Carolina Quinceañera was held on Wednesday, August 6, 2014, at NOVA 535 Unique Event Space in beautiful downtown St. Pete, Florida. I LOVE DTSP.
Carolina, her mom Yohanis and their entire family were a delight to work with. They wanted the grand NOVA 535 experience and discovered that weeknights were a great value, so they picked an available Wednesday in August, while school was out, and we began planning for our Carolina Quinceañera.
You can tell, almost immediately, what an excellent job of parenting Yohanis has done with Carolina. She’s not your typical 15 year old, she’ well mannered and at ease with herself, she asks great questions and is helpful during our entire planning process. Then she steps it up a few notches and performs two separate and quite different dances, one with her troupe to Sinatra and the waltz with three of her special family members.
The ladies picked out their vendors, including DJ Daniel Vargas. He was excellent, playing a quality mash-up of music appropriate for all ages. Though as the event wore on, he delved deep into the sounds of today that the teens were demanding. DUBSTEP that is! Wait………..for…………..the………………………..DROP!!!
Pizza Supreme provided a delicious Italian dinner, including chicken parmigiana, my favorite dish. Also were several hot steaming pastas that looked and smelled amazing, though I avoided them as I continue my quest towards a gluten-free diet. (I gave up bread about a year ago and my lifelong psoriasis is GONE. Read the book Grain Brain if you want to further educate yourself. Most people are likely and unknowingly allergic to gluten.) Anyhoo…
….Broadway was the theme of the evening, with each table named after famous plays, including Mamma Mia (which I did see opening night in Toronto in the 90’s, fabulous) Cats, Phantom of the Opera, RENT (saw that in Tampa), Wicked (on my list) and so on. Guests were directed to their table and enjoyed a live musical performance by Carolina and I believe nine of her friends. Fabulous! Great show Carolina, bravo!
Later we find Carolina holding court at her Queen’s Table. A really nice group of teens, well behaved. They seem like they will if they keep on making the right decisions and more importantly avoid making too many bad decisions, become the leaders of tomorrow. Good luck ladies and gentlemen. A few pieces of free advice from “Uncle Mike”: #1 Be your own best friend. #2 You are what you eat. #3 Mind over matter. #4 Be nice to everyone while understanding that kindness does not mean weakness.
Keep in mind that I, Michael S. Novilla, am not a professional photographer, just a guy with a good camera who is learning and growing. These were all shot on my Canon 6D, much without flash. If you like what you see here, check out my Instagram Page.
Just another wonderful event here at NOVA 535 Unique Event Space. People always ask “Is NOVA open to the public?” and I explain that 98% of the time NOVA is closed for private events, Weddings, Receptions, Mitzvahs, Film Shoots, Corporate Parties, Fundraisers, Birthdays and such. If you or a friend is looking to rent NOVA 535 for an event, please click here. Thank you and good luck to us all!
What about that 2% you may ask? Well, we do open up occasionally for PUBLIC Events…some truly unique and amazing ones, like NOVAWEEN, NOVA NOEL, Sunscreen Film Festival and more.