This week our lovely event stylists are sharing their top tips for a super styled festive season. From table decorations to the hottest colour schemes, get the tricks of the trade and use them in your own home. First up is our Sydney Event Stylist Joshua Mason. As well as his very hectic day job, Joshua is a freelance editorial stylist, nightclub promoter and writer on design, decor, fashion and travel for online publications such as Oyster, ninemsn, Does Not Equal and The Vine Online. Here he offers up his suggestions for Christmas decorations that will see you crowed the seasons most stylish. Into the Woods
This trend is all about fossicking about your local florist for all the things they use to jazz up an arrangement. Twigs, branches, moss, berries and pine cones combine with smart laser-cut tree silhouettes you’ll see everywhere in the shops. Go all out DIY and you’ll impress your guests with a unique table or mantelpiece of found, natural items warmed by candlelight. This season, I am just dying to pick up a genuine pine tree for my apartment to compliment the high ceilings and dress it with home-made balsa wood decorations. The overall style takes a little time to get right but looks effortless, charming and uncontrived. Festive Floral My friends, colleagues and clients alike would agree that I’m fairly obsessed with flora. There is just nothing better than an idiosyncratic arrangement in assorted vaseware on a table using rich colours and fragrant varieties. If you’re bereft of vases, get creative and use teapots, teacups, old cut-glass highballs or the base of a old candlestick. Peonies, calla lilies, berries and natives are the eclectic mix this season. No need for a florist, arrange it yourself! Arcadian Antiquity The old-world never, ever goes out of style and there are so many ways to make it work in even the most modern of homes. Look out for the décor with antique motifs, mercury glass, mottled gold and crystal. Dramatic black or white Christmas trees allow these elements to stand out and add a touch of the ostentatious. You will need to invest a little coin, but it’s an investment in a charming Christmas over and over again. Colour Pop & Bauble Brights I never would have thought it, but baubles are back and it’s as simple as a trip to your local department store or Christmas cave. Bright vibrant colours are this year’s direction with this style and you can dress everything from your tree, tabletop or chair. Glossy, matte, glittered and sequin baubles are a load of fun together, match them up in contrast ribbon. I would especially love mixing this up with hand-sprayed pinecones in complimentary colours. Feliz Navidad! Images sourced via Inside Out Magazine, Vogue Living, Belle Magazine, Bright Baazaar and DesignSponge Next to the (Christmas) table is Kelly Williamson our Perth Event Stylist. Kelly is a creative at heart with a keen eye for the next big thing. In the past she has worked as an Interior Designer at Laura Ashley, a Visual Display Consultant for Topshop and as a Researcher for a trend prediction company in the UK. Inspired by her children, history and creative people she adores all things vintage and quirky and describes her own personal style as eclectic. Here she shares her ideas of how to display Christmas cards. Christmas cards are something we all get a lot of, especially if we have children in school as they come home in a steady stream from the end of November. The problem with cards is that there are only so many surfaces we have in our homes that can accommodate them and every time you go running past them they all blow over! Now there’s only so many times you can pick them up without it driving you bonkers. So back to the point…the best way to combat this problem is to make a feature out of them, and what’s more as the cards you receive will vary from year to year your feature/display will always look different. It’s an inexpensive way of creating an bespoke piece of Christmas decor in the home, because as we all know Christmas decorations can be pricey! Frame it
Existing home decor such as frames and mirrors can be given a new look especially for the festive season by hanging a string or cards across or within the frame. A minimal and simplistic way of displaying your cards is amongst a string of Christmas lights. Simple yet very effective! Colour Coordinate
Make traditional displays more interesting and colour coordinate using only cards that fit your particular Christmas colour scheme. You can take this look even further with a single colour concept where all the cards are the same hue (so you will have to be selective which of the cards you use). To make this display extra special, add tree ornaments and decor in the same colour scheme amongst the cards to create a relatively contemporary look which suits the more modern home in particular. Images sourced via Martha Stewart, Hall Ready, Punchbowl, Not on the Highstreet and Maddycakes Muse Next we have our Event Stylist, Alana Berryman from Adelaide with her top picks for Christmas decor. Alana has a background in visual merchandising, interior design and floral art which she uses to deliver events of all kinds whether it’s funky, old school, retro or cutting edge! Mix & Match Fabrics
Don’t be afraid to mix and match patterns, it’s very “Now” and adds depth to the design. For instance, floral fabric and striped fabric in the same colour palette or style works perfect together. Dinner by Candlelight
Use as much natural candle light as possible to create warmth, ambience and a festive mood. When selecting your candles try to find out the burn time so you can get as much life out of them as possible. You can even do a test a few weeks before so you know the best time light them! When placing candles around the home also be careful to make sure they are not in the path of any air conditioners as they will burn much quicker. And finally we have some backyard inspiration from our wonderful Event Stylist Renae Vella. Renae is a perfectionist and is constantly working on her own innovative techniques by incorporating current trends and pushing the boundaries of event design. Here she encourages us to look no further than our backyard for inspiration this Christmas. The Natural Centrepiece Arrange a variety of ruby red berries, seasonal green and rustic pine cones in and amongst a symphony of clear glass vessels and candles, to create a unique table centre with a lovely aroma. Mirror Mirror Give an old mirrored photo frame a new lease of life this Christmas. Add it to the base of any table- scape to add instant elegance to your dining room table. … Read More
Get more from your Product Launch
Mar 19 2018
Our General Manager on Digital Event Services, Tim Chapman looks at the evolution of the product launch and discusses how technology can be harnessed to reach wider audiences whilst lowering costs for both the host and the attendee. Our General Manager on Digital Event Services, Tim Chapman looks at the evolution of the product launch and discusses how technology can be harnessed to reach wider audiences whilst lowering costs for both the host and the attendee. Last year Apple announced the launch of the iPhone 5 to the world via a webcast which could be viewed on their website. Corvette launched the highly anticipated Corvette 2014 through a live recording of the reveal which was streamed straight to their YouTube page. The list goes on; technology companies through to country music stars are all turning to the internet to get their message out. The explosion of social media, pressures of globalisation, increased competition and the need for all stakeholder relationships to be managed has left brand owners and product managers questioning the value of small in person events. High costs, limited audience reach and inconsistent outcomes have only sought to drive them to look for more innovative ways to deliver their message. At Staging Connections we have been lucky enough to be involved with many leading brands looking to change the paradigm and push the boundaries of event delivery. They want to reach a global audience, amplify their message through social media all while reducing costs. Technology is providing the answer to these challenges, allowing brands to broadcast to multiple locations, expanding audience interaction, creating interest through social media and above all, allowing the experience to live on long after the event has finished. Reaching
a wider audience Video streaming is one way to invite national and global audiences to attend a product launch. Integrating video streaming allows organisers to commence a direct conversation with the end consumer not limiting engagement to just the media or industry. At the local launch of Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food campaign, in conjunction with corporate sponsors The Good Guys, we were charged with delivering a live cooking demonstration plus broadcast the launch online to reach a larger audience. What made this challenging was the remote location that was void of access to a phone line, ISDN or the Internet to assist in achieving the broadcast goal. The team used a unique piece of technology, allowing a wireless video link to be streamed to the Good Guys website. This directed thousands of people to The Good Guys site to watch the event live, and even more have gone on to view the event long after the launch day. Social Versatility Taking a product launch online increases the ability to engage in a different conversation with existing and new consumer networks empowering them to share your message via social media and amplifying the message. Recently we filmed and streamed a live feed of the launch of the Nissan Altima V8 Supercar via Nissan's YouTube channel gaining access to a wider audience geographically and demographically of more than 3,000 people. By combining a visual element; video streaming into channels like YouTube and adding a discussion platform with a Twitter feed, the audience has a three dimensional experience; an online event with the ability to share. This combination allows a significantly wider audience, offering the potential to send your messages around the world, creating a viral sensation. Working in Unity Going back to basics, your physical product launch requires an innovative and inspiring display that will entertain and translate for both your attending audience and online viewers. This can be tricky as the needs of both sets of people are very different. At the launch of Alienware's computers and laptops we executed an out of this world 3D light show using 3D projection and 3D mapping combined with stunt actors, pyrotechnics, sound and bursts of CO2 gas which was electrifying for the audience attending. We took a lot of time before hand setting up the cameras and testing the angles to make sure we had the correct vantage point to capture the action for the online audience.
The future of product launches The challenge has been laid down more now than ever to change the approach of product launches. Staging Connections combine innovative techniques with a highly experienced team to deliver expertly produced creative launches that engage and motivate both the live and online audiences. Written by Tim Chapman, General Manager of Digital Event Services. Tim is continuously supporting and developing Staging Connections digital event components, looking for new and innovative ways to utilise technology to take any event from stage to screen. Tim comes from a background in corporate events where he pioneered large scale video conferencing projects and global webcasting of major events. ... Read More