Similar to branches, stumps are creative replacements for expensive vessels and leave more funds for flowers. Showorks dresses up the humble tree trunk with vibrant roses and gerbera daises.
Photo: Courtesy of Showorks
Collect reclaimed rocks, wood, and seashells to fill apothecary jars of varying sizes, shapes, and heights for displays such as the underwater-inspired design from Blueprint Studios.
Photo: Courtesy of Blue Print Studio
Liz Page Associates, along with designer Max Ultimate Food, wove gold-wire ribbon throughout short glass vases, using reusable LED pillar candles as accents. The look brought to life the theme of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation fund-raiser—“The Golden Thread”—in an affordable way in October 2013.
Photo: Courtesy of Liz Page Associates
As a budget-friendly alternative to lush fall flowers, fill vases with affordable tree branches sprouting colorful autumn foliage, like the bountiful, statement-making maple leaf arrangement by Van Wyck & Van Wyck.
Photo: Courtesy of Van Wyck & Van Wyck
Showorks creates cheerful centerpieces by filling Mason jars of varying sizes with wildflowers, which are reasonably priced per bunch. Repurposed wine and liquor bottles also work as makeshift vases.
Photo: Shannon Livingston
Use unique structural containers to show off a few impactful blooms for a modern, artistic look, like the creation by Blueprint Studios that features butter yellow calla lilies and Billy Ball flowers.
Photo: Michelle Nicole Photography
Found objects don’t always have to be from nature. For this year’s AMC upfront after-party, Empire Entertainment used classic ’80s artifacts—floppy disks and cassette tapes—to construct lighted lamps in lieu of high-end floral centerpieces.
Photo: Rick Gilbert
Lanterns, whether simple or ornate, offer a theatrical alternative to traditional tabletop decor. Style the lighting items to suit any event theme or atmosphere, such as the Moroccan-inspired ones used by Showorks.
Photo: Courtesy of Showorks
Blueprint Studios lines up basic votive candles in a mirrored box for a dramatic, low-cost solution.
Photo: Courtesy of Blue Print Studio
Photo: Courtesy of the Invisible Underground
The PTTOW Summit, held in May at Southern California’s Terranea Resort, encouraged conference attendees to sit with one another and answer some of life's big questions. A spinning wheel positioned adjacent to a seating group offered a series of topics—like "hate," "doubt," and "purpose"—to break the ice and make the exercise more interesting. The coffee table positioned at the seating group offered a workbook that participants could open to find questions or activities to do together, and the event also offered "conversation cookies,” fortune cookies filled with more conversation topics. JOWY Productions was behind the event’s production.
Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images for PTTOW
So-called “dine arounds” are hallmarks of the Engage luxury wedding industry summits, offering opportunities for small groups to interact and to give them some intimate time with event speakers. Each speaker plays host to a table of 10 randomly selected attendees, encouraging guests to mix and mingle outside their circle of friends. And to make the experience more fun, table assignments are given in playful ways. For instance, in Las Vegas attendees selected from among personalized playing cards that all bore speaker photos and restaurant names.
Photo: Scott Clark/Readyluck
Similarly, for Engage at Palm Beach's the Breakers, custom fabric flowers indicated each attendee's designated table number.
Photo: Chellise Michael Photography for Elan Artists
At Cisco Live, held in San Francisco in May, attendees ate lunch outside every day, with about 1,500 seats at large round tables—or on blankets available for those who wanted to find friends or experience a more casual setting. In another networking opportunity, Cisco Live attendees were also invited to join peers and Cisco experts in small groups over lunch for a chat about technical topics of the group's choice. The "Table Topics" discussions offered a fresh perspective on the issues that the masses were talking about at Cisco Live, for instance cloud security. Anyone was also welcome to start a discussion on a new topic and lead the agenda by finding an open table and posting the topic so other interested attendees could find it and join.
Photo: Mitra Sorrells/BizBash
Similarly, for the TED Conference's simulcast event, TEDActive, held in the Southern California desert last year, about 700 guests gathered for a picnic lunch. The conversation-facilitating twist was that picnic baskets were available not for individuals, but for groups of seven—so each person had to meet six new attendees with whom to eat and talk.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Sometimes it takes a little break from formal networking talk to get the creative juices flowing—and the personal connections happening. To that end, TEDActive also set up informal game stations on hay bales around the venue as ice breakers for guests.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
Some organizers get the networking going before the event doors even open to maximize the opportunities for interaction on site: Metropolitan Events & Production was behind a pre-event networking campaign for the 2012 shows that took place in both Chicago and Orlando. Organizers encouraged attendees to use social media to post selfies they took while holding signs that said "Meet Me at the Makeup Show,” along with their names and the event’s hashtags. The stunt was intended to build community and promote face recognition when the show kicked off. Organizers gathered the images and shared them on the event’s social channels to further build visibility among the participants.
Photo: Courtesy of the Makeup Show Chicago
The Exhibitor Show's "Dinner With Strangers” program offered people attending the show solo a chance to maximize meal time for networking, instead of dining in their hotel rooms alone. Attendees could join group reservations arranged by organizers at multiple restaurants for each night of the show. Sign-up sheets in the conference registration area detailed the eatery's name, type of cuisine, approximate cost, and reservation time.
Photo: Courtesy of Exhibitor Show
Phillips Gala
At the Phillips Collection’s annual gala in 2012, the Washington Art Museum chose “Havana Nights” as the theme of its after-party to honor the Havana Arts Biennial. A 1959 Chrysler parked outside the Anderson House as well as palm tree projections set the tone at the entrance. In the back lawn, a cigar roller and salsa and meringue music from the Latin band Sin Miedo continued the theme.
Photo: Tony Brown/imijphoto.com
Mural Arts Customizable App
Mural Arts, the organization that oversees tours of the city’s many murals, rebranded in October and launched a mobile app that uses geo-tracking technology for self-guided tours all over town. Planners can contact Mural Arts to create customized sponsored tours for their guests, which can include local points of interest like restaurants, hotels, and shops, as well as a curated selection of murals.
Photo: Courtesy of Mural Arts
