Ladies Tennis Banquets

Top 5 things to make your Ladies Tennis Banquet Succeed 

 1. Location Location Location.... a beautiful setting brightens every event.  Find a nice club or hotel in your area.  I personally prefer the club route, it just seems cozier.  Think about your decor make it tennis pretty~ Give center pieces away to your team captains, this is a wonderful way to honor them for all the work they do throughout the year. 

2. Wine and Champagne!!!!  This is a must, not only for the sheer enjoyment of it, but it may increase your raffle ticket sales.  Which ultimately helps you raise more money for charities.  Wine and lunch is always a recipe for a a successful ladies party!   

3. Entertainment.... I personally enjoy when teams or a combination of teams get together and do a skit or sing a song.  I'm also a big fan of the purse scavenger hunt~ just what all do sassy tennis ladies keep in their purse???? Hilarious fun... wine opener, bobby pin, stick matches, baby diaper, cigar, condom, a tennis ball holder,  make it funny and silly it brings out the competitive crazy women as they are digging through their purses.  This game just never gets old.  :)

GOLD League, Orlando FL seen here singing a made up song to the tune of "Let it Shine"

"Thursday tennis is on our minds~ We pray the sun to shine"

4. Party favors... Everyone should walk away with a little something.  A Tervis tennis tumbler, a can of balls, a tennis towel.  This year we received a tennis tape measurer!!! This is a must have for every ladies tennis bag and was a huge hit with all of the ladies.  Read earlier article "Get Real with your Tennis Bags Ladies!!"
http://tennis-speak.blogspot.com/2013/02/get-real-with-your-tennis-bag-ladies.html  

One excited Sassy Girl with her new tape measurer!!  

5. Raffles and Give~Aways.  Raffles are a perfect way to add excitement and get the competitive spirit going in the room.  It makes everyone cheer with excitement as their number is pulled from the bag!  It is a wonderful way to raise money for charities.  Let your winning teams select the charities that receive the donations  or let the team in charge of the raffle select the recipients.  http://tennis-speak.blogspot.com/2013/05/tennis-banquet-helps-local-charities.html  Read earlier article that demonstrates just how much donations from your tennis banquet can help your local charities.   

Love Women's Tennis. :) 

French Open Fashion

2013 Roland Garros Fashion

Maria Sharapovia reveals her new Nike tennis dress she will be sporting at the French Open, which opens tomorrow at Roland Garros.  She describes the dress and its material as breathable and "the perfect combination of feminine and sporty." (see video below)  I would wear this dress~ it looks great.  I especially love the color combinations, check out the entire collection at http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/WANIKE.html . The subtle purple with pure violet and volt which is the lime accent really looks sharp and will surely pop on the courts in the fashion capitol of the world~ Paris.  Two thumbs up Nike! 

Venus Williams is sporting her new line for Eleven.

Venus wears it well, and is quoted by the Grio "Each dress is reflective of a different side of me,” Williams stated. “The Geo 2.0  for the French Open is feminine and fun; the Perfect Mesh for Wimbledon is more along the lines of your traditional tennis whites, but the open back and mesh detail give it a bit of a Venus style twist; and my US Open dress will be flirty, colorful and again, very feminine. I like to take fashion risks on and off the court.”  http://thegrio.com/2013/05/25/venus-williams-previews-her-dress-for-the-french-open-discusses-inspiration-for-her-eleven-clothing-collection/.  I look forward to seeing her risk taking fashions, it's always fun to see.  http://tennis-speak.blogspot.com/2013/05/eleven-womens-french-open-2013-apparel.html




Roland Garros 2013 Fashion also includes Fila: Worn by Jankovic, Goerges and Petrova.  

Another classic collection for Fila.  Pink and Navy with some white accents.  Many pieces and variations to choose from.  I'm sure won't disappoint on these ladies at the French Open.  The collection can be found at... http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/Fila_Womens_Summer_Baseline_Racer_Tank/descpageWAFILA-FWSBRTA.html?from=tenid

Serena Williams Wins in Rome

2013 Rome Title goes to Serena Williams

Serena Williams, in true SassyGirl style finishes #1 in Rome by defeating Victoria Azarenka 6-1, 6-3 in the finals of the Italian Open.   Girlfriend is poppin some Monet to celebrate her 4th title in a row.  Way to go Serena, truly a favorite of Sassy Tennis Girls every where.  Hope to see her during my first Wimbledon experience in June.  Wishing  for clear sky's and beautiful weather for tennis in London.  So excited!  :)

 

EleVen Women's French Open Apparel

Venus Williams for EleVen 

Venus's new French open collection is OK, (seen above) much better than the last collection, "Straight Sets" (below)~ I'm not a huge fan of all the busy prints.  It just doesn't work for everyone.  The new collection in  the hot pink is less busy, more body types can pull it off.  I can actually see someone over the age of 18 wearing it.  It's just not flattering for the 30-40 plus ladies, however, you can mix match the solids in to your existing collection of tennis apparel.  And you can have something to wear for your next cancer awareness tennis event. (WPFT)  http://www.womenplayingfortime.org/  I don't really think that Venus has our age group in mind while she is designing.  ;) that's OK! ~ I do get excited to see what flashy designs she's going to create next. 

Can't really see my tennis team sporting this outfit~ that would be hilarious !!  

You can find both collections at http://www.midwestsports.com/womens-tennis-apparel/c/600/filter/100000001884eq100000001898/ 

http://elevenbyvenus.com/

Tennis Fashionista Sharapova Graces the Cover of Esquire (Latin America)

Maria Sharapova Talks Fashion and Candy

Maria Sharapovia, ranked #2 wta, talks fashion and candy in the upcoming June issue of Esquire Latin America http://www.esquirelat.com/mujeres/592814/maria-sharapova-diosa-rusa-esta-cima/   Maria is planning on launching her Sugarpova, http://www.sugarpova.com/, candy brand in London and Paris later this year.  She also discusses her love of fashion and some of her favorite designers... Alexander McQueen, Vera Wang, Marc Jacobs and Bottega Veneta.  
Maira is quoted saying “Men, unlike women, do not wear much jewelry or rotate accessories daily,” she said. “So a watch is an important fashion statement to them, and the value of a piece is maintained over time. Every man should own a good watch that will be useful for any holiday occasion.”  
So ladies... if you are thinking about a Birthday gift or stocking stuffer for Christmas, take Maria's advice and get your man a watch.  I think my hot hubby needs a new one! 

But hey lets talk about this oxymoron of candy and bathing suits.  Looking at Maria in her swimsuit, I find myself wanting to avoid all candies, cakes and sugar, and want starve myself for the rest of the month, so I can look at least half as good as this 26 year old Sugarpova entrepreneur.  Talk about mixed signals in advertising.  However, there is no doubt that she is showing us that it is hot and fashionable to rock a one piece bathing suit!!  That's it... I'm getting a new one piece, so this almost 40 something tennis momma can look sassy like Maria. I can drink more wine and eat more candy and hide it all behind a one piece swimsuit!  Oh yeah oh yeah!!!  Love it Maria, you are so sugar sassy!!!

Tennis, Horses and Hats. Steffi Graf at Kentucky Derby

Steffi Graf Sassy Girl of the Month!!! 

Steffi Graf and Supermodel and judge on "The Face", Coco Rocha, both served as judges at the Longines Kentucky Oaks Fashion Contest at Churchill Downs. Both ladies looking super sassy sporting the traditional hats.  Steffi~ looking good girl... making the 40 something sassy tennis girl proud!!! 

 Coco looks pretty good too ;)  Like to see her play some tennis. 

Tennis Banquet Helps local Charities

End of the Tennis Season Banquet

What a fun way to end the tennis season.  Lunch, wine, lots of vendors for plenty of shopping, an amazing raffle that raised lots of money for great charities.  It's so much fun to get dressed up, looking sassy, and socialize with all of the ladies you have been playing against all season.  I do admit it is sometimes incredibly hard to recognize everyone when their hair is down, no sunglasses, no visor, high heel shoes and full face of makeup on.  I always have tons of fun and tons to say about ladies fashion on and off the court. ;)  hee hee!

My team volunteered to be in charge of the raffle for charity this year.  We had many wonderful prizes... Louie Vuitton bag, Michel Kors watch and hand bags, Coach braceletes, many many wine baskets, Plastic surgeons basket (lots of goodies included), restaurant baskets, money trees,  martini baskets, the list goes on and on.  Unfortunately,  my team did not win one single prize!  Bummer, but we did feel like winners anyway... we helped raise $7500.00 of donations that we decided to spilt  between two wonderful charities: IDignity and Nathaniel's Hope.  

IDiginity http://www.idignity.org/   

IDignity was created to help the disadvantaged in Central Florida overcome the difficulties of obtaining the personal identification that is crucial to enabling them to become self-sufficient. The need for such a program was recognized by members of five downtown churches who were unable to find a resource that provided such a service. The documents that IDignity provides are required to apply for employment or school, obtain access to most shelters, vote, seek help from many social service programs, open a bank account or cash a check, secure housing or overcome many other obstacles to becoming self-sufficient. IDignity is a program that has proven to be very organized and more successful than anyone’s expectations. The demand for these services has yet to ebb and it appears that it is likely to increase during these difficult economic times. 

and Nathaniel's Hope. http://www.nathanielshope.org/  

Nathaniel’s Hope is dedicated to sharing hope with kids with special needs (VIP kids) and their families.

This includes:

• Bringing hope and resources of encouragement to VIP kids and their families
• Providing practical assistance by offering free respite care for VIP kids
• Educating the community on how to be a Buddy to VIP kids and their families
• Equipping the community, especially churches, with opportunities, tools, training, and resources to reach out to VIP kids and their families
• Extending hope to VIP kids overseas
• Sharing hope with grieving families

(Kids with special needs are our VIPs. Buddies are friends of VIPs.) 

http://www.nathanielshope.org/about-us/nathaniels-story/

We raised much more than we expected.  It was a great day.  A great way to celebrate the end of another wonderful season, congratulate the winners and a great way to give back to the community at the same time. 

PS... my team finished second place this season.  Woot Woot!