Memorial Day marks the unofficial start of summer—or what 7-Eleven refers to as "Slurpee Season." To officially ring in the carefree days ahead, the retailer hosted an event on May 22 with actress Ashley Benson at its Hollywood location. Benson took an inaugural sip of a Slurpee Lite, then sat her cup down on a colorful contraption that recalled a Rube Goldberg machine. The weight of the cup prompted a chain reaction that ended in a banner unfurling; the banner read "Slurpee Season is Now Open!"
The 25th incarnation of I.C.F.F. ran May 18 to 21 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York. A great place for event professionals to get ideas and inspiration, the show displayed items such as Toyko-based Oodesign's tiny floating vases. The vessels hold individual buds and submerge their stems in water.
Chicago restaurant Allium served a swimsuit-friendly 500-calorie lunch at a recent beachwear fashion show at the Four Seasons Chicago. The three-course menu included beet salad with Greek yogurt, fennel, and mache lettuce; wild Alaskan halibut with smoked fingerlings, pickled ramp bulbs, asparagus, and English peas (pictured); and 99 percent pure chocolate sorbet.
For an upscale camp-themed affair, KG Fare Catering & Events offers a mess-free take on s'mores, displayed on clothespins.
At the Pratt Institute Fashion Show and Cocktail Benefit on April 25, models walked a ribbon-shaped runway. Held at Center548 in New York, the show displayed edgy looks from 17 student designers, and Blumlein Associates Inc. designed the fittingly forward-thinking runway and set. With a design team led by Claudia Castro—herself a Pratt alum—the runway was designed so that the collection could be viewed from any angle in the room.
The Museum of Modern Art’s annual Party in the Garden took place on May 21. Overhead, dense arrangements of tropical plants were suspended between white pillars, creating a jungle-like canopy effect.
Billed as the most successful cancer-related fund-raising gala in Canada, the Daffodil Ball on April 18 had a Great Gatsby theme that brought the 1920s to life at Windsor Station in Montreal. In the cocktail space, a living fountain twirled around slowly.
Donatella Versace debuted her newest Versus Versace collection with a bash for 1,300 guests at New York's 69th Regiment Armory on May 15. Complementing three mini fashion shows and concerts, a pedicab sporting a rotating carousel of rainbow-colored Venus Versace bags made its way throughout the cavernous venue, offering guests the chance to hop on the back for a ride.
Sheraton Social Hour is a premium wine service developed in conjunction with Wine Spectator magazine. To launch the new program at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, a penthouse event on May 15 served vino from a custom bar constructed out of wine bottles. Designed by Level Productions and built by Abunch LLC, the bar was flanked by signage that explained the taste profile of the wines, along with snacks that paired with them.
Need some pool party inspiration? Chandon kicked off the season in quirky style at its American Summer Soiree on May 21 and made creative use out of an inexpensive prop: pool toys. Celebrity guests such as Brittany Snow posed in front of a step-and-repeat that comprised bright blue dolphins, smiling pink flamingos, branded beach balls, and other inflatable toys.
