Wedding Planner Archives - Smashing the Glass

How to Make Your Wedding Wow: You Dream It and Extraordinary Wedding Planner Jenna Keller Will Create It…

15/03/2017 by Karen

It’s officially spring, and I don’t know about you but I’m so ready to see a bit more colour. Goodbye grey skies, hello blue!

You’ve just got to love this time of year, with the season’s natural beauty popping with pastels and bursting with vivacity. It’s so incredibly romantic. And with energy, romance and colour in mind – I’m can’t wait to introduce you to a supremely creative, innovative, and exciting wedding planner – Jenna Keller.

Jenna Keller – Manchester born but raised in South Florida – is the ultimate event superstar. She is the brains and beauty behind Jenna Keller Events – a creative, dynamic company, based in gorgeous Cheshire, working on weddings and events all across the UK and abroad.

Jenna and her team specialise in the full management and production of truly memorable events. Transforming ordinary spaces into the extraordinary — think suspended floral installations and chandeliers — she does drama. She brings the buzz and creates the wow moments but behind the scenes Jenna is exceptionally meticulous and detail led.

Keep it Kosher

Jenna Keller entered the event scene working for Celia Clyne, one of the largest kosher caterers in the UK. She successfully ran their events – a mere 200 a year – and well and truly earned her stripes. That wealth of experience paved the way for Jenna to create her own event company.

Why Jenna Keller?

Jenna Keller is now one of the most renowned and sought after wedding planners in the UK. And for good reason. Her incredible experience, microscopic attention to detail, creativity, passion and USA-level of customer service has got Jenna a pretty darn good reputation.

She puts her heart and soul into every single wedding. In fact Jenna is so dedicated, that she even met her husband through her work. According to former boss, kosher caterer Celia Clyne, it couldn’t have been any other way.

Searching for an exceptional wedding planner? It has to be Lamare London

01/02/2017 by Karen

Wow, 1st of February already. How did that happen? 2017 is going so fast but I hope our newly engaged readers are still in that blissful day-dreamy phase.

When you let your mind wander, what would your guests say about your fantasy wedding? Would they say it was chic, smart, brilliant and SO YOU? Will they be talking about those gorgeous, thoughtful touches that brought the whole occasion together?

Please meet Lamare London. These extraordinary wedding planners specialise in getting just that reaction. They plan and craft weddings in the UK that are brimming with style and personality.

And no matter what the size of your wedding, every event gets the same TLC treatment. For Lamare London, this means ‘Touches of Luxury and Character”. I love that.

Lamare London works on a “luxury is in each detail” principle. And that’s got everything to do with it’s founder Liesl Lamare.

About Liesl Lamare

Liesl, who’s been organising weddings and events for ten years, is an unshakeable, detail-led and supremely creative, planner. She’s zeitgeisty and brings this to her work. Her influences include emerging interior design trends, fashion, travel and exhibitions. She’s got taste, folks. Lots of it.

Liesl is also actually a good friend of mine. We met through the industry and have spent loads of time together over the last couple of years. She’s amazing — such a lovely person but also so sophisticated, stylish and graceful. You know those people who just ooze understated glamour and are always well put together?

Unsurprisingly, the weddings she plans with her team at Lamare London are as crisp and gorgeous as the woman herself.

Why Use a Wedding Planner?

You could SAVE money, gain control over your wedding and take away a whole lot of stress.

For most, your wedding day will probably be the first major event you’ve organised and it’s one hell of a learning curve if you go it alone.

So what can you expect to gain with a GOOD wedding planner like Lamare London?

Create an epic wedding with Israeli event organiser Danny Marx

25/01/2017 by Karen

Montana & Justin’s real Israeli wedding, planned by Danny Marx, blogged on Smashing The Glass

Today I am SO excited to feature one of the most impressive wedding planners and producers that I’ve come across — Danny Marx. He’s a born and bred Jerusalemite who specialises in creating destination weddings in Israel AND Israeli-style weddings all over the world.

I’ve got a serious soft spot for Israeli weddings — I just love a chuppah under the stars and an all-night party vibe. Not to mention the boundless amounts of food, colour and absolute JOY. But we can’t all get to Israel for our big day. So if you want the Israeli spirit for your wedding, without the travel, Danny Marx really can bring the party to you.

Planning a wedding in Israel — or an Israeli-style wedding anywhere in the world

Whether in Israel or elsewhere, Danny aims to create an unforgettable day, rammed to the rafters with an authentic feel-good vibe. But with a background in film, he also knows what LOOKS GOOD. He’s got an eye for stagecraft and delivers glamour.

A visionary? Yes. But reasonably priced? Totally.

His past clients have called him honest, patient, organized, professional, tactful, charismatic and positive. I myself had the pleasure of meeting Danny a few months ago in London and he was utterly delightful. He was keen to let STG readers know that he organises weddings for ALL BUDGETS. Bear in mind that this is a man who’s created epic events in some of the most exciting venues — including the iconic Tower of David.

How it works

After initial contact, Danny and his partner Alon, will meet you, whether it is in Israel or abroad. This is usually after several phone calls and emails.

The most important thing is your vision – how you’d like your wedding to look and feel. From that point Danny Marx and his team plot a preliminary theme and get going to find the perfect selection of venues, service providers and content suppliers.

The aim is to give total peace of mind throughout and Danny and his team tends to every logistical part of the wedding, especially with very complex, outdoor or unique sites. They are the ultimate safe pair of hands.Continue Reading

My interview with Bruce Russell, the internationally renowned luxury wedding planner

25/03/2015 by Karen

Image: John Nassari

I first met high-end W-day planner, and ‘wedding whizz kid’ Bruce Russell last September at the launch of his latest project, The Bridal Room, Britain’s first ever online luxury bridal destination. I was bowled over by his ideas, creativity and charm, and we have since connected many times, at the Wedding Blog Awards and Brides The Show; over breakfast in Marylebone, and through his work at London’s iconic Savoy where he is the hotel’s resident wedding expert.

Being quite the ‘wedding entrepreneur’, I wanted to get the inside scoop on Bruce, and find out about the man behind the brand. I discovered that he treasures his end-of-day swims at The Four Seasons Hampshire, he greatly admires Anna Wintour, Hilary Clinton and The Duke of Cambridge, and that being over the top à la Kim and Kanye can sometimes be just fabulous! Let’s get the full story…

Images left to right: Amara / John Nassari

So Bruce, what’s the ‘Bruce Russell’ story? How did you build up your business, and what made you become a wedding planner in the first place?

I have always wanted to build a business – and a brand – working in the events sector, but from a very personal perspective. Given my love of the bridal industry, this naturally led to weddings, the By Bruce Russell brand and, ultimately, the launch of The Bridal Room.

The Bridal Room is a partnership with my good friend – global luxury brand and marketing specialist – Jo James, who has a great deal of experience in the travel, hospitality, events and bridal industries. The two of us met during our time working at COMO Hotels and Resorts, and it was during a business trip to Cocoa Island in the Maldives that ‘By Bruce Russell’ and this exciting new venture were first discussed. Serenaded by the sounds of the Indian Ocean we scoped out the bare bones for the project on paper napkins – international entrepreneurialism at its best!

Having noticed a gap in the industry as to how top London venues managed their wedding clients, I approached The Savoy with a proposal to manage their wedding enquiries. This ultimately led to the ‘By Bruce Russell’ brand and the growth of a brilliant team at The Savoy that I still manage today.

The Savoy partnership has undoubtedly helped raise my profile in the industry and led me to work with some of the industry’s best suppliers, experts, artists and craftsmen — most of which form part of The Bridal Room. From my early days at The Savoy, the ‘By Bruce Russell’ brand has expanded internationally and I am delighted to have a wide-reaching global client base.

My interview with the UK’s most sought-after luxury wedding planner, Mark Niemierko

08/04/2014 by Karen

[ Image: Eddie Judd Photography ]

As both a designer and wedding blogger, I am thrilled to be interviewing the, quite frankly monumental, luxury wedding planner, Mark Niemierko, for the latest instalment of my Wedding Smashers series.

Mark’s utilises a true ‘Smashing The Glass’ ethos in his work, keeping things super-personal to the couple, and using his wonderful imagination to reflect their tastes and vision.

He has a spectacularly creative and meticulous touch. Just look at all the eye candy littering the page – it’s all his work and artistry. He is fortunate enough to often work with lavish budgets, on which he styles the most fantastical celebrity and society weddings, but recently he’s launched his ‘Made By Niemierko’ brand for couples who still want that WOW wedding and guaranteed peace of mind on their W-day, but without the crazy price tag.

Mark and I have a few ideas brewing and you’re going to be hearing and seeing a lot more from us collaboratively, but today let’s reveal what he has to to say about Prince George, pudding rooms, breaking the rules, and post-wedding day blues…

[ Images top to bottom: Jeremy Enness :: Hello Magazine :: David Pullum ]

So Mark, how did you build up your incredible business, and what made you become a wedding planner in the first place?
I think a love of events and parties — I had previously organised events for both film and tv and wanted to focus on social events. Weddings are so personal and nothing is more rewarding.

What is a ‘regular’ day for Mark Niemierko like?
What makes the job so enjoyable is that there isn’t such a thing as a regular day. It can vary from dress shopping, venue site visits, florist appointments and cake tastings. I do however look forward to the days when I can sit at my desk and achieve plenty of work and put planning into action.

Do you have a signature aesthetic or personal style that you put into the weddings you’ve planned?
I guess the signature of breaking wedding days up into sections…. So ceremony, drinks reception, dinner, pudding rooms, nightclubs…. Keeping the guests guessing. But overall we don’t have a signature style as I like to create something that’s personal to the couple. A reflection of their taste and vision.

[ Images clockwise from top: Kode Media :: Nikole Ramsay :: Jeremy Enness :: Jeremy Enness :: Kode Media ]