Rocket Science Weddings and Events

One of the highlights of my year is attending the Engage! Luxury Wedding Business Summit. I have posted some cylinders from past Engage's, so I was delighted to see cylinders still in use at the latest one at the BEAUTIFUL Breakers Resort in Palm Beach, FL. (Their slogan is: Once you stay, you'll understand. Yep, that about sums it up. What a great experience I had there!)

Sometimes I think cylinders get a bad rap, that they are too plain or mundane to be used in an extravagent arrangement. Well these photos from our gala dinner say otherwise. I love the way they incorporated the cylinders on top of pedestals to create a really dramatic effect.

Thanks to Elan Artists, Scott Clark Photo and chellisemichaelphotography.com for the images.

Here is the room shot. You can see the various centerpieces on the tables. Look how tall and striking those cylinders look! I am sad that I didn't get a shot of the entrance to the room; on each side of the doorway were tables full of cylinders with floating candles. So warm and inviting.

Table number one. The candlelight reflects so beautifully off the mirrored table top. Check out those cylinders!

Table number two. There is hardly any floral in this centerpiece yet it is elegant, dramatic and luxurious.

This table doesn't have cylinders but it shows how you can combine multiple centerpieces for a cohesive look, some that are heavy floral like this one and some that are more candlecentric.

At long last, Cylinder Thursday is back, and with gusto! Now, loyal reader, you may have a sense of deja vu when looking at this entry. I did indeed do an entry with an orange cylinder made like the cylinders you see here. However, I think this is worthy of its own post because here you can see the cylinders in action, and in TECHNICOLOR!

Tonight was a great open house at the Chowgirls' Parlor. They were celebrating getting their liquor license as well as the unveiling of this great, urban event space. The Parlor is perfect for parties of 40-60 people, who want an intimate art atmosphere. The art on the walls currently is by Chank Fonts, but a little bird told me the next show may feature the super talented Josie Lewis.

A lot of people put a lot of work in to making this party great, including: Connie Duglin Specialty Linens, 1012 photo, Sweets Bakeshop, Two Smart Cookies, Muddy Paws Cheesecake, and all the staff at Chowgirls.

There was a great turnout, it was fun (as always!) to chat with Katrina of Studio Laguna, Matt of The Traveling Photo Booth, Sally (and Maia) of La Vie Photography, and the Wedding Guys Matthew and Bruce.

Without further ado, here are some technicolor cylinders and some pictures of the party.

Yes, those are fuzzy fur linens (faux of course!).

This blue color was probably my favorite.

By the end of the night, the logo cookie was the only one left.

Is it Thursday already?! Here we go. With paper bands, your possibilities are literally endless. I have just picked out a couple samples to show you today, but if you have paper, scissors (or a paper cutter is even better) and some double stick tape, you are ready to make this cylinder!

I have selected a heavier duty paper, almost card stock heavy, from Archivers. Side note, if you buy your paper from Archivers they will let you use their paper cutter for free. You may have to endure soccer moms putting together their scrapbooks, but it is worth it for a crisp, straight cut. (This paper actually has a pattern on both sides, which you will see in a few pictures.) I cut one thick band and wrapped it around. With 12x12 or 8.5x11 paper, you will have a little overlap so if you aren't good at lining seams up, cut most of it off (leaving a little overlap for the double sided tape). I didn't bother to trim this paper however.

I tried to line up the candle/water top with the top of the paper, but I didn't do a very good job. You don't want to fill the water to the top of the paper, leave about 1/2 inch to make room for the candle. Of course, you don't have to line the candle up with the paper, in fact, I think it would look cool at the top... so you can see the paper band under it...

Like this!

The cool thing about this double sided paper is the versatility. Here is the other side of the paper on a smaller cylinder.

Float a candle in it, fill with colored water, put some flowers inside, put a pillar candle in... there are so many options! You will notice that you can't see any tape from the inside. I use one piece of double sided tape on one end of the band (going the entire length so there aren't any gaps or puckering), which will be the top and overlap the bottom end of the band, pulling tight. This makes for easier removal too and doesn't leave tape residue on the cylinder.

Finally, congratulations Emily and Tracy who just got married are on their Italian honeymoon as we speak. They made this paper band for their invitation wrap, and we used leftover ones to put on cylinders. Another great idea inspired by this cool couple.

Okay, this one is kind of cheating, because the pumpkin isn't actually touching the cylinder. And it is really hard to think "Fall" when it is 80 degrees and sunny. You have to love that about Minnesota, the weather will keep you on your toes.

Surprise! I had to throw this in there to promote the upcoming Independent Wedding Association's wedding fair. I am all about being revolutionary in the wedding industry, and I think this qualifies. Typically wedding fair's focus on the bride, and the poor groom gets dragged from booth to booth, and nobody cares that he is there. Sometimes he has to miss football to attend! So the Independent Wedding Association decided to change it up a bit, and put the focus on the groom. Groom's Night will feature drink tastings, bowling, suit fittings, s'mores, and more. This will be a fun event for couples, guys and their groomsmen or anyone looking for some fun on a Thursday night (we checked, there are no football games).

Some of my favorite vendors will be there too, like The Traveling Photo Booth, Studio Laguna, Becca Dilley, Lime Canary Vintage Rentals, and Cocoa & Fig. Plus, I am giving a talk on how to create a cool lounge space.

The tickets are dirt cheap, 2 for $15. And if you book online by tomorrow and use the code oct2011 you can save 50%. The free drinks alone are worth that.

Finally, you will receive two $50 IWA Bucks good at any of the participating show vendors. Phew. Awesome. Now back to the cylinders.

Soo.... I first have to give credit to Tracy and Emily, they perfected this recipe. (We are doing something similar for their wedding, can't wait to show you in a few weeks!)

Thought with Halloween only a month away, it would be a perfect time to break out the glowing orange cylinder. How cool is this?! Usually I am not a fan of using colored water in arrangements, I think it can look cheap. But here, with the addition of an LED light and some opaqueness, it gives it a haunting glow. Put some of these out on the stoop to welcome the trick or treaters. Of course you could use any combination of colors and opacity, the possibilities are endless!

You will need:

Food coloring

Milk

Submersible LED lights (you can buy online, at Michaels or other craft store)

Floating candle (optional)

1. Start by filling the cylinder with the desired amount of water.

2. Turn on the LED light and sink it to the bottom.

3. Now it is time to add the food coloring. Here I used 4 drops of yellow and 3 drops of red.

4. Add milk to your desired opacity. I used just a splash, maybe a teaspoon?

5. Top with floating candle!

Here it is without the floating candle. I wanted to wait until dusk to take the photos so you could really see the glow. Even in the daylight though these are cool looking.

Here it is with the candle on top. What is cool is that the candle kind of disappears in the water, making it more of a "floating flame" than candle. The more opaque, the less noticeable the candle becomes.