At Diffa Chicago's "Believe 2013" benefit, held June 8 during the NeoCon convention in Chicago, the gala had prismatic decor from Event Creative. Golden candle holders and flowers in summery hues of purple and orange popped against black linens and Lucite centerpieces. The event took place at the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel.
The Mint Agency produced a fete for Toronto International Film Festival flick The Grand Seduction at Brassaii on September 8. The film centers on a doctor character, and the catering from executive chef Chris Kalisperas played up the theme. Menu items included lemon vodka shots served in syringes.
The E4 (Escape, Experience, Encounter, and Engage) 2013 conference was planned by the Experient team for both Experient and Maritz clients August 11 to 14 at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel. For the closing reception, the dessert bar setup included a working conveyor belt, and plasma screens displayed the food station menus.
Lifestyle and hospitality brand Nikki Beach once again set up a pop-up lounge on the rooftop of the Spoke Club during TIFF. The venue hosted a Sunday brunch and fashion shows for beachwear from several lines, including Kochon (pictured). Models held baby pigs as a cheeky nod to the brand's name.
The Mint Agency recently took on SodaStream's public relations, so staffers decided to host a media lunch during TIFF. The afternoon's drinks included a basil-yuzu mojito, a ginger-tarragon lemonade spiked with vodka, and a gin and tonic with cucumber-infused gin. The cocktails, of course, all contained SodaStream soda.
Inspired by the tree-bound elves that represent the Keebler brand, Leo Burnett and City Eventions recently partnered on the Tiny Doors Project, which promotes the snack company. Purposefully under-the-radar, the Keebler campaign has commissioned artists in a variety of cities to carve little, elfin doors into trees around the country; the locations are announced on a Tumblr page.
Ben & Jerry's recently wrapped its City Churned campaign, which included events in five cities this summer. In addition to flavor launches in each city, the ice cream makers organized community events with local organizations. In San Francisco, for example, volunteers painted over graffiti at San Francisco’s Ocean Beach.
Staff dressed in steampunk costumes carrying an oversize (but lightweight) gilded frame wandered the reception room, encouraging guests to pose for photos while framed inside. A stationary green-screen photo booth was set up in the foyer, along with steampunk accessories such as goggles, hats, and parasols.
To celebrate the return of Crossfire to television after an eight-year hiatus, CNN threw a homecoming party at the Carnegie Library at Mt. Vernon Square in Washington on September 10. Guests couldn't miss the larger-than-life images of the Crossfire hosts in Carnegie Library's main room, and Events by Andre Wells created a modern look that incorporated branding and the show’s signature silver, red, black, and white.
You've heard of projection mapping, but you've likely never seen this before: so-called “reflection mapping” is an innovation from V Squared Labs that uses mirrors, light, and sculptural form to dramatic effect—and it's just debuting on the live event scene this month.
To celebrate its 10 millionth visitor on September 5, the Eiffel Tower Experience at Paris Las Vegas launched 5,000 balloons into the air. The balloons were in France's national hues of red, white, and blue, and the unwitting 10 millionth visitor—an English tourist named Martin Layton—won a seven-day trip for two to Paris (the real one).
On September 17 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the New York City Opera staged the United States premiere of the opera Anna Nicole. At the after-party, Great Performances decorated the dessert table to look like a boudoir. The menu was written on mirrors in red lipstick, jewelry boxes and glass jars overflowed with candy, and Lucite displays held cones of pink cotton candy.
Handbag designer Anya Hindmarch sent models flying down the runway at London Fashion Week on September 16. Called “Out of This World,” the spring/summer show had a segment that took place against a dark backdrop littered with glowing stars. Rotating planets were strung overhead, and the otherworldly vibe was sealed with models in harnesses floating above the runway.
About 75,000 people turned out for the Maker Faire at the New York Hall of Science in Queens last weekend. The two-day festival of tech exhibits, hands-on installations, and more included a performance of choreographed fountains made from Mentos dropped into Coke Zero bottles.
The Variety and British Airways bash took over a West Hollywood mansion currently listed on the market at $28.8 million on September 25. The event's official hashtag decorated the windshields of two posh cars parked near the arrivals area.
Kicking off Advertising Week in New York on September 23, AOL debuted an event that it called a “programmatic upfront." A giant white billboard on Skylight West plastered one of the event's themes—“It's Time"—in massive type. The campaign tagline was also incorporated through various aspects of the event design, including drink stirrers and catering trays.
The New York City Ballet gala took over Lincoln Center on September 19. Designed by Bronson van Wyck, the decor included overhead replicas of hot-air balloons in cheery hues of red and white. Inspired by the notion of an early 20th-century party at the Grand Palais in Paris, the balloons were filled with 6,000 cubic feet of helium and were tied to the balcony rings with gold cording. The abundance of helium helped the balloons appear to hover magically above the crowd.
The Mount Sinai Hospital Auxiliary members hosted the 60th Birthday Bash fund-raiser September 22 at the Ritz-Carlton Toronto. In the ballroom, a showcase was dedicated to 1950s gala fashions worn by prior auxiliary members.
Caterers are getting more and more creative with late-night snacks. Case in point: these French toast sticks with bourbon-infused maple syrup and blueberry thyme jam from L-Eat Catering in Toronto.
Sweets tables are also seeing more innovative offerings. For example, send a few favorite photos to Texas-based Manjar (Spanish for “delicacy”), and the bakery can turn them into edible Instagram posts for you, as well as create sugar cookies frosted to look like the popular social media company’s camera icon.
The Godiva Truffle Takeoff Tour is introducing truffle flights, which package six truffles along a similar theme. At the New York kickoff September 17 at Gansevoort Plaza, passersby could sample truffles and pose for photos in front of six tableaux. Playing off of the campaign tagline of “every truffle tells a story,” the tongue-in-cheek scenes included a sports-theme “It's Crunch Time” backdrop in which people could lift dumbbells that had giant nut truffles in place of weights.
At the opening party for the Canadian Special Event Show last March, Bucket & Whisk created a carving station with five-pound gummy bears instead of beef. In flavors such as “Rare Cherry” and “Well Done Cola,” the giant candies had cheeky signage that advertised features such as “organic-raised” and “hormone-free.” The event was produced by the Idea Hunter.
Over the summer, Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa in California launched the Lemon Break. The catering package includes a lemonade display replete with lemon tarts, lemon sorbet, lemon candies, lemon confit, lemon drops, lemon shooters, lemon chiffon cakes, lemon crème brûlées, and more thematic treats.
At the Chicago AIDS Foundation's World of Chocolate event in 2009, the Signature Room at the 95th served vanilla-and-cinnamon-spiced hot chocolate in pipettes.
At the James Beard Awards in New York in 2007, Allison Vines-Rushing served banana pudding brûlée with cat's tongue cookies in mini glass jelly jars.
To promote the final season of Dexter last year, Magnolia Bakery concocted a gory treat to honor the show's namesake sociopath. The Killer Cupcake topped red velvet cake with spattered caramel "blood" and "glass" shards made out of sugar.
At a Lollapalooza party in 2009, Limelight's passed desserts included mojito-flavored lollipops and an array of glittery confections dubbed "Bedazzled Bonbons."
Boston’s Roxy’s Grilled Cheese can park its truck outside meeting venues. Or, the staff can set up an in-office build-your-own grilled cheese bar with toppings that go beyond childhood basics like sliced tomatoes—think roasted chorizo, applewood bacon, and guacamole.
For a camp-theme event last year, KG Fare Catering & Events offered a mess-free take on s'mores by displaying the gooey treats on clothespins.
At Stella McCartney's Electricity-Free Carnival in New York in 2012, a mac 'n' cheese station was set up as a two-part offering: guests could either select a mini serving on a spinach cone from a Ferris-wheel-shaped stand, or opt for a full cup that could be customized with toppings such as veggie bacon bits, truffle oil, jalapeños, scallions, or sriracha sauce.
At Washingtonian magazine's AT&T's Best of Washington party in 2012, Amaryllis designed the space to evoke the ambiance of a vintage ice cream parlor. Ted's Bulletin offered samples of its homemade Pop-Tarts—cinnamon and brown sugar, strawberry, and chocolate—that the company displayed in tall glasses filled with each flavor's ingredients.
At the Washingtonian event, Patrón served boozy desserts like whoopie pies and cake pops at its customized bar.
Spin-Spun (which was formerly called "Spun") is a Chicago catering firm that specializes in cotton candy. Using organic sugar and either organic or natural flavors, founder Seth Bankier spins the treat in nearly 20 flavors including bacon salt, salted caramel, lemon-coconut, and truffle oil.
