Johanna & Doug
Reception
Henry Ford Estate, Dearborn
Background
The bride and groom were married in the Caribbean
and the groom's parents wanted to host a local reception to celebrate with
their friends and family who weren't able to attend. The bride was adamant
that she didn't want the Michigan reception to mimic the actual wedding, so we
set out to design a unique, fun party atmosphere for their guests.
The bride and groom are both chocolate lovers – he prefers white chocolate while she prefers dark – so we decided to create the theme Chocolat for the event. We incorporated chocolate brown and white, with pink accents, into everything – the invitations, linens, flowers, favors, even the wish tree which replaced a traditional guest book.
Guests were delighted with little treats throughout the evening, beginning with their arrival. Tiny boxes of Mackinac Island fudge were wrapped in custom paper bearing the bride and groom's names and served as place cards. When they were seated for dinner, guests were greeted with chocolate silk-screened menus at each place setting.
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
The highlight of the reception was the dessert room, which was unveiled after the cake cutting. Rumors had already begun to circulate among the guests about the chocolate extravaganza that awaited them…and no one was disappointed. A lavish sweets table served as the centerpiece of the room. In addition, guests wandered from station to station to sample the chocolate fountain, sundae bar and cappuccino cart. More goodies were laid out along a side table – chocolate fondue sets for each couple and jars of Sanders Hot Fudge sauce for each guest.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
During dinner, the place card table was transformed to send guests home in style. Custom CDs were compiled with significant songs from the bride and groom's relationship, and brown glassine bags were on hand to help guests carry home all of their treats. One final surprise was offered on the way out...individual packets of Ghirardelli hot chocolate.
