Columbia 4th Fridays

The next Fourth Friday in Columbia will be held Friday May 28th, Hours are 5 pm to 9 pm.www.fourthfriday.hitart.com

Experience Columbia's art galleries, participating antique shops, specialty shops, and local eateries. This at-your-own-pace event provides the opportunity to view exhibits from local and visiting artists, enjoy refreshments, and discover the uniqueness of Columbia. For more information please call (717)405-0604

But remember: Perfect Settings will NOT be participating this month. We will be busy hosting Sarah's Wedding!!

Fab 4th!

Please be advised that there will NOT be a jazz night in May. Columbia will hold its Fabulous Fourth Friday as normal but Perfect Settings will not participate with a Jazz Night in May. Please put us on your schedule for June! *Fourth Friday in Columbia* will be held TONIGHT, Friday April 23rd, Hours are 5 pm to 9 pm. With after hour entertainment available. Please check out the Fourth Friday website for all the details: www.fourthfriday.hitart.com Experience Columbia's art galleries, participating antique shops, specialty shops, and local eateries. This at your own pace event provides the opportunity to view exhibits from local and visiting artists, enjoy refreshments, and discover the uniqueness of Columbia.

Jazz it up!

You've asked, we listened. Tonight is a encore jazz night that will be featured each fourth Friday - along side of the Fourth Friday Celebrations/Tours in Columbia. There's still time to get tickets... or buy at the door.jazz-night-email.jpg

Jazz Night

Perfect Settings will be hosting a series of Jazz Nights in conjunction with Columbia's Fourth Friday's Events. Our last Jazz event was a huge success. Be sure to reserve your ticket today and don't forget you may bring your own bottle of your favorite wine to enjoy.When: March 26th then every Fourth Friday after that! Where: Perfect Settings Price: $10 in advance, $12 at the door

Valentine Tips

valentine.jpgI’m in the wedding industry. I love the feeling of love. I love that people look into each other’s eyes and fall in love. I love when the groom looks at his bride for the first time and she melts. I love dating and the anticipation that you’ll spend the rest of your life with the one you love. So, it’s no surprise that Valentine’s Day is my all time favorite Holiday of the year. Too bad it’s not yet a Federal Holiday. When you think of Valentine's Day you probably think of hearts, flowers, candy, people you love, cherubs and other symbols related to the holiday. But have you ever wondered who Valentine really was? According to About.com Emperor Claudius II, born c. 214 A.D., was emperor of Rome from 268-270. He believed that young men made better soldiers if they were unattached, he outlawed marriage for them. Father Valentine, believing the law was unjust and cruel, continued to secretly perform marriages. When Claudius learned of Valentine's defiance, he had him jailed and threatened him with death. But Valentine would not be dissuaded. To add to the lore and drama – which makes the love story better, legend says that during his incarceration Valentine himself fell in love with a young girl who visited him daily. The girl was believed to be the jailer's daughter. This enraged the warden who urged Claudius to have Valentine killed. But Valentine was even more determined that love should win out and refused. Claudius ordered him to be put to death. It is said the priest himself sent the first Valentine's letter when he wrote a farewell note to the jailer's daughter and signed it, "From Your Valentine," this signature is still popular today. Over time the holiday evolved. The commercialization of February 14th came hundreds of years later – to much of the dismay of many men. I’m often asked, what is a clever way to say “I love you” and I will always answer “the way you said it just now.” Valentine’s Day is the one time of the year when you don’t need an excuse to say “I love you!” You don’t have to buy a box of chocolates and a dozen roses – although it does make it extra special. The most important aspect of celebrating Valentine’s Day is actually saying “I love you” to that person that means the world to you. You would be surprised by all the thought that goes into making Valentine’s Day special for many guys. Sometimes they get so hung up on trying to out-do last year that they loose focus on what is important. I was recently told that Michael Buble, the song writer, wrapped a pair of old, dirty sneakers in a box. Around the sneakers he filled the empty space with Hershey’s Kisses. The note inside read; “I will walk a thousand miles for one of your kisses.” Cute, but from my vantage point, girls don’t necessarily care about all of that thought process. They want someone to simply love them. If this were not true, we wouldn’t have so many match-making websites making millions of dollars per year. It’s a huge money making industry. So men, take heed. It’s not necessary to spend the farm on this Valentine’s day. Revisit the first grade memory of construction paper, doilies, paste and crayons. Hand-make your valentine and simply sign it “From Your Valentine” and your girl will know that translation all too well. It will conjure up some more brownie points if you sign it “I love you… and only you”. Here is something fun to do with your Valentine. Ask your Valentine these questions and see how much you really know about them.

• If you could relive one day of your relationship, what day would it be? • Where would you travel if you could go anywhere in the world? • Who is more romantic, you or him? • What is the best relationship advice that you have ever gotten? • Can a couple be too much in love? Why or why not? • What is her favorite song? His? • Where and when was your first kiss? • How did you meet? • Where was your first date? • Guess where your partner would like to go if you could leave right now for a weekend vacation. • Finish this poem: Roses are red, violets are blue…

Cake cutting fees

Recently I did a gig at the Lancaster Science Factory - I helped plan their 2nd Birthday (Anniversary) Party. We were prepared to feed 200+ children and parents with birthday treats. During the planning stages it was suggested that we buy birthday sheet cakes. Because we were limited with volunteers and given the fact that the event was for children I suggested cupcakes. All kids love cupcakes. In addition, we didn't have to fool with cutting and serving... kids could just help themselves. They did and all was wonderful. The display was beautiful, simple and impressive with no fuss. Which is the segue here... when planning an event be sure that you think this process through. Some spaces will charge you to cut the cake - up to $2 per person, sometimes! If you're in love with the venue but not the cake cutting fee... cupcakes are a great alternative. Most cake bakers can make absolutely beautiful cupcakes. You could get mini wedding cakes too. The options are pretty limitless.science-factory.jpg

Got ring - now what?

Courtesy of the Association of Wedding Professionals. "Twas The Bride"

'Twas the night before New Year's And all through the house, The girlfriend was angry She wasn't a spouse!

She hoped for the joy That Christmas would bring. But Christmas had passed, And she still had no ring!

They'd been together For over two years. Long-term commitment- That must be his fear.

She thought, "That's the reason That I'm still single. I'm breaking it off! Then the phone gave a jingle.

"Come outside," said the voice, And then went away. She opened the door, And there was a sleigh!

He wisked her away, Grinned like a fox Got down on one knee And opened the box.

T'was the first day of New Year Her eyes opened wide. "Yesterday, I'm a girlfriend. Today, I'm a bride!"

She started to panic "There's so much to do! To plan a whole wedding. What do I do?"

Reception hall! Caterer! Florist and tux! Save money, save time, And no acid reflux!

Video! DJ! Photo! Limousine & Gown! I won't have to be running All over the town!"

So she called her attendants To the shows they all flew. Ate catering samples And wedding cake, too!

And I heard her exclaim the planning's just begun, "What I need is a Planner So my headache is done!"

At Perfect Settings we are just one call away 717.684.4455!!

2010 will be a great one!

My Wish for all my family and friends in 2010May peace break into your home and may thieves come to steal your debts. May the pockets of your jeans become a magnet for $100 bills. May love stick to your face like Vaseline and may laughter assault your lips! May happiness slap you across the face and may your tears...... be that of joy. May the problems you had, forget your home address!

Hostess Gifts

When I was in the eighth grade my Civics Teacher, Mr. Resh, told us there were some things in life that were mandatory. He would write phrases on the blackboard that has stayed with me all of these years. Things like; Procrastination is the thief of time. Or; What you do today may affect the rest of your life. Or: Know your rights! Deep words for that of a 14 year old. So it was no surprise when he handed out clippings from the Dear Abby columns that were life lessons. The Dear Abby column that I was handed that day had to do with a woman that could not believe the adults that her children became. One of the writer’s daughters had attended a party and received a gift. However, she showed up without a hostess gift and she never wrote a thank you card to the giver. Dear Abby stated (and I’m paraphrasing) “By the time a child is 12 years old they should know that it is proper and common knowledge to send thank you cards and bring along a hostess gift to any party.“ I was 14 and this was news to me. So much so that I never forgot it.With the hustle and bustle of the Season in full swing I want to explore the giving of hostess gifts. I think people don’t bring along a hostess gift not because they didn’t think about it but because they just have no clue of what to bring. As an event coordinator I can tell you that although a bottle of wine feels like a safe gift to give anyone, it isn’t. In my experience, there are lots of people that would consider this gift as a bit presumptuous and inappropriate. If you know the hostess and you know that that person loves a good Merlot by all means do buy the bottle of wine. If, though, you’ve only ever met the hostess once or twice or let’s say the hostess is your spouse’s boss, don’t buy a bottle of good Merlot. You don’t know that person well enough to make an assumption. Give instead a nice poinsettia. A Christmas plant brings a smile on the face of the Grinch himself. Never give a personal gift to an associate or coworker. This includes shirts (of any kind), bottles of perfume, pajamas or socks. A candle with a Christmas scent would be a better match for someone like that. The in-laws are always hard to guess. If you’re going to a family function you are not excused from a hostess gift. In-laws are hostesses too. A poinsettia or a candle would do great as well as a bottle of wine (if you know your in-laws well enough) but you could always bring a party platter of cookies, nuts or chocolates. Know that your hostess is not obligated to share or serve anything that you bring to a party. If you choose to bring a party platter of cheese and nuts don’t ask the hostess to serve it. The hostess is under the stress of entertaining. The last thing they want is for you to put yet another item on their plate – no pun intended. It may not even cross their mind because their mind is on the party itself. If the hostess asks “would it be ok for me to put this out for all of us to enjoy?” of course that’s a nice gesture and your answer should be “sure!” Whatever your gift is put some thought into it so that it makes sense for the person you’re gifting to. Don’t give golf balls to your granny that has never stepped foot onto a green. It will be awkward and you will leave her baffled. No matter what you decide on a hostess gift go into the party with a spirit of giving and sharing. Even the smallest of trinkets are always appreciated when it is given with the warmth of giving that only Christmas can bring. My hostess gift to you is from my favorite Christmas song, sung by Amy Grant :

“…Well heaven surely knows That packages and bows Can never heal A hurting human soul. No more lives torn apart, That wars would never start, And time would heal all hearts. And everyone would have a friend, And right would always win, And love would never end. This is my grown-up Christmas list.”

Blog posts

I never make New Year's resolutions but come January 1st I'll be making one. This year has been crazy busy and I've been inundated with running the reception business. That said I blogged less than 40 posts this year. Pathetic. Sooooo on January 1st I'll be making a resolution to blog. Not just useless information but information that can be looked at in less than 3 minutes and you go away thinking... "Hmmm.... I didn't know that. I'm so glad I stopped by Perfect Settings' blog today!" Short and sweet and to the point. That's what I'll be striving for. Anyone have some topics that they'd like covered?

Handbags

As some of you know, my sister sells handbags. This Sunday she is having a handbag sale at Perfect Settings - just in time to kick off the Holiday Season! Guys, come take a sneak peek for your wife - she'll be surprised you had such good taste... Girls, come in and start that "I bought this for myself as a treat" gift. I've seen the bags.. they are gorgeous!!There will be no pushy sales people and everything will be cash and carry. When: Sunday, November 8th Time: 3 pm At: Perfect Settings Call with questions. Hope to see you there, Daisy

Entertaining tips for the Holidays

perfect-settings-columbia-pa.jpgPeople dread Holiday entertaining mostly because they feel like they can’t host parties with flair. People with flair need not be concerned. The following is information for the rest of us that require Holiday direction. When I started research to write this I thought “No wonder people despise hosting parties the plethora of information is overwhelming!” However, it doesn’t have to be. It’s pretty simple if you keep it simple. Consider a holiday get together as dinner for you and your family but at a larger scale. In reality that’s really what it is. According to the Buitoni website, the only site I found that didn’t have information overload, Holiday parties are easy and simple: Serve 4-5 bite-sized dishes. People like to eat while they drink, and some may use this as dinner. Think big flavors – people won’t be eating a whole plate of it, so aim to impress in one or two bites. Serve one or two meat dishes and a vegetarian dish. Buitoni suggests a crudité be served. I disagree. As someone that has events or entertains just about every weekend of the year, crudités are hardly ever eaten. Guests will sample the carrots and celery but that’s about it. If you plan to serve a veggie tray try spicing it up a bit. Buy nice Greek olives, asparagus, stuffed jalapeño peppers or any other veggie. Be sure to sear them on the grill. I promise it will always get eaten. Planning on this going late? Then make one plate of dessert bites (hint: little cookies always work). If you don’t have time to bake cookies don’t let that upset you… Columbia has a wonderful Market House with many different cookie vendors. I’ve tasted every vendor’s cookies that are sold there … I would serve these at the most elaborate of events. Plan your food strategy in advance. Have the cold starters plated in the fridge – just pull off the plastic wrap and set them out. Keep warm ones in the oven on very low heat so all you have to do is plate them and set them out. Periodically check the table and remove any empty or nearly-empty plates. And make sure you have receptacles for olive pits, used toothpicks and shrimp tails. Preplanning your event is the difference between a good event and a fabulous event. The last thing you want is to have guests start arriving to find you with your hair still wet and not a stitch of makeup on. Best of the rest. Remember to have plenty of mixers (tonic water, mineral water, dry vermouth, orange & cranberry juice should suffice), as well as lime and lemon wedges and good olives. Provide some good wine and beer for those that don’t like liquor and some classy non-alcoholic choices for people that don’t like all the above. For equipment, a cocktail shaker and strainer, enough glassware plus at least one corkscrew and bottle opener and a small knife. Consider serving one special drink for the evening. Margaritas? Mojitos? Sidecars? You decide. A good host is a safe host. Always, encourage guests to drink responsibly. Remember, your job as host is to make sure everyone has a good time, and to make sure everyone gets home safely. Have phone numbers for taxi services handy, and don’t be afraid to take the keys of someone who’s had too many. It should go without saying but a good host is also a sober host. A host should be ready to party at least ½ hour before any of the guests are expected to arrive. Expect the unexpected. Sometimes a great party is an impromptu party. Having nice serving trays, store-bought raw cookies, olives (that you can toss in garlic and olive oil), cheese, table water crackers, pepperoni, chicken wings, ice and plenty of drinks on hand will get you out of any party pinch. You can prepare any of the above and be ready to mingle with your guests in a matter of 15 minutes. No party needs to be complicated. Be sure to rearrange furniture so that guests can move freely without knocking over items. With a little organization you can confidently say “Bring on the Holiday Parties!”

5 ways to stay merry this season.

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This week I saw my first Christmas commercial on TV. Two things happened to me… first I was surprised, then I was depressed. It’s officially 2 months until Christmas. Let’s forget the fact that Halloween and Thanksgiving are celebrated before the big holiday… in the grand scheme of the advertisers, they don’t count. This means that the count down is starting. It’s time to bring on the fliers, Christmas carols, 50% off savings, lack of parking, gift lists, “mommy can I haves” and parties. You and I can remember the last few days before Christmas last year when we vowed that Christmas would no longer sneak up on us. We were going to get a head start next year. Vowed, remember? So instead of letting the hustle and bustle of Christmas overwhelm us all, let’s start planning now. I know that sounds simplistic but simplifying helps during the Holidays.

1. Prioritize. Prioritizing is always #1 and holds true with all of these tips. I often tell my clients; don’t sacrifice, prioritize! If you normally send out 50 Christmas cards and that task always overwhelms you, go through your list and prioritize. Does that co-worker from two jobs ago really stay in touch with you? Is he going to miss that one Christmas card from you this year? Probably not.

2. Make your gift lists and set a budget. When you make that list of people you like gifting to, set a dollar limit to each recipient. Even if you go over just a little you’ll feel better by knowing that when you’re shopping you have a set budget per person.

3. Start saving. You can do this in a multitude of ways. Force yourself to put $20 away per week in an envelope. Cut out going out for lunch for October and November and put that lunch money aside. Skip happy hour a couple of times. You’ll be surprised how quickly and how much you will accumulate over a few week’s time. However you do it just be sure to save.

4. Shop early. I know that when you shop early you always have that nagging thought in the back of your mind; “if I wait until closer to Christmas, this will go on sale!” Truth be told, it may… but it also may not. You may realize all too late that your item is the hot item of the season. Do you want to take that chance? Plus if you wait until December to buy it you’ll have to contend with the crowds. This elevates your overwhelm scale. If you see it, buy it and save your receipt. If it goes on sale you can take your receipt back to the store and most stores will honor the sale price and refund your overage.

5. Breathe! We go back to #1… being overwhelmed is not the reason for the season. Is it really necessary to be that overwhelmed? Take care of yourself and your blood pressure. Remember there are only 4 Saturdays in December. If you can’t attend every Holiday Party that you’ve been invited to, graciously decline. The host will appreciate the RSVP and will understand. If not and the host begins to badger you by saying “just stop in for a few minutes” and you know that you have volunteered to bring in a full Christmas breakfast to Church the next day, it truly is ok to just say no, you can’t do it. You’ll be happy that you did.

In the end remember, the Holidays are a time to be surrounded by friends that you love, family that you cherish and memories that you will be making. You won’t remember in ten years that you forgot to make the homemade eggnog for your Christmas gathering. Enjoy your company and be joyful for another year of celebrating.

Vineyard Hopping

Last month we went vineyard hopping down the east coast. I'm not an avid photographer, as a matter of fact I normally forget to take pictures. We are mostly interested in the process of making wine then we are in drinking it... well, I AM... Tony may differ on that one. At any rate, I'm not sure what the allure of vineyards is but being among wine is so romantic. The vineyards, the bistros in the vineyards, the manufacturing of it and finally the wine tastings... it's all an awesome experience. No wonder many brides choose to honeymoon along the vineyards. It's a beautiful place to be not to mention after drinking a few it's also a happy place to be.

vacation-collage_0.jpg vacation-collage_1.jpg vacation-collage_2.jpg vacation-collage_3.jpg vacation-collage_4.jpg vacation-collage_5.jpg Along the way we stopped and visited friends and family. The pictures are mixed up so that's the answer to that question. Notice, I took more pictures of the dogs then of our beloveds - that's not to say we didn't have a spectacular time with everyone.

The social media bug.

I can verify... the social media bug has not bitten me. As a matter of pure fact, I can not - for the life of me - figure out how business owners keep up with all of these posts. Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin and blogs. Truly way too much work for this business owner. I update my blog and people ask me where I've been on Twitter. I update my twitter and people ask why I've abandoned Facebook.... and so the story goes... I digress... you win... I can't keep up! Even with my crackberry, I just can't keep everything fresh and try to run a profitable business. I'm not sure how everyone else is doing it but I can tell you from this little corner office, it's not going to happen from me. If I really want to know that you're headed to Park City, I'll ask. If you have an announcement for an upcoming event, I'll wait until I see you at the very many networking meetings that all business owners are expected to attend - you can tell me then.So, if you've wondered where I've been... I've been here tweeting, facebooking, linkedining and trying to update my blog. But if you really do need me...for crying out loud, try the old fashioned telephone. Remember that thing?