to be known for, making her a natural fit as a business partner for Geoff. With her planning sensibility and solid understanding of the composition and flow of the wedding day, Lara is directing the game plan and insuring full coverage, leaving the photographer free to focus on the artistic end.

Lara’s not all business, though, and she’s always had a passion for weddings in particular. Growing up in an artistic household (with a dancer mom and a wedding photographer dad), she was always intrigued by being in a house where the walls were covered by strangers’ wedding photos. Self-described as the little girl who kept a detailed notebook of her dream wedding, Lara’s life took a funny turn when she and then-boyfriend Geoff were traveling in his native Canada. Thanks to some visa complications, Geoff’s best option for getting back into America legally was marrying a native for citizenship status. Over the course of a day, Lara and Geoff bought their wedding rings from a border pawnshop, and were married by a vacationing pastor at a Niagara Falls chapel, which Lara describes as “a cheap and dirty version of Vegas.” Lara’s outlook on this little episode is a good insight into why she’s an amazing wedding professional: every event she’s a part of is her chance to live out her fantasy weddings. Whether she’s helping to capture a little beach ceremony or a gala affair, Lara marries her professional expertise with her personal passion every time. She and Geoff share their home with her sixteen year old niece, Brittanie, and their three pound Maltese dog, Emma.

From Concept to Reality--Part II

In an earlier post, I featured a very talented designer Gloria Wong Tritasvait of Sash and Sugar. She will be one of the Design Instructors at TWU. I posted a fabulous mood board that she created for one of her 2008 clients and promised to post photos to show how the mood board was brought to live at the actual wedding. Enjoy!! All photos courtesy of Anna Kuperberg.

From Concept...

To Reality...

Featuring: Viola Sutanto of Chewing the Cud

One of the most creative wedding professionals that I've had the pleasure of meeting in 2008 was Viola Sutanto of Chewing the Cud. Her company name alone shows how much creativity this brilliant girl has in her! The Wedding University is extremely honored to be partnering with her in the design of our logo and collaterals.

I first became familiar with Viola's name when her own beautiful wedding was featured in one of the premier bridal magazines--Northern California Brides. I was incredibly impressed with the way her favorite book, To Kill a Mockingbird, inspired her to create an entire wedding design around it. From the paper table runner to the escort 'books' to the ring bearer book 'pillow', I could tell that every element was very well thought out and designed.

When I met with Viola to get to know her, I found her to be quite charming and approachable. We had a great time chatting and when we began seeking a designer for The Wedding University's logo, I knew she would be the perfect candidate.

Viola is currently working with the rest of the design team for The Wedding University, to show our students how paper goods are an integral part of a wedding design.

Some facts on Viola:

ACHIEVEMENTS/AWARDS

Western Art Directors Club Silver Medal

Communication Arts Annual Awards

Print Magazine Annual Awards

How Magazine Self-Promotional Awards

Grace Ormonde's Wedding Style Magazine Platinum List 2009

Style Me Pretty's Little Black Book of Preferred Vendors

CREDENTIALS/PARTIAL CLIENT LIST

Designed for brands such as The Sak, Chronicle Books, Design Within Reach, and Peet's Coffee and Tea.

MEDIA EXPOSURE

Bride and Bloom

Real Simple Weddings

Brides Magazine (Northern Cal, Chicago, Washington D.C. and other regional markets)

The Knot

Brides.com

7 x 7 San Francisco

Southern Weddings Style

Featured on Style Me Pretty, Wedding Bee, Project Wedding, Brooklyn Bride, Oh Joy!, Poppytalk and other premier wedding and design blogs.

INTERESTING FACTS

Viola was named after the protagonist in Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night".

She regrets that she may never take her husband's last name: put "Viola" and Ting" together and you'll see why.

Viola has an incurable weakness for found objects, used books, the streets of Paris and dark chocolate.

Below are some examples of Viola's talent:

Teaser #2--From Concept to Reality

What makes a wedding beautiful? It's design ofcourse! Think about the times when you attended a wedding or event, and you walked into a room that completely dazzled you with its incredible decor and ambiance. Well, let me tell you...A LOT of thought, planning, and hard work went behind the scenes to pull it all together.

When couples get engaged, they turn to the magazines to offer them inspiration and ideas for their wedding design. BUT....

1. How do you hone in on a concept that truly expresses your passions, style, personalities, and background?
2. How do you take one, or even multiple, ideas and turn it into a concept for your wedding design?
3. How do you thread elements of the concept throughout your wedding to make the design cohesive and perfect?

The Wedding University will be offering a design class for its students to help them understand the basic elements of design-- how to turn an idea into a design concept, and then how to turn the concept into reality!

One of the professors for the design class will be Gloria Wong Tritasavit of Sash and Sugar. Gloria has a background in design and is obsessive about color, composition, style, and how visual elements can stir the heart. Born and raised in San Francisco, she set her sights on a career in fashion at an early age. After receiving a Fine Arts degree with an emphasis in fashion design from the renowned Academy of Art College in San Francisco, she started her career in fashion by designing for DKNY Jeans in New York. She later ventured into merchandising at bebe, and then took on a role as a designer at Levi Strauss & Co in San Francisco.

Upon planning her own wedding in 2006, Gloria fell in love with the world of event design and soon converted her creative energies from apparel to weddings. She earned her ACPWC certificate for wedding consulting and in the short amount of time she has been in business, her incredible designs have already been featured in numerous publications such as Brides, The Knot, SF Brides by Modern Luxury, Bride & Bloom, Style Me Pretty, Daily Candy, and the View From The Bay.

Take a look at this Mood Board that Gloria created for one of her clients this year! The couple's favorite destination for travel was France. They got giddy when they spoke of French shops to Gloria so she immediately knew that the wedding would be heavily influenced by French design. At the same time, the bride had mentioned her fondness for Asian styling and the groom expressed his desire to keep the wedding modern and organic. Both wanted a fresh bold color palette. The result was a Modern Chinoiserie concept equipped with French tapestry, Asian geometric shapes, birds and branches, and a daring color palette of bright lemon yellow, silvery blue, black, and white!

We will post photos of the actual wedding to show how Gloria turn the ideas and concepts into reality in a later post! For now, enjoy some interesting facts about our lovely Gloria:

- She is a Brady Bunch fanatic.
- Her mother is one of twelve siblings.
- She won an art contest sponsored by Sanrio when she was 8.
- She met her best friend of 27 years and in Kindergarten, went to grammar school, high school, and college together, and were post-college roommates in New York.