Monday, April 26, 2010

Vote for Us!


 

The three ladies here at Arcularius Events are so excited to participate in KCRA 3's A-List competition!  This competition chooses Sacramento's best wedding planner based on the number of votes that each business gets, so if you like Arcularius Events, vote for us!

Voting is easy:
Click here to go to Arcularius Events on the A-List, then click the big, yellow "Cast Vote" button.  You'll create an account with the A-List, and then you will receive an email with a link to click on to confirm your account.  That's it!  Couldn't be easier!  

Please help us make it to the top of the list - thank you so much to all of you who have voted already!

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Our very own is...ENGAGED!


Marianna, Associate Wedding Planner with Arcularius Events, and our youngest sister is engaged to her high school sweetheart.  She and Darwin have a unique and romantic story.  They have been in love for over 6 years.  In this time they have followed each other to Berkeley for college, traveled all over Italy, and had many adventures. The most recent adventure shocked Marianna while they were backpacking, camping, and hiking 36miles.   Darwin surprised her with his grandmother's incredible vintage ring! Marianna was certain he was joking, though she managed a, "yes! But are you serious?!"

Marianna and Darwin ....just after their engagement

Heirloom Family Ring...lucky girl!

We are so happy for you two. We look forward to planning an amazing wedding with you when the time comes!

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

A Traditional Hindu Ceremony

Traditional East Indian ceremonies are extremely ornate, elaborate, and luxurious.  They often require above-average time and effort on the part of the bride, groom, and their families because of their size and the many details involved.  Mandeep and Chirag, a wonderful couple that Arcularius Events had the pleasure of working with, decided to join their cultures by celebrating their wedding with Sikh and Hindu ceremonies.



Countless hours were spent hand-delivering invitations to each of the 650 guests, and many more hours were spent on several trips to India for jewelry and clothing shopping.  Check out these incredible jewels!!


Mandeep and Chirag's wedding day was truly one of the longest that Arcularius Events has ever been involved in.  The couple began preparing at 5 AM to be ready for their first ceremony at the Sikh Temple.  This was followed by their first lunch recepetion, their Hindu ceremony, and finally the main wedding reception for their 650 guests.  Arcularius Events was most involved in the Hindu ceremony, so let's take a look at how a traditional Hindu ceremony is organized:



To kick off the Hindu ceremony, the groom led his party in a procession and was received by the bride's mother, who applied kukum to his forehead.



He was then greeted by his lovely bride, who presented him with a garland of red and white flowers.  The giving of the garland reflects ancient Hindu custom in which the bride would choose her groom by presenting him with flowers.







The bride and groom then made their way the the mandap, a sacred structure under which the bride and groom perform wedding rituals and exchange their vows.

















Gorgeous pictures of the many rituals from the ceremony.  The henna on Mandeep's hands was absolutely exquisite.


















At the end of the ceremony, the bride and groom's clothing was tied together and they circled the ritual site, with seven final steps for food, strength, prosperity, happiness, children, harmony, and friendship.  What more could you ask for?

After the ceremony in the mandap, Mandeep and Chirag circled the room to thank some of their friends and family members...


















...and then it was time for them to change, and for the eating and cake cutting to begin.







Along with the bride and groom's transformation, the mandap was turned into an intimate, elegant head table with plenty of beautiful fresh flowers.




















The evening ended with a giant dance party, with what seemed like all 650 guests up and out of their seats, boogying down until midnight.  This group knew how to have fun!






























Everyone, including the Arcularius Events team, had a blast and we thank Mandeep and Chirag for allowing us to help with their one-of-a-kind, amazing event. We wish them all the best!! We would also like to thank Riz at Adit-Studio for the beautiful pictures, Ambience Floral, Classic Party Rentals and BBJ Linens, and The Lux Productions for the lighting.  



Wednesday, March 10, 2010

*Check it Out* - Great Wine Find!

Anyone planning a wedding in Napa Valley will tell you that one of the most important aspects of a successful wedding is good wine.  Even if you aren't celebrating your nuptials in wine country, providing your guests with delicious, high-quality wine to enjoy with their meals adds a certain specialness to their experience.  Of course this seems easy enough, but when it comes to staying within budget, shelling out an extra $20 per bottle isn't always an option.  That's why we'd like to let you in on a little secret...


...Sonoma Valley Wines.  SVW offers an unoaked Chardonnay packed with fruit and citrus flavors, a Merlot with hints of berries, chocolate, and cedar (!), and grapefruit-y tropical Sauvignon Blanc.  We tried all three of them and thought they were fantastic.  But what makes these wines so special that we would blog about them?  Right now at Trader Joe's you can find all three selling for $5.99.  With a typical cost per bottle around $11.99, this price is a steal!  These wines would make special yet budget-friendly additions to your wedding, rehearsal dinner, bridal shower, you name it!  For a fun pre-wedding evening, invite members of your bridal party over for a tasting to see if they approve...Enjoy!

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

The Knot Best of Weddings 2010 Pick

We are proud to announce that Arcularius Events has been rated by local brides and voted The Knot Best of Weddings 2010 Pick.  Thank you to all of the brides that voted for Arcularius Events!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Three-Sister Team - Mairead

We recently decided to take the time to introduce the members of our Three-Sister Team, so that you know exactly who you are working with when you hire Arcularius Events.  A few days ago we introduced Marianna, and now we'd like to introduce another sister, the lovely and talented Mairead.


Mairead has worked with Arcularius Events for the past three seasons as our Event Space Designer.  As our space designer, Mairead employs her design expertise to create custom layouts for each event.  She uses precise dimensions to ensure that each event is well-thought-out and perfectly designed.  

Mairead graduated from Sacramento State with a Bachelor’s degree in Interior Design and for the past six years has worked with clients in the areas of residential, hospitality, healthcare and corporate design.  From private residences to large scale venues, her layouts provide the team with detailed pre-event planning and day-of organization every event needs to flow smoothly.  Along with her event layouts Mairead brings the knowledge to give your special event the opportunity to be “Green.”  

After a short break to have her second child Mairead is back, bringing with her a new enthusiasm to our Three-Sister Team! Catriona’s unique passion and intuition teamed with Mairead’s attention to detail and Marianna’s thoughtful organization ensures that your event will be everything you dreamed of and more.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Three-Sister Team - Marianna

As you may or may not know, Arcularius Events is a Three-Sister Team.  The three of us, Catriona, Mairead, and Marianna, love combining our unique strengths to create events that are truly one of a kind.  We would like to take a moment to introduce ourselves, because you are sure to meet (at least) one of us if you hire or work with Arcularius Events!  This week, we'd like to introduce the youngest of the three sisters, Marianna. 



Marianna has worked with Arcularius Events for the past two seasons as our Associate Wedding Planner.  As a recent graduate of UC Berkeley with a double major in Art History and Italian Studies, she is passionate about all things Italian and can assist couples who want this romantic culture to be a part of their celebrations.  

Since graduating, Marianna has been working at the de Young Museum in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park where she works in customer service and education.  Her specialty is public speaking, so she helps introduce large school groups to the museum and its special exhibitions.

Marianna will soon be joining Arcularius Events full time, where she will assist with day-of coordination and behind-the-scenes organization.  She ensures that design elements are set up according to plan and that every detail is attended to.  Since she loves working with people, Marianna is our go-to girl when guests need direction or assistance.  She is a vital part of our Three-Sister Team, which we will continue to introduce in just a few days!