Jackie was one of the three girls that joined us on our big wedding weekend up in Ojai. Since we had to be there for three days (the rehearsal dinner, the wedding, and the day after brunch), we decided to rent a place in the area. After long hours at each of these events, we’d come back to the house and crash, literally just enough hours to regain our energy for the next round of activities. Jackie was always up and ready to go and always with good spirit! Thanks for being with us Jackie! {nira}
How did you learn about Interning or Assisting for Amber Events?
I learned about the opportunity to intern/assist for Amber Events through Neusha Tabrizi, president of the club ASEP (Association of Student Event Planners), at Cal Poly Pomona. Amber was the guest speaker of an ASEP general meeting, while months later, Neusha emailed club members to inform us of this internship and assistant position. Naturally, I was extremely interested, excited, and eager to go for this opportunity!
Tell us about yourself and how it relates to the wedding industry.
I love to refer to those psychology personality tests to describe myself – after all, the results are pretty spot on! I’m more of an extrovert most of the time, as I love being social, learning about others, and being outgoing! On the other hand, I also have my moments of being introverted – greatly appreciating time to myself and being alone. Through this experience, I learned that taking on the role of wedding “engineer” requires a great amount of communication and interpersonal skills. However, it’s also crucial to take time aside to organize yourself and constantly relax and reflect! Every bride and groom is different – culture, preference, style, personality – and that’s really all I’d love to learn about and work with! Creating the magic to ensure that these
special moments are everlasting and unforgettable is what it’s all about! On top of that, I’m extremely organized and I have a slight disorder of being obsessively compulsive (most of the time it works out for me!) I’d like to believe I have a great balance of personal characteristics that could make me a successful wedding “engineer” – I’m thrilled to learn more about the year long process and relationship!
What tasks did you complete for this wedding?
– Rehearsal Dinner Decor – stage backdrop, vintage fabric banners.
– Repackaging (of course everything must look pretty and personalized!)
– Transportation of guests (from resort to rehearsal dinner location) – assisting trolley drivers with accurate directions, interacting with guests.
– Transitioning guests – from socializing, to listening, to dinner, etc.,
– “Striking” – tear down and clean up of the venue, ensuring all items are accounted for.
– Execution of proper seating arrangements – #of chairs per table, escort cards, placement cards, table numbers.
– Cocktail Hour and Banquet/Reception Set Up – communicating with vendors (tables/chairs, banquet captains, servers, lighting, sound and stage, musicians, florists)
– Observing execution of Ceremony – guest table, dispersing programs, encouraging guests to be seated on time, cue violinist, line up.
– Double Checking Cocktail Hour and Reception Set Up – attention to detail – lighting and floral arrangements make a huge visual impact, handling late vendors (accordion player for cocktail hour.)
– Transitioning guests from cocktail hour to reception seating – escort cards, informing guests of location of tables/seats, timely manner, being reception on time.
– Making sure everything runs smoothly such as the Collection of Treasure Chest Items, Personal Items, Strike – clean up/tear down, account for all items.
What surprised you?
Trolley drivers did not have accurate directions from resort to rehearsal dinner.
The difference lighting and floral arrangements have. Figuring things out as you go – have good judgement and intuition.
What is your favorite part of this wedding?
Watching the Jewish ceremonies, observing guests having fun at the reception and really enjoying the gorgeous environment to celebrate two families coming together. -I must say I absolutely adored the “Sweets” table at the rehearsal dinner as well as the Trolleys. Another favorite visual were the vintage shutters used to display the escort cards that resembled lace.
What shoes did you wear?
Brown boots for Friday and black one inch pumps (with comfortable insoles and non slip soles) for Saturday. BUT I’ve come to accept that regardless of what shoes you wear, your feet will always hurt from running around all day!
The uniform for the Amber Events staff is a black button down shirt and slacks. What did you do to Jazz up your look?
When Amber said her accent color was red, I immediately thought, red nails! Different from the usual neutral colors I prefer, the ladies at the nail salon told me the red was bold! Furthermore, I added a red flower in my up-do and we all wore red hankies for the rehearsal dinner in the big red barn.
What is your favorite wedding scene from a movie?
The first movie that came to ming is one of my favorites – In Her Shoes. The fun, simple, casual, yet elegant wedding at a Jamaican fusion restaurant at the end of the movie was adorable and definitely one of my favorite scenes.
Do you have any words for anyone wanting to join the wedding industry?
Just like anything else in life, it’s what you make it! Having a positive attitude and an open mind to observe, understand others to do your best, is one of the most helpful things you can do to get the most out of a learning experience.
Final Comments:
Both Amber and Nira, are great people to learn from! I definitely admire their leadership and characteristics. I’m excited to continue learning from and working with such great mentors while I’m still in school at Cal Poly Pomona to earn my degree in Hospitality Management with an emphasis in Special Events.
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