CS Brides Showcase Lures Readers With Champagne, Vera Wang Show

"See? This is why I chose you to be my bridesmaids," a guest gushed to friends on Thursday night at CS Brides' "Evening of Bridal Luxury." The 450-guest crowd was heavy on groups of girlfriends, mother-daughter duos, and well-known brides-to-be such as Bachelorette star Jillian Harris. In addition to plenty of female bonding, the event at the Ritz-Carlton Chicago included food stations slinging everything from savory crepes to chocolate-filled cupcakes and a fully produced fashion show that highlighted the Vera Wang 2010 bridal collection.

Samantha Saifer, director of marketing at parent company Modern Luxury Media, oversaw planning efforts with publisher Amy Allen. "The purpose of our signature events for bridal, and our signature events for all of our magazines, is to help provide our partners an extra added-value opportunity to reach out to our CS readers," Saifer said. "For this event, we involve some of our biggest and most well known partners by including them in the actual production."

As such, Heffernan Morgan handled the evening's decor, providing everything from illuminated pink bars to flower-flecked sweetheart tables that surrounded the runway. The company also decorated tables for a room that showcased tabletop trends, and designed bridal bouquets for a display area near the champagne bar. Frost designed the lighting, which included pink rose-shaped gobos that covered the ceiling of the entrance, and collaborated on the design of the runway. Fig handled audiovisual production, photography, and DJ duties. The company also produced a short fashion film that aired in the ballroom before the runway show, and designed a custom logo and photo reel that showcased each of the evening's sponsors.

"As to not exclude any partner of ours, we also provide each of our advertisers with the opportunity to contribute to our Oscar-style swag bags from Bagable Gifts," and co-sponsored by Elizabeth Grace, Saifer said. Guests left with loots of everything from beauty products to discount cards and sweets, but the parting gift was not for everyone. "The guests that attend and who are not getting married always seem to want a gift bag," Saifer said. "We have to tell them the bags are for brides every year."