Review of Tips to Organizing a Successful Social Event: 50 Plus One (Paperback)

I was in charge of planning a large (100+ guests) event for my parents' 50th anniversary, and I was a nervous wreck. This book gave me all kinds of tips that saved me money, helped me choose the right entertainment and venue, and made me look good. I got all kinds of compliments on what a great job I did with the party, and everything mentioned, from the table settings to the music, were ideas I got from this book. I'd definitely recommend it!

Product Description
Work, family, sports, hobbies, volunteering, children and aging parents all demand our time and attention. That does not mean that your social life has to suffer, does it? Of course not and Heather Hutchins is just the person to help you put socializing back into an event. 50 plus one Tips to Organizing a Successful Social Event is the perfect book you need to pull off a great party; toast a colleague into retirement; entertain the boss and spouse; and even host a grand graduation party or anniversary celebration. Even if you are not a social butterfly, you can learn what to serve, how to make the party unique and how to manage all the details and still enjoy yourself. No more sweating the small stuff-everything you need is all right here.

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Review of Working Woman'S Wedding Planner 3Rd Edition (Paperback)

You need a planner and it might as well be this one. It includes every possible form and list you will ever need for your wedding. If you're having trouble putting it all together, this will help you organize.

That said, it's a good planner but don't look to it for guidance as far as the details of your wedding are concerned. You will need something else (bridal magazine, etc) to help you locate a site, interview possibilities, and compare prices. This book literally will give you a place to organize after you have selected all the components of your wedding. It only helps you plan and organize what you have already chosen.

In addition to the forms and lists, there are chapters written by the author. Tatsui-D'Arcy simply glazes over different parts of your wedding presenting the traditional stance and a few modern variations. Unfortunately there isn't a lot of room to write notes outside of the forms and lists themselves.

The author does include some useful information as it relates to how those with blended families could write their invitations and how an engagement announcement can be written.

Product Description
The Working Woman's Wedding Planner offers brides-to-be time-maximizing tips, expert advice, and ready-to-fill-in charts and checklists covering every detail from invitations and vows to reception and honeymoon.

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Review of For the Bride (Hardcover)

This is a great book with lots of advice, BUT purchase it early on in your wedding plannning stages.There are not a lot of photos and the few photos in the book are black and white.Don't expect to get a lot of ideas withpictures, but do get this book for exceptional advice and rules of thumb onhow to plan an elegant and stylish wedding. He covers all the right areaswith rules and opinions for the bride of 2000!

Product Description
From celebrity stylemaker and wedding guru Colin Cowie comes the ultimate style guide for the modern bride. Like its companion volume, For the Groom, For the Bride offers expert guidance on everything from creating an unforgettable wedding to making a graceful transition to life as a newlywed.

Colin begins by walking you through the planning, ordering, and arranging necessary for a memorable wedding that everyone will enjoy. He covers all the details from flowers to dresses, registry to reception, with tips on how to tactfully negotiate the guest list and how to make your wedding a personal expression of your identity as a couple.

Colin goes on to demonstrate how to let the momentum of your wonderful wedding celebration set the tone for your upcoming life together. Your wedding can and should be a springboard for a lifetime of welcoming family into your home and entertaining friends with charm and verve.

Of course, marriage is more than just a succession of parties. Which is why Colin has also devoted attention to the practical marital arts: how to communicate, merge your finances, settle disagreements, and keep the romantic spark alive. With its gorgeous black and white photos, timeless advice, and elegance of tone, Colin Cowie's For the Bride is as indispensable as it is beautiful, and a natural engagement gift for any woman.




From the Inside Flap
From celebrity stylemaker and wedding guru Colin Cowie comes the ultimate style guide for the modern bride. Like its companion volume, For the Groom, For the Bride offers expert guidance on everything from creating an unforgettable wedding to making a graceful transition to life as a newlywed.

Colin begins by walking you through the planning, ordering, and arranging necessary for a memorable wedding that everyone will enjoy. He covers all the details from flowers to dresses, registry to reception, with tips on how to tactfully negotiate the guest list and how to make your wedding a personal expression of your identity as a couple.

Colin goes on to demonstrate how to let the momentum of your wonderful wedding celebration set the tone for your upcoming life together. Your wedding can and should be a springboard for a lifetime of welcoming family into your home and entertaining friends with charm and verve.

Of course, marriage is more than just a succession of parties. Which is why Colin has also devoted attention to the practical marital arts: how to communicate, merge your finances, settle disagreements, and keep the romantic spark alive. With its gorgeous black and white photos, timeless advice, and elegance of tone, Colin Cowie's For the Bride is as indispensable as it is beautiful, and a natural engagement gift for any woman.

In FOR THE BRIDE, Colin walks future brides through the planning, ordering, and arranging necessary for a memorable wedding that everyone will enjoy, covering all the details from engagement to reception. From flowers to dresses, from selecting items for the bridal registry to negotiating the guest list and seating chart, Colin's got it covered.

FOR THE GROOM, written with Colin's trademark charm and practicality, guides husbands-to-be through it all, from how to propose to what to buy for the first anniversary gift. With all the answers the bride wishes the groom already knew: how to assess the quality of a diamond, how to host a rehearsal dinner, how to win over her parents, and much more, FOR THE GROOM is a natural engagement gift for any and every guy soon to be married.

Illustrated with photographs from weddings Colin has planned and written with a warm, engaging tone, FOR THE BRIDE and FOR THE GROOM offer practical advice and romantic, inspired suggestions to create both a memorable wedding day and a graceful, stylish start to married life. -->

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Review of Great Parties: The Best of Martha Stewart Living (Paperback)

Now I know that we can't all go to Texas to have an authentic Tex-Mex fiesta, but the ideas are great none the less. Who care's if no one comes dressed the part? This book is all about themes. Themes that you can manipulate and call your own. Each party is beautifully photographed and the recipes are delicious. They even offer her infamous "Good Things" as a sidebar for many of the parties. Don't let the perfection overwhelm you. This book delievers.

Product Description
An inspiring source of ideas for creating a variety of celebrations, from fun and festive to elegant and refined, Great Parties features fully illustrated, step-by-step instructions to help readers throw a party that is as special as it is memorable. Full-color photos.

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Review of Essential Manners for Couples: From Snoring and Sex to Finances and Fighting Fair-What Works, What Doesn't, and Why (Hardcover)

What's the etiquette for sex, dividing the chores, snoring, where to go for the holidays, sleeping on the couch, getting along with the spouse's friends?
The author reminds us that actions, appearance and words greatly affect our relationships.The recommendations he makes may seem at times to be obvious, but too often couples forget to base their own actions on "consideration, respect and honesty."He lists "Etiquette Imperatives" that cover the not-to-be-ignored basics for couples.
Peter Post is the great-grandson of Emily Post and he wrote Essential Manners for Men plus monthly etiquette columns.
The reviews have been quite favorable:
*"Thorough...straightforward....Resolving those hot-button issues...may well prevent a public flame-out."(New York Times)
*"stresses handholding and communication." (Atlanta Journal Constitution)
*"Most of us could stand to be reminded once in a while to be nice to each other."(Chicago Sun-Times)



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Review of Diane Warner's Big Book of Parties: Creative Party Planning for Every Occasion (Paperback)

This is the most creative, realistic, inspiring party planning book I have seen! It covers all sorts of parties from Baby showers to retirement banquets and everything in between.

Part 1 of the book covers party planning basics - the where, when, how and why as well as brief chapters on children's and adult party games.

Part 2 covers the holidays - practically every holiday you would want to celebrate. New Years, Christmas, and Halloween are of course included, but so are Chinese New Year, May Day, Mother's Day, Cinco de Mayo, Labor Day, and Kwanzaa.

Part 3 includes life event parties like baby showers, engagement parties, family reunions, housewarming, wedding, andfarewell.

Parts 4, 5 & 6 cover birthday parties; children's teens, and adults.

Parts 7, 8 and 9 are may favorite! These are the chapters that pull this book apart from all other party planning books - creative and well-thought-out plans for those of us who love to bring our friends together not just when we have to, but because we WANT to. These are parties just for the sake of fun - food themed parties like wine-tasting and progressive dinners; creative parties like scavenger hunts and mystery nights.

Part 10 covers business functions and Ms. Warner actually makes them sound not horrible.

Part 11 includes menus and recipes.

Part 12 is the organizational chapter with check lists and budgets.

If you love to entertain or if you have to throw a party and have no idea where to begin this book is for you.

Product Description
Diane Warner's Big Book of Parties is the most complete party book ever published...and the most helpful.Whether you're throwing a child's birthday party or a 50th anniversary gala, Diane Warner tells you everything you need to know to make the party special, unique, and perfectly appropriate to the occasion.Diane Warner's Big Book of Parties covers everything from when to send out the invitations to making a list of guest, planning a menu, creating a theme, and much more.There are literally hundreds of ideas in this book for every kind of party you could imagine.And besides giving you great ideas, Diane Warner gives you step-by-step instructions, shopping lists, timelines, menus, and activities: Everything you need to make the party fun and hassle-free.Diane Warner believes that in addition to knowing the mechanics of hosting a successful party, you also need to have a heart for your guests, making the guests-and especially the guest of honor-feel very special.She talks about today's trends in party giving, and in a section called "Party Planning 101," she covers all the general elements that should be considered for every party: etiquette, venues, invitations, creating the right ambience, entertainment, and much more.

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Review of The Rituals of Dinner (Paperback)

Margaret Visser's advice has been quoted on Sage Asian Advice on Soup Etiquette, and the advice looks to me entirely misleading.It reads: "A Chinese banquet often begins with fruit and ends with soup."Being a Chinese myself and have attended numerous banquets, I have never seen fruit being served at the beginning and soup at the end.It will help if Ms. Visser can clarify what kind of banquet she had actually observed or attended.The regular way is soup being served close to the beginning after the cold and hot appetizers, and fruit is served at the very end together with dessert.



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