Archive for September, 2012
September 28th, 2012
When planning your Bar/Bat Mitzvah reception don’t overlook the chairs.
Dressing up your chairs will take your event decor to another level. If your budget is limited or if you want a cleaner look, don’t worry — you don’t have to embellish every chair. Consider designating certain areas as decorated chair spaces. Depending on your budget, you can beautify the chairs in the cocktail area or choose to decorate every other chair or table or at the reception.
The picture above is a tie dye chair cover from Culinary Craft.
Don’t worry Mitzvah Market has you covered! Take a look at some of the latest chair trends below:
The Lustberg Family used gold chiavari chairs with orange accents from Dalsimer Florists
From Mosaic’s bikini chair backs mix hot pink and orange l’amour for a luxe look
Evantine Design created custom chairs in the cocktail room for a soccer theme party
From the Herschkowitz Family Spotlight colorful neon spandex was used from Dazzling Parties
For this “cruise” theme, the favor bags were hung on the chairs for added color from Beautiful Blooms
The white chiavari chair and blue seat cushion is a crisp nautical look for a Bar Mitzvah in Florida from Linzi Events
From BBJ Linens, chair ties in different colors add personality
Extraordinary Productions used pink and gold chiavari chairs for extra pop!
A mix of modern and traditional from Dejuan Stroud pairing acrylic chairs with a beautiful quilted pink vinyl table cloth looks so elegant
Party Harty provides stools that give the party a modern edge
Wild Flower Linen provided these chair covers
Did you dress up your chairs for your child’s Bar/Bat Mitzvah? Let us know at info@MitzvahMarket.com.
September 25th, 2012
Lauren Futterman celebrated her Bat Mitzvah on April 28, 2012, at the New City Jewish Center in New City, Rockland County, New York. She had a Havdalah service followed by an evening of food and music in the ballroom of New City Jewish Center. Her party’s theme was “Lauren in the Spotlight.”
Lauren’s mom, Nicole, planned the entire celebration without the help of a party planner, so she has an endless amount of first-hand advice for other planning families.
Jeff Siegel of J. Michaels Photography was the photographer and the rest of the vendors are listed at the bottom of this spotlight.
Pictured above (L-R): Mom Nicole, Dad Jeff, Brother Matthew, Bat Mitzvah girl Lauren
Sherry Schneider of Party Perfect created Lauren’s invitations.
The invitations were hot pink and black with two sparkling chips beside her name, Lauren Leslie
A matching stamp with her full name (Lauren Leslie Futterman) was created at Zazzle.com
The room was decorated by Balloon Artistry. They were given the task of turning the temple’s ballroom into a club-like atmosphere.
As guests entered the room, they passed through an archway of white festive balloons
The archway led them into the magnificent ballroom, decorated in hot pink and black
The centerpieces were enormous clear balloons with white silver sparkle blown into the center of the balloons
This large sign was decorated with mini lights around the edges of the board which flashed all night long!
Balloon Artistry designed the place cards to match the rest of Lauren’s decor.
The place cards had flashing stars, and each of the children’s tables were decorated with flashing glasses they took home at the end of the night
Starlight Express provided the music for the evening, and Lauren’s MC for the night was Flip.
Lauren makes her big entrance
Flip the MC kept the crowd dancing all night long
The caterer, Marc Aaron Caterers, provided a delicious and beautiful cake from Strauss Bakery.
Simon Elliot Events provided the digital sign-in board. Simon created backgrounds with Lauren’s interests which included dance and her Lauren in the Spotlight theme.
Mindy at ImageMaker helped design and print the awesome t-shirt favors for the boys and girls.
A graphic of a necklace with charms was designed to hang from the neckline of the girls’ shirts. The charms were printed in purple and silver sparkle.
The charms on the necklace graphic included the letters L.L.F. for Lauren’s initials, rings with the date of her party, and “In the Spotlight” theme. Other charms included ballet shoes, hearts, peace signs, flowers, a diamond ring, and a dove.
A graphic of two dog tags was designed for the boys’ t-shirts
For entertainment, Steve Seifer of Steve Seifer Wire Sculptures, Inc. and his assistant created wire sculptures throughout the evening. The children chose their sculptures based on their interests. The kids loved the wire sculptures, and they were a unique activity that guests had not seen before.
Steve and his assistant created wire people with various themes including football, baseball, dancing, shopping, and many others
Lauren and her dad shared a special father-daughter dance to the tune of Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Wanna Close My Eyes.” Her dad chose the song because he remembers it was playing the day after Lauren was born and he was going to the hospital to see her.
Mom Nicole did not use a party planner, opting instead to find vendors on her own. She has a lot of advice for moms, whether you’re planning on your own or not:
“I would recommend to start by deciding what your budget is for your party. Then start planning about seven months prior to the event. This gives plenty of time to research and meet with vendors and plan the party leisurely. Get recommendations of vendors from friends who have had parties. The Internet can also be a great source to find fun and different ideas to entertain your guests. Most importantly, pace yourself. Don’t look at the whole picture at once. Break each part of the party planning into separate projects with deadlines. For example, the venue, the DJ, the photographer, the invitations, the decor, the party clothes, the entertainment. Once you have made your choice, move on to the next task. Keep contracts and contact information in a folder. Program the contact information into your phone so that they will be ready when you need them. This is really helpful especially if you have contracted with vendors months before your event. You might not speak to them again until a week prior to the event. You don’t want to search for phone numbers at the last minute.
Another tip I would offer is to take the invitation to a few different post offices to determine the postage. It’s so important the invitations have the correct postage. I also ordered my stamps for the RSVP and thank you cards ahead of time at the USPS.com store online. This saved the headache of having to go to the post office and buy the stamps in a large quantity. Our post offices are small and don’t stock large quantities of decorative stamps. I shopped online and the stamps were delivered to my mailbox.
Most importantly, on the day of your event just kick back and enjoy the hours of hard work. The day goes by so quickly but is so worth the many hours and months of planning.”
For her Mitzvah Project, Lauren and her friend Julia created a lemonade stand to raise money for a horseback riding program sponsored by Jawonio. The girls sold lemonade and raised close to $200 for the program. Jawonio is a nonprofit organization with headquarters in New City, Lauren’s town. The organization’s goal is to advance the independence, well-being, and equality of adults and children with disabilities or special needs.
Lauren also collected supplies for Hi-Tor Animal Care Center in Pomona, NY, which is the only animal shelter in Rockland County and is in desperate need of supplies and funding.
The following vendors helped to make Lauren’s celebration special. If you give any of them a call, please let them know you heard about their services on MitzvahMarket.com.
Venue: New City Jewish Center, Rockland County
Caterer: Marc Aaron Caterers, 845-353-5578
Music Entertainment: Starlight Express, 516-742-1100
Décor/Florist: Balloon Artistry, 845-352-2828
Favor person: The ImageMaker, 516-377-0186
Photo Booth: Action Entertainment, 800-605-4383
Wire Sculptures: Steve Seifer, Wire Sculptures, Inc., 718-846-4024
Invitation: Sherry Schneider, Party Perfect, 845-638-2602 or 845-638-2381
Cake: Strauss Bakery, 718-851-8751
Sign-In board: Simon Elliot Events, 516-586-6822
Mom Nicole’s Dress: Neiman Marcus; shawl from Jaques Ferber,
Lauren’s Dress and Shawl: David’s Bridal, 845-578-1861
Suits for family members: Men’s Warehouse, 845-624-1003
Hair: Linda Prevot, Beauty Plus Salon, 845-634-3115
Makeup: Divya Kumra, Yuva Laser and Skin Care, 845-709-6300
Photographer: Jeff Siegel, J. Michaels Photography, 516-536-3456
Videographer: Starlight Express, 516-742-1100
September 25th, 2012
Are you in the middle of planning your child’s Bar/Bat Mitzvah and are looking for something different for your child’s entrance or montage? Or maybe just a special gift. Give the gift of rap for your child’s special day and have your party be the talk of the town!”
GiftRapps.com is the newest virtual gift.
After gathering information from you about the guest of honor, they create completely personalized songs and slide shows for any celebratory occasion like a Bar/Bat Mitzvah.
Here’s an example of a song written for Bat Mitzvah girl named Hannah!
Watch here
Here’s how it works: You provide them with suggestions and inspiration for the song and then send in pictures for the slide show. They will create a fully customized song for your review within 3-5 business days.
Check out their other samples here.
For pricing and more information, visit their Website.
September 19th, 2012
Michael Marcus is a prominent Hebrew tutor and Bar/Bat Mitzvah officiator with over 25 years of experience working with all types of children. He has had amazing success because of his intense devotion to the needs of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah family.
He tells Mitzvah Market that there are two frequently asked questions which we thought would be important to share with our readers:
1. How long will it take to prepare my child for this most important day?
I assure all of my clients that their goals and mine are exactly the same; and that is, I want their child prepared and “ready to go” with complete confidence, knowledge and understanding of their Torah, Haftarah, blessings and with their speech as well. If parents want my instruction to include some history, customs and traditions, that can be provided as well. Most children are tutored for one hour each week; however, some with less Hebrew background prefer more frequent instruction. I am available 7 days a week and even tutor by video chat when face-to-face lessons are not plausible. My goal is to accommodate the needs and aspirations of the parents and the Bar/Bat Mitzvah. I pride myself on my flexibility to meet the needs of the students and parents, and bring everything together in a beautiful, personalized, caring service.
2. Should we invite our children’s friends to the Bar and Bat Mitzvah service?
There is a trend not to invite friends because the equation “kids equal noise” at services is essentially true and as we all know, we adults want a quiet dignified service that is filled with reverence and meaning. I am of the opinion that we can have a multitude of kids at the service with a minimum of disruption and have a reverent and meaningful service as well. The responsibility for this falls upon the leader of the service and how the service is conducted. If the service is meaningful and the congregation is involved then kids will participate.
During the service the Bar/Bat Mitzvah is up at the podium leading the service about 75% of the time. They actually “conduct” the service, with me always standing alongside them, helping when needed and supportive all of the time. When kids in the congregation see their friend lead the service, it seems more meaningful to them. The kids actually participate and soak up the “hamishness” and warmth and beauty of Judaism and hopefully come to the conclusion that Judaism is a wonderfully meaningful, inclusive and a vibrant religion. Does the fact that their friend is up on the Bima leading the service quiet all of them all of the time? The short answer is, “no,” but the longer answer is that the vast majority of kids participate and are impressed that their friend is the leader and they’re much more respectful. Despite any downside, I opt for having as many kids at the service as possible. They’re needed at the service because they are the future of Judaism.
For more information about Michael Marcus Tutoring visit his extended profile page in our Vendor Directory.
September 19th, 2012
If you were concerned that a sports theme might be too simple for your child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah, allow Chris Macksey and Barbara Roos of Bold American Events to change your mind. The duo designed this “Sport-astic” party for David of Atlanta, and they really pulled out all the creativity stops.
Inspired by the Bar Mitzvah boy’s love for all sports, the Bold American Events team (designers Chris and Barbara along with event coordinator Inda Royall) transformed Atlanta’s Grand Hyatt into a sports fanatic’s dream.
Simple white sofas got a burst of personality thanks to color coordinated sporty pillows
Different sports jerseys hung from makeshift “closets” to add some layers to the decor
Large portraits of David in different sports uniforms adorned the walls
The orange theme was coherent through the whole party, from the votive holders to small details like the ribbon on the vase
Along with color continuity, the designers made sure every aspect of athleticism was showcased, down to orange lockers
Sports meet elegance with this charming “bouquet” of bats, adorned with orange carnations
Talk about a “fresh” idea: the baseball in this centerpiece is made of white carnations
Please don’t eat this football, even though it’s made of mushroom slices and white button mums (yes, really!)
If you guessed this basketball is made of lentil beans, you’d be right! You totally didn’t guess that though, did you?
For more information visit Bold American Events. To see their regular bursts of inspiration, visit their blog.
September 18th, 2012
Rebecca Feldman celebrated her Bat Mitzvah on May 12, 2012 with a service at Temple Israel of New Rochelle and a reception at The Surf Club, New Rochelle.
The Feldmans love the Caribbean and Rebecca’s theme reflected that. Luckily it was a beautiful May day, and her venue overlooked the ocean, reflecting the family’s love of the sun and the beach perfectly.
Steve Chesler Photography provided the photographs and the rest of the vendor information is listed at the bottom of this spotlight.
Pictured above L-R: Brother Dylan, Dad Darin, Mom Beth, Bat Mitzvah girl Rebecca
Small Fry Press created Rebecca’s invitations.
Simple and elegant with Rebecca’s name in cut-out letters along the top
Rebecca’s pretty short blue dress is from All Dressed Up.
She wore a bolero jacket and strappy sandals with her dress
Florist Rose Elefante took care of these original place cards.
Tiny shells held ocean-print paper place cards
The venue had a view of the ocean, but inside resembled a beach too…a very sophisticated beach, that is!
Multiple chandeliers hung over the tables and dance floor
Silk flowers in tall vases
Florist Rose Elefante tinted the water for the flowers blue
DJ Serj provided the entertainment with Anthony as the MC.
In addition to the DJ, there was a steel drummer to go along with the Caribbean theme
MC Anthony got the guests dancing
All the guests got in the groove, both young and old
Rebecca made her grand entrance in her beautiful dress and colorful socks.
The socks, from Kohls, were a giveaway for all the kids
MC Anthony met Rebecca on the dance floor
Rebecca’s cake came from The Surf Club.
Their cake had simple icing with multi-colored blue and white candles to invoke the ocean theme
The Feldman Family
Marjy at Surfboard Beach Art created the sign-in board to match her theme.
Giving a new literal meaning to sign-in “board”
Jems Creative Promotions designed the party favors.
A towel is the perfect favor for a night at the beach
VIP Photo Favors provided endless photographic keepsakes for party goers.
Instant beach vacation pictures!
With beautiful weather and a birthday as well as a Bat Mitzvah, there were plenty of special moments at Rebecca’s celebration.
Rebecca’s brother, Dylan, celebrated his birthday the same weekend as the Bat Mitzvah, so he got a cake of his own
Beth and Rebecca pose by the ocean–the inspiration behind the party decor
Candy Warehouse supplied delicious candy in bulk and Oriental Trading Company supplied the blue pails.
Guests received a pail of candy along with their towels on the way out
Mom Beth, founder of RoleMommy.com, has some advice about staying organized and capturing all the important moments:
“My biggest piece of advice is to keep a Google spreadsheet so that you can enter in all the important contact information and payments to your vendors. That way, as you get closer to the event, you can track down everyone and re-confirm with ease. One thing I wish I did have was someone to help guide our photographer and videographer on the day of the party. I was so busy greeting guests that I didn’t get a chance to tell them who to shoot or where. They still did a beautiful job but it helps to have another set of hands supervising while you’re greeting all your guests.”
Rebecca, an avid reader, wanted to share her love of books with children who are less fortunate than herself. She participated in the African Library Project.
She secured 1,000 books to donate to children residing in Africa and raised $500 to cover the shipping costs. Before she left for sleepaway camp, she shipped the books to Africa with her mom.
The following vendors made Rebecca’s party special. If you give any of them a call, please let them know you read about their services on MitzvahMarket.com.
Venue: The Surf Club, 914-633-8221
Party Planner: Mom Beth Feldman, founder of RoleMommy.com
DJ/MC: Anthony, DJ Serj, 914-686-SERG (7374)
Favor person: Elaine Bennett, Jems Creative Promotions, 914-481-4311
Party entertainment: VIP Photo Favors, 877-847-7421
Invitation: Andrea Kronethal, Smallfrypress, 914-747-6668
Cake: The Surf Club, 914-633-8221
Décor/florist: Rose Elefante, 914-715-7247
Sign-In board: Marjy, Surfboard Beach Art
Dresses for family members: Elephants Trunk & All Dressed Up
Suits for family members: Brooks Brothers
Hair: Michelle, Leah’s in Scarsdale, 914-723-1012
Make-up: Diane Pottinger, mardpots@optonline.net
Transportation: First Student, 855-272-3222
Photographer: Steve Chesler Photography, 585-393-9242
Videographer: Greg Appison, Center Stage Productions, 516-567-9255
Yarmulkas: www.kippah.com
Candy for favors: www.candywarehouse.com
Pails for favors: Oriental Trading Company
Candles for Cake: Inspiration Gallery, 914-633-8508
Socks for giveaway: Kohls
September 12th, 2012
Thank you to Party Perfect Orlando who sent us this fabulous celebration with this email message, “Our client, Heidi Goldstein, is a HUGE fan of your site, and I think one of her goals during Mitzvah planning was to have her son’s celebration featured on Mitzvah Market!
We are happy to fulfill Heidi’s goal and share her son Parker’s celebration with our readers.
Parker wanted to focus on different “Apps,” some real Apps that he loved to play as well as Apps that represented different things he liked to do. His celebration was a unique twist on a technology/iphone theme with a modern, cool, clean look that brought the different elements together.
The Goldstein family in front of special signage on the marquis that was lit up as guests left their event
Parker and his sister Aniston are holding 2-sided custom pillows. One side had Parker’s logo, the other had various Apps from the night
There was a beautiful blue hue when guests entered the room, and centerpieces with different Apps were lit from the inside as well as uplit from below
The black linens were highlighted with beautiful silver chargers, blue napkins, custom menus and personalized iPhone cookies
A close-up of the menu and iPhone cookie at each place setting
They had smaller lit centerpieces on the kids high-top tables
When guests arrived, they signed Parker’s Mitzvah Mobile
Gifts were placed in Parker’s hand-made gift box
Adult escort cards were made to look like mini iphones and were placed in front of a sign with Parker’s logo and all the various “Apps”
A close up of the unbelievable, back-lit, custom-made escort cards
Parker wanted a BIG candy bar, so Party Perfect Orlando created Parker’s Sweet Tweets, a play on the Angry Bird game
Custom labels were put on the bags the guests filled with candy to take home
Each of the candies were labeled with Parker’s Sweet Tweets, and the Angry Birds candies were used as an accent on the table
Young guests loved helping themselves to the candy bar
As guests left, they were asked to take a cookie as their take-home treat
We want to thank both Party Perfect Orlando and the Goldstein family for sharing their very creative Bar Mitzvah celebration with Mitzvah Market. Mazel Tov to Parker!
