Women with glistening diamond engagement rings flood the hall, which is illuminated by three crystal chandeliers, with splashes of pink and purple collecting on the ceiling. Two marble staircases flank the sparkling room, adorned with various floral arrangements and buffet tables. Light jazz music rings throughout the open atrium of the two stories, and young ladies in wedding gowns rove the room, catching the eyes of future brides. The Weddzilla.com launch party, held Thursday, February 25 at the National Museum for Women in the Arts, was full of elegance, grace, and lots of brainstorming brides.
Weddzilla.com is the first online social wedding platform to fully integrate the wedding planning process into popular social networks. Two larges monitors displayed screenshots of various pages of the site. The entire Weddzilla Guru Panel was in attendance: celebrity cake artist Ron Ben-Israel, celebrity fitness expert from Buff Fitness Sue Fleming, editor-in-chief of Bridal Guide Magazine Diane Forden, author and columnist Sharon Naylor, and invitations expert Lisa “Ceci” Johnson. Each member of the panel offered tips to attendees on ways to enhance the wedding planning process.
In the center of the grand room, an oblong table was covered with silent auction items, suitable for any engaged couple. Free photo sessions with wedding photographers, a Jamaican honeymoon, a “stress-free” planning package, and a wedding day survival kit were among the goods up for grabs. Emcee Steve Kemble, a bona fide member of US Weekly’s Fashion Police, encouraged the crowd to peruse and bid, with all proceeds benefiting the Children’s National Medical Center.
Brides-to-be and their fiancés, friends, and/or family members sipped special rum punches and cranberry sparklers, and snacked on mini square plates of chili with a tiny cornbread medallion, and corn dog skewers, and soufflé dishes containing bacon macaroni and cheese. Upstairs, vendor tables lined the outside walls. Every service a bride could want or need for her special day was available, including limo rentals, honeymoon experts, deejays, invitations, and lighting décor.
Attendees were provided with reusable tote bags filled with coupons for wedding consulting services, photo sessions, free cake tastings, lighting design, jewelry rental, and more. Ronnie Mervis of Mervis Diamonds gave away a diamond to a lucky guest, as the waiters brought out pound cake, chocolate-covered strawberries, and caramel popcorn for a sweet finish to the evening. With more than 1,500 guests and an after-party at Current Lounge in Dupont Circle, the Weddzilla.com franchise is off to a blooming start.
Copyright © 2009 Metro Event Specialists