Jenny and Kyle

Welcome Friends and Family

Jenny and Kyle’s reception took place at the NMU Great Lakes room in Marquette. Guests arrived and enjoyed an eclectic mix of alternative pop love songs for the cocktail and dinner hour. After Jenny and Kyle arrived with their bridal party, we organized their introductions with everyone walking into a special vocal reduced mix of Get Freeky by Pitbull that I made for them (with the assistance of a business colleague of mine…thanks Ed!)

Family tradition: Kyle's Mother Laura made the beautiful cake

Head table decoration

After our cake cutting ceremony, guests were engaged with the Toasts given by the Best Man, Maid of Honor, then Father of the Bride. A moment of silence then followed for Jenny and Kyle’s grandparents who were there that night in spirit and then a wonderful sit down meal was enjoyed. Next, Jenny and her dad Steve shared their Father Daughter dance to a very meaningful song for both of them, it was the song playing on the radio when Jenny was born. “If You Leave” by OMD

Jenny and her father Steve

Kyle and his mother Laura then danced to “Heart To Heart” by Toby Keith and we set the tone with a special announcement just before that.

Kyle and his Mother Laura

From there the party was on and a wide variety of songs were played from traditional favorites such as Shout, Beer Barrel Polka and Unchained Melody to not so traditional wedding songs such as Like A Prayer, Let’s Get Married (Remix), and Headsprung by LL Cool J. Current music also was big for Jenny and Kyle as they like the club scene so we played hits such as Hotel Room Service by Pitbull, Umbrella by Rihanna (great mix out of Pour Some Sugar On Me into that…I LOVE that one!) and Good Girls Go Bad by Cobra Starship. Here are some sample dance photos. (I’m NOT a professional photographer…lol.)

Dance floor hoppin'

Kyle and Jenny partying with their friends

We went overtime til 12am with a last song of Forever by Chris Brown…which ended up not being the last song as the crowd begged for two more encores including Jump Around by House Of Pain! It was a phenomenal celebration for two beautiful people in love. Thank you Jenny, Kyle and families for a wonderful wedding!

Jessica and Ryne

Jessica and Ryne

Jessica and Ryne are friends of Missy and Jake, whom I performed for back in June. Jessica and Ryne got together through mutual friends at a party one night and have watched their love grow over the years. They also have a beautiful daughter Kayla, one of the VIP’s of our bridal party this past Saturday. I even got to play “Bad Day” by the Chipmunks for her at one point in the night.

Jessica opted to go with an uplighting package to create a pink glow from under her head table. This effect really made the room pop and went well with her pink sashes on the chair covers. Here’s before and after pictures so you can really see the difference between the two.

Before pic of head table

After pic of uplighting at head table

Jessica and Ryne’s reception was held at the Nostalgic Ballroom in Florence

Nostalgic Ballroom

John from Richer Image was the photographer for Jessica’s wedding and again, a pleasure to work with. Jessica and Ryne arrived with their bridal party and organized for their introductions. Jessica and Ryne said thank you to their guests immediately following, a really heartfelt moment which I know Jessica was nervous for.

Jessica and Ryne's Cake

Our cake cutting ceremony was next accompanied by “Our Song” and “Take My Breath Away” by Jessica Simpson. After dinner, we moved on to Jessica and Ryne’s Love Story followed by their first dance together as husband and wife. Jessica and Ryne had me create a special edit for them to dance to of the song “Do You Know?” by Jessica Simpson and Dolly Parton. (Jessica’s a big Jessica Simpson fan.) Guests then danced and enjoyed the night. It was a pleasure seeing Tiffany and Mark again, whom I had the pleasure of performing for back on April 26th, 2008 and of course seeing Missy and Jake again too. It’s always nice to see past clients at weddings I’m performing and good to see things are going well for them. Thank you Jessica and Ryne. It was a pleasure helping you create your wedding day.

Jessi and Mark

Ceremony site at Four Seasons

The Four Seasons resort in Pembine, WI was the setting for Jessi and Mark’s ceremony and reception this past Friday.

Ceremony grounds from the balcony

Jessi, Mark and I met at the Four Seasons bridal show this past year and connected right away with what they were looking to create. They hired me to provide ceremony sound and play at the reception as well and as you can see…it was a beautiful day for the two of them to get married.

A proud man marries the love of his life

Jessi walks down the aisle

Pastor did a wonderful job with the ceremony, injecting humor where appropriate and keeping it lighthearted for Jessi, Mark and their guests.

Pastor, Jessi and Mark

. Once the ceremony finished, Jessi and Mark had their receiving line at the top of the hill and guests were then invited to make their way upstairs in the Spring and Autumn Salons to enjoy cocktails. Hors D’ouevres were served in the Autumn Salon and I provided satellite sound in that room so guests could enjoy the same music from room to room and hear the pertinent announcements being made such as the toasts. Peggy from Four Seasons (who does an OUTSTANDING job by the way) tells me she’s surprised that no other DJ’s are providing this service to their clients.

Sign welcoming guests

I provided uplighting for Jessi and Mark to create a “wow” factor when their guests walked in to the room and Jessi even commented on the beautiful glow from just inside the room before she entered…she said it looked amazing.

Light blue uplighting at Four Seasons

. Guests enjoyed cocktail music from Darius Rucker, Train, Rascal Flatts, and Josh Groban with Jessi and Mark welcomed into the room. Guests enjoyed the heavy hors d’ouevres after Mark’s brother gave his toast. After dinner, I shared Jessi and Mark’s love story with their guests followed by their first dance together as husband and wife. The dance floor was jumping pretty much the entire night with music from Norman Greenbaum and Elvis to Kevin Rudolph and Nickelback. I’m not sure when this crazy antic in the night happened, but it happened.

Bottoms Up

Thanks Jessi and Mark! It was a pleasure entertaining for your friends and family.

Katie and Pat

UpFront & Company

UpFront & Company was the site for Katie and Pat’s ceremony and reception for July 18th. I arrived early as usual and had all of my equipment inside and set up by 12:45pm. Katie and Pat planned on having their ceremony on the dance floor at the UpFront with the reception immediately following. Bridal party members were dressed and milling about as they were to have rehearsal at 1pm with pictures with their photographer, Cameron Fure before the reception. Katie’s mom kindly asked me if I would help them in directing the ceremony and I assisted with rehearsal. The ceremony went off without a hitch thanks to their friend and officiate Mark and Katie and Patrick walked back down the aisle to 525,600 minutes from the Rent Soundtrack. Cocktail hour was fun and then we introduced the bridal party into the room followed by Katie and Pat’s cake cutting ceremony.

Katie and Pat's gorgeous Gopher's cake

. From there the UpFront staff did a great job with dinner served right on time. After dinner, Katie and Pat’s Love Story was shared with their guests and then their first dance to “Someone Like You” by Van Morrison.

Katie and Pat's 1st Dance

. Katie and her father Thomas then shared their Father Daughter dance with guests followed by Pat and his mother Laura dancing to “Child Of Mine” by Carole King.

Pat and Laura Mother Son Dance

A few unique requests for dancing included “You’ve Got The Love” by Candi Staton and even “Sister Christian” by Night Ranger or as the bridesmaids affectionately called it “MOTORIN’!” What a fun group! The night was capped off with all friends and family on the dance floor celebrating to the sounds of “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond. What a great wedding for a wonderful couple!

Amanda and Jesse

Lindsey and Clay

I had the pleasure of being referred to Amanda and Jesse from one of my past clients, Lindsey and Clay. Lindsey and Clay had an AMAZING wedding on September 22, 2007 so I knew the potential that Amanda and Jesse’s reception had. They both are involved in motocross and work in the biking world as well…two outstanding people from wonderful families. The evening started at the Terrace Bay Inn with cocktail and dinner music from Leona Lewis, Jackson Browne, Tim McGraw, The Beach Boys and Plain White T’s. The introductions went well and everyone enjoyed the cake cutting ceremony as well. After dinner, we gathered the bridal party along with Amanda and Jesse’s parents and everyone got to hear Amanda and Jesse’s Love Story. It was an emotional moment with a special twist at the end.

Amanda and Jesse's First Dance

Amanda and Jesse then shared their first dance with their guests and even had fun with that themselves in a unique way (no…not the evolution of dance…something much more personal). Amanda then danced with her two fathers to separate songs and each moment was touching for her and her fathers.

Amanda and Tony

Amanda and Jeff

Jesse and his mother Ginger then shared a special moment for the Mother Son dance with Jesse even throwing in a surprise for her.

Ginger and Jesse

Dancing started and we got underway almost immediately. The Garter Bouquet segment was fun with Identify Your Bride and the party even went long into the night. The photos taken in this blog were from my own camera. Photos from Keith Freeman of Freeman’s Photography should be added soon. Keith did an amazing job with Amanda and Jesse and the photos turned out BEAUTIFUL…way better than what I can do! Thanks Amanda and Jesse and families for an amazing night. I am blessed to work with such awesome people.

Becky and Travis July 4th, 2009

Becky and Travis kiss at sweetheart table

Certain people you just connect with…and that’s how it was for me with Becky and Travis. We met back in early April and had a great meeting. The LOVE that these two share for each other should be the model example everywhere for all couples in love.

A picture perfect couple had a picture perfect wedding day in Manistique, Michigan right on the harbor. The band Country Roads played for cocktail hour and then I used their microphone to introduce Becky and Travis into the reception as “Somebody Like You” by Keith Urban played. Toasts were then given outside in the beautiful sunshine by the Matron Of Honor Kimberly and the Best Man Wade.

Table assignments

Guests found their way to their tables via the song title and friends who were joining them and the room looked absolutely wonderful courtesy of Tiffany at Final Touches Designs. Daniele Carol was the photographer and her and I always work well together and she gets AMAZING shots! After introductions, Becky’s father gave a welcome and blessing before the meal. The meal was provided by Upper Crust Cafe and their staff did an outstanding job as guests were called to the buffet line via song titles on their tables.

Grooms Fisherman Cake

Becky and Travis had the wedding tradition of a Grooms cake along with their traditional wedding cake there that night and there was a great quote about Becky being the catch of his life on the Grooms cake that you couldn’t help but smile when you read. Becky and Travis then performed their cake cutting ceremony then guests were served with cake before we moved on to Travis and Becky’s Love Story. What a beautiful moment that was to share with their guests.

Becky and Travis First Dance

Their first dance followed to “I Could Not Ask For More” by Sara Evans, then Becky had her Father Daughter Dance with her dad Bob. An emotional time in the night came next as Travis wanted to honor his dad who had passed away and chose the song “Holes In The Floor Of Heaven” by Steve Wariner to dance with his mother Sally to for their Mother Son dance. Travis made it even more special with a little help from me and I have to admit at shedding a tear as this moment took place for them.

A special moment between Mother and Son

Our wedding party dance was next with a unique choice of song and then the party was kicked off! The only lull of the night was to enjoy Manistique’s fireworks between 10:30 and 11pm. Guests filtered back into the room immediately following them and we even had a special send off to Friends In Low Places for Becky and Travis. It was a beautiful night for a beautiful couple to start their lives. Thank you Becky and Travis!

Becky with Flowergirls

Travis and Becky Last Dance

Meredith and Matt May 29th, 2009

Chippewa Club

WOW! That, in one word, sums up my feelings of Meredith and Matt’s reception. Their families are awesome, and were referred to me by an equally amazing family, who you may recall from Kristina’s wedding back in January.

Tents outside at Chippewa Club

Meredith and Matt’s reception took place at the beautiful Chippewa Club in Iron Mountain. The Chippewa Club is a beautiful refurbished home built in 1898 sitting on top of a hill. Lyn and her staff were excellent to work with. Meredith and Matt’s guest count reached 240 people so due to the limited space in the main rooms of the Chippewa Club, we had guests dining upstairs and outside in the big tent as well. This made coordinating the event a little tricky, but with the help of wonderful professionals such as Lyn, Keith Freeman of Freeman’s Photography and Bill Thum of Superior Productions for videography, everything went off without a hitch.

Why a child's tuxedo costs $100!

Outside, kids were playing and I guess this is the reason why you have to pay $100 for a children’s tuxedo! 🙂 Meredith and Matt’s first dance was beautiful and Superior Productions showed a beautiful video encompassing their life stories just before.

Meredith and Matt's First Dance

Gary and Meredith shared their Father Daughter dance next, along with Matt and Kathy with the Mother Son dance.

Father Gary with Daughter Meredith

Once the dancing started, the crowd was rocking…so much so that the chandeliers in the room for dancing were SWINGING from the ceiling due to all of the movement from the guests on the old wooden dance floor.

Via and Jane, mothers of Kristina and Meredith having fun

It was a great reception…everyone had a blast and I’m thankful that clients such as Meredith and Matt allowed me to be a part of their day.

Family after a fun night!

Heather and Nic

Heather and Nic's Wedding Day

Wedding season is now in full swing and last night I had the pleasure to perform for Heather and Nic and their families. Heather and Nic opted to go with our uplighting package, a little more advanced from others that you may have seen before as ours will transform the mood of the room during the evening creating different colors and accompanying different emotions throughout the night. Here’s a pic of their head table done with uplighting.

Blue uplighting head table Bark River Sr. Center

Our dinner was a bit delayed due to Heather and Nic showing their affection for each other by smashing cake and they also came up with the unique idea to get them to kiss by having their guests pop bubblewrap in the same wedding colors that they had chosen. Heather held back emotion filled tears during their Love Story and during her Father Daughter dance.

Heather and Dale Nic and Connie enjoying moments together

Dancing got underway and everyone had a great time. I’m sure Fawn Clement of Fawn’s photography got some amazing images as there was definitely some fun shots to take. We wrapped up the evening at midnight with everyone saying goodbyes and congratulations to Heather and Nic, and ended their reception as they wished, on an upbeat note to the sounds of Outkast’s “Hey Ya”.

Heather Nic and I at the end of a fun night!

Thank you Heather, Nic and families for making the night one to remember. Congratulations!

Adding Elegance and Magic to your Wedding Night…at a discount!

Terrace Bay Inn Transformed Decor by Final Touches Photo by Daniele Carol

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Red uplighting at Terrace - Decor by Final Touches Designs Photo by Daniele Carol Photography

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Becca and Travis Steinbrecher

Rebecca and Travis First Dance

Saturday December 20th, 2008 I had the distinct pleasure of performing for Becca and Travis Steinbrecher. What a beautiful couple. The reception was held at the Kingsford Armory with a Christmas theme complete with tree bows as centerpieces on their tables.

Becca, Travis and I met approximately six weeks before their reception to plan all of the details and ensure we had enough time to put everything together during the holiday season. Cocktail hour began at 4:30pm with a mix of holiday music. Becca and Travis arrived off of the bus with their bridal party at which time we began our personalized introductions for the bridal party. My new way of performing this really provides for a nice photo opportunity for the photographer and guests that evening. Travis and Becca were introduced to the chorus of “Check Yes Or No” by George Strait as it fit them to a “T”.

After introductions we had our cake cutting ceremony followed by a moment of silence for an usher who was with us in spirit that night. Becca thanked all of their guests for coming and we were off to dinner. The second part of the evening kicked off with Becca and Travis’s Love Story…which I have to say was one of the most beautiful ones I have told to date. Becca and Travis then shared their first dance as husband and wife with their guests.

Karl and Rebecca Father Daughter Dance

What followed next was truly touching. Becca and I got together in Marquette in early December to make a custom recording for her dance with her father Karl. The song she selected for that moment was Butterfly Kisses by Bob Carlisle. It was a beautifully created piece that I know they both enjoyed.

The rest of the evening was quite fun with everyone enjoying the night. We even created a fun send-off “on the fly” for Becca and Travis as they decided that night to leave the reception about 20 minutes early. All of their guests said goodbye as they ran through the middle of them and we ended their party on a high note. Thanks Becca and Travis for allowing me to be a part of your special day. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you both.

Mitch, Becca and Travis

Next up for me, OSF St. Francis Hospital and Medical Group Christmas Party and then a very elegant affair for Kristina Santini and Wayne Fredrickson in Iron Mountain. Stay tuned.