Ideas

To promote its first book, blog Design Sponge toured the West Coast in 2011. At a book signing in Los Angeles, guests could pose in front of—and draw on—a chalkboard backdrop created by event and styling production company Bash Please.

Ronen Rental’s chalkboard bar features chalkboard panels set in an aluminum frame. The bar comes in two sizes: six feet long and four feet long. Available to rent in South Florida, chalk is included. The company can also make custom stencils for easy personalization.

For a corporate event held in one of the hotel kitchens at the Atlanta Hyatt, Steve Bales of Bold American Events & Catering built floor-to-ceiling chalkboard walls on which he personalized each guest’s apron by scrawling his or her name next to it.

Earlier this year at TEDActive, the official TED conference simulcast held in Palm Springs, TEDx planners from around the world expressed themselves on an interactive chalkboard wall.

In 2006 at the Robin Hood Foundation benefit, designer David Stark created towering hand-drawn sketches depicting New York scenes across more than 35,000 square feet of chalkboard. Guests could add to the work with bowls of chalk placed on the highboy tables throughout the cocktail area.

The Southern-hospitality-infused welcome bash at the Engage! luxury-wedding business summit, held in June at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, featured a chalkboard map that outlined the various locations of the four-part event.

Also available through Pressed Cotton are chalkboard tags, $3.50 each, which can be used as signage or place cards or can be hung from the neck of wine bottles to designate tables.

The details of the event were leaked on the Internet before it took place, prompting a surge of R.S.V.P.s and a line down the block that night. Security and event staffers kept the party from becoming overwhelming by limiting the number of guests in the venue at any one time.

The Nature Conservancy of Canada celebrated its 50th anniversary gala in November at the Ritz-Carlton in Toronto, where planners created a wintery forest feel by lining the ballroom with living trees hung with candlelit lanterns.

A handmade chandelier—branches decorated with crystals—hung over the dining table. Bare birch trees decorated other areas of the room.

The Fairmont Hotels and Resorts' Grand Chefs gala and Jean Banchet Awards for Culinary Excellence in Chicago had an Emerald City theme in 2011. Students from the Harrington College of Design handled decor, and reps from Pagliuco Design Company developed the theme.

Miami's Junior Achievement celebrated the opening of its new experiential learning center in 2009 with a street-fair-style party held throughout the facility's three indoor miniature cities. In the green-hued dessert room, Jack Hammer Live Audio projected a gobo in the same pattern as the table linens.

Lobbying firm the Carmen Group welcomed returning members of Congress back in 2008 with a green-hued event in Washington. Accordingly, the bar served up all things green: mojitos, margaritas, Midori drinks, and Lucid absinthe.

Boston's Emerald Lounge at the Revere Hotel hosted a zombie-themed fashion show this year. Spooky swag included skull-shaped shot glasses from Crystal Head vodka.

For a two-day experience-based activation in 2010, Heineken illuminated the exterior of Miami's Moore Building with emerald green lighting to match the brand's logo.

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.

Visitors to the promotion, including Molly Sims (pictured) and Padma Lakshmi, could pose on a swing at the digital photo booth.

To set the scene, the production team placed dressed mannequins around orange trees, crates of the fresh fruit, and a pergola.

Searching for modern-looking, green-minded centerpieces? Britton Neubacher-Caligure of Tend Living often eschews florals in favor of succulents, air plants, and cacti, to create organic-looking arrangements. Neubacher-Caligure also offers how-to workshops.