Whether it's an intimate wedding or a blow-out corporate bash, event pros know that looks matter. “Decor” is the most popular section on the Special Events Web site, and to give you even more dazzling decor ideas, we're kicking off our new “Divine Decor” feature this month. So get an eyeful of the decor trends worth watching.
Design Minds: Tom Bercu, Tom Bercu Presents, Los Angeles, www.tombercupresents.com; Andrea Michaels, Extraordinary Events, Sherman Oaks, Calif., www.extraordinaryevents.net
Hot Pick: Designed and executed in conjunction with global experience marketing powerhouse George P. Johnson and lighting firm Brite Ideas, a 900-foot-long, custom-made, seamless cyc used in conjunction with 28 high-definition projectors offers what Bercu calls “IMAX to the max.”
How Cool is That?: This video “wallpaper” immerses guests in an all-encompassing thematic environment — complete with dynamic imagery and music — all without staging, a multi-page cue sheet or a single prop.
In the Spotlight: For an August event, the production team's total-environment technology transported 7,000 international event attendees to six different global cultural regions in the space of a cavernous convention center.
Pro Quote: “This technology allows the event to take on many looks and feels through an ever-changing environment with the blink of an eye.” — Tom Bercu
Design Mind: Sean DeFreitas, Designs by Sean, Dania, Fla., www.designsbysean.com
Hot Pick: Custom-built in-house, Designs by Sean's LED tables are the designer's decor ace for the new year. DeFreitas uses the 8-by-3-foot rectangular aluminum-and-Plexiglas tables solo or linked together to turn ordinary dining areas and food displays into show-stopping focal points. A change of legs transforms the tables into cocktail-chic highboys.
How Cool is That?: Because the tables run on mini battery-pack LED lights, they can be used outdoors with no external power source — even in breezy conditions — to create a “very modern, cool look,” the designer says.
In the Spotlight: For a recent wedding, DeFreitas filled LED tables with sand, shells, floral and gel beads to achieve a look that was equal parts modern technology and modern romance.
Pro Quote: “This technology takes a table that's normally a soft-textured, linen-driven item and turns it into a hard-edged product.” — Sean DeFreitas
Design Mind: Ryan Hanson, BeEvents, Minneapolis, www.beeventsdesign.com
Hot Pick: Hanson cites Philips' iColor Cove lights as a bright spot on the decor horizon. Often used in permanent installations such as night clubs, iColor Coves are finding fans among event experts looking for ways to light up tight spaces with luminous color.
How Cool is That?: Versatile iColor Cove lights can be mounted end to end for continuous curves of color-changing illumination or geometric shapes.
In the Spotlight: For the pre-gala function area of Children's Cancer Research Fund's “Dawn of a Dream,” Hanson and crew built a pool and inserted iColor Coves in the pool's white-acrylic surround to give extra “pop” to the water's surface.
Pro Quote: “Able to be set on a color or change color, this burst of illumination is a true hit.” — Ryan Hanson
SCENE STEALERS
Chic, versatile and easy on the budget, ACCENT DECOR'S glass pyramid vases are ideal for bars, cocktail tables and lounge spaces, or as part of a sensational centerpiece. Visit www.accentdecor.com.
CULTURAL STAR'S vibrant printed hand fans are a high-touch alternative to high-tech gadgetry. Crafted of colored paper or cloth and cut wood, they are ideal for corporate events, weddings, warm-weather fêtes and Asian-theme decor schemes. Visit www.culturalstar.com.
Moss Mosaics modular tiles from Moss Inc. can be clipped together to form backdrops of any size. Available in standard white fabric — a perfect blank slate for bold lighting or special effects — they also come custom printed. Visit www.mossinc.com.
