For Once, Be a Wall Flower!

Nothing says dull like four plain white walls in your bedroom. It can be difficult coming up with a creative solution for a boring room--decorations and artwork can really rack up the bills. So, what can you do? One fun idea is wall decals. My mother recently came to stay with me in my DC apartment, and was appalled when she walked into my bedroom and saw the blandness emanating from my four white walls. The next day, I came home from work and my room had been totally transformed into a bright and inspired place. It was welcoming, cozy, and suddenly colorful--all this for about 30 dollars! She had enhanced my room with splashes of color around my mirror, behind my bed, and even put a few bonus decals in my bathroom. They came in many different patterns, from florals to damasks, and everything in between. And the best part is--once you can finally afford to splurge on posh artwork, the decals peel right off, leaving the paint intact!

by Jessica Marzelli

Bubbles!!

Our newest, coolest decor item here at Gala Events is our light-up bubble tubes. We currently have 2, 6' tall x 4' wide machines, but we can custom design these for you at different heights and different colors (water and case colors). You can also have custom signage on these if you want. Stop by our Special Events Design Center today in Rockville, MD to see them in person!

Endless Inspiration

Working as an event planner requires one to have endless inspiration. All the planners in my office have pictures, patterns, flowers, and colorful items surrounding their desks at all times. I recently stumbled upon a designer who offers products that can add even more inspiration to your desk. Dabney Lee designs stationary and invitations in fun, bright colors. Her newest creation is her Dabney at Home line, which includes products such as monogrammed Lucite trays, coasters, notebooks, and ice buckets that will surely add flair and pizazz to your home. My personal favorites are the file folders, the mouse pads, and the notepads. These all come in a variety of patterns and colors that can spice up anyone’s desk. I especially love how the mouse pad ingeniously doubles as a notepad--how many times have you tried to write something down while you’re on the phone? Thanks to Dabney Lee, your problem is now solved. Dabney Lee’s products will be sure to make your desk the snazziest in your office!















by Jessica Marzelli, Event Planner Intern

Small Companies Are Having Parties, Green Events

You might be surprised, small companies are having parties. Smart employers know that company parties are a great way to show appreciation to employees and to entertain clients.
Every client needs to justify what they spend on their event in 2009. So let’s make sure we help them, by explaining how Gala Events will create the right response in their attendees. It’s much easier for a client to sign off a budget for more exciting entertainment or décor ideas if they can see that they will achieve very clear, measurable objectives.

Green, sustainable and fun too: this trend is all about recycling and finding ways to making beautiful event pieces out of everyday discarded objects. It requires a bit of thought and planning to garner all the ingredients and ensure the space is attractive as well as recycled, but it will pay off, as all the pieces in an event design should make people talk and inspire them. Best of all, it is the ultimate downturn theme: ‘look, we didn’t spend a thing!’ and it has some synergy with another current trend for handcrafted and vintage ‘homespun’ interiors. Simple ideas include: building a bar from beer/champagne or other drinks crates, using jam jars and other discarded glassware to hold candles, stringing together old CD’s, vinyl record and computer discs to make a chandelier, using solar powered lighting and technology.

by Howard Radis, Event Planner

Space

Let’s chat about space…
Big, small, wide, narrow…
Whatever you are planning

Large or small
It is all in the vision…
One of the greatest parts of event planning
is turning a vision into reality.

A little money, a lot of money
making something yours is the way to an awesome event.

Atmosphere in the space
This is also about the translation of the space selected and how it is used for the event
Will we want it to be light; will we want it to be dark?
Will we drape, will we need atmosphere lighting to hit all focused parts of the party, will we perimeter light the room, will we use candle light?
These are decisions that have a huge impact in the usage of an event space.

Every venue has potential as long as the parameters
are well thought out.
How many people will fit the space?
How will the space be used?
Will all guests be seated, will all guests be standing?
It’s all in the planning.

As you can see space is all about what is done with it..
Using a planner to help select your space is an advantage
to the result of the creation of a space.

By Nancy Radin, Senior Event Planner

Mitzvah Themes

Here at Gala Events, we’ve had the pleasure of planning and producing the décor for a great number of bar and bat mitzvahs. Despite being responsible for so many of these mitzvahs, we always ensure that the custom creations leaving our building are exceptional and distinctive so that the ensuing event is a very memorable experience. Many of our successful designs are based around a central theme that is reflective of the tastes of the child that is becoming a bar or bat mitzvah.

I’d like to briefly list just a few of the greatest mitzvah themes we’ve created at Gala:

Around the World – A travelling themed mitzvah where all the distinct locales that the child has visited are represented, from the monuments to the minutia. Often times, large scale facades complete this look, featuring buildings and restaurants from around the world.

Beach – Gala has been tasked on a number of occasions to bring the beach to the middle of a venue space. I’d like to think we’ve passed with flying colors with exciting ideas like a boardwalk entranceway, sandcastle centerpieces made using real sand and a variety of beach shop facades and beach umbrellas in the surrounding area.

Club – A club themed mitzvah features the rapid lighting and excitement of a lush dance club. Think of sleek, glossy blacks and whites, modern furniture designs and a thrilling dance floor.

New York – Similar to the Around the World theme, but specifically representing the city’s popular tourist areas and other facets of New York. We’ve created an amazing subway car entranceway that helps complete the look.

Sports – A child’s favorite sport or sports are featured through various facets such as a custom dance floor to look like a playing field, flashing scoreboards, sports centerpieces featuring equipment and jerseys and locker rooms. We’ve done baseball, basketball, hockey, football, soccer and many others.

I’ll be sure to include a few more of our exciting themes in my next blog.

by Bryan Fox, Senior Graphic Designer

DC's New W Hotel

Last week, I had the opportunity to work on my first event at DC’s new W Hotel. The W is definitely impressive. Both the first floor lounge and the rooftop bar were packed! The event I helped with, Kids Enjoy Exercise Now Wednesday Warm-up, was in the W’s Altitude Room. The Altitude Room is on the top floor and allows access to the nearby rooftop. My two favorite features of the room are the fireplace and the 15 foot ceilings. The W’s in house chairs (pictured below) are very sleek and modern. Windows on the north wall are also a great feature that is often difficult to find in a hotel ballroom space. I think the space lends itself well to intimate social events and I am excited to design more events at the W soon!

by Laura Miller, Event Planner

Transforming a Space

I spent the weekend searching for an apartment in the city. The reality is that what I want costs more than I can really afford, so I will have to make some compromises. In order to get the quality and location I am looking for I am going to have to give up space. So, I started to think about the transformation of space and how one can make it appear to be something different than it is. The question becomes, essentially, how can I make a tiny studio apartment seem larger than it really is and how can I make it completely fabulous? (One's perception is one's reality, right?) Yes, it is extremely small, but I am determined to make it work. First I must eliminate things that take up space but don't serve any real purpose or offer any real visual interest. Maybe I don't need that giant TV set that my father passed down to me. Hmmm...I can give up my grandmother's oversized dresser and store off-season clothing under my bed. And the pair of Bergere chairs that flank my love seat may become a single chair. I think I can create the illusion of a headboard for my bed with some fabric or carefully arranged art or tiles, and it will really help to define my sleeping area and take up much less space! Light, bright colors will be more reflective and will serve to amplify the effects of natural light. And a mirror might really open things up! I must make distinctions between the things I want and the things I need. I surprise myself when I tackle this honestly. By eliminating some pieces, changing the 'rules', moving the boundaries, and pairing objects and pieces that don’t necessarily match I can create the illusion of space and create a unique look. Not only does this allow me to function in a different size space than I am accustomed to, it creates visual interest and transforms a seemingly ordinary space into something unexpected. Hmm...maybe I'll pair that antique dining table with modern dining chairs (I'll have to go from six to four!) covered in a fun, colorful fabric...this will create a completely unexpected juxtaposition.

The same can be said about the spaces we choose and transform as event planners for our events. Each space and location has its own personality and defining characteristics. Some spaces are beautiful and the location works, but they are truly small and dimensionally demanding. When this is the case, it is then up to us to transform it and work with these attributes to create something entirely new...and fabulous...and to make it seem larger than it really is! Space planning is certainly an art and not a science, and it is exciting to find a space, work within its constraints and create an environment that one might not expect. It is quite possible to overcome the obstacles that come with a confined space with clever design, whether you are transforming a venue for a special party or event, or making a small efficiency apartment livable. Good things come in small packages, right?

by Julie Pike, Event Planner

My 25 Most Favorite Event/Work Things…This Week!

1. Hand made paper
2. Pink peonies
3. Our tree tables
4. Invitation by Dauphine
5. Brainstorming with our team
6. Tiaras
7. Napkin treatments
8. Father/daughter dances
9. A flawless timeline
10. Fresh
11. Reading our teams blogs
12. Mondays
13. Redoing the showroom
14. Tenting over a dance floor
15. Sharpened pencils
16. 4:00 Starbucks
17. Frosted Lucite
18. Our hydrangea covered lampshade
19. A finished proposal
20. Our Asian style bar
21. Pink flamingos
22. Peacock feathers
23. Duct tape
24. Decadent linens
25. The people I work with

by Jaime Greenwald, President

Museum Event Space

This past week I visited several museums to check out their event space. Moving to D.C. only two months ago, I am still not too familiar with the unique quality of the city. After visiting places such as the Corcoran Gallery, National Building Museum, and the DAR Museum I have come to appreciate and better understand the culture of D.C. The DAR museum in particular offered spectacular views of the Washington Monument and the National Mall. This venue would be the perfect spot for a bride who wants a wedding with distinct D.C. feel. I am excited to continue touring more venues and to learn more about the city that I now call home.

by Jessica Marzelli, Event Planner Intern

Specialty Cocktails

Specialty cocktails are a great way to spice up any event. I’ve always been intrigued by unique drink concoctions because the possibilities are endless. I love the fact that cocktails are often catered to a particular season because they stimulate the senses so much that we often associate certain drinks with certain months/seasons.

Another facet of specialty cocktails that I find so intriguing is the presentation of them – what type of glass will it be served in? How much will be served per glass? What will be used to garnish the drink? Most people are often drawn to aesthetically pleasing things, so why not make the cocktail look beautiful and delicious at the same time?

There are so many unique things one can do when creating cocktails and no two cocktails are ever truly the same. For your next event, I recommend providing a beautiful and colorful specialty cocktail to keep your guests excited by your creation!

by Anna Pike, Event Planner Intern

Custom Dance Floors

You may notice from my previous blogs that I use the word “custom” pretty frequently. The reason is because nearly everything we do here at Gala is truly custom made for our clients. Custom signage, custom décor, custom layouts and renderings-you get the idea. I’d like to briefly discuss our custom dance floors, as I don’t think you’ll find anything quite like what we do here.

The vast majority of special events include a dance floor. That floor may just be tiles put together by the venue to keep their carpet from getting worn down, but they can be so much more. Custom dance floors involve cut-to-size sheet vinyl that is hand painted by our art director Tom Kemp. This hand painting process can take many hours, but it ensures that the look is artistic and highly professional. Often times, the center logo will be created from adhesive vinyl to ensure sharp lines and vibrant colors. The finished product is a sleek and exceptional piece that guests will remember long after their event has passed.

By Bryan Fox, Senior Designer

Custom Signage

For my last blog, I discussed the importance of a specially designed logo as an important aspect to the customization of an event. I’d like to now discuss another facet that really goes hand-and-hand with the logo, and that’s custom signage. Custom signage can make a huge impact on a special event, and here at Gala, I’d consider us experts of the art.

Signage may not be the first thing that one thinks of when designing a special event, but it can be a very versatile medium. It can act as something that helps thematically pull the party together, direct guests to various parts of the venue, display the name or number of a table, or embellish specific areas. Many times, all of these properties are covered in a single event.

At Gala, we have a large scale printer that can create signage in any number of sizes, from a 6 inch by 8 inch table number to a 7 foot by 8 foot stage backdrop of a sports car for a young man becoming a bar mitzvah. Much of our signage is mounted on Fome-Cor, a board made of foam and paper that allows it to be freestanding or remain straight when attached to drape. All custom signage at Gala can be kept by the client at the end of the event, so the foam-backed mounting also allows the sign to be a long-lasting commemorative item.

Most typically, signage is included behind a stage, on top of custom centerpieces, on tables for identification and as part of an entrance treatment, but whatever the need for signage, I’m sure Gala can do it and do it well. We’ve got a lot of talent here that makes even the most daunting tasks go as smoothly as an everyday routine.

by Bryan Fox, Senior Designer

Gala Offers 3D Renderings

Many clients have difficulty visualizing how a space will look. As designers, we at Gala Events have that gift of visualization; however it is often difficult to communicate that picture to our clients. Through renderings, Gala planners and clients can be on the same page. Below are some examples of our 3D renderings.



Above is the rendering of the stage, catwalk and seating layout for a St. John fashion show at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in Washington D.C. we included in our proposal.




Above is a picture of the auditorium with the stage and seating completely set up. You can see there were a few minor changes from the original rendering, but the rendering helped excite the clients enough to move forward and invest in our abilities to complete such a grand stage treatment.

Below are a few more renderings.



by Tom Kemp, Art Director

My Career

With only months left until my college graduation, I realized that the time had come for me to figure out what I wanted to do as a career. It seemed like every second I was being bombarded with questions about what I was going to do after school, and I always had the same answer—that I wasn’t sure yet. Over the past couple of summers, I had spent my breaks interning at an art gallery, a trust firm, and a non-profit group, all of which were unique experiences that were completely different from one another. In the end, I came to realize that I walked away from each experience with loads of new knowledge and skills, but no true passion for any of the dynamic career paths. Over the years, I had always considered event planning as a potential career that I could really love, but had little actual experience in the field outside of small sorority recruitment events at my university. When I came across the incredible opportunity to intern with Gala, I was more than excited to learn more about this industry that I previously knew so little about. Within the first week I learned more than I had ever anticipated I could possibly learn in an internship. From learning how to set up and number tables in a room, to how to fold a napkin five different ways, I gained a wide range of new knowledge and skills that I genuinely found interesting and fun. However, the most valuable thing I learned during that first week at Gala was the importance of the strong relationships event planners have with each and every one of their clients. My very first day on the job, I was able to sit in on a meeting with a planner and her client, where I was able to witness the passion that the Gala planners have for their work. After seeing this, I was really inspired to be an event planner, and I knew for sure that this was a career path that I wanted to pursue.

by Jessica Marzelli, Event Planner Intern

Glass bubble candle holders

Right now, I am excited about new and inventive ways to use candlelight at my events. I especially love this glass bubble candleholder by CB2. I think they would look amazing hanging in clusters over a table, a dance floor, or really any other focal point in your event space. Hung with translucent wire, groupings transform into a cost effective and unique “floating chandelier.” Fresh and modern, hanging bubbles are a nontraditional way to add romance to any space.

by Laura Miller, Event Planner

A Little Girl Realizing Her Dreams

The “powers that be” at Gala have requested that I submit a blog for the company website. So, much like it was in school, I find myself up late on a Sunday night frantically preparing a paper – of which I know nothing about – that is due in the morning. Will I be graded on this assignment? What happens if I fail? Will there be any extra credit I can apply towards my final score? Being my first attempt at blogging, I would ask that the “powers that be” show mercy on me.

Let me see, where to begin? I grew up a poor coal miner’s daughter. Times were tough for a young girl working in the mines. The only thing that kept me going was the thought of getting away someday. Like other little girls, I would dream of a world with high society parties, debutant balls, and beautiful “Gala” events. But - as many of us know - life sometimes has its own plan. So I find myself many years later a grown man – don’t ask , it’s a long drawn out story involving a sheman, a unicorn, and a game of Kings – helping produce, rather than attend, these high society parties for “Gala Events” - and much to my surprise - I really enjoy it! (not the part about being a man-I knew that all along. I mean I do enjoy being a man- I was surprised about enjoying the event production process.) There is a great satisfaction in taking an idea from a brainstorming session, putting it to paper, and then making it happen. Seeing an idea come to life – that’s what I’m talkin’ ‘bout! There’s a lot of planning and preparation that goes into a party however- not to mention the occasional stress (oh -and the building of furniture- lots of furniture building!)-But once the party is completely set up – it’s truly amazing! I always look forward to seeing what we’ll do next at Gala. I would like to thank the “powers that be” at Gala – you know who you are – for helping a little girl to realize her dreams. Now – has anyone seen my tape measure?

by Russell Einhorn, Master Carpenter

Party, Party, Party!!!

Is it a Wedding? A Bar Mitzvah? A Sweet Sixteen,
a 40th , a 50th or even an Anniversary?
Maybe it’s for work or it is the Holidays…

Parties really matter!! Good moral makes life feel good...

Is it about the music, is it about the food, or is it the atmosphere?

There are so many facets to what makes a great party.
Gala knows how to make that happen…

Parties can be understated or make a statement.
Parties can have set budgets or endless budgets.

We should never feel we can’t have our perfect party!
Gala can make it happen!

Parties can be for religious celebrations or my very favorite parties can be “just because”…

In hard times at what ever level we all need to feel good-

Celebrate everyday –
Let Gala help you make your next party happen!

by Nancy Radin - Senior Event Planner

What turns you on?

Is it the smell of your lovers’ cologne? …Is it the feel of his lips on the back of your neck? ..... Is it the sound of his voice? ..... Hmmmm!!!! Does all of the above do it for me? ..... Sure – But if you really want to excite me……

Show me …a white patent leather tufted wall,… let me feel a silk linen flecked with metallic thread slip through my fingers…let me bask in the smell of that newly cut wood.

Passion, you have to have it when it comes to planning special events. For me the turn on, the passion comes from seeing the designs I have put down on paper become the reality in our shop. I am lucky, so very lucky, to have the privilege of being able to walk next door and see and be a part of each and every detail of how things are made. I love the details and in this business the details are what separate the men from the boys.

So my advice to all the planners and designers out there.… Find out what turns you on… which piece of your event or start of design do you feel passionate about… work on the details…. See it, touch it, taste it… and then create away….

Oh, and if you are in the neighborhood…. Stop by and check out the fabulous tree top table that is being built because baby when I look at that…. I am literally brought to my knees!!!!!!

by Jaime Greenwald, President

Another Beginning

It's Monday. Another beginning!!!

I just love the start of something new. A new day...a new week... a new event... a new design. A chance to start fresh. That's the best part of being in the special events business... no two events are ever the same. My work is never boring, always challenging, exciting and ever changing.

But, does a new beginning always mean the end?

In the event world, things are never cut and dry. This business is based on relationships so it might be the end of the actual event that you have worked on but, your relationship with the people involved from your client to your vendors has merely just begun.

You are looking for that long term involvement… that continuum of the relationship … something you work on and nurture so that when the client or vendor has a need you are the one they seek to fulfill it.

Easy? No! Not at all. But, who said it would be? In the event world like the rest of life things go wrong, relationships can be difficult… obstacles must be overcome and challenges must be met.

Soooo … you work it…you prepare…you complete your tasks…overcome your adversities and reach for your goal and in the end……you realize… that this…. was just the beginning!!!

by Jaime Greenwald, President