Behind the Design: Focal Point vs Details & Accents

It's that time again! Time to go "Behind the Design". It's time to take a look at he link between Fine Art & Design Principles and Event Design. Today I'd like to focus... I mean really focus, on what really draws you into a design, one of the biggest mistakes I see Event Designs and how understanding how we, as viewers, react.

In Fine Art a "Focal Point" is the specific area of focus (the place were your eye is drawn to) on the piece of art. Focal Points can be created with color, light, proportion and its position in the total space such as the canvas. For example, in the Johannes Vermeer portrait "Girl with a Pearl Earring", the painting features a three quarter view of a young girl's face with a dark background illuminated by light. Art first viewers may try to focus on the face itself but it is the pearl earring near the center of the painting that catches the viewer's attention and draws their eye to that area of the canvas.

In Interior Design, because you are dealing with the scale of a 3-Dimensional space a Focal Point will be larger and fit proportionally with the size of the room - example: a striking mirror in the foyer, a larger piece of artwork over the sofa, floor to ceiling window treatments or a dramatic bed frame.

In Tablescapes and Event Designs determining the Focal Point(s) should be one of the initial step of the design process. Use of lighting, color and position in a space (in the case of Event Design, space refers to the surface of the table or the space in the event venue) are used in developing the Focal Point however, they are not the most common mistakes. Often times the biggest mistake is "focusing" in details and accents instead of the Focal Point. They find a bunch of cute little favors or decorative accessories but do not begin with creating a cohesive overall design plan or layout and the complete look never really quite comes together.

In another recent post, Behind the Design: Tablescape Scale and Proportion, I asked readers to imagine the most beautiful, exquisite perfect orchid... then imagine it is floating in a kiddy-pool, then in the middle of a huge Olympic size pool. The point, it doesn't mater how lovely the decorative element, if it is not used in a design that considers the proper and scale it looses it's impact. The other side of this is a design that is too big and not function to the scale of the table or room - the poor guests struggle to see each other or across the room. Remember, the number one rule of design is "All good design should demonstrate both form and function".

Question:

Have you ever seen a centerpiece that seamed to be lost on the surface of a table because of it's scale of the centerpiece wasn't proportional to the size of the table?

Inspiration Board vs Concept Board

Every once in a while I'm reminded that not everyone understands what I do. After all, we're the first in our area to take a technique often used in Film-making, Architecture, Fashion Design and Interior Design and incorporate it into "Wedding and Event Design". First let's talk about the new popularity of "Inspiration Board".

Inspiration Boards:

In recent years the use of Inspiration Boards has gained mass appeal in Wedding and Event Design. Once used as an empowerment tool to envision goals and help inspire, an "Inspiration Board" in wedding planning is a visual collection of "inspiration" or design ideas. A collage of images (typically from magazines, photographs, the Internet, etc.), Inspiration Boards are usually pictures from other weddings or events. The Inspiration Board is created to reflect and convey many of the general likes, looks, and styles that appeal to the Bride & Groom and usually have images of a common theme or color scheme. They can feature everything from pictures of Wedding Cakes, Invitations, Wedding Gown, Floral Arrangements/Bouquets, Accessories, etc. The downside is because an Inspiration Board is basically a collections of pictures from other people's weddings there can be a tendency of repeating the same looks over and over again. Often people may see a wide range of images "they like" but have trouble putting it all together... why? Because you can "like" a lot of different images, ideas and style but they may not necessarily be "their style" or reflect their personality. Don't get me wrong, I do love the Inspiration Board because it can be a very helpful tool to Brides & Grooms, it allows them to really examine and visually identify many of the design options that are out there.

(Above Inspiration Board by UtahBrideBlog.com)

Concept Boards:

Concept Boards or Concept Illustrations are different from Inspiration Boards. Think about the last awe-inspiring, visually breathtaking movie you saw. Think about the captivating scenery, background and even the customs that transported you into a different world. Did you know that before any camera's rolled for the filming, before sets are built for each beautiful scene in the movie, or any costumes are created for the Actors an Artist sketches and paints custom illustrations of each scene and it's the details? From their the Set Design and Crew work to create the entire scene on a sound stage or transform the location being filmed. A Concept Board or Illustration is a custom created drawing or painting of depicting a person's wedding or event design. Created to especially reflect the individual vision and details of the Bride & Groom's (or Event Host's) specific event it can be an illustration of the design entire event scene or of details of the event such as Centerpieces, Tablescapes, Bouquets, Alter Decorations, etc. They may also use special elements or items in the finished Concept Illustration. Example; If a Bride bring has a swatch of fabric from a dress or a her Grandmother's Broach I would create an original design based on that item and draw an illustration that they may present to the Bride.

Give a little, love a lot

Yes, I'm one those people. I admit I get all "choked up" every time the new house is revealed to the struggling family overcoming hardship during "Extreme Makeover Home Edition". Wedding by their very nature warm the heart and I truly hope to help every couple that we encounter so the idea of bringing such happiness to deserving couples just makes me smile. One of my new favorite organizations is "Wish Upon A Wedding", an amazing nationwide non-profit collective of wedding professionals who volunteer their time, products and services to grant wedding wishes to individuals facing life-threatening illness.

Wish Upon A Wedding is currently seeing donated products or services in 46 cities, ranging from wedding gowns to tuxedos, invitations to cakes, and limousine services to honeymoons. It only takes a moment to register and make a difference in someone's life by clicking here

Design Trend: Lantern Love

Ever wonder what it is about candlelight that we love so much? Next to the oh so flattering glow of natural light, candlelight can be used to create some of the most warm, romantic atmosphere. Candlelight creates a natural warm undertone, unlike that found with incandescence or florescent lighting which casts a blue or greenish-yellow undertone that tends to be unflattering for more skin tones.

With candlelight the flickering light dancing atop a table, down an aisle and even suspended from above truly adds enchanting elements to the design of any event. Let's face it, nothing sets the mood like candles. For years now a trend of round paper lanterns has been widely seen transitioning from outdoor garden weddings to more contemporary wedding receptions but the newest trend is the look of more sophisticated metal and glass lanterns being Incorporated ceremony, reception and even table-scape designs. We happen to offer a full variety of lanterns that reflect many different shapes, colors and design styles - modern, traditional, whimsical, etc. Here are a few of the lanterns we offer that we simply love... Enjoy!!

3rd July Wedding

Congratulations to Marie & Rex on "3rd of July" wedding!

Silver & Blue (we're talking about a couple of true Dallas Fans) where the colors of this wedding. Unique, shimmering silver "wrap-around" chair covers created a soft flowing, elegance and feeling of drama to the room design and each table. The centerpieces featured the gentle flickering glow of Silver (and some Blue) Lanterns at the center of each floral arrangement made with fresh flowers hand-painted (yes, those are "real" fresh flower and yes, they are hand-painted) blue to reflect the theme colors. Here are a few pics taken during set-up but I'm anxiously awaiting more images which I'm looking forward to sharing with you soon. In the meanwhile... enjoy!

Before (Illustration presented to Client)

Final Centerpiece after Reception

Behind the Design: Tiers of Joy

One of the most important lessons in Interior Design is examining the room's layout and creating a design that works best in that space. This may include a number of factors such as the height, scale, and flow of the room. I've found that the same principles also apply to table-scapes design. The most alluring and awe-inspiring table designs adhere to some of the most basic design industry principles of balance, proportion, scale, etc. Understand all of the principles, methods and terms can be a little overwhelming but I've developed a few simple techniques for planning and creating a table layout using these principles that can be as easy as 1, 2, 3... "Tiers" that is. This one works for both low and tall centerpieces and it begins with you looking at the table's surface and switching on your imagination.

Let's think about word "table-scape", a fairly new term that has gained popularity in the last few years but is most often thought of as the "landscape of the table". But let's not dwell on that right now. I'd like you to visualize a peaceful, lush country landscape instead. You are not on a paved road but a beautiful, rolling green field. In the distance you see a very tall hill and you are slowly moving towards it. Suddenly the hill appears taller. You realize it's more of a small mountain as you draw near it's base. More than likely the mountain doesn't just shoot out of the ground into the sky instead, you'd probably see tall grass, rocks, tree stumps, foliage, lots of trees and other elements of various heights gradually leading your eyes up the mountain. Next image pulling yourself back... further and further. Now envision the surface of a table. A well designed table-scape will reflect the same design principles we see in nature and just as the field transistioned into a tall mountain the surface of the table may consist of many tiers or zone that transition your eye long it's surface.

Tier 1:
This is the most exterior surface, the area in front of the guests. You could consider this the flattest part of a landscape but as you recall, natural landscapes are not perfectly flat. This is the place where items like napkins, silverware, chargers, glassware, guest place markers, and other small decorative accents will make here home. It's the beginning of your eye's journey.

Tier 2:
This is most overlook (and under-designed) portion of the table and can truly define the flow of the table. I'm referring to the area between the guest's place-setting and the table's centerpiece. This area should actually have two goals. The first is to be a "bridge" - creating a consistent visual flow from the guest to the center of the table. This area should have elements designed specifically to tie the two areas together. The second goal is to create a second level (or height) on the table's visual surface of the table. In our earlier mountain-side landscape scenario this would be the area slightly higher that the grass were shrubs or even trees started to draw your eyes upward. These elements should be slight lower than the centerpiece and in the case of tall centerpieces, they should also create a transitional flow up-toward. Often times I see the mistake of very little height variation from the guests place-setting and the centerpiece (example: a centerpiece on a mirror surrounded by a few tealight or votive candles). Unless the table-scape was designed to take scale in mind the centerpiece looks like it was simply "plopped" on the table with very little thought to the flow of the table. As a result it can be very visually jarring. Placing decorative items that are at a slightly higher level than the place-setting and lower level than the height of the centerpiece will prevent this common mistake.

Tier 3:
Last tier is the centerpiece or the focal point of the table. Every element of the first two tiers should be designed to complement the design of the centerpiece. The same way an opening act should lead up to the fail performance. Even if it is a slow centerpiece it should still be the tallest or most prominent design of the table.

Hope you find this method useful. Feel free to email me with your feedback, I'd love to hear what you think! Cheers!

Details... Sleek, simple and a little sexy!

Inspired by the Calla Lillies, Orchids and the color lavendar - Enjoy a few "design details" that are simple, sleek and just a little sexy.

"Before" Sketch...

"After" Design...

(www.tasha-prescott.com)

Other Details...

(www.creativesilence.net)

(www.tasha-prescott.com)

Questions? Comments? Contact me... I'd love to hear from you. Cheers!!