Plus, with the incentive to win a Nintendo Wii, as you can imagine, made the booth extremely busy the entire day. And, once we showed visitors what the average home filter looks like, people were signing up left and right to have their air quality checked.

All About Presentation designed the booth theme and concept, set-up, and helped run the booth with our event staff.

Last week, we completed an event for the American Heart Association, the Go Red for Women Luncheon, which included networking and a silent auction reception. It was an amazing event and we are so happy that we had the opportunity to participate.

In addition, the generous support from Macy’s, which gave $10 gift certificates to all of the guests, Merck, and Bon Secours, made the entire event possible.

The keynote speakers were Sheila Johnson, co-founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET) and current CEO of Salamander Hospitality, and the Honorable Edward A Powell, former president & CEO of the USO.

The 410-person luncheon took place at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond, VA.

Here are a few sneak peek pictures before we post them in our portfolio.

For those of us that are still trying to lighten our load or for those of us

who would like to watch our intake during Super Bowl Sunday, then I would like to suggest an alternative to one of my favorite snack food items, chips and dip.

Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist and am not saying that these are super lo-cal foods, but I am suggesting that they are a little healthier than their traditional cousin. I am also saying that I KNOW good tasting food. So, for all of my brothers and sisters out there that can’t be fooled by celery sticks and peanut butter as an alternative, then this idea is for you.

Chips and Dip

Instead of grabbing the oh-so-delicious salty bag of chips, try making your own healthier alternative. Grab a couple sweet potatoes. Peel sweet potatoes and cut into very thin slices. Place on baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 15 – 30 minutes or until thoroughly cooked and as crisp as you like. Chips will be soft when removed from oven and will crisp as they cool. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.

While these are cooking, whip up a quick dip. Here are two suggestions:

Creamy Dip:

1 cup plain, fat-free yogurt

2 Tbsp honey

1 Tbsp ground ginger

Combine all ingredients for the yogurt dip and enjoy!

Spicy Thai Sweet Chili Dip:

- 3 tablespoons hot ground chili paste

- 2 teaspoons minced garlic

- 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

- 2/3 cup water

- 2/3 cup sugar

- 1 teaspoon salt

- 4 teaspoons cornstarch

- 4 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Directions

- Combine everything, except cilantro, in a small sauce pan and mix.

- Once blended, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 5 minutes.

- Remove from heat and stir in cliantro.

I’d like to give a brief shout-out to Joanna Douglas for her post that totally calls out Vanity Fair on their “New Hollywood” issue that lacks diversity. Not only did she point out that all the actresses had the same skin tone (very fair) but she also made great suggestions on up and coming actresses that  couple have been included.

To Vanity Fair’s credit, each of the actresses is great in her own right, but I’m just disappointed that someone didn’t spot the lack of diversity before it went to press. I think it gives young girls the impression that the New Hollywood only looks one way.

Hi Everyone! I’m Davia Archer, the Communications Manager for All About Presentation It’s so nice to finally meet all of you! — Just wanted to give you guys a heads up… Monday Nights at 10 PM EST just started to heat up with Kell on Earth (Bravo, literally)!!! I LOVE Kelly Cutrone, owner of People’s Revolution (fashion public relations firm) and also produces some of the world’s largest fashion shows…oh how I love fashion…

I first fell in love with Kelly Cutrone on The Hills and then it was solidified on The City… I had never seen someone rip fashionistas apart the way she does and most of the time, her comments leave me with my mouth hanging open in disbelief. Be sure to check out some video footage from the 1st season at Fashion Industry is a War

By the way…she’ll will release her new book “If You Have to Cry, Go Outside…And Other Things Your Mother Never Told You” on February 2! You can find me in Barnes and Noble on my lunch break that day

It could the diet talking, but I’ve been craving something sweet and delicious. Now, the experts will say that sometimes when you’re hungry, you’re actually thirsty and should drink more water.

Well, let me just say this, sometimes you just want something sweet. I don’t want water. In fact, I’m pretty sure that I want something sweet.

Let me share with you one of my favorite things. Located in Pennsylvania is the origin of my favorite confection. It’s the cookie brownie by B.T. Baking. Part cookie, part brownies, in a word, FANTASTIC!!

All the ingredients are organic and made from scratch. OMG. You’ve got to try these brownies. They are sold locally in PA at Whole Foods and other stores. However, for those of us not located in PA, they are available for purchase online at http://www.btbaking.com/

I’m telling you folks. If there is one thing I know A LOT about, it’s dessert. This will not disappoint.

People often wonder, or ask us, what are some things that we can do that will give our events and parties a ‘professional touch’ from a decoration or design perspective. My first answer is “hire an event professional”. That truly is the easiest way to ensure that your event has a professional touch. Second to that, I will provide three suggestions that cause an immediate impact. These three products will take your entertaining from “okay” to “spectacular”.

1. LED Lights

Lighting, by far, is my favorite way to transform a space. But, lighting isn’tcheap. A less expensive way to add an element of lighting is with your centerpieces. Have you ever wondered how to get your centerpieces to light-up? It’s not twinkle lights my friend. Not only do those require electricity, but they also get hot and are a fire hazard. To achieve the look (like you see on the right) use LED pin lights. These are small, battery operated lights that are available in many colors. Some are even submersible in water. Singular LED lights can range between $1 – $3 each.

2. Paper

Papyrus (not the store, even though it is a fantastic store) is one of the most inexpensive and creative ways to decorate anything. Here is a picture of a votive candle holder made from paper. You can see how easy this would be to make. Take a sheet of really cool paper, roll it up, staple or tape the sides together, and then cut to size. How simple is that?!

Insert a battery operated candle (or LED light) and Voila! Super chic, super cheap votive candle holder.

3. Spray Paint

Everyone has used spray paint for one project or another to refresh the look of something. There are so many ways to use spray paint, we’d be writing until Memorial Day if we tried to capture all of its uses. However, here is one that we think is worth spotlighting. Wouldn’t it be cool to get the exact linen you wanted? Perhaps it has an event logo, really cool design, or event ‘catch phrase’ that you’d like to carry through the rest of the event. Well, create a stencil and use a little fabric spray paint to create the perfect tablecloths or napkins. Not only can you make the design any color, but it is really easy to do and is something that your guests will notice. Immediate Impact! What corporate event have you been to lately with custom napkins, and not the paper kind either…how cool would that be?

These tips are just the basics. Imagine what other awesome advice, tips, and secrets you can get for your event if you hire a professional.

Non-profit Mama’s Hot Tamales helps startups get their businesses smoking by letting them use her commercial kitchen. Truly Awesome Story!!

A page from my diary about a year and a half ago…

I was having a conversation in the bathroom with a young woman who was about 100 lbs overweight. She gave me such a great compliment, even though I was about 60 lbs overweight myself at the time. “You’re always dressed to nines…especially those shoes”, she says.

Funny. She had no idea that about 10 days earlier I was the focal point of, what I would call, a fashion intervention.

Anyway, at this point, my “filter”, which is what I call the intangible (completely imaginary) part of my body that exists between my brain and my throat whose sole responsibility is to determine which thoughts that enter my brain actually make it to my tongues, teeth, and vocal chords. It generally has a habit of not kicking on in time to filter out most of the unnecessary candor from the useful and valuable rhetoric. This time, however, while washing my hands at the sink in the bathroom, the filter was on.

Instead of saying what I thought, ”well, there is a weight limit to these heels and I am pushing that limit straight to the edge”, I uttered a grateful “thank you”. She continued by saying “my ankles and knees would be so sore by now, that’s why I like sticking to flats.” What she didn’t know, and I didn’t volunteer to admit, was that I knew that exact feeling. Three months previous, I had gained so much weight that I couldn’t even wear my heels anymore. It was all ‘flats’ all the time. In fact, it was the same pair of flats all the time. Again, yet another topic discussed in my fashion intervention. On her way out of the bathroom, she said, ‘well, just so you know, you’re killing em in those heels’. To which my mental reply was, “More likely is that I’m just killing these heels”

January is National Hot Tea Month. Can you believe it?! I’m not even kidding.

As you already know, I’ve lost 8 pounds since January 1, approximately 20 days ago.

So, as part of my lifestyle change, I have completely cut out soda. Instead I drink a lot more water and, as a treat, I drink decaf tea. HA! “a treat”. This is coming from the girl who could put the smash on half a box of Krispy Kreme Donuts.

Since we’ve already explored hot chocolate this month, let’s delve further into the world of tea. Here’s an interesting perspective on three ways to use tea, other than with hot water.

Let that marinate for a minute!

Flavored tea makes a wonderful marinade for all kinds of poultry. Try using your Earl Grey or Orange Pekoe as a marinade for chicken breast. Or, why not use your chamomile or lemon tea as a marinade for pork to give it a ‘bright’ flavor. For you vegetarians, marinating tofu in tea is a refreshing substitute for meat.

So juicy and moist!

Using white tea, green tea, oolong, or black tea can be used as a terrific and effective tendierizer. Imagine ribs that fall of the bone. Add a little tea. Voila! Fall off the bone. But, here’s the best part. Tell everyone that your secret is to cook the meat for 48 hours at a very low temperature while giving it a 1/4 turn every 20 minutes. Everyone will be mystified…but you and I know the real deal.

Isn’t this a treat?!
You’ve heard of Green Tea sorbet, but what about Earl Grey ganache or a jasmine chocolate cake? Many bakers and chocolatiers are adapting and adding new recipes to include the wonderful hints that tea can add. Here is a recipe for jasmine chocolate cake.
Hope this helps you enjoy entertaining a little bit more.