03-10-2024 Capital Style - Flipbook - Page 17
RECEPTIONS
Mobile wedding services help couples personalize
and reduce stress on their special day
BY MIKE KLINGAMAN Capital Style
A
ttend a wedding reception she’s working
and you’ll find LaNita Cousin behind the
bar, mixing drinks while bopping to the
music.
“I’m very social when I’m in my element,
laughing and dancing — and I don’t miss a beat,”
said Cousin, 50, who has staffed weddings and
other events since 2016. Her mobile bar business,
Kurvaceous Bottles, of Laurel, handles more than
two dozen weddings a year, with couples as far as
South Carolina seeking her firm for their functions.
The venues are varied, from backyards to old
barns, some with nosy livestock. One gathering
was set in a refurbished bank, teller windows and
vault intact. Not that it matters to Cousin, who’ll
go anywhere with her custom-style, full-service
bars that light up in whatever colors the bride and
groom prefer.
“If [the reception is] outside, and the sun goes
down, a glowing bar brings more ambience to the
event,” Cousin said.
Her bar’s mobility allows clients to book it on
short notice — as little as four days in advance, she
said. Each couple attends a pre-nuptial taste test to
identify two signature drinks, one each for bride
and groom, whose favorites, she said, have yet to
agree.
“A lot of brides want those drinks to match their
wedding colors,” said Cousin, who’ll do her best.
“One wanted drinks [in hues] of rose and sage.
I made one vodka-based drink and another of
tequila; they were pink and green, and the bride
was happy.”
It’s not just the portable cocktails that guests tout.
“Weddings are very stressful and I am a
perfectionist,” said Cousin. “If the reception is in
the same place as the service, we’ll be there two
hours early to set up, so that we’re not moving
Each couple attends a pre-nuptial taste test to identify two signature drinks, one each for bride and groom, whose
favorites, Cousin said, have yet to agree.
Spring 2024 | CAPITAL STYLE |
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