![“The Royal Chic tufted Chesterfield couches from Hire Elegance make a statement. They are impressive because they are so long, and when filling an event space, it is nice to be able to utilize large pieces of furniture like these couches.” —Brian Worley of YourBash in Santa Monica, California Royal Chic 13- and 20-foot tufted Chesterfield couches, $695 and $1,050, respectively, plus delivery, available in California, Phoenix, and Las Vegas from Hire Elegance](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/your_bash_la.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“Glassware can be mixed and matched to complement any color palette.' —Jaime Geffen of YourBash in Santa Monica, California Colored glassware, prices upon request, available nationwide from Casa de Perrin](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/photo_by_casa_de_perrin.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“I like to rent a vintage car as the perfect accent for a period party.' —DeJuan Stroud of DeJuan Stroud Inc. in New York Vintage car, from $1,500 to $5,000, available in New York from Model A Restorations](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/antique_car.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“We have used linens by Party Tables in three recent events, including a party in Chattanooga [Tennessee], where I used a custom-made black-and-white pattern to fit the estate tables ranging in length from 16 to 60 feet. For a destination on Amelia Island [in Florida], Party Tables made custom jackets to fit over the venue’s existing wood barstools along with cloths for the highboys and pillows to accent the soft seating areas. It was one linen, three ways!” —Steve Bales of Bold American Events in Atlanta Linens, price upon request, available nationwide from Party Tables](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/chattanooga_blackandwhitelinens.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“We love the oval table [from Lavish Event Rentals] as it is a new shape for a dining experience for guests to enjoy at an intimate and modern gathering.” —Karla Dascal of Karla Conceptual Event Experiences in Miami Oval dining table, $550, available throughout South Florida from Lavish Event Rentals](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/oval_dining_lider.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“The Montana collection from Blueprint Studios is made from reclaimed wood, has a strong, solid feel, and can be used to create a number of different looks—from rustic cabin to contemporary loft—depending on the furniture you mix with it.” —Brian Worley of YourBash in Santa Monica The Montana collection, pricing varies, available nationwide from Blueprint Studios](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/blueprint_studios.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“I love the new Rachel collection from Suite 206. The smoky mirror look is so strong and sexy. It adds a lot of drama to any event setting and works great with all the metallic colors that are so popular right now.” —Todd Fiscus of Todd Events in Dallas Rachel collection, from $250 to $750, available nationwide from Suite 206](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/jerry_hayes_rachel_tete_a_tete.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“I adore the Maxwell runner table and display pedestal or the high cocktail table from Taylor Creative. They disappear into any room, which keeps the environment looking less cluttered yet provides an elegant surface area for guests to rest their items on.” —Jes Gordon of Jes Gordon L.L.C. in New York Maxwell runner, $395, and highboy, $250, available in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions from Taylor Creative Inc.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/taylor_creative_inc.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![“The Conveyer Belt by Signature Rentals is our personal favorite rental because it is a unique alternative to welcome cocktail, desserts, and food stations.” —Jeffry Roick of McNabb Roick Events in Toronto Conveyer Belt, $1,500, available in Canada from Signature Event Rental Shoppe](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/mcnabb_roick_events.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
!['The Ruby Red collection from Bridge Furniture & Props is my favorite furniture to use for a speakeasy party.” —DeJuan Stroud of DeJuan Stroud Inc. in New York The Ruby Red furniture collection, from $295 to $895, available in New York from Bridge Furniture & Props](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2015/01/ruby_red_tufted_velvet_speakeasy_look.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![At the Unicef Hope Gala in Chicago in April, designers put an elegant spin on a childlike theme by creating a canopy of suspended neon Slinkys above the dance floor.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/slinkies_at_the_after_party_timothy_hiatt_getty_images_for_unicef_3.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Tanglewood's Opening Night Gala](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/opening_night_at_tanglewood_gala_set_up.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
In July, Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra located in the Berkshires, hosted its Tanglewood Opening Night Gala. The event, which raised $475,000 and was attended by 410 guests, featured oversize wreath-like installations made of greenery and cascading blooms, along with a mix of floral and herb centerpieces.
![WWF Canada’s Pandamonium](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/event_5.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
World Wildlife Fund Canada's inaugural Pandamonium fund-raiser took place in June at Andrew Richard Designs in Toronto. Toronto cocktail bar BarChef offered guests cocktails from a garden-like station inspired by the event's theme, "Doom & Bloom," celebrating the resilience of nature.
![The Watermill Center Benefit](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/bizbash_watermill2016by_gustavo_ponce_17_csedit4_1.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
The Watermill Center’s 23rd annual benefit and dinner, held in July, featured a number of interactive art installations including John Margaritas's "One Ton Tank." It consisted of a hand-poured concrete tank filled with water with windows that created "an almost prismatic light effect." A performer who wore weights entertained guests in the tank.
![The Watermill Center Benefit](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/tori_wranes_performance_csedit_1.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
The benefit’s dinner portion concluded with a performance by Norwegian artist and vocalist Tori Wrånes, who was suspended from the ceiling. It was followed by a dance party with DJ Mia Moretti featuring an impromptu, surprise performance by Ja Rule.
![9/11 Memorial & Museum Benefit Dinner](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/img_276.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
On September 7, politicians, philanthropists, and business executives gathered at Cipriani on Wall Street in New York to honor the fallen and raise money to support the memorial and museum. The dining tablescape featured a mesmerizing hologram prism, which displayed the Survivor Tree through the four seasons (the charred trunk of a Callery pear tree, which became known as the “Survivor Tree,” was pulled from the rubble of the World Trade Center site after the attacks and remains alive on the grounds today). The centerpiece was created by Gramercy Tech. 360 Design Events handled the styling, decor, and video art direction for the event.
![Five Acres’ Soiree Under the Stars](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/five_acres_2016_gala_event_192.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
Pasadena, California-based events and experiential marketing agency Innovate Marketing Group created a glam gala for local nonprofit Five Acres in June. Inspired by the historic Pasadena Gamble House, the agency designed a 1900s-theme event called “Soiree Under the Stars,” with cigar girls, vintage cars, and a jazz band. The annual fund-raiser also included silent and live auctions, a wine raffle, and a chance to win a diamond necklace.
![The H Foundation’s Goombay Bash](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/photocap1goombaybash.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
Held at the Navy Pier’s Grand Ballroom in Chicago in July, the H Foundation’s 16th annual Goombay Bash featured its usual casual Caribbean theme, where guests dress in Hawaiian shirts and leis. The event included more than 200 silent auction packages and a live drawing, plus signature cocktails and a fireworks show. The bash raised $638,705 to benefit Basic Science Cancer Research at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University.
![Diffa’s Picnic By Design New York](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/andrea_algaze.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
On September 7, Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS hosted its Picnic By Design New York fund-raiser, which brought in more than $50,000. Some 200 people filled the indoor and outdoor spaces of the Mercantile Annex to view and bid on themed picnic baskets filled with essentials created and donated by 20 designers, including Andrea Algaze Design Concepts’ bright, tropical offering. Picnic By Design is also hosted in cities throughout the country including Las Vegas and Austin.
![Luminato Festival's Opening Party and Big Bang Bash](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/luminato_opening_party_che_rosales_larawan_6062_1.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
Inspired by minimalist decor and clean lines, organizers of the seventh annual Luminato Festival hired Toronto architecture firm Partisans to custom design futuristic centerpieces for the opening gala, which was held at the Hearn Generating Station in June.
![VH1 Save the Music’s Hamptons Live](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/596870482.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
In August, VH1 Save the Music held its third annual Hamptons Live benefit in New York. The event raised more than $1 million toward the foundation’s work bolstering music education in public schools across the country. Guests joined co-chairs and hosts Julie and Billy Macklowe at their home for the event, which was presented by Bai Beverages. New York caterer Peter Callahan provided seasonal summer fare for guests.
![Shedd Aquarium’s Blu Gala](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/shedd_20160806_177_f_1.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
More than 1,000 philanthropists gathered at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago in August for the 10th annual Blu gala, a fund-raiser for the institution’s rescue, rehabilitation, conservation, and education initiatives. The benefit, hosted by the aquarium’s Auxiliary Board, provided lots of social media moments for guests to pose with sea life such as sharks, stingrays, and scuba divers.
![Apollo Theater’s Spring Gala](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/646378859sa008_11th_annual_.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
The Apollo Theater’s 11th annual Spring Gala in New York—held on the cusp of summer on June 13—included a ceremony inducting late recording artist Prince into the Apollo Walk of Fame. The induction ceremony took place under the Apollo marquee and included performances and appearances by saxophonist Maceo Parker, members of Prince’s band the New Power Generation, Prince protégé and musician Andy Allo, and R&B singer Meli’sa Morgan.
![Apollo Theater’s Spring Gala](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/sa5_8654.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
The evening culminated with an after-party held in a tent designed by event planner and Apollo board member Bronson van Wyck and featured a special “Let’s Go Crazy” dance tribute with a dedicated DJ set of Prince songs. The event raised $1.7 million for the Harlem theater’s artistic and community programming initiatives.
![Lincoln Park Zoo’s Zoo Ball](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2016/09/img_277.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
The 39th annual Zoo Ball, presented by the Women's Board of the Lincoln Park Zoo, was held in Chicago in July. Dubbed “Penguins in Paradise,” the black-tie event was inspired by the endangered African penguins that will move into the zoo in the fall and featured nods to the birds, including a lemon parfait dessert with fresh berries that was accompanied by glowing penguin ornaments.
![Frost lit the room in a dark blue hue that played off the bright colors of the light sculptures.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2012/05/rst_0067png.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The museum, which is open April 5 to May 31 at a vacant space in Williamsburg, welcomes guests with a colorful balloon installation. The museum's preview for media and influencers took place March 29.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5130.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The Dream Machine's first room, 'On Cloud 9,' is designed to make guests feel as if they're walking through clouds. Rows of blue bulb lights were strung on the rooms walls and ceiling to create the effect of a sky, and clouds created with cotton were placed at different heights.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5142.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The second room features a fog machine that emits pink bubbles, which burst into mist when popped.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5171.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The third room is a hallway in which various props, framed illustrations, and furniture are all black and white. The hallway is a nod to the fact that some people only dream in black and white.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5173.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The fourth room, 'Spin Cycle,' resembles a neon-lit laundromat. A hidden space located behind the dryer replicas is a metallic room inspired by the popular art exhibit 'Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors.' 'Each room was inspired by common dreams and millennial culture. Laundromats are big part of living in New York. It was our way of playing tribute to our launch city,' said Solomon. 'Additionally, if you look up laundromat photoshoot [online], you’d be surprised to find that it’s a 'thing.' But how you make a neon-lit laundromat more than just that is where the secret door to infinity comes in, and the cotton candy comes out of a washing machine.'](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5182.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Blessed Kabasu, a New York-based actor, served guests cotton candy out of washing machines. Kabasu was one of a number of staffers dressed as 'dream technicians,' who wore blue uniforms at the museum's media preview.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5179.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The laundromat features a neon sign that riffed off the theme of the room and the pop-up's overall motto of encouraging guests to take photos and share them on social media.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5186.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![After leaving the laundromat, guests pass through a blue-lit room with a neon sign that reads 'Follow your dreams.'](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5188.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The next room is a hallway lit in rainbow, neon colors, which change with a lighting effect that's supposed to make guests feel like they're shrinking as they walk through.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5208.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The end of the rainbow hallway leads to a room painted in blue that has a ball pit filled with 38,000 balls. The ball pit was designed to make guests feel like they are underwater in a pool. Solomon said the ball pit, which is a common experience at pop-up museums, was inspired by the dream of breathing underwater.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5194.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The second-to-last room is a psychedelic garden, lit in shades of green and pink, which showcases plants decorated in vinyl stickers. 'Plants are in,' said Solomon. 'I’m not saying they were ever out, but the more greenery in your home, coffee shop, breakfast spot, or office, the better. Again, it couldn’t be just plants, so the question became, “What would plants look like in your dreams?”](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/plant_a_dream_3.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The final room, also inspired by 'Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors,' has guests walk through a series of metallic streamers to reach the end of the museum. The streamers create a sensation that guests might never reach the end.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5223.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Guests are invited to sign or write about their experience on a chalkboard.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2018/04/tam_5227.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)