Saturday, January 26, 2008

hello public

there are so many factors that attribute to creating a great birthday bash. there's location, food & drinks, utensils, decors and planning the party's schedule to the nearest minute. and with a low budget of nearly $1000, makes its even more of a challenge to plan.

but that isnt a problem cause i love planning stuff.

and now you're in luck cause i'm about to divulge the...

AliJoe's Guide to Event Planning


first things first. BUDGET.
total necessariness. whether you're a social suicide or a socialite, a budget will come in handy for making decisions. its like a target towards your objectives and when you hit it, the sense of accomplishment is overwhelming.
of course the higher the budget the better. and if you can get sponsors, like mummy and daddy, fabulous.


then there's LOCATION, second most important factor. you want something that's convenient for the guest and also something that sits nicely in your budget. ceiling your location to 40% of your budget is the max. you do not want to result in having an event in a hotel ballroom only to serve guest chips and cordial due to lack of fund.
note: reserving a table at Zouk is not considered location, thankyouverymuch.


next factor is THEME. i'm a strong beilever of themes, not necessarily those involving uniforms or a masquerade. themes create a flow in your party. themes show that you made and effort. what i mean by creating flow is that decor, food, drinks, games, utensils and locations do not become separate entities but instead is one. the simplest of all themes is color. lets say you choose purple. unless you're location is a big purple grape then instead, play it up with decor. get purple streamers, balloons. serve ribena for drinks. use purple utensils. call for a purple dress code.
trick here is to not overdo it and also to find a theme that our guest would be comfortable in.
note: dont think of over the top themes because singaporeans are such lazyass motherfuckers when it comes to dressing up.


FOOD. some might argue that this instead is the most important factor but i beg to differ. an event is about mingling and the company. people should be moving around having fun and not sitting down tucked into a plate of beehoon and chicken wings. however, you do not want your guest to starve as much as they already did to fit into that Gucci for your party. so a good suggestion would be finger food. nothing too heavy that would cause their Prada belt to beg for mercy. simple tuna sandwiches, pigs in a blankets and the likes.


regarding DRINKS, very easy. depends on the guest list. there's people who dont take gassy drinks, alcoholic drinks and there's some who start to nauseate at the whiff of jasmine green tea. and you do not want to come across as being too cheapo for serving rose syrup. you can choose to serve an array of can drinks or just do what i do. serve ribena. everyone loves ribena!


UTENSILS are those little details that you have to take note of. always buy more. we're living in an ungracious society where people think plastic utensils are biodegradable. so they use and throw and use another one and throw again. i dont recommend using paper plates as they're too flimsy to hold anything. also buy quality utensils as i really hate it when my fork breaks when i'm trying to eat my food.
also dont forget to match it to your theme.


what makes or break the theme is DECOR. very important to set the mood for the event. you do not want to create an Oscar Award theme and have people drink out of paper cups and live in fear of setting their Chanel tweed on fire as they try to grab a greasy chicken wing from the bbq pit. DECOR is like that little something from Tiffany's to complete your entire outfit.


last but not least, always create a SCHEDULE. whats the use of planning decor and food if you dont plan minute to minute details of the event itself. always keep track of what time things should start or end. never keep guests waiting for the party to start just because everyone on your list isnt there yet. create a schedule and keep to it. that is if you're dead drunk yet.



whoah! i think i should write a detailed book on event planning. dont you think so?


anyways, i leave you today with pictures from my hoity toity 21st birthday celebration. it might not be the best birthday party but it's what i manage to put up at such short notice with an oh-so-meager budget. =)


Ali Joe's 21st Retro Groove at East Coat.



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i had put no captions with all the fotos only because words cannot explain the wonderful time i had that night. thus, i shall just let the fotos do the 'talking'.

i would like to extend my gratitude to everyone who were there joining me in celebration of my 21st birthday. your presence and of course, presents made me a very happy ALI!!!

special props to everyone who made the effort to dress to the theme!

last but not least, this whole event would not have been as smashing as it was without this someone's help. from the start with all the planning till the day of execution. from the incessant calls everytime i changed my mind about decor and food selection. from going all around singapore to search that perfect color plastic spoons to match the plates and cups from ikea to giant to carrefour. while i kept complaining and whining on every single thing while sipping on my green tea frappuccino. well, i wont overdo the praise cause i know you secretly enjoyed the hectics of all the planning as well. hahaha!!! so to my friend since primary school and for being the best supporting event planner(cause i'm the lead event planner and you know it), Sharif. also known as Barney. LOL!!!!


ps: sorry if your foto's arent up. there still some BUGGERS OUT THERE who've yet to send me the pictures. =X



alright. thats it for this week's entry. y'all take care and i hope you have a great week ahead.


xoxo-alijoe

Sunday, January 20, 2008

hello public


nothing to blog this week. apart from hanging out with sheryl, life has been ultra dull.

though i have rekindled my love affair with black again, especially now during my pudgy moments. i used to love wearing colours but nowadays, i rather put on something that attracts less attention.

also, i notice i'm beginning to love shopping alone. i know shopping alone sounds rather pathetic but i find it rather therapeutic.

i've been searching for a nice dress watch. something with leather straps and a huge square face. anyone got any nice ones to recommend?

gotta go back camp soon. i hate camp. its gonna be another 5 slow boring months filled with COS and guard duty.

the new fragrance from giorgio armani called Diamonds is really lovely. any women who smells like that will definitely take my breath away.

so random.


till next time, take care.


xoxo-alijoe

Saturday, January 19, 2008

hello public


with all the responses in my comment board regarding my recent entry only proves one thing.


y'all take my blog way too seriously.

tsk tsk tsk.


ever heard of the term tongue-in-cheek?

well, look it up then.



xoxo-alijoe

Saturday, January 12, 2008

hello public

just a while ago, i was walking to econ minimart cause i had this really bad craving for ferrero rochers. along my way i noticed this really pretty girl cycling around the area. and then guess what? i noticed that she was looking at me.

i checked my shirt for gummy bear.

none. (thank god)

and when i look back up, i noticed she skidded on the post-rain wet road and fell down.


!!!

i quickly helped her up and brought her bicycle to the side. she had a little cut on her knee and luckily for her i had some plasters to spare in my wallet.

after making sure she was alright. she thanked me and somehow i ended up with her name and phone number as well.


uh oh. what am i suppose to do with the phone number? ask her whether she has a hot brother?


dilemmas dilemmas.



xoxo-alijoe

Thursday, January 10, 2008

hello public

after all these entries about my friend's birthday parties, finally its my turn to blog about mine. and no i'm not gonna be blogging about my hoity toity retro disco soiree just yet. this entry is gonna be about a more intimate celebration.

to me it has always been more important to celebrate my birthdays with smaller groups of friends. it creates a sense of intimacy and its more personal with everyone who's there. but this year though, with it being the big 21 (i still cant believe i'm an adult), a slightly rah rah celebration wouldnt hurt.

since i've already had a huge ass celebration with my entire family the day before, i had my actual birthday to celebrate it with the one i love. but apparently neither karl lagerfeld or marc jacobs were free, so i was stuck with these 3.



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of course, not that i'm complaining.

so they decided to create this little surprise for me by not telling me where we were going. the thing about me is that as much as i love planning surprises for people, i hate receiving them. i just dont know how to react to a surprise. and what the hell are you suppose to wear to a surprise? what if i overdressed or was terrible underdressed for the occasion?

anyways, it was so top secret that cecilia had to meet me at ang mo kio and bring me there while the rest of the girls, i presume were already there.




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and when i reached clark quay, the first thing that pop my mind was a celebration at some bar or club, especially with girls knowing my penchant for alcohol. but then, i was greeted by flashing lights from their cameras. and they didnt seem dressed for a club especially jiafang who seems to have a strong dislike for clubs.

then they brought me to this really lovely place at Central called The Manhattan Fish Market. its like fish&co but way better. we had this seafood platter which tasted waaaay nicer than fish&co's.



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then they presented me with this really cool 'birthday card' which was suppose to look like a school project. i really appreciate all the hard work that went into this and all those meaningful words and pictures inside. =D



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and they they tried to scare me with a fake birthday cake from O-M-Ghastly polar cafe.



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notice the WTF look mixed with a forced smile (see above). i dont even look remotely happy in the group pic with the fake cake (see below).



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but then thank god they brought out the actual cake. its a caramel cake (i love caramel!!!) and from my favourite cake shop, Rive Gauche (Yippie!!). i knew my friends love me.




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yummmmmmmmmm!!


notice i actually look happier now. i'm like so easy to please.



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the only thing going through my mind now is ''cake ! cake! cake!''



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the only thing going through my mind now is ''please dont let the candles burn my shu uemura eyelashes!!!''



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i've got to be the luckiest guy on the planet.



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and then came my eternal inability to cut a cake properly. can you believe it been 21 yrs and i still have problem with the cake cutting?! tsk tsk.


after dinner, it was really nice to just take a leisurely stroll along the singapore river.



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clarke quay looks really beautiful at night =)


of course wad outing would it be without the usual camwhoring.



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before we didnt know each other. after, we were inseparable.



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my drunk one night stand.



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the one night stand who kept checking out my ass. LOL!



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jiafang's ambition. (we made her pose outside this place that she had no idea what it is. lol.)



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making a fool of myself outside MOS.

you know how everyone loves candid shots. i hate them. everyone usually turns out retarded. proof as follows.



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and we made random passerbys take pictures of our retarded antics.



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and to top the fruitcake...



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lets not forget one final group pic for the night.



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yeah, a really wonderful 21st birthday it was. i really love these girls, they make me feel like i wasnt the only child, its like i have 3 younger sisters, although technically they're older than me.


and lets promise we stay friends forever k? until our shadows fade away.



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thats it for this entry. y'all take care.



xoxo-alijoe