trends

Here's an idea for stylishly dividing up a large event space: The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation celebrated with its annual Breath of Life gala at the National Building Museum in Washington in 2011. Streamers divided the National Building Museum atrium into three spaces.

TD Bank's employee recognition dinner in 2009 was meant to feel not at all like a typical dinner and presentations, as it had in previous incarnations. The guest list shrank from 2,000 to 100, and attendees dined at and presented from a single, organically shaped table, designed by Tribbles Home & Garden. (Blooms in varying colors on the place settings helped attendees locate their seats at the unconventional structure.) Clear glass vessels filled with orchid blooms hovered over diners. Also absent from the proceedings was a stage. Instead, speakers—seated next to the employees they were lauding—stood at the table to make the presentations. Additional personal touches included the use of magnetic name tags (emblazoned with hand calligraphy) in place of less refined plastic pin-on badges, a hall of fame displaying photos of the evening's winners, and an after-party decorated with white lounge furniture in casual configurations.