Bridal Premier Showcase at Westlake Hyatt August 8, 2010
Posted by Jason | Filed under Announcement
Elegant Event Entertainment will be showcasing our Wedding DJ Services at the Bridal Show in the Westlake Hyatt in Thousand Oaks On Sunday August 8, 2010. Doors open at 11:00am. The show is produced by Bridal Premier. Click here for more information.
Come on out to the show, you’ll find many of the top companies in the Wedding Industry there. Come by our booth and let us know you saw this Blog and save money on our DJ Services! We hope to see you there and congratulations on your upcoming Wedding! If you can’t make it to the show, don’t worry, give us a call to schedule a free consultation with our highly recommended DJs. We would love to find out more about your event and help you realize your dreams of a fun-filled and perfect Wedding Reception!
Sincerely,
Elegant Event Entertainment Team.
A Wedding at Calamigos Ranch, from the DJs prospective.
Posted by Jason | Filed under L.A. Wedding Reception Venues
So you are or are thinking about having a wedding at Calamigos Ranch in Malibu, California? Well, we’ve been fortunate enough to be the Wedding DJs for at least 40 weddings at this unique and very well known venue located in the mountains of Malibu. Having been the DJ for about half of those events myself, I can tell you with confidence that Calamigos delivers excellence in all of their events. They’ve been in the event production business for a long, long time and they have a pretty well oiled machine there. Granted, there are a lot of events hosted there each and every week, so you won’t really be able to have the venue all to yourself (unless it’s the dead of winter) but this simply shows their popularity, affordability, and excellence in execution as being more than adequate for hundreds of Brides and Grooms in Southern California every year.
I’ve attached a video from a recent wedding where Elegant Event Entertainment were the Wedding DJs for Chris and LaShelle’s wedding, held at Calamigos Ranch in the Main dining room and courtyard, with a cocktail hour reception held behind the building and featuring local Aerial Circus Performers . Don’t judge the quality of our videos too much, we aren’t professional videographers, but we make the videos as a record of our events and they make a nice gift for our clients! Notice the different areas of the property and how unique each one is aesthetically and functionally.
There are at least 4 high quality locations on this enormous property in which a couple can get married, including unique ceremony and reception sites for all types of parties and sizes of guest lists. Although the majority of the events we DJ are held in the Main Building, we are also familiar with the logistics of other locations on this property. The Main Dining facility has a dance hall area which includes a beautiful fireplace for those cozy autumn and winter weddings. There’s also a gorgeous waterfall and lots of mature greenery surrounding the Ceremony Site just outside the main dining area, which makes this site very accommodating, convenient and really beautiful. There’s also a new outdoor bar/lounge area which I have attended an “after party” with my clients and I thought this was one of the coolest features of the property, so be sure to check that out as well if you take a tour of the property.
The food at Calamigos Ranch is always good, and the service is great as well. From the event coordinators to the banquet captains and servers, everyone is friendly and tries to help make your event the most important one of the day! The ranch also makes it pretty easy on your vendors in terms of load in, accommodation, vendor meals, etc. keep in mind though, all vendors must sign a release for the ranch and must have a liability insurance policy of their own.
Congratulations on your upcoming event and good luck with your search for a wedding venue, with Calamigos you might have found the perfect location. You can certainly count on a great wedding or event if you’re hosting it at Calamigos, but keep in mind, great events require great entertainment, so please consider hiring one of our experienced and fun Wedding DJs for your most special day!
Maravilla Gardens Wedding Showcase and Open House
Posted by Jason | Filed under Announcement
On Friday, April 30th, 2010 from 6-9pm, Elegant Event Entertainment will exhibit our Ventura County Wedding DJ Services at the Maravilla Gardens Wedding Showcase. This will be an Open House event, allowing Brides and Grooms to view the beautiful property in an evening setting, to see precisely what their wedding day will look like. Attendees will also have an opportunity to taste the marvelous creations of the exclusive catering company Command Performance Catering. In addition, there will be numerous preferred vendors on hand to answer questions about the services they provide. These Services include Photographers, Cake Bakeries, Florists, and DJ Services provided by Elegant Event Entertainment. 
The venue will be staged with numerous event rentals to give Brides and Grooms great ideas to enhance their guests experience for the wedding. Attendees will have a chance to view table settings and linens, tents and canopies, upgraded lighting, lounge style seating, and much more.
The lush gardens and intimate setting of this gorgeous Ventura County Wedding Venue is located in Camarillo on Santa Rosa Road. The property, which once belonged to the Camarillo Family, later purchased by the Maravilla Family who have owned it since the early 1970’s. Their expertise in Gardening and Landscape design led them to begin hosting weddings at the property in 2003, and now, they accommodate up to 60 Weddings per year.
Maravilla Gardens is yours and yours alone for the day of your wedding, only 1 wedding is allowed per day on the property, which makes this facility unique and sought after in Ventura County. The venue is located just 50 miles from downtown Los Angeles, and you’ll never feel further away from the hustle and bustle of city life. For more information about this facility or if you would like to attend the Open House please contact Command Performance Catering or Maravilla Gardens for an invitation.
If you need DJ Services for your special day at Maravilla or any other wedding venue in Southern California, please feel free to fill out our no obligation contact form. On behalf of all the vendors involved in this showcase, we hope to see you this Friday and we’re looking forward to the opportunity to work with you for your very special day. Best Wishes!
Vendors Attending the Showcase:
Elegant Event Entertainment
A Beautiful Day Productions
Yamaguchi Flowers
Skiff’s Cakes
Pastries by Vreeke
Courtyard by Marriott
Evening Entertainment
Mr. Loki Productions
Rev. Barbara Laughray
Kimberlee Miller Photography
Alex Newman Photography
Photography by Charise
A Rental Connection
Belle of the Ball Designs
LA Photobooth
We’re the DJs for Macy’s Bridal Registry Event at Macy’s Sherman Oaks
Posted by Jason | Filed under Announcement
Thank you, Macy’s and the Knot, for selecting Elegant Event to be the featured Wedding DJs at the Macy’s Westfield Fahion Square in Sherman Oaks for their “Sip and Scan” event!
Macy’s Department Stores and The Knot are sponsoring a great event for Brides and Grooms called Macy’s Sip and Scan featuring fun beverages, hors d’oeuvres, music, and fabulous registry experts to help you create your dream registry.
Elegant Event Entertainment has been chosen as the featured Los Angeles DJ and Entertainment company at the Sip and Scan on April 23, 2010 at the Westfield Fashion Square Mall. If you would like to attend this event you’ll have the opportunity to meet with one of our DJs, dance to the music, and meet numerous vendors in the Macy’s Bridal Registry Department. You’ll meet with our co-founder DJ/MC Jason Jones
These events are well planned and aimed at helping bridal couples with their gift registry and vendor decisions. To RSVP, just call or email Macy’s with the number of people that will be attending, your phone number, and the store location.
Email RSVP: diane.crost@macys
Or: 818-788-8350 x7808
Small Weddings don’t need Wedding DJ’s…Or Do They?
Posted by Jason | Filed under Wedding DJ Advice
It occurred to me that our Wedding DJ’s seem to be working more and more weddings with smaller guest lists these days. It got me to wonder whether there are more small weddings due to economic hardship, or in fact, if the majority of weddings have been smaller all along. Statistics show that most weddings are of a smaller nature which gives me confidence to know that most of our clients understand the importance of hiring a wedding dj no matter the size of their guest list. If your wedding is of a smaller nature don’t be discouraged, some of the most fun weddings can have 75 people or less, I’ve witnessed it, I’ve been a part of those joyous celebrations!
Now, although a smaller guest list does not necessarily mean a smaller budget, it’s fair to say that the majority of smaller weddings are on a stricter budget than those “pull out all the stops” weddings with 300 or 400 guests. Many Brides and Grooms who approach us are very concerned about their budget, especially if they have a smaller wedding. However, even with a smaller budget and guest list, you need some form of Entertainment! The most obvious and affordable choice is a Wedding DJ. I’ve written numerous articles for our Blog on how to hire a DJ, why to hire a DJ, and so on, but I simply wanted to reinforce that you really do need an Experienced Wedding DJ if you expect the party to be fun, to stay on some type of schedule, and to be handled professionally. The great news for you is, you can afford it! Pricing for DJs ranges all over the place, we’ve talked about it in several blog articles such as our Wedding DJ Pricing article and you’ll see it for yourself if you shop enough places on the web and at bridal shows and magazines. If you’ve got 60 guests coming to an evening wedding in a smaller ballroom or even a garden venue or backyard setting, you want those 60 people to have fun don’t you? Many clients with smaller weddings think they should simply keep it “low key” and just use an ipod or home stereo system to play music throughout the reception, or perhaps worse, they have a friend strum the guitar all night. My question is “who will make important and appropriate announcements to keep your guests involved and aware of things that are happening throughout the event?” The answer is usually “uh? We didn’t think of that.” or “my Uncle is public speaker (translation=teacher/sales manager) and he’ll do it.” My answer: “so your Uncle has to work on your wedding day? How many Weddings has your uncle actually ‘worked’? Or “does your friend have to play guitar all night? Does he have a sound system so he can be heard clearly and does he have microphones for your toasts and other announcements?”
I hope you get my point and that you’ll let your relatives and friends enjoy themselves at your wedding and allow a professional to keep the party moving along nicely without feeling rushed or too “produced”. You also should relish the fact that even though our DJs want you to provide us with a lot of your favorite song requests, you won’t have to try to put the songs in a sequence that flows perfectly and entertains from start to finish, that’s the DJs job and he’ll constantly tweak the music set list throughout the night, which is something you or your guests should not be worrying about! Our DJs have many styles, we can keep it very low key, but always professional and fun, so don’t let your “Smaller Wedding” discourage you from allowing it to be a lot of fun. Oh and by the way, “Fun” does not mean “Cheesy”, our DJs certainly know the difference!
So, whether you have “Religious Constraints” that prohibit or limit dancing or certain types of music, or alcohol, (all of which can be “fun inducers” but are not necessary to have a party) or you think you have “No Dancers” on your guest list (which I highly doubt) these weddings still need someone to play music to serve as a nice accompaniment to the event. You don’t need the smoke and mirrors and crazy lights and confetti blasters that many DJ companies try to sell you, but you will want a professional sound system with microphones for toasts and announcements. And although I wouldn’t use the term “no-frills DJ” you might require a more simplistic approach, a DJ who at the very least will manage the flow of the timeline, play great music in sensible rotations, make announcements and keep the guests aware of the schedule and special events throughout the evening. Let the professionals, not your friends and family keep up with all of those details and your event will be executed perfectly!
DJs provide the soundtrack to the most important day in your life and they carry the responsibility of making sure that everything they are in charge of happens without a hitch, which leaves you and your guests to do one thing: enjoy yourselves! No matter the size of your guest list, consider hiring a DJ, you’ll be very surprised at our affordability and you absolutely won’t regret it. Your guests will thank you and they’ll be talking about how much fun they had for years to come!
Photo provided by Cheryl Ogden
“The Madison Restaurant” in Long Beach is perfect for Weddings or any occasion!
Posted by Jason | Filed under L.A. Wedding Reception Venues
Located on Pine Street in Long Beach, California is a diamond in the rough, a restaurant that harkens back to a time in American history when partying in ‘high-society’ style was a standard. The Madison Restaurant says “The Jazz Age” or “Roaring 20’s” from the moment you walk in the door, but there’s so much more to this place. I was fortunate to be the Wedding DJ here on a sunday evening in March and I wanted to share the space with our readers who may not have heard of it or thought about it for their wedding reception, birthday party, corporate or other special event. The space is strikingly beautiful with it’s beautiful and very large Chandelier’s, 35 foot high ceilings, woodwork that any aficionado of fine wood working would envy, gorgeous flooring, and a terrific layout overall.
The wait and bar staff is about as beautiful and well appointed as any place I have worked a Wedding in Los Angeles, the bar men wore tuxedo’s without the jackets and most of them looked like a younger version of George Clooney, the security person wore a double breasted Zuit Suit and stood about 15 feet tall, while the young ladies could have all been models as they wore gorgeous black cocktail dresses “very well”. While looks may not be important to you, if you want your wedding to be perfect from head to toe, the staff serving your drinks and food should also look really nice and The Madison delivers with a bang! The food is really terrific as well and the presentations I saw were not over the top “fake fancy” but the flavors were far superior to most Wedding Food I’ve tasted. The wine list is immense and service on all levels was impeccable. If you add some simple but gorgeous florals, a few personal touches with photos of the newlyweds, birthday girl, or company banners, you’ll be on your way to a truly unique and spectacular event and I guarantee your guests will rave about the space you chose and what a great time they had there. But of course, don’t forget to hire a great DJ! Either myself or one of our other DJs would love to entertain there anytime!
The wedding I worked felt much more like a great cocktail/dance party than a formal event, but it had all of the elements that a wedding needed. I loved working with our friend and photographer Cheryl Ogden, she’s always a lot of fun and very professional…just click on her name to visit her website and see some of her work.
There was also a pianist that the Brides mother knew and he came in and played the gorgeous mahogany Grand Piano at the cocktail hour and I took over as DJ after that.
Although my photos don’t do it much justice, this room has an enourmous Bar with the rolling ladder to get to the Top Shelf libations, 35 foot ceilings that grab your attention immediately, and some really interesting murals that harken 1920’s cocktail parties, the atmosphere is really stunning.
Thanks to all the staff and especially to Patrick the proprietor of The Madison as well as Megan the coordinator and Makena and the two gentleman working the bar and floor all of who were very accomodating to the DJ’s needs for loading in and setting up my gear as well as helping me keep the party on schedule and running smoothly throughout the night.
By the way, the dancefloor and DJ area are centrally located and it’s easy to see and hear the DJ from any seat in the house.
The space accommodates about 300 people, and there’s a “cellar” or “vault” space below that holds parties of up to 150 guests. The Madison is available for rent on Sunday’s when the entire restaurant is closed and yours to enjoy! If you’re having a special event anywhere near Long Beach, definitely place a star beside the Madison Restaurant and go check it out.
Serra Center Bridal Show March 21, 2010
Posted by Jason | Filed under Announcement
Elegant Event Entertainment will be exhibiting for the upcoming Bridal Show at Padre Serra Center in Camarillo, CA on March 21, 2010. Come out and meet numerous top professional vendors in the Wedding and Event Industry and stop by our booth for a meet and greet with Elegant Event Entertainment Founders Chris Mortillaro and Jason Jones, our sales and planning assistant Carrie Goldberg as well as other team members!
We’ll also be DJing and MCing the event and Bridal Fashion Show, so you don’t want to miss DJ Chris and Jason doing what they do best.
We hope to see New and Current clients at this showcase.
The Serra Center Bridal Showcase is Hosted and Produced by our dear friends at Command Performance Catering
The Show Features beautiful buffets with many different foods, special table set-ups and rental options. Enjoy a runway show of the latest bridal fashion and have conversations with vendors who will help you design and visualize your special day.
The fully-equipped Serra center accommodates up to 600 guests seated for dinner indoors. Featuring large windows overlooking the park-like grounds, state of the art in-house audio/visual system, and so much more!
The Serra Center is located at:
5205 UPLAND RD., CAMARILLO, 93012
For any questions, or to reserve by phone, please call Tina Wilkins at Command Performance (805) 523-3232
Los Angeles Wedding DJ Prices: What exactly are you paying for anyway
Posted by Jason | Filed under Wedding DJ Advice, Wedding Planning
If you’re planning a Wedding or other Special Event I’m sure you’re interested in how much it’s going to cost. And if you’re hiring a DJ in the Los Angeles area, we know you are certainly concerned with your budget, but we all know that old saying “you get what you pay for.”
In this article, I want to point out some of the factors that influence DJ pricing so you will have a better understanding of how we determine our prices and you’ll realize that we truly can work with almost any budget. We believe having some kind of entertainment is better than none at all, but great entertainment and hiring a great DJ is paramount to the overall success of your event.
First I’ll list the “5 Most Important Questions” a Professional DJ should ask you to help determine your needs. If you can answer some of these questions for us, we’ll know exactly how to price and plan for your event.
5 Main Factors that influence Wedding DJ Pricing:
1. Q: What is the date, time, and location of your Event?
By Knowing these details, we determine which of our DJ’s are available, what type of equipment you’ll need, the level of difficulty of set-up/tear-down, and if we’ll need to asses any other fee’s.
2. Q: How Many Hours of DJ Services do you require?
We build our prices first by determining the number of hours of Entertainment you need. As a rule, Most Receptions are 4-6 hours, Ceremony & Receptions are 5-7 hours.
3. Q: Do you need the DJ for the Ceremony & Reception?
If you require Music and/or microphones for the Ceremony and the Wedding Ceremony is in a different area than your Reception, we will generally need to provide an additional sound system.
4. Q: What is your overall vision for the Event?
Your Event is unique, and we want your vision and personalities to shine through! By knowing the “feel” you’re trying to achieve for the event we can pair you with the perfect DJ to meet those needs. In addition, our Event Planning/Coordination staff can help you locate other vendors and offer great tips to help you achieve your dream of a perfect event.
5. Q: What is your overall Budget for Entertainment?
We believe Great Entertainment is Priceless, but we can custom tailor a package to suit most budgets. Being up front about your budget will save you a lot of shopping hassle.
Read the rest of this entry »
Los Angeles Wedding DJ’s “Top 5 Helpful Wedding DJ Blog Articles”
Posted by Jason | Filed under Wedding DJ Advice, Wedding Planning
Below is a quick list of links to our Favorite and “Top 5 Helpful Wedding DJ Blog Articles” that we published here on our “Los Angeles DJ Blog” throughout 2009 in an effort to help our current and potential clients with the planning of their DJ entertainment. This list should give you a bit more insight about us, and what we can offer our clients. Whether you’re just beginning to search for DJs in Los Angeles or if you’re looking for music ideas for your Wedding, we’ve got you covered! Click the links below that interest you and feel free to browse and read all the articles we post, past, present, and future!
1. Hiring a Los Angeles Wedding DJ? Click Here for helpful hints!
2. Wedding Ceremony Music Ideas- Click Here
3. Bride & Groom’s First Dance Song List. Choosing the “Best” Song for you!: Click Here!
4. Father Daughter Dance Songs & Helpful Hints for Fathers and Daughters Click Here!
5. To Watch Our Los Angeles DJ Services Demo Video Click Here!
And Remember, our Blog is always being updated with Articles, Stories, Reviews of Los Angeles Wedding Venues, Event Planning Tips, Wedding Song Ideas, and so much more. If you need a Los Angeles Wedding DJ, or a DJ in Southern California for any special event, you’ve come to the right place! Please keep coming back and feel free to leave comments on our Blog if something sparks your interest, just type in the “Comments” box and click “Submit Comment.” Happy Planning and Best Wishes!
Click Here to Read the Bios of Our DJs
2010 Los Angeles Bridal Show at the Westlake Hyatt!
Posted by Jason | Filed under Announcement, Tips for Hiring a Wedding DJ, Wedding Planning
It’s that time again friends! Time for Los Angeles Wedding DJs and other event specialists to appear at Bridal Show’s in Los Angeles in hopes of meeting great new Brides and Grooms who are looking for wedding professionals to help them make their dreams of the perfect wedding come true.
If you’re looking for Los Angeles Wedding DJs, Thousand Oaks DJs, or Ventura County DJs, you’ve come to the right place and if you would like to come out and meet us at a bridal show in Westlake Village, representatives from Elegant Event Entertainment will be showcasing our company at the Westlake Hyatt Bridal Show on Sunday January 10, 2010 from 11am-4pm, sponsored by Bridal Premier. If you need tickets, please call us today and we’ll arrange to get some passes for you on our behalf, or you can simply go to the show promoter’s website by clicking here.
You’ll notice several DJ companies listed on the page, including a “Featured Entertainment”, please keep in mind, that’s a Paid advertisement and has no bearing on rank or popularity. We choose to limit our PAID advertising to help our clients.
Whoever you choose as your DJ/Entertainment, please do your homework, meet with and check the backgrounds of the companies you are shopping. If you’d like to know more about Hiring a Los Angeles Wedding DJ, please click here to read our article. “7 Steps for Hiring a Wedding DJ”
Our DJs will be meeting with Brides and Grooms and handing out promotional materials to let you know more about our company. We also hope you’ll consider browsing our website and reading some of our blogs as well and give us a call if you would like to schedule a consultation for DJ or Event Planning Services for your Wedding or Special Event.
We’ll be joined by many of the best local Ventura County and Los Angeles Wedding Professionals including our friends from Mi Belle Photography, Command Performance Catering, and Skyline Videography and many others.
Hope to see you on January 10th!
Happy New Year from all of us at Elegant Event Entertainment.
If you are an experienced wedding DJ who loves working to serve the needs of your clients,