Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center Holiday Party, December 13, 2007

The fun and festive event was held at Windsor Park Conference Center, whom once again hosted a fabulous event! The invitation set the tone and theme for the party by establishing the holiday look and feel of ornaments in the hottest color palette this season. Tones of teals and jade greens with sparkles of silver created a magnificent splendor atop silver mercury glass vases, available for rental. Sprinkled throughout the room were several tall, eye catching pieces on custom made silver tripod centerpieces, also available for rental. These pieces quickly drew attention as guests entered the candlelit atmosphere of the space. The evening was celebrated by Physicians and their spouses with background music provided by ProShow. We love to create atmospheres, and it shows. Allow Merry Me! to participate in planning your next soiree.

Bella Bridal Event

The Bella Bridal Event is one I am proud to be part of. It not only enables me to meet brides-to-be, it offers a chance to share new trends and ideas I've gathered. Expectant brides and their beaus are filled with a wealth of knowledge and great ideas after a day of meeting some of area's best. This year I featured several of my lounge furniture groupings for a place to kick up your feet and relax after walking the show floor booths. This furniture offers a variety of configurations with a wide range of color choices using accent pillows. Lounge furniture is up and coming as one of the hottest new trends for events. Instead of your typical cocktail setting, create some atmosphere with comfy couches and chairs. Invite your guest into your "home" by adding a collection of your favorite photos. Another offering that Bella provides is a Bridal Brunch. You get a front seat to a panel of experts with personalized attention to your questions. This was an honor to be part of with great questions and conversation. Next year, be sure to attend not only the show, but the brunch as well.

Katie Layman weds Travis Garvas

Katie and Travis decided to tie the knot before he was once again called to serve his country in Iraq. Thus, a wedding was planned in just 4 short weeks! I absolutely love fall weddings and this was no exception. I've had the pleasure of working this family on two previous occasions. Katie's two older sister's also put me in charge of the decor for their weddings. Upon first meeting, her mother said she wanted to sit back and enjoy the wedding this time around. She asked that I not only handle the decor, but that I also coordinate and plan the entire event. I was happy to oblige. The color palette was amazing with the use of burnt orange and chocolate brown. Our theme was reflective of those delicious color choices. Everything used from start to finish used these appropriate colors. I arranged for some of her roses to be directly shipped from Ecuador right to my door step. The chosen varieties were Circus, Alambra, Cherry Brandy and Leonitas. Simply stated, they were AMAZING! It makes such a difference when you get roses direct shipped, rather than straight from a wholesaler. Linens were another design element that helped complete the overall look. We chose to use ivory chair covers with chocolate satin sashes. I decided on a rosette knot tie for a more contemporary look. Floor length ivory linens and ivory napkins bound with chocolate brown double-faced satin ribbon and a sprig of seeded eucylyptus completed the table top. Our main attraction was the irridescent orange vase filled with an array of roses and texture. For a little pizzaz we added crystal fall toned jewels to copper wires adding another dimension to the piece. Another of my favorites was the hand painted aisle runner created by one of my favorite artists! Her style is great! The verse used was a favorite passage in the bible "...a cord of three strands is not easily broken..." The ceremony location was Bertrand Bible church where Pastor Tony did the officiating. From there we moved to a celebration held at Windsor Park Conference Center. What a fantastic and willing staff to work with. The evening was a success with family and friends enjoying the festivities. Congratulations to Katie and Travis Garvas!

Camilla Pollock weds Michael Flynn

September 8, 2007
Camilla Pollock and Michael Flynn tied the knot on a beautiful early fall day.

The ceremony took place on the campus of Notre Dame at the infamous Basilica of the Sacred Heart. Following the vows, the couple, friends and family were welcomed at the Palais Royale to finish their celebration.
The theme was rich with fall tones of magnificent color. The chocolate brown dresses were complimented with rusty orange tones, deep reds and copper tones.
Instead of a traditional guest book, the couple chose to use a "wishing tree". Available for rental from Merry Me Events, we create a "tree" for you to hang your card of well-wishes from colorful, coordinated ribbons. A long-lasting memory for the couple, long after the day of nuptials.
Centerpieces were an abundance of leonitas roses, tangerine-gold spray roses, late bloom hydrangea in deep olive green and burgundy, hypericum berries for lots of texture and a finishing touch of birch branches for added height. Even though the container was a rental piece, the design was created in such a way that the guests could take home the beautiful flowers at the end of the night. Money saved and lasting memories.

A Fun Finish to Fall Futbol.

Why not do something fun to celebrate the end of the season sporting event? We decided on this nice fall day to be outrageous with a Banana Split Bonanza! We filled a trough with ice cream and topped it off with all the favorite fixins'. The teammates each grabbed a spoon and chowed down. The kids loved it!
Before the ice cream melted, we presented each child with their well-earned trophy. The nicknames of each were announced while the teams' theme song of "who let the dogs out" played in the background. Parents joined in the fun with smiles on their faces.
Why not contact Merry Me Events to help you celebrate your next party? Kids parties are a favorite for us!
Call Cher to start planning... 574.532.5588

"Gorgeous! Gals Comedy Luncheon"

"Gorgeous! Gals Comedy Luncheon" A silent auction and fund raiser supporting Hello Gorgeous of Hope, Inc. This organization is an non-profit whose purpose is to re-educate female cancer patients and survivors to use hair, cosmetic and skin products to hide the damage done to their appearance from radiation and chemotherapy used to treat their cancer. Merry Me Events helped with the atmosphere of the event by creating and designing the centerpieces. A simple design of red roses, the groups signature color, coupled with accents of pink to symbolize the well-known color for breast cancer presented a fun and whimsical design. Colorful deco-wire and bright pink sisle finished the designs. We were able to donate our time and supplies to help support this great cause.
The event was held at The Blue Heron at Blackthorn and featured the entertainment of local comedian, Craig Tornquist.
I wish the entire organization much success and hope for the future! Thanks for allowing me to take part.

Nello Corporation, Creating an Atmosphere

For the past ten months I have been working closely with the team at Nello Corporation to help design an appropriate atmosphere for their office relocation. The chosen site, Chase Towers, 20th floor, downtown South Bend, Indiana. The space had previously been used for wedding receptions and corporate meetings. Now it has become the new home for Nello Corporation, Corporate Offices.
This company wishes to create a contemporary, modern look as they take their business to the next level. The company creates communication towers around the world. This prime location boasts an extraordinary view of the city.
The design elements chosen are a clean, masculine and powerful option. Slate gray tones, brushed steel, black leather and blue tones surround the environment.
Photographs taken with an artistic approach were provided by Zeta-Alpha Photography of South Bend. These photos, framed in black steel will be featured throughout the space.
The conference room will highlight a table designed by Nello Corp. I felt this would be a great area to feature the custom tower-like look. The finished product is perfect!
The finishing touches are being made to the space. I look forward to featuring them as soon as the project is complete.

A Walk on the Wild Side, Potawatomi Zoo

Despite the weather conditions, this fund-raising event was still a success. The environment the zoo provides was obviously a key to the overall atmosphere when planning this event. Due to wet-weather, Director, Marcy Dean made the call to move the party to an available and dry location. So it was, the Zoo to Do was held at The Matterhorn in Elkhart. Guests were welcomed into the jungle with tiki torches and an animal paw-print path.
Proving our adaptability, we were able to pull it off last minute in a alternate location. Overall, I still think it looked great!
Included in the decor were signature drinks to reflect the theme. The Funky Monkey with a garnish taken from "barrel of monkeys" game; The Leopard Martini, complete with leopard spots; and The Camel Hump were among the featured cocktails.
Kurt, from The Matterhorn provided the catering and offered great ideas to theme the food. Easy to work with and open to outrageous ideas, he was willing to transform his wait staff into jungle animals by using face paint.
From start to finish, this event carried the Walk on the Wild Side theme. It was an enjoyable event to be part of.

Advantage Health Solutions Corporate Event

Corporate events are such a pleasure to be part of. This particular event featured a former NFL great, Joe Montana! He along with Dr. Rippe presented the group with a "Health Talk" for Advantage Health Solutions and Novartis' Hypertension Awareness Day. The location, College Football Hall of Fame, couldn't have been more appropriate. Events began off-site with complementary blood pressure screenings held at Saint Marys College Student Center and St. Joe Regional Medical Center. The VIP meet and greet took place in the Stadium Theatre, CFHOF. There, Centerplate Catering did butler style hors'douevres featuring health conscious choices. Delicious jumbo shrimp, sushi and veggie roll-ups were among the favorites. Each guest received an 8 x 10 autographed photo with Joe Montana. All photos were taken by event photographer, Scott Leonard of Valentino's Photography of Granger, Indiana. Also for appreciation of attendance, each VIP guest took home a small box of South Bend Chocolates, a local favorite. Later in the afternoon, by invitation only, guests enjoyed Joe and Dr. Rippe's talk in the Press Box room in the CFHOF. A light lunch and beverage service was provided. The atmosphere was enhanced with themed floral by MichaelAngelos. The afternoon was enjoyed by all!