Parties

When APW and Lowe House Events introduced Yay New York: The Reception For Marriage Equality, featuring two marriages and a raging dance party, y’all wanted to get involved… no matter where you were located. So we promised you tote bags. And not just tote bags, but stylish marriage equality tote bags with proceeds going toward getting the couples hitched. So today we’re giving you those stylish tote bags and a raffle entry for Hart & Sol Photo with your party ticket purchase. Because let’s be clear: we can’t throw this event without your help.

Yay New York Tote Bags

First up: we’re unveiling the bags. They’re on sale for $20 through Big Cartel, and buying one is what will make Yay New York happen! (Please note, for those of you attending the event, we’ll have special limited edition tote bags for sale there).

Buy a Yay New York Tote Bag Before They’re Gone!

And now, the amazing bags themselves, designed by And Kathleen, printed by Yes Press in Oakland, with photos by Emily Takes Photos (I’m modeling):

You can put your knitting in it and go thrift store shopping (these are two things I do in real life, though not always at the same time). Please note the sneaky apracticalweddding.com at the bottom of the bag. We did that to make it an APW secret handshake. “Oh, you know. Ah, as do I.”

You can use it to go grocery shopping. Actually, this picture is a little bit of a lie, because I’m not allowed to go grocery shopping without a special dispensation from my husband. When I go, I always buy: Canned Goods (in case of emergency) and whatever I’m hungry for (usually something like: peaches, kale, chocolate, hamburger meat, Prosecco). But if you’re allowed to grocery shop without a partner dispensation, you could take your Yay New York bag.

You can use it to carry around your laptop, a notebook and some magazines. This is the most realistic depiction of what I will do with my bag. As a self-employed person I consider my tote bag to be my mobile office. Now it will be my mobile marriage equality office.

And, my personal favorite. You can fill it full of champagne and go drinking. I think you should do this. But first you’re going to have to buy the bag, you see.

Buy The Bag. (It’s just $20, and it’s super pretty.)

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Ticket Deal: With Hart & Sol Photo

Did you buy your tickets last week? Great, we’re kissing you on the mouth because we love you. Have you not bought your tickets yet? Have you not told your friends in New York about the party? Read on…

Hart & Sol Photo (APW sponsors) are giving away a free two hour photo session. You can use it for anything you want: engagement pictures, Christmas card pictures, boudoir pictures, maternity pictures, pet pictures, you name it. Plus, the session is transferable, so if you’re not in the NYC area, you can give it to someone who is. Here is how you enter:

• If you bought a ticket last week, you’re already entered in the drawing.
• If you buy a ticket before next Wednesday, you’ll also be entered in the drawing.
• But there is more: for every friend that you refer to buy a ticket before next Wednesday (they need to list your name in the “who referred you” section of the ticket form), you’re also entered to win the Hart & Sol Photo session. If you can’t come, but you tell all your friends in NYC to come? You totally could win.

Team Practical? Let’s do this thing!

Photos by Emily Takes Photos, bracelet by APW Sponsor Bario-Neal Jewelry (I wear it all the time).

As you all know, APW is helping two couples get hitched in New York and then throwing a dance-your-face-off fundraiser for LAMBDA Legal… next week. Time flies! We’ll have more details on the party later this week, but today we wanted to announce the APW-book club style parties that are happening all over the country this weekend. It’s just like the regular book clubs, except with no book to read—instead, there is booze and cake to consume and money to be raised for LAMBDA Legal. Hurrah! Long time reader Cindy of Crafty Broads is organizing the parties and has an update. In the meantime, we noticed that some long standing book clubs are not celebrating (cough, San Francisco, Boston, Dallas, Baltimore, cough). If you’d like to join up and drink booze in honor of gay marriage, go to APW’s Facebook page, and start a conversation (we’ve even started threads for you…). And now, Cindy:

Hello Marriage Equality Lovers!

A few weeks back, Meg mentioned that I was helping put together some regional parties for those of us who can’t get to New York, but are 110% there in spirit. Well, a few of us have been plotting away in our own little corners of the universe, and we are ready to kick off the big shebang. We’re planning cakes, champagne popping, and of course the company of fine APW readers like you.

So, ditch your plan to eat pizza on the couch this weekend, pull out your sparkle dress, and get yourself to a party near you!

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON: Bec of Blush Celebrations is planning a party in the Capital Hill area, and there will be Rainbow Cupcakes! Rainbow Cupcakes, you guys, can’t miss that! Saturday, August 20th at 7pm. RSVP here.

BURLINGTON, VERMONT: Trisha totally wants to party with you, but she’s wondering where all the Vermont APW readers are. Go hang with her on Saturday, August 20th at 7pm. RSVP here.

WASHINGTON, D.C.: Rachel a.k.a. Dday is pulling out all the stops. She booked a private party room at the Dupont Italian Kitchen for Sunday, August 21st at 3pm. RSVP here.

HOUSTON, TEXAS: Hey, Houston! Rachelle has the perfect spot (with cake by the slice!) all picked out, and she wants you to be her date. Email rachelle DOT rawlings AT gmail DOT com.

RALEIGH-DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA: Caitlin is inviting you to join her in Chapel Hill on Saturday, August 20th at 7pm. RSVP here.

PORTLAND, OREGON: Kristin is game for celebrating, but everyone seems to be busy. If you’re not and you want to party, email her and figure it out: kristingraybeal AT hotmail DOT com

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS: Finally, if you’re in the Windy City, I invite you to my place on Saturday, August 20th at 7pm. I am making cake and I want you to eat it. RSVP here.

No party near you? Grab a few friends and make one! Road trip to the nearest one! Or do the most important thing—donate to Lambda Legal during next week’s APW Fundraising drive, so we can be celebrating legal marriages for everyone across the country really, really soon.

So, it’s finally upon us! Yay New York, our party to celebrate same sex marriage in New York, and raise money for same sex marriage everywhere—thrown with Lowe House Events—is coming up in just one week! On Saturday I pack my bags and fly to New York City to get this show on the road. This weekend APWers all over the country will be throwing mini-parties to celebrate. On Monday we’ll launch APW’s fundraiser for LAMBDA Legal, and next Thursday we’ll be marrying two couples in New York City… and dancing like crazy to celebrate.

The Details:

The party takes place at 320 Studios in Manhattan at 8pm on Thursday, August 25th, and I’ve finally got details to share with you. Excellent details.

A) Confetti System Piñatas. At the end of the night, we’ll be bashing one in (I know).

B) We’ll be eating La Newyorkina Mexican popsicles (because popsicles are totally the new pie, which is the new cupcake).

C) We’ll be drinking Monogamy Wine.

D) DJ Whitney Day will be spinning (we’ve requested an old school hip-hop, Nina Simone, crazy disco mash-up vibe).

E) And we’ll also be drinking Sangria, yum. (thanks to Katie Jane Photo for the picture)

All this while toasting the two newly married couples and raising money for a good cause. I can’t wait to see you there!

We have a few tickets left, so act fast!

And finally, thanks to Random.org, the winner of the Hart & Sol Photo Yay New York ticket giveaway is… Rachel (Dday) Porter. I know. I checked about a zillion times to make sure that she was really who was randomly selected, but indeed, somehow Random.org picked the lady throwing the Washington D.C. Yay New York Party. Karma is awesome.

{Logo by And Kathleen}

I’m in New York, my bags are unpacked, and I’m getting ready to make Yay New York stellar. Elizabeth of Lowe House Events and I have been working ourselves into the ground for the last seven weeks making this happen, and right before we left we sat down to talk about why. In the end, there are two things that are deeply important to us: getting these two couples legally married, and raising money for LAMBDA Legal. We picked LAMBDA because their work doesn’t just support marriage equality, but spans impact litigation, public education, and advocacy for the LGBTQ population. They are working to make sure that we are all equal enough, and I think that’s some of the most important work of our time.

{Seattle’s Yay New York Party via Flickr}

This week, we’re spearheading an APW fundraising drive for LAMBDA. We’re hoping that all of you, no matter where you are located, will kick in support for Yay New York by giving a donation. This weekend, the APW regional parties (updates on that soon), raised almost $1,000, and now we’re opening this up to the whole APW community. You can give directly to LAMBDA Legal through APW’s First Giving Page. We’ll be running this drive all week as we make this party happen. And at the end of the week, we’ll get to show you what you, as a community, have given and built. Here we go…

Give to APW’s LAMBDA Legal Fundraising Drive