She Says: Bon Voyage to Emil and Emily

Last Saturday we hosted the Bon Voyage party for Emil and Emily, winners of the VIBE 98.5 Dream Destination Wedding to Jamaica. 

 

The couple chose a white party theme, so all the guests arrived dressed in white, and we transformed the interior of the V Ultra Lounge in Calgary into a beach-themed party.   

The couple's family and friends enjoyed a private party at first and then we opened up the area later on to a party with all of V. 

It truly was a Bon Voyage party, as the couple left the next day for their dream wedding in Jamaica.

Special thanks to all of the vendors who helped us pull off this great party: V Ultra Lounge, Great Event Rentals, Glimpz Invitations and Perry Thompson Photography.

More pictures below!

    

  

 

She Recommends: Stop Your Toxic Lifestyle

Join JJ live this Saturday when she shares more of her success tips on her F*R*E*E Teleclass. Learn how Michele lost 7 pounds in 21 days with ZERO effort by adding this food group to her diet, how Becky lost 13 pounds in 21 days and saved two hours a day by changing her exercise routine and how Miriam cut out foods that were causing her to hold onto false fat and lost 8 pounds in 21 days. JJ will share these simple changes that you can make right away to help you lose weight, look great and feel more self-confident than ever!

Feel free to pass this on to a friend but save your spot first by clicking here

He Recommends: Custom Tailored Suits At Great Prices

It’s time to suit up fellas, whether you’re doing the black tie, a casual suit or a really casual suit for that beach wedding you MUST look your best. Rentals are great and you can accessorize them to make them more “you”. But she gets a new dress, you deserve a new suit. Buying off the rack usually guarantees you’ll get a pretty ill fitting suit, unless you take it to a tailor. What if you could get a custom made suit, just for you and not pay an arm and a leg for it. I found a great web site that offers just that, and they ship worldwide FOR FREE and guarantees your suit fits like a glove or they will fix it for free. They have a ton of great styles and the prices are GREAT! Their suits will have you covered no matter what style wedding you’re having.

Click here to start shopping!

She Says: Celeb Secrets to Help You Lose Weight, Get Fit & Look Fabulous Super Fast

By JJ Virgin, Celebrity Nutrition & Fitness Expert

Are you noticing that your wedding day is coming at you faster than you planned? You promised to start that weight loss program but somehow you never quite got around to it what with deadlines, fittings and major decisions being made on a near daily basis! If you are starting to feel mild panic, take a deep breath...and then be sure to read every word below and take action immediately! And stop stressing out, these are the same tried and true tactics that I have used to get Hollywood celebs ready for the red carpet and they will work for you too!

Shake it up!

Replace one meal a day with a high quality protein shake. Look for a whey or pea-rice-hemp blend that is made with stevia or xylitol as the sweetener. The shake mix should contain mainly protein and you will want to get 25-30 grams of protein in your shake. Add a cup of frozen berries, 1-2 tbsp of freshly ground flaxseed meal, water and ice to desired thickness and enjoy. This is a great way to start the day, especially if you are prone to skipping breakfast which sends your metabolism into the dumps, so stop skipping and start shaking.

Burst to Blast Fat!

No time to exercise? Hate going to the gym? No problem! Burst training is perfect for you and it helps boost your metabolism and blast the fat off. Simply pick your favorite full body exercise- cycling, jogging, jump roping, stair climbing, skating, etc. and do it like this instead: after warming up, go all out for 1 minute, then recover for 2 minutes, then repeat to accumulate 4 total minutes of all out bursting. When I say all out, I mean it. You shouldn’t be able to go 61 seconds, if you can, up the intensity. An easy way to do this type of training at home is to sprint down your street and then walk for 2 minutes to recover and repeat. And by the way, it should never get easy, you just keep making the bursts harder so that you can only ever last 30-60 seconds at a bout. Do these bursts on alternating days three days a week.

Up your fiber!

More fiber = slower stomach emptying = less hunger. I advise people to stop the snacking and eat every 4-6 hours instead so that their bodies are forced to burn off stored body fat for fuel and fiber is my secret weapon for keeping appetite at bay in between meals. My favorite fiber sources are non starchy veggies, berries & apples, nuts and seeds, legumes and oatmeal. Be sure to eat at least 2 cups of non starchy veggies(the more the better) at each meal and then 1 serving of a fruit or high fiber carbohydrate and you will easily be able to get your daily fiber intake up to 30 grams or more per day(and 50 is ideal). Get the majority of your fiber from your non starchy veggies and limit the fruit and high fiber starchy carbs (whole grains, legumes, root veggies, fruit) to 1 serving max per meal.

And here’s a bonus one that I couldn’t leave out and I can’t emphasize enough, in fact if I could just make one change in all of my clients that would have the biggest impact long term on their weight, health and life it would be:

Sleep!

This is for more than just beauty, in fact the University of Chicago reported in their sleep research that despite following a healthy diet and exercise program, failure to get the recommended 8 hours of sleep per night put subjects at risk for obesity. If you are stealing from sleep right now to get more done, you are undermining yourself. When you are under stress(which by itself can make you gain weight, look and feel older and lose your sex drive-not coveted qualities in a bride) you need more sleep not less so be sure you are getting your 8-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep during the normal circadian rhythm each night.

JJ Virgin PhD, CNS is a celebrity nutrition and fitness expert, author, public speaker and media personality. She is the president of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals and internationally recognized as the expert in overcoming weight loss resistance.

If you are frustrated with your body and feel like nothing you are doing is working, get on her F*R*E*E* call this Saturday to learn how you can get wedding ready by clicking here

He Says: 3 Reasons Décor Is Important

Some of my grooms come to me complaining...”Simon”, they say...”Simon...my fiancé wants all this décor in the room and she keeps talking about atmosphere and what not, all I want is for people to have a good time and I don’t care about all this décor stuff!” To which I say, “Dude, the décor in a room directly translates to the enjoyment people have.” Then I have them describe their favorite bar...and guess what? Yup, they tell me all about the stuff on the walls, the booths and the way the lights shine on the bar and glint off the lovely bottles of fun time juice. Guess what fellas, that’d be décor! Décor plays a huge part in how people feel in a space.

A Whole New World

The right décor can take a space, a normal boring space and turn it into a whole new world for your guests. Take a basic hall, laminate floor, cinder block walls, you know what I mean. Now add some pipe and drape to the walls, a tented ceiling, some cool lighting, low couches and big pillows and you have an Arabian tent. Like I said...a whole new world. Just because your original space is uninspiring, doesn’t mean it has to stay that way. Just a word of caution, if you’re gonna go for a tented ceiling, get an expert because those things are a pain in the ass if you don’t know what you’re doing.

So She Says It’s All About Atmosphere?

You just want your guests to have a good time, you’ve already taken care of the food and the music but your fiancé is still going on and on about the décor and how the room will look. Truth be told, décor makes up a lot of the atmosphere and directly relates to how good a time your guests will have. Sure if the music is kick ass and the booze is flowing they’ll have a good time, but think of this. What if you went to your pub and all the décor was gone? Everything else was the same but there was no atmosphere, would it still be the same? The simple answer is no, no it wouldn’t be. Think of the gasps, the "oh my God how good does this room look" comments you’d be missing out on. You want your guests to compare all other weddings they go to, to YOURS! You want them talking about your wedding for years to come, and décor has a HUGE part in that.

A Little Bit Of Both Of You

I always strive to have the wedding day feel like both the bride and groom have had a hand in planning the look and feel of the wedding. I insist my guys sit in on as many meetings as possible and that they DO NOT miss the décor meeting we offer. This way they can have their say. It may be a simple request, some of my guys can be pretty chill on the whole thing, but others really want to get involved, I LOVE THESE GUYS! The wedding should reflect BOTH the couples’ personalities, so the guests really get a feel of who they are. You don’t want to walk into a room full of frilly pink crap do you? Well, if you don’t take part in the choosing of the décor this very well may happen to you, and we don’t want that.

Simon’s Gutsy Groom Advice

The décor will create what is essentially the backbone of the atmosphere and feel of the wedding so you both should be involved. It will give that WOW factor as your guests enter your reception and will have them talking for years to come. And yes, no matter how good the food and music is, it will take all that to the next level.

Get involved with the décor, it’s fun...seriously it is fun! Make sure you have your opinion heard and don’t let someone else design your wedding for you. Work with them as much as you can, even if you think your idea is really out there, get it on the table, your fiancé may love it.

Sadly décor can get overlooked in the planning process or cut back due to budget. Always include a healthy chunk of cash for your décor, it’s like buying an amazing house and then getting your faucets and light fixtures from Wal Mart, or restoring a vintage car, but not having enough cash to put the right tires on it, it’s heartbreaking.

Click here to book a décor meeting and get started on your one of a kind wedding, if you’re still not convinced...think about the frilly pink room. Think about it....