Continue reading »]]> On Tuesday, November 9, I attended the NACE Hawaii monthly meeting. The keynote speaker was China Anderson with REA Events. China is an event designer–she helps you to create a beautiful and original “look” for your celebration, incorporating linens, chair covers, colors, lighting, staging, pipe & drape, and more.

China spoke about the trends that she is seeing as a Hawaii event designer. When creating your Hawaii wedding, these are good things to keep in mind.

Please note: as with any trends, trends can be fickle and can change upon the whims of the general public. These are simply generalizations based on China’s experiences.

COLORS

According to China, the following colors are on their way in for the new year:

• Purple/Eggplant
• Platinum & silvers, especially when paired with an accent color
• Burnt orange & ambers: China wasn’t sure if this is because people are gravitating more towards fall colors during this season in particular, or if this is a general incoming trend;
• The classic Black & White, which never goes out of style
• Garnet red, a very rich & dark color, and
• Champagne.

TRENDS

In addition, China is seeing these trends really develop and be requested among her clients:

• Lounge areas
• Full room draping (Pipe & drape, etc.)
• Backdrops: If you don’t have it in the budget to drape the whole room, consider draping behind the head table, main wall, cake, etc. It’s more affordable but still adds that “Wow” factor to the look of your event.
• Ceiling treatments
• Non-floral centerpieces
• Strung light strands: (like rope lights, Christmas lights, etc.). Please note that, while the lights themselves may be cheap, the labor to install and hang them may cost you. Hanging light strands correctly & safely is a labor-intensive process.
• Hanging lanterns and chandeliers
• Light monograms
• Lighting

One thing that China really emphasized was making sure that your lighting designer is qualified to help you create the right look for your event. Not all lights are created equal, and a company may rent you the lighting equipment, but

• The lights that the rental company or DJ rent out may not be adequate to create the look that you want to achieve;
• The setup guys may not know how to properly set the lights to match perfectly your colors and look (so as to not clash with your linens, drapes, etc.);
• The lighting designer needs to work closely with your event designer to achieve that look.

I learned a lot at this presentation. If you have questions about this or about event design in general, simply ask! Click here to email China and REA Events, or call them at 808-983-2800.

Tell ‘em that I sent you!

Image courtesy CHINA ANDERSON / REA Events

Continue reading »]]> Last night, I attended the April meeting for the Hawaii chapter of the American Disc Jockey Association, to catch up with friends, network, and to learn something new about the industry. The conversations were very spontaneous and interesting. Thank you to David Louis with Dynamic Sounds and Don Faumuina with I Do Wedding Entertainment for sharing your ideas and stories. Special thanks to Marvin Ventura of Photographix Hawaii and Legendary Sounds for sharing his insights into the DJ world (both club and mobile) AND the photography world.

One of the newest trends that everyone agreed upon was that they were seeing more requests for mashups at weddings. What’s a mashup? According to Wikipedia, a mashup is a song or composition created by blending two or more songs, usually by overlaying the vocal track of one song seamlessly over the music track of another. In other words, take the vocal line/a capella of one song and drop it over the instrumental of another song. Here’s an example, a mashup of Queen vs. Outkast:

Looking for mashups for your own enjoyment, or to hear at your wedding? You can find some homemade ones on MashupTown.Com. If you want some professionally made mashups, find it at CrooklynClan.Net (thanks to Marvin for turning me onto this site).

Continue reading »]]> As you may know, I was in Vegas over the last two weeks attending conferences to learn about the latest trends and new ideas in weddings and special events. One of the conferences was the CATERSOURCE/Event Solutions Conference & Tradeshow, THE convention for event planners and caterers.

Many of the seminars and classes focused on new trends. Here is what to expect in 2009-2010:

• Special event lighting in general will be HUGE. Not just uplighting, but lighting as part of the centerpieces, as part of the decor (focusing on certain elements of the reception), etc. LED lighting, with its low heat, long life, and ability to run on batteries, will allow lighting to be more widespread among centerpieces, portable chandeliers, furniture, etc.

• Brides & grooms are trending towards more “ethnic entertainment” especially from those ethnicities that they aren’t! You will see more mariachi bands, spanish flamenco music, and Chinese Lion Dances at weddings and special events…especially at your Caucasian friends’ events.

• Musical tastes at special events are trending more sharply towards “Out-of-the-Box”. Expect more youtube style first dances, more group bridal party dances, and more non-traditional choices in first dance music. I have always talked about personalizing the experience to each event. You will find that this year will be even more profound.
• Colors: vibrant colors, especially yellow, will be big. Black & white and the various shades of it will remain strong. Expect the color of “chocolate” to be on its way out. Patterns will be big, not so much in the fashions but among the decor and linens.
• “Going green”: More people today are looking towards cleaner and “greener” technology, and you will find many of that demand applying to the weddings/special event industry. More people will be asking for “greener” limos/transportation rather than the hulking SUV/Hummer-style beasts in the past. If disposable dishware needs to be used, expect more requests for biodegradable plates, glassware, and silverware.

• Invitations: because of the “green movement”, expect more hybrid invitations, or invitations on recycled material.
• Transportation: biofuels and “green.” Brides are getting away from gas-guzzling limos and moving more towards “classic cars”. Expect to have grooms order “muscle cars” to shuttle their groomsmen around.
• Catering: more candy bars. Some markets are seeing a trend of having the candy bar at the END of the night, as a way of giving energy to the people who have been dancing all evening.
• The 80s will make a HUGE comeback–the styles, the colors, the music. It is becoming evident by the vibrant colors (bright yellows, greens) that were huge then…and will be soon.
• New trends in monograms: fancy “flourishes” around the initials.
• Fans & umbrellas/parasols will be seen as alternatives to the bouquets of the wedding party, especially in warmer climates like Arizona & Southern California. Not just for aesthetic reasons and for the uniqueness, but also because of a practical reason: it provides shade from the blistering sun. (Lately, I have noticed this pattern develop in Hawaii as well. It’s too early to tell, but I feel that this is a trend that will be very welcome here in the islands.)
• Seating/decor trends: “Lounge-style” is coming into vogue. Instead of the traditional high-boy cocktail tables during cocktail hour and traditional banquet tables during the reception, expect to see more lounge style furnishings and look.

• The Wired Bride: More brides will turn towards the Internet, social networking, and new social media to help make their decisions. You can expect more brides using Facebook and the web to research their vendors. Also expect a change in the style of communication–brides are calling less, but texting more. With the increasing prevalence of iPhones and Blackberries, information and contact are available 24/7/365, quickly and easily at your fingertips.

I posted several image galleries on Facebook that showcase these trends. Even if you aren’t a member, you can access them.

• Conference Registration & Seminars (including images from the preliminary Wedding Trends class)
• Catersource Wedding Party, a “mock wedding” that showcased the latest trends in wedding decor, fashion, food, beverage, and entertainment
• Another gallery from the Wedding Party, this time showcasing people and entertainment