Mother Nature was kind to Bulgari event planner Selmin Arat, who managed the launch party for Bulgari's new Allegra jewelry collection on the kind of balmy, summery evening that event planners dream about, especially at outdoorsy venues like the Boathouse in Central Park.
One of Arat's vendors, Ben Bourgeois of Los Angeles-based J. Ben Bourgeois Productions, was happy to take credit for the weather. "I think you all were due for a nice night, so we brought a little sun inside since you didn't have it outside," said Bourgeois. Going for a soothing, summer look, Arat and Bourgeois furnished the room with white loungers and beds covered with pillows and surrounded by billowing, sheer white curtains. Frosted white Lucite columns from Design Compendium underlit with color-changing lights supported displays of the new jewelry collection. Tables were covered with raw silk cloths, and set with frosted vases filled with flowers and hand-blown glass orbs filled with flowers. The jewel-toned orbs were "all reminiscent of the [colors of the] semi-precious stones in the Allegra collection," Bourgeois said.
Guests could take gondola rides on the lake, mingle to DJ Tracy Young's laid-back mix, get their auras read by psychics from the Ayurvedic Beauty Center, or have color experts from Strategic Look Consulting do clothing color consultations. One guest beamed when a consultant told her, "This is a tough color to wear for most people, but looks great on you." Flattery and good lighting go far.
—Suzanne Ito
One of Arat's vendors, Ben Bourgeois of Los Angeles-based J. Ben Bourgeois Productions, was happy to take credit for the weather. "I think you all were due for a nice night, so we brought a little sun inside since you didn't have it outside," said Bourgeois. Going for a soothing, summer look, Arat and Bourgeois furnished the room with white loungers and beds covered with pillows and surrounded by billowing, sheer white curtains. Frosted white Lucite columns from Design Compendium underlit with color-changing lights supported displays of the new jewelry collection. Tables were covered with raw silk cloths, and set with frosted vases filled with flowers and hand-blown glass orbs filled with flowers. The jewel-toned orbs were "all reminiscent of the [colors of the] semi-precious stones in the Allegra collection," Bourgeois said.
Guests could take gondola rides on the lake, mingle to DJ Tracy Young's laid-back mix, get their auras read by psychics from the Ayurvedic Beauty Center, or have color experts from Strategic Look Consulting do clothing color consultations. One guest beamed when a consultant told her, "This is a tough color to wear for most people, but looks great on you." Flattery and good lighting go far.
—Suzanne Ito