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Edmonton Bridal Fantasy 2010
Feb 2nd
January 24, 2010
Bridal Fantasy 2010 at the Edmonton Northlands Agricom.
Video Highlights of the day.
There is a lot to say about Bridal Fantasy this year as there were a few surprises.
Most noticeably was the decrease in attendance of the exhibitors as it was clear to me that there were less vendors this year compared to last. Add-in the fact two major vendors were missing from Bridal Fantasy goes to show either those exhibitors have not been happy with the results from the show or how the show is run. I have not spoken with River City Rentals or Elegant Touches but I do know that they both were in Bridal Fair 2 weeks prior but did not participate in this show.
It is hard to say if attendance numbers were as strong this year over last year as no numbers have been currently released. Most vendors I spoke with seemed to be happy with the show and felt the numbers were down slightly but no one was positive about that. Most exhibitors were a bit nervous going into the show as Bridal Fair on had one half the attendance they had in 2009. As it turns out attendance was about the same as 2009 with about 50 more people attending this years show. Bridal Fantasy did a good job of promoting the show via radio, TV and print advertising. Add in the good weather which helps to bring people in the doors.
The other big challenge to Bridal Fantasy this year was the Agricom itself. With the renovations that have been taking place now for almost 2 years this venue has become disliked by both attendees and the public as you have to walk a great distance just to get to the main doors from the parking lot and another long haul down a long hallway to get to the exhibition halls. Add-in the fact that you had to pay $12 for parking and $20 to get in the door I am surprised anyone came to the show at all.
I must say that there were some very well done booths this year and people put allot of thought into making the most of the day.
This was the 5th time I have been to Bridal Fantasy and I was again disappointed with the fashion show. For what seems like 5 years in a row the Derk’s have used the same stage back drop/theme and even worse to me was the show producers used the exact same music. The fashion show truly lacked anything new and exciting and with such a changing world that we currently live in it was disappointing that there was no new energy brought to this part of the event.
The BIG challenge I noticed this year at the show was a few companies pulling what is known as Bait and Switch. One DJ company inparticular took what is normally a $600 DJ package (at best) they then marked it up to $1195 and created a show special were they discounted the price by 50%. I can personally tell you that even their $600 package is not worth $600 not to mention $1200. As a DJ for almost 10 years I was shocked by this companies approach to marketing. If you consider a good DJ package to included 2 speakers on stands and a laptop with no lighting run by a DJ that may or may not have ever done a wedding before a good deal then you definitely got what you paid for.
All I can say is make sure your do your homework before you book any of your major vendors and never book anything the day of a wedding show. Go home after the show and do a little more research online to make you hire the right companies for what most people consider one of the most important days of their lives.
I have never personally been an exhibitor in this or any show but have helped out a number of vendors/exhibitors over the years with their booths. What has always frustrated me the most is the end of the day when the mad rush occurs as everyone is trying to get done and their booths taken down as fast as possible. The Derk’s and Heidi really need to lay down the law with GES (the company that provides the tradeshow equipment for the show) and have them not lift a finger for one hour after the show ends to allow the vendors that paid at least $1400 to attend the show have the right-a-way when clearing the building. The staff of Goodkey Show Services were so inconsiderate that they began to roll up the carpet while there were still guests in the room and some of them with baby strollers. My apologies to GES as I cited them as the problem as it was their name I saw and some of the equipment at the show. This was very disappointing to see and I was impressed that a few exhibitors, raised shit (excuse my French) and had Goodkey stop this work immediately.
All-in-all it was a good day and as a lot of competitors are very friendly with each other so it was a chance to visit and say hello to some great people that work in the Edmonton Wedding market.
List of Show Exibitors
A Beautiful Day - Planning & Decorating
A Chair to Remember - Planning & Decorating
ABC Weddings – Planning & Decorating
Artistic Creations Photography and Design – Photography and Videography
Avenue – Publications/Media
Beauti Control – Health & Beauty
Bed Bath and Beyond – Retail
Best Buds Flower Co. – Florists
Best Western Cedar Park Inn and Westwood – Wedding Venue
Bliss Wedding Consultants – Planning & Decorating
Bloom N’ Memories – Florists
Blue Sky Limos – Limo Services
Bridal Debut – Bridal Fashions
Browns Photography – Photography and Videography
Cakes by Janna – Cakes & Sweets
Coast Edmonton Plaza – Wedding Venue Location
Coral’s Design – Florisit
Crystal’s Bridal - Bridal Fashions
d’Lish – Catering Company
Derks – Men’s Formal Wear
Electrik Lemon Hair and Body Studio – Health & Beauty
Elegant Events – Planning & Decorating
Erik Hornung Photography – Photography and Videography
Fantasyland Hotel – Wedding Venue
Final Touch – Planning & Decorating
Flowers In The Park – Florist
Gemini – Bridal Fashions
Graham and Lane Florist - Flowers
Hilton Garden InnWest Edmonton – Wedding Venue
Holiday Inn Convention Centre – Wedding Location
In Motion Style Group – Health & Beauty
Infinite Event Services – Planning & Decorating
Instant Memories – Photography and Videography
Isagenix – Health & Beauty
Karisma Resorts – Wedding Travel
Kelly Redinger Studios – Photography and Videography
La Piazza Dasee – Florist
Mary Kay – Health & Beauty
Moby Disc DJ – Edmonton DJ for Special Events
Moores Clothing For Men – Men’s Formal Wear
Nickibeans – Cakes & Sweets
Notables – Stationery and Invitations
Photsmiths – Photography and Videography)
Picture That Photography – Photography and Videography
Pioneer Meadows Golf Course – Wedding Venue
Piotr & Megan Photography – Photography and Videography
PoGirl Productions – Photography and Videography
Sandals – Destination Lane
Sears – Retail
Shandro Photo – Photography and Videography
Sharaton 4 Points – Wedding Venue
Special Event Rentals – Planning & Decorations
Stella & Dot Jewelry – Bridal Fashions
Strathcona String Quartet – Entertainment/Musicians
Sweet Beginnings – Planning & Decorations
Table Charm – Retail
The Bay and Home Outfitters – Retail
The Bounce – Publications/Media/Radio Station
The Bridal House – Bridal Fashions
The Islands of the Bahamas – Destination Lane
The Last Detail – Planning & Decorations
The Papertree – Stationery
The Tuxedo House – Men’s Wear
The Westin Edmonton – Wedding Venue
To Be In Pictures – Photography and Videography
Transat Holidays – Destination Location
U Weight Loss Clinic – Health & Beauty
Uniglobe Geo Travel – Travel
Vigor Media – Photography and Videography
Weddingbells – Publications/Media/Magazine
Wedlux – Publications/Media
Whimsical Cake Studio – Cakes & Sweets
Yukon Brewing Company – Grooms Room
Edmonton Disc Jockey for Canadian Tire
Jan 17th
January 16, 2010
Calgary Trail South Edmonton Canadian Tire at the Sawmill Banquet Facility.
This event was exactly what a corporate function should be. Good people, good food and lots of fun. Last year I also was the DJ for Canadian Tire and even though it was a really good party it ended a little early due in part to it being held on a Sunday. This year management agreed to close the store early on Saturday which in turn led to a more successful party. As some of the employees had spouses and partners that normally would have to work on a Monday morning, therefore causing them to leave the party earlier on a Sunday that if the party was held on a Saturday. Needless to say this year’s holiday party was way more successful than last year.
I would like to thank the staff at the Sawmill Banquet Facility for being very accommodating to my style of DJ. As an Edmonton DJ many venues can be a challenge to work at. Maria Baert was very helpful with a number of things that evening to make my job easier and is well better. The Sawmill Banquet Facility is a very nice venue on the east end of Edmonton just off 34th Ave and 76 St.
The room was split in half to accommodate two smaller events. For me this was the exact same room we were in last year. The only thing I like to do one in this room is placed my DJ equipment in the middle of the dance floor along the false wall that separates the two rooms. This creates a better look and feel for the dance floor and allows me to interact with the crowd in a far easier fashion. In order for me to do this the buffet line had to be moved slightly away from the wall it was great to see the staff willing to make this adjustment happen.
Leaving start at about seven o’clock and everyone was in good spirits right from the get-go. I recognize the a lot of the same people from the year prior which makes it more enjoyable for me as a DJ to work with people over and over again. We played a fun Christmas game in order to pick the order of the tables for the buffet line and that went over very well. Dinner was very well done, buffet style, with lots of items to choose from. What I really liked about the buffet line was that each item had a name tag so you knew exactly what the item was. There are a lot more fussy people today than ever before in this allows them to know exactly what they would be eating.
We started the dance right around nine o’clock and coordinated our dance start time with the room next to us. This is a great idea to prevent music, which is normally played at a higher volume for a dance, from being heard overtop of someone else trying to speak and do speeches after dinner. The venue was right on top of this issue making sure both events were the best they could be. We had a full dance floor right from the get go and what really made this party great were about six people that really liked the dance and got the ball rolling which in turn made everyone else want to dance.
You can tell that everyone really get along quite well with everyone else as a good part of the night everyone was dancing in a circle as one or two people showed off their moves in the middle of the circle. This normally happens when you have a group of people that like each other and like to have fun.
The highlight of the night was when one of the gentlemen dancing decided to take off his sweater in a mock striptease. Everyone was cheering and laughing as this all happened and it truly elevated the party to another level as I do not think this is normally something this person does on a regular basis.
It is nice like this to continue to make me want to keep being an Edmonton DJ. Thanks again to the staff and management at Canadian Tire for having me back this year and I hope to see y’all again next year.
Please see below for some video highlights from tonight’s event.
Bridal Fair Edmonton 2010
Jan 11th
Edmonton Bridal Fair 2010 at the Shaw Conference Centre
Simply put Bridal Fair is a wedding trade show where brides and grooms can come to one location to see a large number of local vendors in the Edmonton area. With over 90 vendors in one location this can be a good place to come and meet some decent service providers.
As an Edmonton DJ I have never participated in a bride trade show. As a small operator in the Edmonton market, where I mainly work by myself and use 2 other highly qualified DJs when needed I do not see the attraction to a bridal show. From a DJ stand point I do not understand how anyone can simply go to bridal show and base their decision on booking a DJ on who has the prettiest booth. DJing is so much more than just showing up and playing songs from a predetermined list, it is about helping to create an environment where you and your guests want to be and stay there all night long.
The dance portion of your wedding night is generally 4 hours in length and often people do not place enough emphasis on this part of the night. Often the difference between a cookie cutter approach to DJing and hire a professional that has more equipment than 2 speakers and a laptop and can all be carried in a Firefly is about 200 – 400 dollars. Sure that can be allot of money but in the big scheme of things and a typical wedding costing about $19,274 (according to Weddingbells.ca) that really isn’t. I often have people come up to me at a wedding and say “I wish we had hired someone like you for our wedding” and I simply ask them “what did you pay for your DJ?” and often the reply is $600 – $700. I simple say “unfortunately you got what you paid for”.
I recommend that people think about what it would cost to hire a Bobcat operator to work for them on a Saturday for about 6 – 8 hours. Well I can tell you that is costs about $125/hr with an operator. So if you had hired someone for 6 hours that would work out to be $750. I can personally tell you that my equipment and music are worth more than a Bobcat, trailer and truck to pull both of those and it takes a lot more personality to be a DJ than running a Bobcat.
What I really am getting at is you need to do you homework when it comes to your big day. Be sure to place the right amount of emphasis on the the things your consider important. I always say to my brides and grooms to focus on the things that they remember from the functions that they have attended.
It was clear that some of the exhibitors went all out for this event. Joe at River City Rentals created what had to be one best looking booth at the entire show. He created a room within a room and setup a head table with guest tables so people could get a real feel for how a room could look. They even went as far as to hang a chandelier from the ceiling to create the look and feel of a banquet room.
One of the highlights of the day was the fashion show. Lots of dresses and lots of tux’s made for a very well attend fashion show. Seeing what styles and colours that will be in fashion this year is what everyone was wanting to know.
From the exhibitors I spoke with following the show they stated that Bridal Fair 2009 had over 900 bride in attendance and the 2010 show had about 450. With such a significant decrease in the number of attendees some vendors are already questioning the high cost of being in the show is worth the expense.
Please see the attached video of some highlights of vendors and the fashion show.
List of Show Exibitors
A Beautiful Day - Planning & Decorating
A Chair to Remember - Planning & Decorating
ABC Weddings – Planning & Decorating
Artistic Creations Photography and Design – Photography and Videography
Avenue – Publications/Media
Beauti Control – Health & Beauty
Bed Bath and Beyond – Retail
Best Buds Flower Co. – Florists
Best Western Cedar Park Inn and Westwood – Wedding Venue
Bliss Wedding Consultants – Planning & Decorating
Bloom N’ Memories – Florists
Blue Sky Limos – Limo Services
Bridal Debut – Bridal Fashions
Browns Photography – Photography and Videography
Cakes by Janna – Cakes & Sweets
Coast Edmonton Plaza – Wedding Venue Location
Coral’s Design – Florisit
Crystal’s Bridal - Bridal Fashions
d’Lish – Catering Company
Derks – Men’s Formal Wear
Electrik Lemon Hair and Body Studio – Health & Beauty
Elegant Events – Planning & Decorating
Elegant Touches – Planning & Decorating
Erik Hornung Photography – Photography and Videography
Fantasyland Hotel – Wedding Venue
Final Touch – Planning & Decorating
Flowers In The Park – Florist
Gemini – Bridal Fashions
Graham and Lane Florist - Flowers
Hilton Garden InnWest Edmonton – Wedding Venue
Holiday Inn Convention Centre – Wedding Location
In Motion Style Group – Health & Beauty
Infinite Event Services – Planning & Decorating
Instant Memories – Photography and Videography
Isagenix – Health & Beauty
Karisma Resorts – Wedding Travel
Kelly Redinger Studios – Photography and Videography
La Piazza Dasee – Florist
Mary Kay – Health & Beauty
Moby Disc DJ – Edmonton DJ for Special Events
Moores Clothing For Men – Men’s Formal Wear
Nickibeans – Cakes & Sweets
Notables – Stationery and Invitations
Photsmiths – Photography and Videography)
Picture That Photography – Photography and Videography
Pioneer Meadows Golf Course – Wedding Venue
Piotr & Megan Photography – Photography and Videography
PoGirl Productions – Photography and Videography
River City Event Rentals – Planning & Decororations
Sandals – Destination Lane
Sears – Retail
Shandro Photo – Photography and Videography
Sharaton 4 Points – Wedding Venue
Special Event Rentals – Planning & Decorations
Stella & Dot Jewelry – Bridal Fashions
Strathcona String Quartet – Entertainment/Musicians
Sweet Beginnings – Planning & Decorations
Table Charm – Retail
The Bay and Home Outfitters – Retail
The Bounce – Publications/Media/Radio Station
The Bridal House – Bridal Fashions
The Islands of the Bahamas – Destination Lane
The Last Detail – Planning & Decorations
The Papertree – Stationery
The Tuxedo House – Men’s Wear
The Westin Edmonton – Wedding Venue
To Be In Pictures – Photography and Videography
Transat Holidays – Destination Location
U Weight Loss Clinic – Health & Beauty
Uniglobe Geo Travel – Travel
Vigor Media – Photography and Videography
Weddingbells – Publications/Media/Magazine
Wedlux – Publications/Media
Whimsical Cake Studio – Cakes & Sweets
Yukon Brewing Company – Grooms Room
DJ Edmonton for St. Albert Boston Pizza
Jan 4th
January 4, 2010 – Edmonton DJ for a Holiday Party for Both Boston Pizzas in St. Albert
It was great to be back with a great group of people for their annual holiday event. Last year Nash and Rob asked me to DJ their joint Christmas party at the Platinum Club/Gold Dust Casino and it was a rockin’ good time. We were not able to go back to the Platinum Club because it is being renovated and made smaller and no longer can hold more than 100 people.
So this year they moved the function to the St. Albert Royal Canadian Legion. It had been years since the last time I was here and to be honest I could not even remember where it was located. It is a very nice room with a easy load in for equipment with no stairs and only about 40 feet from the front door was the room I was playing in.
Boston Pizza shut down their locations early on a Monday so that everyone could attend the event. Everyone started showing up at around 7 pm and we were in for a good time.
Nash and Rob were there to greet their staff as the came in and everyone was very well dressed and in great spirits. The fun things about doing a function like this is the staff. As they work in the hospitality industry and deal with people all the time most of them have very out going personalities which makes for am ore interesting evening. I have been an Edmonton DJ for so long that sometimes one forgets how much fun it can be to be a disc jockey. Allot of people remembered me from last year and were very friendly which makes for a better evening for me.
Dinner was served around 8 PM and it was a very simple yet very good buffet. Even tough there were not tons of items the ones that were there were very well made and there were a number of people that went back for seconds. The only thing I would have liked to have seen would have been a better section of deserts.
Dinner was followed with door prizes and Tyler took over the MCing duties and he is hilarious. He has a great personality and can really think on his feet. I think he could make a great DJ someday if he wanted to.
The dance then followed and all I can say is wow. Right from the first song the dance floor was full almost the whole night long. We even had a couple of people sing a karaoke songs. It is often easier to DJ a function like this as you have a narrow age range and therefore a narrow list of songs they generally want to dance too. There were lots of requests and lots of dancing and everyone had a good time, and if you didn’t it was your own fault. I sure hope to be back next year.
Please see the attached video for so highlights of the evening.
Hotel MacDonald Corporate Christmas Party DJ
Jan 3rd
December 11, 2009 – Edmonton Disc Jockey for Davis & Company
It has been 2 years since the last time I was with my friends at Davis and Company and boy it was good to be back. The weather outside was frightful and inside it was delightful with great food and friends coming together to celebrate everyone’s favorite time of the year.
The Hotel MacDonald is the most beautiful venue in Edmonton at the best of times; and this time of the year takes it too a whole other level. The Christmas decorations are so well done and really add to the look of the hotel. So much so that people were taking pictures of each other in the lobby in front of the great tree and reindeer.
As an Edmonton DJ it is always great to DJ at the MacDonald Hotel and tonight was as good as always. Over the years I have gotten to know some of the staff and on this night a couple of people were there that I have gotten to know. A special thanks to Chris for his unequalled service and helpfulness. He treated me like a guests rather than the hired help and that says a lot about him and the MacDonald Hotel. If other venues could understand this it would server them well as I have customers that call me and ask what is a good venue to hold a function at and I always mention the Mac.
Dinner was served just about 7:30PM, which was a little late, because of the poor road conditions making people run late getting to the location. Dinner was, simply put, amazing and I could not have had another bite as I over did it. It was great to sit a relax and enjoy a great meal and my dinner guests were great to visit with and we had a great conversation over dinner.
After dinner we had a couple of quick speeches and the highlight of the night was 2 things. 1st was the slideshow and video presentation that the interns put together. There were a few slides shown on the screen that were doctored in Photoshop that had everyone laughing as the interns made jokes about the office staff.
The video presentation followed the slideshow and that was a spoof in the TV show “the Office” and boy was it funny. It must have taken days to put that together and was one of the best presentations I have ever seen and all I can say was the bar has been set high and will be hard to beat.
The 2nd thing was the “Family Feud Game” where 2 teams were picked and competed against each other to answer a few fun questions about the staff and partners based on how well they new each other. This was very well done and the MC did a great job of preparing the game in advance. I will be sure to recommend this to other companies in the future.
The dance got started about 10:00 and it was just like old times. Since I had been with this group before and had a good understanding as to what they liked and that was a good starting point and we were able to hit the ground running. There were lots of requests and everyone just seemed to cut loose a little and have some fun and relax, something we all need to do once and a while. What I love about the Hotel MacDonald is the atmosphere in this room. With a great look and feel and add in great lighting control you can really set the tone for an inviting dance floor where people will want to be.
Please see the attached video for some highlights of the day from “Edmonton DJ”
Edmonton Corporate DJ at the Radisson Inn
Jan 2nd
December 19, 2009 – Edmonton Corporate Christmas Party for WIKA Instruments Edmonton 
It is great to back with WIKA again this year to do their Christmas party. They are a great group of people that like to have fun. In order to elevate a party to a higher level we decided last year that we would add in a couple of games to make things a little more interesting. Corporate functions can be a bit of a challenge as the employees bring a spouse or guest and since they don’t really know anyone they can feel a little out of place.
My goal is to add in some activities that help to break the ice and get everyone to relax a little more so they intern enjoy themselves and stay a little longer.
Last year we decided to play “golf”. Simply put everyone that comes get a chance to go golfing and every time you sink a putt (best of 3) you get entered into a separate draw then everyone else. It went over very well last year and everyone lined up to play and it was great fun as everyone cheered and sometimes booed for the person putting. We decided to leave the golfing in this year and see what happens. The funny thing is that I think that it was better this year than last year and that is because people knew how it worked and it was so much fun as people that never really golf came up and gave it a try and when they sunk a putt everyone cheered and it was ton of fun.
For dinner we played a game to pick the table order. Santa Bingo is a fun game that is more luck then skill but is better then simply picking number out of a hat. The fun part was the ribbing people where giving me as we did the game as there was a lot of banter which turned out to be a lot of fun.
Dinner was very well done at the Radisson Inn. The Radisson is a really nice venue to hold a function at, but is one of the hardest venues to get equipment into and out of. Also, with the dance floor at the opposite end of the room from the entrance to the room make it even a longer distance for an Edmonton DJ to have to move their gear. Also, the room is quite nice but is in need to painting and a little T.L.C. to keep it current and maintained.
After dinner we played 2 quick rounds of “Name that Tune” and this was great fun as everyone was involved and engaged making it a lot easier to do. I had a volunteer run my computer which really sped up the game and me running around like a chicken with my head cut off.
The highlight of the night was when myself and 2 managers and the president of the company performed a rewritten version of “Kenny Rogers – the Gambler”. We did a rehearsal before dinner and that went off without a hitch and we had an almost flawless performance but we all had a little bit of the nerves. I think the 4 of us had more fun doing this then everyone watching. I think it is great to see management step outside the box and have a some fun. I hope we can talk everyone into doing this again next year.
We finally started the dance about 9:30 and we had people on the dance floor the whole night thru. It was the ladies that really got the ball rolling with some line dances and top 40. We mixed in a few slow songs, as anyone can dance to a slow song and by 12AM we had a good core group of people left and I played their requests and we had a great time.
Please see the attached video of some highlights of the day from Edmonton Disc Jockey.
Edmonton Wedding DJ at the Denham Inn in Leduc
Dec 29th
December 12, 2009 Wedding for Murielle and John
It might have been –46 degrees Celsius outside but the wedding was on FIRE!!!
As an Edmonton DJ I can’t remember the last time I was this concerned going into a wedding. The weather can play a major role in a function but not tonight.
The Denham Inn in Leduc is a very nice location to hold a wedding as I have been here a few times before I was very familiar with this venue. When I arrived to the venue, which was nice and early to allow my equipment enough time to warm up from the freezing temperature outside, I was very impressed as the how the room was decorated. Murielle and John did a few things that I have never seen before.
The first thing I noticed was the socks as favors. This was a great touch as there was a story with the socks and the first date the bride and groom shared. This was brilliant as it made things more personal and socks were favors that people could actually use. At most weddings there are always favors left behind but not today.
Second was the game played during speeches… but I will get to that in a minute.
The bride and groom wanted to set a great tone for the night and by picking “Black Eyed Peas – I Gotta Feelin’” as their grand entrance song that definitely worked. With aunty “M” getting married, everyone was very excited for her on her BIG day.
This was an advanced wedding for me with not only DJing the function but built my advanced slideshow with video interview. This type of function puts a great deal of work on my plate but the rewards are well worth the effort. The Denham Inn has a couple of limitations when it comes to what I do and with a slideshow being a big part of the evening the very low ceilings makes it very hard for all the guests to see the image on a small screen. Since I had been here before and was aware of this limitation I brought as second screen and projector so that the projectors and screens could be placed at opposite ends of the room allowing for easier viewing for the guests.
Dinner was very well done and I really enjoyed the meal as it was a good home cooked meal that covered all the basics and then some. Everyone really seemed to be enjoying themselves with lots of visiting and laughing around the tables.
I cannot remember the last time I was this stressed at a function. This was caused by a computer malfunction during the rendering of the slideshow. Even though I am well prepared with a backup slideshow in hand, I like to add in a few pictures and video after the bride and groom to the hall into the slideshow and re-render the slideshow during dinner so that it is ready to go at the end of speeches. Things were going perfectly until my PC got hung up and I had to exercise a hard reboot and then again render down the slideshow again. This whole process took me until about 7:45 which would have been fine had I not made the mistake of not double checking my changes to the slideshow after the reboot. Realizing my mistake after rendering put me in a big time crunch and I had to render the slideshow again for the 3rd time and the process takes about 40 minutes to complete. We pushed the speeches up just a little and we were only delayed in showing the slide show by about 5 minutes. The slideshow ended up going over in a huge way and at time the laughter was so loud that we almost needed to show it twice to catch everything the bride and groom said. When you get a big huge from the bride you know you did a good job and that is exactly what I got from Murielle.
A big thank you goes out the their photographer. Sonia allowed me to use a few pictures from the ceremoney and formals at the end of the slideshow which really blow everyone away as I was not at the ceremony or formals yet there were pictures in the slideshows from the day. It is great when vendors work together for the good of the client as most people only have their own best interests at heart. Sonia’s company is called PhotoArt by Sonia. Thanks Again.
Lets get back to the second thing I had never seen at a wedding before. The MC’s were simply put… AWESOME. They were very well spoken and creative and did there homework. The highlight of the speeches was a game that was played with the bride and groom. First the groom was blindfolded and several different women were asked to come up and give him a kiss (they were picked in advance) and the bride was also one of the kissers. After the women kissed the groom he had to pick which one was the bride and boy when he guessed WRONG the roof almost came off the building with laughter. One of the volunteers nailed him with a good kiss and that really throw the groom off the trail. The bride then had her turn and was also blindfolded and the male volunteers came on up. She had to squeeze the butts to see which one was the grooms. This was so funny and they got more volunteers than that had planned for as lots of men want to have their butts squeezed by the bride. What was even funnier was after she took off the blindfold she also picked the wrong man saving the groom from years of humiliation.
After the speeches and slideshow we quickly went into the first dance once the head table was taken down via the hotel staff to accommodate the dance floor.
There were only 2 special dances and we were off to the races with everyone in to mode to have a good time.
Even though it was one of the coldest nights ever in Leduc it was one of the hottest parties I have ever done. I thought for sure that the room would be empty by 11:00 as people would not want to be stuck out in the cold or worry about trying to start their cars. This was not the case at all as everyone stayed, danced and enjoyed themselves. At 1:00AM I still have 50 people in the room which was a total surprise. A BIG thanx to Murielle and John for putting up with me and really taking it upon themselves to have fun and really enjoy themselves on their special day.
Please watch the video below for some highlights put together by Edmonton DJ.
Edmonton Disc Jockey for Amen Construction
Dec 27th
December 5, 2009 at the Nisku Inn Edmonton
The Nisku Inn has 2 rooms (1 Bigger and 1 Smaller) and the smaller room seats about 120 people which was perfect for the Amen Construction Christmas Party. The day began with a bit of challenge as it had snowed quite a bit through the night and with a little bit of wind led to some drifting which made it very difficult to get my trailer out of storage. It is always important to give yourself a little extra time when it comes to traveling at this time of the year and today I really needed that extra time.
To make matters a little more challenging, when I arrived at the Nisku Inn the front doors wore not working forcing me to load in a small side door that had a small step which was not helpful when it came to moving all of my equipment.
With all the small things happening I had just enough time to setup my show. The doors opened at 5:30PM and I was ready at 5:20PM. I have played in this room before and what was better this time was the placement of the dance floor. It was right in front of my location which was exactly where I wanted it to be. Last time the dance floor was about 20 feet from where my table could be placed.
With the weather causing everyone a few problems our evening ran a little behind schedule as we waiting for people to come. Dinner started about 1/2 hour late which was just fine as the staff at the hotel rolled with the punches and worked around what the customer wanted.
Dinner started about 7:30 and we had a little fun picking the tables based on who was dressed either in Christmas colours or had on festive attire. The food was very well made and there was a very nice selection of items including porgies which are generally a crowd pleaser. The only thing that would be a little better would have been using both side of the buffet line but only one side of the table was used therefore, taking twice as long to put everyone through the buffet line.
Just after dinner the owner/president of the company said a few words about the past year and was looking forward to 2010 with new contracts coming up that will put Amen Construction in a good place next year.
What I really like about Amen Construction is that they are not only colleges but friends and family. Everyone gets along and is there to relax, kick back, and enjoy themselves. As an Edmonton DJ I consider myself pretty lucky to do what I do. It is a great honor to be invited back year after year by the same company. I am lucky to work with companies like Amen as they are the reason I am still doing this and hope to be back next year… in Canmore.
A special thanks goes out to Lynn and Bob as they are great dancers and break the ice for everyone to enjoy themselves. I wish they could come to every one of my parties as they have such positive energy and are genuinely great people.
Please see the video below for some highlights of the night from an Edmonton Disc Jockey.
Edmonton DJ for Intuit Canada Corporate Holiday Party
Dec 21st
November 28, 2009 at the Edmonton Westin Hotel
As an Edmonton DJ I have pretty much seen it all and all I can say is that Intuit did it all at this function. From the minute you came up the stairs at the Westin Hotel there was something for everyone. So where to begin. As a guest you came in to the reception area where there was a piano player and bass player playing a variety of Christmas songs that just filled the air.
Down the hall was a room where you could have your picture taken via a professional photographer. These pictures would then be made available to everyone in the weeks following the Christmas Party.
Everyone was mingling and visiting and enjoying themselves and there was a couple of magicians walking around performing close up magic. This is a great add on to any function as it creates a great conversation starter that breaks the ice and leads to a better evening. When the staff and their spouses come together for a function the spouses can feel a bit out of place and anything that can make everyone feel at ease creates an even better event.
The doors to the ballroom opened about 6:30 PM which was a little late to allow enough time for everyone to get into the room and find their seats prior to dinner. The room was very well decorated with a back drop of Las Vegas as a background image that tied into the theme of having a funny money casino after dinner. There was nothing new here for decorations that I have not seen before but what the organizers had done was well and all tied into the overall theme.
Dinner was very well done, served buffet style and everyone made it through the line in a very short period of time. When you are feeding 300 people it is important that they all get through the line as soon as possible to all for a better evening. The Westin did a great job of keeping the food on the buffet line so that there were no delays.
Dinner was followed by a couple of short speeches and a few door prizes that both very well received. We then went into the informal end of the evening where there was both a dance and a funny money casino.
When there are two different things for guests to do that can be good and it can be bad. If is always a balancing act trying to make as many of your guests happy. The thing is that not everyone dances and the fun money casino was a great add on that appealed to allot of people.
The fun money casino ran from about 9PM to 11PM and the dance ran right along side it for those that did not want to gamble.
The casino was very well received and by most of the guests and those that did not want to play were on the dance floor. There was not anyone sitting in the entire room so it was clear that everyone was partaking in all the activities provided via the organizers. After the casino ended the person with the most money was awarded a prize and rest of the door prizes were given away and the dance finally got going. With such a bigger distraction the dance generally suffers until the casino ends and that is exactly how it was on this night.
We did lose a few people after the casino which was expected for a crowd of this size but this size but those that stuck around danced their butts off and had a great time. I was a little surprised that we had a good crowd still left at 2:00AM when I had to stop playing music as the crowd that was left were chanting “one more song” over and over again.
The challenge for next year will be to top this event.
Please see the video below for highlights of the event for Intuit Canada.
Edmonton DJ for Leduc Junior High at the Denham Inn
Dec 20th
December 18, 2009
It was great to be back with Leduc Junior High for their winter formal. This is one of my favorite functions to do each year. I really enjoy doing school dances as the kids just love to dance and have fun, I wish my adult parties were more like this.
The staff at Leduc Junior High again show what great people they are. This is an outing where the students must be dressed appropriately, no blue jeans allowed. First, they all go to a movie at the local theater and then come to the Denham Inn in Leduc for a semi-formal lunch followed by a dance. Mrs. Ponich was telling me that when they got to the movie theater that some staff did not make in that morning and some of the students that work there on a part-time basis jumped in too fill those spots to allow the function to go that much better. This really shows the quality of the students at Leduc Junior High.
The students and staff all arrived about 11:30 am to the the Denham Inn and even though it was a bit cold outside everyone was in good spirit and everyone really seemed to be enjoying themselves. Everyone was very well dressed and not a hair was out of place. Lunch was served buffet style and it was a good mix of Chinese food.
Right after lunch we jumped straight into the dance and we started out with some songs from their social dance program at the school Dancing is such an important party of our adult life and knowing how to dance is a great thing to know. As and Edmonton DJ I have been with Leduc Junior High for years and I am always surprised how enthusiastic the students are when it comes to social dancing. In fact, more kids were on the dance floor for the social dances then for the top 40 dance hits. Even funnier, is that a lot of the requests were for more songs that were “older” like the “YMCA” and “Macarena”.
There were lots of door prizes, good food and dancing for everyone. I really enjoyed myself and hope I have the privilege of being able to come back again and again. One of the staff at the Denham Inn stated during setup that she still remembers coming to this event and stood out as a great memory from her junior high school days.
Please see the enclosed video below for some highlights of the day.
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