10 Best Ideas of the Week: Mustache-Theme Cupcakes, a Wishbone Centerpiece, Vintage Newsstands for 'Killing Kennedy'

The Coalesse table, designed by Gensler, had subtle twinkle lights and a wishbone pattern swirling on its walls. The table's centerpiece was a dense arrangement of wishbones, laid over a row of softly glowing electric candles.

Diffa's Dining by Design took place at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago November 7 to 9. There was a beauty-product-laboratory feel at the table from Geiger and Interior Investments, designed by Harley Ellis Devereaux. A sign spanning the entrance to the vignette read: "Makeup can only make you pretty on the outside, but it doesn't help if you're ugly on the inside. Unless you eat the makeup." The table was covered in mirrors and test tubes.

The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago hosted the Columbian Ball on October 19. And though the bars were fully stocked with glassware, there was one cup in particular that guests seemed keen to drink from. As a surprise addition to the live auction, auctioneer Bill Kurtis announced that a lucky high bidder could win a chance to sip out of the Stanley Cup. The winner ponied up $10,000 for the opportunity.

For the global launch of its new Play:1 sound system, wireless HiFi manufacturer Sonos took over the 477 Broadway Lofts for two days. Each room at the activation featured a custom piece of LED-embedded acrylic furniture—the bed in the bedroom, for example—that also lit up and pulsed to the beat of the soundtrack.

A recent gala in Los Angeles channeled the Big Apple in a big way. New York University's Tisch School of the Arts hosted its West Coast Benefit Gala at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in late October. A soundtrack of New York street sounds played in the ballroom, where dinner tables were set with mini replicas of the Brooklyn Bridge and tiny yellow taxis.

Painless Waxing is a new salon in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood that specializes in hair removal. To celebrate its opening, the beauty spot hosted a grand opening party, hosted by Debi Lilly of A Perfect Event, in late October. As a cheeky nod to the venue's specialty, the evening's dessert selection included cupcakes decked with pink sugar mustaches from Sugar Hills Bakery.

After 15 years hosting The Kojo Nnamdi Show on WAMU 88.5, the host has become one of the most recognizable names in Washington. And on November 1, a bash at the Carnegie Library called “The Kojo Shindig” celebrated Nnamdi's 15-year anniversary at the station. During the party, artists built a portrait of Kojo Nnamdi made entirely of food including cheese slices and chocolate.

National Geographic Channel brought the headlines of November 23, 1963, to Manhattan by way of a theme newsstand. Posters for the November 10 premiere of its film, Killing Kennedy, were displayed on the sides and back of the structure, while a hashtag encouraged spectators post photos and comments on social media.

Hoping to create a somewhat untraditional fund-raiser, Dan Barasch and James Ramsey hosted their second anti-gala, a benefit dinner designed to support the Lowline, on October 15 at the Angel Oresanz Foundation. The event was inspired by the 1900s, the era the site of the Lowline opened as a trolley station, so organizers built part of the trolley car dubbed the Lowline Express. During the evening, the structure was used by a cast of characters, including a conductor, who led guests to a room hidden inside for a surprise performance by banjo player Morgan O'Kane. 

Feeding the Fish, a European performance troupe, uses specially designed LED and laser light equipment to stage kaleidoscopic, ­tightly choreographed lyrical dance and juggling numbers. The company’s pièce de résistance is a patented device dubbed Pixel-Poi, a set of LED batons that can be programmed to display colorful corporate logos, text, or graphic patterns when swung through the air. The troupe is available for global travel.