Ideas for Auto Show

"A massive, 'wow' bar display upon entering always makes the first party detail most memorable."

"I cannot ever get enough of mini patisserie bars for a jaw-dropping dessert display. Move over, plated dessert, there's a new sweets game in town."

Upgrade tents by creating multiple levels and adding decorative touches like chandeliers and French doors.

Using traditionally interior furniture adds a new twist to outdoor events. Zill suggests shopping at thrift stores for inexpensive furniture that can be updated with slipcovers or reupholstering.

Tasting bars with bourbon, rye, gin, and even moonshine are a current trend.

For an event to announce a new canning initiative by a local food bank, Zill designed a bar made from 2,500 cans. On the top of the bar, he placed statistics about hunger under clear Lucite slabs so guests could learn about the issue while getting a drink.

Andrew Zill of production and marketing firm Feats Inc. said a hot trend is bringing the outside in for event decor. For a dinner event, he upholstered tables with preserved moss.

To create an interactive s'mores station, Zill filled a five-foot-long box with black river rock to simulate charcoal and embedded Sterno cans in the rocks.

For a new spin on cupcakes, turn them into an interactive experience by teaching guests how to decorate a cupcake like a professional.

An illuminated table held jars filled with candy.

At the Campfire Ball benefit for Children’s Oncology Services in May at Venue One in Chicago, Cork Catering set up a make-your-own s’mores station.

Hundreds of balloons from Balloon Trix hung from the ceiling during the V.I.P. dinner. The space changed colour with each course, starting with blue, morphing to pink for the main course, changing to orange for dessert, and ending in red.

Todd Events made a wedding held inside a large barn in Aspen seem more intimate with two tall signature bars and scattered seating and food station vignettes. Hanging glass globes appeared to lower the ceilings.

Dramatic chandeliers set the tone at the MSNBC party.

The hall's open kitchens gave attendees something to watch while also allowing the purveyors direct contact with the guests. One of the more popular stations was Luke's Lobster, which had a seemingly endless supply of mini lobster rolls.

Toronto's Glory Hole Doughnuts (gloryholedoughnuts.com) has been garnering buzz with flavors like maple bacon, chicken and waffles, and lemon meringue. The supplier can deliver as many as 300 handmade doughnuts or 500 “Lil’ Glories” for events.

Crudite, dip, and shrimp display, on an antique cart, by L-Eat Catering in Toronto

Housemade hot pretzel rolls with assorted mustards, heated over river rocks, by A Thyme to Cook (877.849.6386, athymetocook.com) in North Stonington, Connecticut