What The Bride & Groom Did Right

Hi, this is the first post wherein much like a movie critic I will share the highlights of my clients wedding receptions. I will share simply cool ideas, tips and so forth of their Michigan Wedding reception to help you come up with some ideas as well. Many of these will be very short posts AND I will not give away their names nor event dates. They will not be in any particular order either.

Location – Lovett Hall
Bride – She was beautiful and her makeup matched her eye coloring and even her flowers.
Bridesmaids – She had them all wear black and they reminded me of the Robert Palmer Girls. They looked great.
Facility – well it’s Lovett Hall. It’s very unique and it’s at many levels breathtaking. Ceilings are every bit of 30 feet high.
Different – she had a male as a bridesmaid. It actually worked out fine. Why not? It was her friend and he had no issues with it. I thought it was clear and fresh thinking actually.
Timing – She let me run the show as far as events and timing as she respected my dj experience. So… it was all perfect. One thing that worked out in her favor was that she had a fairly long cocktail hour which was more like 90 minutes. This was good because it shrunk the dancefloor window to about 2.5 hours. Compare this to most Michigan Weddings at 3.5 hours. This is a good thing because then the music played is more likely to be a hit as I don’t have to reach as deep to satisfy so many tastes for another hour. Again, Michigan DJ’s play longer than anywhere else in the country because our receptions are 6 hours. Timing is huge. Let your pro dj talk with you about the details of your day. He or she will have a far better handle on it than most wedding coordinators too. Our world is different than theirs. We understand and see things other pros can’t. We actually walk the walk, we’ve been in these shoes a while.
Party Favors – Crystal Wine Bottle Stoppers – they were pretty and boxed real nice. Maybe not a fit for everyone but then what is? I figure at least it is something people will use and remember them by.
Music – she actually was pretty insistent on 80’s and motown. So, I played 80’s and motown and the floor was jammed all night. It was a great event. She told me to limit the current top 40 hip hop stuff and stick to more classic music. Ahhh… it was a nice change of pace as it had “everyone” young and old involved all night. People stayed longer.
Food – Filet and Chicken – it was excellent and the servings were perfect size. Lovett hall has great food so there was little left over on the plates. Also, the salad was really good and colorful.
Cocktail hour was done outside – i dropped a remote speaker and they were good to go. Lovett Hall and the Henry Ford Properties in general have beautiful scenery for receptions and ceremonies in Michigan so it’s hard to go wrong with any of their locations including; The Eagle Tavern, Lovett Hall, Henry Ford Museum and the Dearborn Inn


Dearborn Inn Marriott Michigan Wedding Ceremony & Reception Video Tour

The Dearborn Inn is located very close to the Henry Ford/Greenfield Village “campus”. I’ve been servicing Michigan brides here for years as a wedding dj and have a lot of experience at this Marriott Facility because they personally refer my dj services to their clients.  The paragraph to follow is taken from their website and then I have some comments below and of course a virtual video tour of what the guests will see when attending your Dearborn Inn Wedding Reception.

The Dearborn Inn, A Marriott Hotel, offers an ideal locale near downtown Detroit and the Detroit Metropolitan Airport. Built in 1931 on the grounds of Ford Motor Company, this suburban Detroit luxury hotel, situated on 23 acres, has just completed a multi-million dollar renovation. This Dearborn hotel is close to major corporations and cultural sites such as The Henry Ford. In a setting reminiscent of an American inn, this Dearborn MI hotel features the service and amenities expected of Marriott, along with a unique array of accommodations including the Main Inn, 2 Colonial lodges and 5 Colonial guest homes. An on-site fitness center, outdoor swimming pool and several nearby golf courses offer ample leisure activity. The Early American Room raises the bar for Detroit area fine dining, while two lounges serve classic American cuisine. And with more than 17,000 sq ft of flexible event space, this historic Dearborn Michigan hotel hosts social affairs, intimate weddings or large business events with ease.

The Map to the Dearborn Inn is Here
They can be reached:
20301 Oakwood Blvd
Dearborn, MI 48124

Get Directions
(313) 271-2700

Tripadvisor has many reviews on the Dearborn Inn as a hotel but please remember I am rating from the perspective of a wedding dj, not someone sleeping overnight.

The grounds and drive up are absolutely beautiful. The building itself is in great condition and the brickwork and landscape are of showcase quality. The inside has always seemed in extremely good shape as well.  The bathrooms are clean, the common areas are beautiful and the ballrooms themselves always seem to look excellent.

The food has always been good and the staff I’ve found to be exceptionally nice. With very little hotel and banquet staff turnover it is a good sign that someone is doing something right because I’ve seen the same faces there for years.

One thing I’ve always thought was neat was that the wedding party and the bride and groom can actually stay in the historic homes on site less than 100 yards from the ballroom doors or of course opt to stay in the hotel itself. WIthin 5 minutes of the Dearborn Inn there are also several famous museums and historic sites as well.

Danceability – I’ve typically had great receptions here. The dynamics are such that it’s a great place rain or shine for a wedding and a wedding reception.

Check out my youtube video below of the Dearborn Inn. (AND one i just updated down at page bottom from a summer 2012 visit to the Alexandria Ballroom – the bride really did an outsanding job decorating her Michigan Wedding Reception – it was supremely elegant)

NOTE: this was a real young couple getting married. The bride was 19 and the groom 21 off to Iraq.

 

Updated Summer 2012 Video of the Alexandria Ballroom at the Dearborn Inn in Dearborn, MI. This bride did an amazing job making an already elegant room look breathtaking. She matched the regal feel of the hotel’s architecture with her table linens and colors. I can’t believe I am saying this. Yes, I’m married with a child, I don’t have a cat and I only watch HGTV if my wife has control of the remote.