Hand-painted salvaged wood menu designed by Mélangerie Inc.
Photo: Courtesy of Mélangerie Inc.
Menu cards held by ceramic hands at an event designed by Canvas & Canopy
Photo: Sarah Yates for Birds of a Feather
Pinch Food Design offers a different spin on babyback ribs, serving the barbecue classic on a spoon-shaped skewer with creamed corn and jalapeños.
Photo: Courtesy of Pinch Food Design
As a late-night snack, Marcey Brownstein Catering & Events serves mini pretzel bites alongside whole grain mustard and shots of Hefeweizen.
Photo: Courtesy of Marcey Brownstein Catering & Events
SD26 Events' eggplant terrine features sauteed eggplant that is layered with fresh tomatoes and herbs then baked in the oven. The dish is served with a dab of basil pesto and garnished with a parmigiano reggiano-flavored milk foam.
Photo: Courtesy of SD26 Events
Great Performances can set up a dessert station featuring hanging pastry bags filled with flavored custards that guests can pipe into mini-beignets and profiteroles. Custard flavors include tangerine, mint, three-berry, earl grey, and vanilla bean.
Photo: Courtesy of Great Performances
This cucumber feta salad with roasted pepper hummus by Abigail Kirsch makes for an interesting alternative to the standard mixed green salad.
Photo: Courtesy of Abigail Kirsch
Created by Hell's Kitchen contestant and chef Guy Vaknin, Beyond Sushi is a new store serving vegetarian sushi. Offering catering for private events, the organic menu features unrefined fruits and vegetables wrapped in six-grain and black Chinese forbidden rice, topped with tofu and veggie puree sauces in flavors like jalapeno-wasabi, toasted-cayenne, carrot-ginger, shitake-teriyaki, mango-chili, and white-miso.
Photo: Courtesy of Beyond Sushi
Thomas Preti Events to Savor will be serving their s'mores cheesecake as part of their dessert lineup this fall.
Photo: Courtesy of Thomas Preti Events to Savor
Caterers report that pies filled with seasonal fruit are becoming a popular dessert item at events. These latticed fruit pies are by Tip of the Tongue Caterers.
Photo: Courtesy of Tip of the Tongue Catering
Feast & Fêtes' new "Aioli Presentation" is a spread featuring dishes like poached wild Alaskan salmon, cod confit, and jumbo Carolina shrimp.
Photo: Courtesy of Feast & Fêtes
Sant Ambroeus is offering an appetizer called "salmone fresco," consisting of smoked salmon topped with chives and a light balsamic reduction.
Photo: Courtesy of Sant Ambroeus
A deconstructed Greek salad is served alongside a dressing injection.
Photo: C2 Catering Couture
At the 2012 Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, presenting sponsor Belvedere offered refreshing beverages made with their Lemon Tea vodka, including the Lemon Tea Classic Punch, a drink that featured sherbet, black tea, and a mint sprig garnish.
Photo: Aubree Dallas for Belvedere Vodka
At a Belvedere-sponsored event during the 2012 Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, guests sat on haystacks covered with bright orange blankets and chevron-patterned pillows.
Photo: Aubree Dallas for Belvedere Vodka
For a recent pool party, the team at Swank Productions kept the decor streamlined, with a mostly white color palette, mirrored furnishings, and plenty of sheer draping.
Photo: Courtesy of Swank Productions
At Glossed & Found's book launch party designed by A Perfect Event, guests took home summer cocktail recipes provided by Grand Marnier.
Photo: Courtesy of Debi Lilly
Boozy Popsicle
Loopy Doopy, the rooftop bar at Conrad New York, has created a boozy Popsicle. The frozen fruit puree treat from executive chef Anthony Zamora is dipped in prosecco and served in a prosecco-filled wine goblet. The summery flavors include white peach, blood orange, mango, strawberry, and mojito.
Photo: Courtesy of Conrad New York
Crunkcakes
While the cupcake trend may be feeling a bit tired, the alcohol-infused treats from Washington's Crunkcakes pack a new punch. Co-owners Faith Alice Sleeper and Raychel Sabath serve the treats at events and bars around town. The cheekily named cupcakes include the Fat Cat, made with D.C. Brau Penn Quarter Porter chocolate cake infused with bourbon, filled with salted bourbon caramel, and topped with salted bourbon caramel buttercream and a pretzel garnish.
Photo: Erika Rydberg
Pinot Noir Granita
Assaggi Osteria and Assaggi Mozzarella Bar in Washington have created four varieties of wine granitas for this summer: Gewürztraminer, Müller-Thurgau, Lagrein, and Pinot Noir. Granita or “ice water” is a semi-frozen dessert made from sugar, water, wine, and various flavorings. The red granitas pair well with game, red meats, and aged cheeses.
Photo: Courtesy of Assaggi Osteria and Assaggi Mozzarella Bar
Chocolate Vodka Bite
Chicago's Limelight Catering created this confection for this month's American Harvest Organic Spirit Launch Party at the Ivy Room. It's similar to a flourless chocolate cake bite with a chocolate and vodka ganache.
Photo: AveryHouse
Boozy Snow Cones
Served at the Ritz-Carlton Washington, D.C.'s Lobby Bar and Lounge, the treats come in several vodka-infused flavors, including "Lemonade Thyme," "Strawberry Basil," and "Blueberry Mojito." These summer-only refreshers are also available in nonalcoholic versions.
Photo: Courtesy of the Ritz-Carlton Washington D.C.
Madeleine Cookie Pops
Coffee-Mate Natural Bliss partnered with UV Vodka 80 and UV Vodka Whipped to create desserts including alcohol-infused madeleine cookie pops at the Colgate Optic White Beauty Bar this month at Nine Zero One Salon in Los Angeles.
Photo: Glenn Lipton
Cocktail Cupcakes
At the Atlanta stop on Tinsley Mortimer's book tour for her novel Southern Charm, guests could sample Hpnotiq Harmonie- and champagne-infused cupcakes and cake pops. The cupcakes were made by local bakery Cocktail Cupcakes.
Photo: Ben Rose
One of the most striking visuals was a wall of oranges that served as the backdrop to the bar where staff poured complimentary cups of freshly squeezed orange juice.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
An orange grove in Times Square marked a collaboration between J.C. Penney and Joe Fresh that allows the retailer exclusive rights to the Canadian clothing brand's children's line. The retailer hoped the unexpected concept and its juxtaposition with the surrounding area would draw traffic to the public promotion in the last days of summer.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
To set the scene, the production team placed dressed mannequins around orange trees, crates of the fresh fruit, and a pergola.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
At the Catalina Casino for the Catalina Island Conservancy Ball in Los Angeles, the camp theme included centerpieces of illuminated apothecary jars filled with the makings of s'mores. Although the chocolate, graham crackers, and marshmallows on the table were there for the look, guests did have a chance to taste the nostalgic treat. Chef Paul Hancock of the Santa Catalina Island Company, who created a three-course meal for the evening, served a dessert that comprised layers of graham crackers with bittersweet dark chocolate and melted marshmallows.
Photo: Shana Cassidy Photography
In 2008, a section of Hugh Taylor Birch State Park was transformed into a haunted Halloween scene for the 11th annual Bremen Brothers Beach Bash. Among the tented areas for the event was a black-lit library-like space that recalled a haunted house.
Photo: BizBash
Interior designer Leah Pickler interpreted Showtime's Dexter series when the network partnered with Metropolitan Home in 2008 for an experiential show house. Pickler's dining room included plates, chairs, and walls splattered with blood and a centerpiece comprised of vials of red liquid.
Photo: Alice & Chris for BizBash
At this year's Dining by Design in New York, the table styled by Alexa Stevenson had rather a macabre centerpiece that included moss, succulents, and a skull inside a glass cloche.
Photo: Ronnie Andren for BizBash
Blanton Museum Gala
The Blanton Museum of Art in Austin, Texas, held its annual gala February 7 at the Bullock Texas State History Museum with an "Off the Wall" theme. Both the gala and after-party featured statement floral pieces designed by Mandarin Design Lab. The group was inspired by the theme, as well as the colors, from the event invitations. The entry piece at the after-party, held at the Blanton Museum, was a collection of moss, vines, and flowers mounted onto four hanging frames.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
The N.B.A. House
The N.B.A. House presented by BBVA Compass at Skylight at Moynihan Station allowed fans to take part in a number of basketball challenges on a half-court specifically built for the space. Visitors, including N.B.A. star Mason Plumlee of the Brooklyn Nets, could also interact with technology at the American Express Pivot experience. Plumlee is one of four players featured in the video installation, which was created using 50 GoPro cameras at 24 different angles to capture the movies. The activation also included a film on each player's personal journey to make the All-Star Game.
Photo: Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for American Express
Marriott International Moxy Launch
Marriott launched its Moxy boutique hotel brand at Nokia Plaza L.A. Live in January with a program targeting millennials. The event included the creation of a paint-by-numbers-style piece hinting at the secretive behaviors in bars and hotel rooms.
Photo: Quoc Ngo
The Chicago Botanic Garden's Orchid Show Preview Party
The Chicago Botanic Garden hosted a preview party for its Orchid Show on February 13. The evening's four-sided bar was positioned in the center of four giant planters with towering orchid displays. Orchids were also used to garnish the fruity cocktails that the bartenders poured that evening.
Photo: Robin Carlson
The New York Botanical Garden's Orchid Dinner
The New York Botanical Garden's orchid show runs February 28 to April 19, and the garden hosted its Orchid Dinner earlier this month. A particularly colorful display saw orchids sprouting out of paint cans, and linens had painterly designs. Roric Tobin designed the table for the high-end interior design firm Geoffrey Bradfield.
Photo: Owen Kolasinski/BFAnyc.com
Whole Foods Miami Opening
Looking for a creative way to inaugurate a new venue? When Whole Foods Market opens a new location, it dedicates the space with a bread-breaking ceremony. The grand opening of its downtown Miami location in January featured such an event with a long, braided loaf broken in front of the store.
Photo: Courtesy of Whole Foods Market
Boston Ballet Ball
The Boston Ballet Ball took place at the Castle at Park Plaza on February 7. The "Camellia" theme was inspired by the ballet's current production of Lady of the Camellias, and auction paddles were presented in an inventive way that matched the evening's look. The red paddles, held in flower boxes filled with greenery, looked like colorful blooms.
Photo: Liza Voll Photography
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay’s Big Night
The fund-raiser, held on February 7 at the House of Blues in Boston, had a '90s theme. Decor took on a look meant to reflect the decade, with bright colors, geometric patterns, and houndstooth linens. Corinthian Events handled decor.
Photo: David Fox
Weego's Jump Start Battery Pack
Need a gift idea? Talk about the ultimate all-in-one charger: Weego’s jump starter battery pack (from $109.99) can be used to start cars and charge phones, tablets, speakers, and other portable USB devices. The item is also small enough to fit in your pocket. It’s available from TCMPi, the Corporate Marketplace, and can be customized with a logo.
Photo: Courtesy of Weego
AOL & T-Mobile Concert
Looking to give events a fun burst of neon color? Find inspiration here: A 10-foot Lite-Brite-style decor piece spelled out the band Fun's name at an AOL and T-Mobile concert event in 2012 in Los Angeles.
Photo: ES Photo
Designer Mathieu Mirano sent out petri dish invitations to his Fashion Week show.
Photo: Courtesy of Alpine Creative Group
Luca Luca
In a tongue-and-cheek take on the traditional fashion show invitation, designer Luca Orlandi (whose past show invites have come in the form of an album cover and parking ticket) enclosed the invite for his spring 2005 show in a Luca Luca condom wrapper that promised an event "designed for ultra sensation."
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Liberty London
Designed in-house, the multidimensional accordion-style invitation for Liberty's "Christmas in July" preview was inspired by a trip to the London Transport Museum; each vignette was a train platform that would start your journey aboard "The Liberty Express."
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Ann Demeulemeester
Measuring in at about one and a half inches in height, Ann Demeulemeester's 2009 fashion show invite was a play on proportions. Details of the event, including location, date, and time, were printed on individual pages for a flip book effect.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Louis Vuitton
In a no-expense-spared bash for the 2010 opening of its New Bond Street London flagship, Louis Vuitton created unique, numbered V.I.P. invitations that incorporated multiple elements of its travel legacy. Information about each component of the party was featured on a distinct card stock or vachetta leather piece; the final piece was a python card case bearing after-party details. The entire invite was fastened together with a leather tie and gold key—a nod to the French fashion house's luggage-making roots.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Neil Barrett
Neil Barrett is known for geometric cuts and mathematical exactitude in his designs, and the invitation for his spring 2011 men's show played up those ideas. Details for the show were printed on thick card stock packaged into an envelope, trompe l’oeil-style.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Gareth Pugh for Moët & Chandon
For the fall 2008 shows at London Fashion Week, fashion designer Gareth Pugh created a latex rose corsage as the invitation to the British Fashion Council's Moët & Chandon Boudoir V.I.P. room. The pieces were packaged in a Moët & Chandon box and messengered to guests.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Burberry Prorsum
For his spring 2013 Burberry Prorsum show, designer Christopher Bailey celebrated the skyline of London—both the brand’s home base and where it stages its shows—by recreating it in laser-cut pop-up form.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Broad Contemporary Art Museum at Los Angeles Country Museum of Art
The four-and-a-half-inch-tall invitation to the 2008 inaugural Broad Contemporary Art Museum gala in Los Angeles was inspired by Jeff Koons's "Cracked Egg" sculpture, which was part of the inaugural show. The egg was chosen to represent the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s "rebirth" as the new pavilion was unveiled.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Tom Sachs
For a 2008 exhibition at Lever House, artist Tom Sachs mailed miniature, windup plastic Hello Kitty figurines as a preview of his "Bronze Collection" artwork on the iconic Japanese character. The plastic-covered packaging was printed so the artist's name appeared to be tacked on with Scotch Tape.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Tod's
For the 2008 Tod's Art Plus Film party at the Whitechapel Gallery in London, British fashion designer Henry Holland designed a flip-book-style invitation that featured his cheeky drawings of notable figures in film, music, fashion, and the arts.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Barneys New York's Gaga Workshop
To herald its holiday 2011 charitable partnership with Lady Gaga, Barneys New York threw a party and sent out elaborate invitations. Created by Design Packaging and encased in the iconic Barneys black gift box, the 3-D mock-up of Gaga's Workshop came complete with functioning pop-up details and a transparent card allowing the bearer V.I.P. elevator access to the dedicated floor.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Dries Van Noten
The invitations for the 2007 opening of Dries Van Noten's Paris flagship were deceptively simple. A Polaroid shot showing a close-up of the Belgian designer shop served as a sneak preview as well as a way to individualize each invite.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Chopard
Chopard celebrated its 150th anniversary with an extravagant dinner and party at the Frick Collection in 2010. The Swiss watchmaker and jeweler enlisted New York-based Erin Bazos of Art Direction & Design to create a formal hardcover invitation utilizing a custom "Animal World" logo developed for all the jeweler’s anniversary events. The cover illustration, executed in gold foil stamping, was hand drawn and complemented by a watercolor painting created for the inside of the invite.
Photo: Allen Benedikt/AKA NYC
Bloomberg
For Bloomberg's White House Correspondents' Dinner after-party in 2008, guests were sent a device that would only reveal the party information when recipients scanned their fingerprints. As an added element of security, each credit card-size piece only responded to the fingerprint of the intended invitee.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Hermès
In a nod to its heritage as a purveyor of fine leather goods, Hermès, in past seasons, has issued fashion show invitations printed on various forms of its leather offerings. With some, the brand logo was embossed on the leather while with others, the "H" logo was perforated.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Stella McCartney
Always one to offer a whimsical take on fashion, Stella McCartney worked with author and illustrator Adam Hargreaves to create a 32-page book invitation for her spring 2007 fashion show. In addition to the Little Miss Stella character, Hargreaves also rendered fashion notables like Suzy Menkes, Anna Wintour, and Anna Piaggi in cartoon form.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Commonwealth Utilities
Menswear brand Commonwealth Utilities held its first runway show in 2009. In a nod to the event venue, the Astor Place Hair barber shop, the invitation included items like combs vacuum-sealed in plastic.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Maison Martin Margiela
As a reference to New York City, invitations to the 2006 Maison Martin Margiela store opening in the West Village came in the form of a coffee cup, with event details printed on a folded napkin placed inside.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
John Galliano
Inspired by Maria Lani, the self-declared actress who conned the crème de la crème of the 1920s Paris art scene into painting her portrait, John Galliano's spring 2011 fashion show invites came in the form of scaled-down artworks printed on canvases with the show details on back.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Indochine
For its 25th anniversary celebration, Manhattan restaurant Indochine enlisted illustrator Jean-Philippe Delhomme to sketch various iconic patrons that have dined in its space over the years. Printed on thick, letter-size paper stock, the postcard-style illustrations served as an artful memento to the milestone.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
