Signature Luxury Wedding Event

Christian Siriano & Y Lowe



The Princess and her Prince



The Princess awakened by her Prince



Chef Jacques Haeringer of L'Auberge Chez Francois & Y Lowe

(All Photos courtesy of William H Joseph)



This past Sunday, my photographer William H Joseph and I had the pleasure of attending A Chic Affair DC held at the Historical Society of Washington, D.C. At the event there were chef demonstrations, expert wedding panel advisers and an Enchanted Forest Wedding Fashion Show. The chef demonstration was done by Chef Jacques Haeringer who showed us how to make chocolate truffles. The expert advice panel consisted of Project Runway season 4 winner fashion & bridal designer Christian Siriano, Heidi Kallet who owns the The Dandelion Patch and Jamie Greenwald of Gala Events. The highlight of the afternoon was the Enchanted Forest Runway Show where bridal gowns were featured by Chevy Chase Bridal. A wide range of gowns were featured and a few that we saw is featured above in the photographs. For the modern bride with discerning taste, this was the place to be.

Signature Location Visit



I know...I know....I got carried away with the photographs, but I couldn't help it. All these beautiful photographs were taken by William H. Joseph (pictured above) at the The US Botanic Garden-Wasington, DC. I am a lover of flowers and of such, I suggest that you visit the beautiful gardens there. When we visited there was a special display from Scotland,  we were able to see some of the most beautiful gardens there. The display covers flowers, spices and herbs from all around the world. There is a forest area that has an elevated view area that is just spectacular because of the view of the Washington Capital. Take the children because they have children gardens there that will engage your young ones. This location is great for photo shoots. This is engagement season and this is a great location to take those engagement photographs. Have a milestone birthday coming soon, take photographs here and give them  as momentos at your birthday celebration. For the Green Bride this is a great location for your pictures. With a beautiful location as this, your imagination is limitless. Have fun and take great pictures!

                     

Signature Popcorn Bar

Having a Popcorn Bar at an event is fun! Since this is Oscar weekend, this is a great DIY entertainment idea for your Oscar's celebration. Popcorn Bar's are great at weddings, birthdays, open houses and special celebrations. The first picture above shows the popcorn bar used at Carla David's Design open house. She collaborated with Chef's Expression to come up with some unique flavors. You can flavor your popcorn to you and your guests liking and decorate your buffet to reflect your theme or personality. I always emphasize to my clients to stay true to who you are as a person and that will shine through in your celebrations. Yours guests will have more fun because you are being authentic and true. Well, here are some popcorn recipes that Chef's Expressions came up with and I hope that you will enjoy them.

Cocoa Fireside Rub

1/4 cup of New Mexican Chili Powder

1/4 cup Dutch Cocoa powder

1/2 cup Light Brown Sugar

1 tablespoons of Kosher Salt



Moroccan Blend

1/3 cup Coriander

1/3 cup Ginger

1/3 cup Tumeric

1 tablespoons of Kosher Salt



Casablanca Blend

1/3 cup Sumac

1/3 cup Fennelgreek

1/3 cup Amchoor

1 tablespoons of Kosher Salt

So roll out the red carpet and come up with your predictions for an Oscar win and enjoy these delicious varities of popcorns!

Signature Sweets for Two

I thought of blogging again this year Valentine about inexpensive gifts for the holiday, but I changed my mind. After all it is a women's perogative to change her mind. I will instead give my readers a delicious Valentine's dessert for two. My inspiration for this you may ask? He's a wonderful man who loves chocolate and this recipe is for him and all the other couples out there who loves chocolate! It's a Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Cake from Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) website. My favorite chocolate is white, then milk chocolate follows. I will however make an exception this Valentine's day for my special guy! Bon Appetit...Enjoy!

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup strawberry jam
Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache
12 medium strawberries
3 ounces bittersweet and/or milk chocolate curls

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour or line with paper bake cups twelve 2-1/2-inch muffin cups; set aside.
2. In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Remove from heat. Let cool for 5 minutes. Stir in sugar and cocoa powder until combined. Add egg and vanilla. Using a wooden spoon, beat lightly just until combined.
3. In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to chocolate mixture, beating by hand after each addition. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each two-thirds full.
4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the centers comes out clean. Cool in muffin cups on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Using a knife, loosen the edges; carefully remove cupcakes. Cool completely on a wire rack.
5. If cupcakes don't have paper liners, trim a thin slice from top of each cupcake so they will sit flat. Turn bottom side up. Place cupcakes 2 inches apart on wire rack set over waxed paper. (For cupcakes in liners, peel liners down but do not remove.) Spread 1 teaspoon of the strawberry jam over each cupcake.
6. Prepare Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache. (below) Spoon ganache over cupcakes, making sure to coat all sides. Place a strawberry on top of each cake. Drizzle each strawberry lightly with ganache, letting the strawberry show through. Top cupcakes with chocolate curls.
7. Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache: In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup whipping cream just to boiling over medium-high heat. Remove from heat. Add 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (do not stir). Let stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Whisk in 3 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking until ganache is smooth.
8. Makes: 12 cupcakes
9. To Bake Ahead: Prepare as directed through step 4. Place cooled cupcakes in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw cupcakes, if frozen. Continue as directed in step 5.

Signature Graduation Christmas Celebration

Blending a Graduation celebration with Christmas......what a challenge! Yet a welcoming one I must say. We truly enjoyed and loved the way we transformed the room into a festive celebratory scene of Christmas and Graduation. It blended so well...like it was meant to happen! Natalee graudated from Bowie State Univeristy with her Masters in Physcology and she wanted to share the moment with family & friends. The journey that she endured to achieve her degree was a challenging and arduous one. Natalee lost her mom several years ago and she faced numerous obstacles along the way. We focused on her school colors of black & gold and integrated it in the christmas and graduation decor. We wrapped gifts & stuffed bags and added congrats tags to them in her school's black and gold colors. The gift boxes and bags are perfect symbols for Graduation and Christmas. We added tiny christmas trees, ornaments, pines cones, wreaths, lighted garlands and centerpieces that helped to add the spirit of Christmas to the room. There was a table at the entrance of the room, that had a Class of 2010 frame that Y lowe Signature Events made. We displayed that along with a graduation hat box and more gift boxes. When the graduate arrived, she displayed her Graduate Thesis, Graduation Diploma and Program for all her guests to see. The DJ was jamming all night and her guests enjoyed delicious Caribbean food. The guest of honor was delighted and we were happy that we were able to translate her vision so beautifully. What a great way to enjoy the holidays!

Signature Christmas Table Decor

Wow! Christmas is 10 days away. As you prepare to set your table for your holiday festivities, do it in a way that is beautiful and inviting to your guests. Above you can see traditional table decor and Christmas colors in play. The table settings are traditional & formal and is for a small gathering. The two centerpieces above were created by Y Lowe Signature Events craft specialist Winsome Mitchell and are perfect for your dining table or a sidetable at your home or in an event space. Our company creates Christmas decor and wreaths for holiday decorating. The above centerpieces can be created with fresh greenery or with craft materials as indicated above. Another place that you can grab some fresh and exciting ideas from for your dining table  and home decor, is Better Homes & Garden (BHG). I love to visit their website around the holidays for great entertaining ideas for food, drink and decor. From our family to yours...we wish you a happy and safe holidays!!!!

Signature Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas

Every year my family decorate our Christmas tree around my daughter Maya's birthday, which is December 14th. Decorating the family's Christmas tree is a personal, fun and exciting thing to do. Every family have their own traditions around the holidays regarding decoratiing their home & tree, baking cookies & tasty treats and participating in annual rites of passage. I remember my family Christmas trees in Jamaica where I grew up. We always had a fresh tree and mummy & daddy would spray the tree with snow from a can and put cotton balls at the root of the tree on top of the container that it was in because we didn't have snow there. In the picture above my son Marc, my daughter Maya and my cousins children Deanna & Kathy (left to right) is having fun putting decoration on the Christmas tree. Some traditions from my childhood still continues to this day regarding my Christmas tree...it MUST be a fresh real tree. Whether you like a fresh tree or the one that you pull out of the box year after year, here a few tips in making your tree beautiful. Stick with a theme for your tree and use ornaments that means something to your family (like ones made by the children and picked out together as a family) and mix those with store bought ones. Use oversize ornaments to hide holes or imperfections in the tree. Add glamour to the tree by adding crytsals and sparkles (I found beautiful ones in the dollar store this year...I was amazed). Use colors and themes that relate to the room where the tree is displayed. To further enhance your decor, the gifts under your tree should be wrapped and ribboned in complimentary colors of the tree and the room. Use garlands and ornaments, more ribbon, flowers to complete the look. Themes can be American (use american flags, ornaments of American monuments and buliding) , wooden ornamented tree theme (I did this when my children were younger) can be all wooded ornaments that are sleighs, snowman, drummer boys etc. How about a Fruited tree? Yes...this can be beautifully done. Use all fruit ornaments to decorate the entire tree. My cousin's children who are in the picture above, every year decorate their tree with handmade crocheted angels that are absolutely beautiful. This tree theme On Ice is tieing in the decorations of the whole room where the tree is located.  Whatever theme or decorating you decide to do this year with your family, enjoy it and create new memories. Happy tree trimming!!!!