Creative Event Ideas - 17/17

Down with evites; up with paper

Posted by sarah on Jan 21, 2009 in Paper | 0 comments

So it’s not the most environmentally conscious blog title I could have come up with but I will do my part and plant some trees come spring and justify my title in the post.

I am a self professed paper junkie. There. I said it. Be it invitations, personalized stationary, thank you cards, save the date cards, basically anything that involves graphic design (outsourced), thick cardstock and colour and I am a happy camper.

But back to the serious stuff. Invitations for an event-

I understand that parties can be expensive to host and that evites are a tempting alternative. You can customize your evites, you can manage your guest lists and send out reminders. But if I can make a plea- forget the evites. Don’t skimp on the inviations, just budget for them!

My pro invitation argument: Invitaitons are memorable, personal, can set the mood/tone of what is to come and most importantly, people like receiving mail that is not a bill. I don’t know about you but I smile every time I get a big envelope in my mailbox addressed in caligraphy. I get excited to open it up and see what is inside. How could you deny your friends and family that same pleasure!!

Contrarywise, when I see an evite in my inbox, maybe I glance at it maybe I wait for a few days (weeks) until I know I must send a response. In otherwords, I treat my evites like any other email waiting for my attention. Evites do not illicit the same sense of excitement or urgency-to-open. People typically open their mail- especially if it is pretty mail. On the other hand, if you are a heavy Internet user and receive loads of email a day, receiving an evite has a lower priority on the email-to-open list. Just basic email hierarchy.

Here are a few solid invitation designs that I found online. I hope they both excite and inspire.

invitation invitation-3

save-the-date1

wedding

thank-you

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Dessert Tables

Posted by sarah on Dec 30, 2008 in Creative Event Ideas, Food | 2 comments

There is nothing I enjoy more at an event than a creative dessert table. Often times, people elect to have dessert passed out by servers or use a banal, unimaginative arrangement to display sweets. Instead, up your ‘end of evening’ entertainment to the next level by incorporating your colour or event theme into the dessert course and it will tempt your guests to indulge. Take a look at some of my favourite selections below.

Chic white dessert tableMulti-level/texture outdoor tableBlue and chocolate brown themed table

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The Round and Square of Dinning

Posted by sarah on Nov 11, 2008 in Creative Event Ideas | 1 comment

Round versus square a common debate when choosing tables for an event.

To settle and allay present and future arguments, here is the good, bad and the ugly for both types of seating and why I would nine times out of ten go for square (and the one time I would select round).

Round:

Knights of the round table anyone? Just as the name suggests, the table has no head and is the most fair way to seat people. But at an event, worrying about what is fair is only relevant for honouring a head table. Everyone else is there to have a good time and is not worried about who is at the head when there is open bar. Let’s face it, using round tables to seat guests is oldschool thinking when it comes to seating arrangements and should be left to England and the 13th century. It may be convenient to organize in this fashion but unless the event is a traditional Chinese wedding held at a Chinese banquet hall where a round table is optimal for serving, round is boring. The other issue I have with round tables other than being aesthetically conservative, is the fact that round tables are not condusive for conversation. At most you can speak to four of the ten people at the table comfortably and six at most if you are yelling. The seat positions are awkward and all it takes is a center piece over 30 centimeters and wave goodbye to the hope of engaging with people opposite your seat. (Now that I think about it, one could use this awkwardness to one’s advantage if there is an unwanted guest sitting at your table). The moral of the story is event design is an artform in and of itself- to dazzel the eyes, ears and tastebuds of guests. Round works, however, when hosting a small intimiate event, such as a bridal shower or tea. Small, round tables of four to six people are intimate to carry on a conversation and when repeated throughout a room, look cafe quaint and organized.

Square:

Square tables are great. They are clean, geometric and offer guests something different as most people come to expect round. Whether you are using tables of 12 (three on each side) or tables of 14 (two sides of four and two sides of three), there is no debating that square tables make a statement.

Long rectangular tables are even better for glaming up a room or making a dramatic statement. Communal eating is trendy, think of international Belgian chain, “Le Pain Quotidien.” Working with square or rectangular tables better highlight decor colour, centrepieces and are more effective for promoting conversations among guests.

Below I have included several rooms done up in square or rectangular tables and a few round tables. Please post your comments and let me know what your thoughts are in the matter.

lisa gorjestani decor Scott Corridan reception tables preston bailey design alternative reception setting