For the folks at Sprinkles Cupcakes, one day is simply not enough for all the goodness that is Cinco de Mayo. In an effort to continue the Mexican celebration, the team created a specialty margarita cupcake. The key lime tequila cake is topped with key lime frosting and dusted with salt around the rim, just like its liquid namesake.
Priced at $3.50 each, the cupcakes are currently available until May 23 at the Georgetown store as well as the 11 other locations around the country.
With Andy Warhol art on the walls of the atrium, Eric Michael and Jack Lucky used a 1970s-inspired color palette of bright orange, yellow, pink, and neon green. Perfect Settings provided linens in each of these colors to create alternating color blocks from table to table.
Vibrant colors reverberated throughout the Corcoran Gallery of Art for the 58th annual Corcoran Ball, with each gallery boasting bright spring hues like yellow, coral, pink, blue, and green. The team behind the ball’s look took inspiration from the color palette and art in the galleries to create individual looks for each room.
The museum’s Women’s Committee turned to Jack Lucky of Jack H. Lucky Floral Design, Occasions Caterers’ Eric Michael, and Barbara Grazzini of Perfect Settings L.L.C once again to transform the museum for the ball. The 721 guests dined on a three-course meal at elaborately decorated tables set up throughout the museum’s eight galleries, atrium, and rotunda—the only time food and drink are allowed in these spaces.
Check out how the team created an effective design without overpowering the environment.
**Photos by Tony Brown/Imijination Photography
**Originally posted on BizBash.com 4.25.13
Another salad option during the Crunch flight mixed pomelo, green papaya, watermelon, and radish. The citrus flavors tied in with a jasmine tea margarita passed as guests arrived.
TEDMed, the medical technology and healthcare event started by the same entrepreneur that founded the renowned TED conference, took a different approach to food service for its annual conference dinner at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Wednesday night. TEDMed event planner Nicole Finn of C to C Events working with U.K.-based Gastrophonic and Occasions Caterers, it created a culinary experience that tied all the senses together.
Each of the four food flights had its own theme that combined various small bites—both passed and on buffets—with a signature drink, musical score, and lighting scheme designed by Gastrophonic to create a cohesive environment that encompassed sight, sound, taste, smell, and texture.
“Studies have been done in the U.K. showing that sound and light enhance how you taste food,” said Occasions marketing manager Denise Nguyen. “A restaurant in London has done this before by providing an iPod with its food service, but this is the first time we’ve brought this concept to a large event.”
Other vendors contributing to the event included Atmosphere Lighting, Perfect Settings, and All Stage and Sound.
**Photos by Molly M. Peterson Photography
**Originally published on BizBash.com on 4.18.13
Posted in Catering, Decor, and Style Ideas, Corporate Event Coverage
Tagged Gastronomy, TED, TEDMed
**Photos by Travis Vaughn Photography
**Originally published on BizBash.com
We went to the Ronald Reagan Building for WomenHeart‘s 13th Annual Wenger Awards and dinner Monday night honoring those who’ve made an impact on women’s heart health. Before they went on stage, we snapped honorees Abbott Vascular’s Jerri Anne Johnson, organization CEO Lisa Tate, Dr. Rita Redberg, and WomenHeart chair—and heart attack survivor—Carrie Loveless.
Also honored: Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s Dr. Carolyn Clancy, and Dr. Nanette Wenger, for whom the awards are named. The program included moving testimonials from heart disease survivors, as well as a seemingly impromptu, and very amusing, operatic performance from the banquet manager and sommelier.
**Originally published in TheScene Bisnow on 4.10.13
Posted in Charity Galas and Benefits
Tagged Go Red, Wenger Awards, Women's Heart Disease, WomenHeart
Yesterday we got you thinking outside the box when it came to flowers for you next event. Now let’s turn your attention dessert, or more specifically: the cake.
Everyone loves cake. Whether it’s cupcakes or a 5-tiered masterpiece, cake is a staple of any wedding, and many events no matter the occasion. But why not take your cake, or dessert, to the next level? Here’s a look at some inspiring confectioners’ designs (and a few other dessert items as well) from A Chic Affair.
Bakeries who participated in the showcase included the Cake Courtesan, Cakes by Happy Eatery, Happy Tart Bakery, Kendall’s Cakes, and Maggie Austin Cake.
**Photos by Tony Brown/Imijination Photography
All too often, as many planners strive for a “classic” flower arrangement, what they end up with is boring. Pretty, but boring. However, the florists exhibiting at Modern Luxury’s A Chic Affair on March 24 presented anything but boring arrangements. From the flower selection, vases, combination, and overall presentation, here’s a look at centerpieces and ambient floral arrangements to spark your creativity.
**Photos by Tony Brown/Imijination Photography
At one of the largest fund-raisers in the city, nearly 2,000 people attended the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s 26th annual ball Saturday at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. After booking the night’s headliners, Jim Belushi and the Sacred Hearts Band and comedian Dana Carvey, organizers turned to the Internet for decor inspiration.
“Jim has a sort of bluesy feel to him, so we were trying to come [up] with a theme to complement that and decided on Saturday Night Blues,” said event producer Julie Hanson of Hanson Productions. “We then Googled images of jazz saxophone silhouettes, found one with this orange swoosh around him and loved it, so built everything around that.”
The image’s influence was evident throughout the reception and dinner spaces in everything from the linens and centerpieces to the lighting, additional entertainment, and printed collateral.
Here are the event decor, staging, catering, and entertainment highlights from the benefit.
Friday night, we went to the Corcoran Gallery’s annual fundraiser, Artini. Hosted by the gallery’s 1869 Society, it brought eight mixologists to compete for best cocktail inspired by a work of art in the museum. We snapped Nike’s Marisol Plata, Washingtonian‘s Katharine Ragsdale, and Edelman’s Mary White Martin.
Organizers requested guests wear “creative cocktail” attire. Madewell’s Kasie Lynn Clouser, Diego Gonzalez, and Ashleigh Toner were in the spirit sporting their company’s threads.
In the VIP speakeasy lounge, government contractor Dan Law, AT&T’s El Chye, and ATKearney’s Stephen Hrutka.
**Originally published in The Scene Bisnow on 3.25.13; Photos by Chris Avery
