Centennial Parklands Gala Garden Party hosted by Tiffany & Co

At MARILYN GRACE we have a great love affair with Centennial Parklands. We love it because of its’ beautiful landscapes, wildlife, ponds, flowers and structures that have provided a stunning backdrop for many of our events, but more importantly for the beautiful retreat it provides to escape city life on the weekends.

For nearly 125 years the Centennial Parklands have played a central role in the hearts, minds and lifestyles of the people of Sydney. So it was with great pleasure that we were once again able to be involved with the Centennial Parklands Foundation Gala Garden Party hosted by Tiffany & Co to raise the much needed funds for the ongoing management and conservation of the Parklands to ensure that they are enjoyed now and by future generations.

The aim of this years gala was to raise funds for the Restoration of the Paddington Gates prior to the Parklands 125^th Birthday Celebrations next year.

On Thursday 18 October, over 300 guests arrived to the Paddington Gates to sip Laurent Perrier Champagne and indulge on mouth-watering canapés before being transported down to CP Dining for the formalities of the evening in a fleet of Tiffany & Co golf carts.

After disembarking the golf carts, guests were greeted by models emulating the infamous Breakfast at Tiffany’s Holly Golightly with her dashing horses before being seated to start the serious side of the evening…the fundraising.

Through the sale of 200 Tiffany blue Mystery boxes - five of which contained break-taking Tiffany & Co gemstone cocktail rings, a live auction of a painting, holiday and money-can’t-buy Parklands experience, a silent auction and pledges from guests within the room towards the restoration of Paddington Gates saw over $140,000 of funds being raised on the night. A sparkling result for the Centennial Parklands Foundation and their Events Committee.

Guests continued to celebrate the result in the Tiffany & Co cocktail lounge with a performance but the delightful Emma-Louise Birdsall before departing the event through the illuminated ‘Tiffany blue’ Paddington Gates on their way home.

We cannot wait to do it all again next year for this very worthy cause!

HALLOWEEN

We love a holiday at Marilyn Grace and Halloween is no exception!

Although Halloween is better suited to the climate of the Northern Hemisphere with the rich colours of fall and glowing pumpkins, there is no reason we here down South should not get just as involved.

Here’s a bit of imagery to inspire you to get decorating for Halloween.

Trick or treat!

EVENT TRENDS

Here we take a quick look back at the three biggest trends in events for 2012.

1.     SOCIAL MEDIA

Social Media is playing a huge part in our clients decisions on event spend. It’s about taking a VIP party and encouraging guests to upload on to one of the many popular social media platform such as twitter, facebook and instagram to spread the experience. This allows for a greater reach rather then limiting event to just those that were in attendance.

2.THE FIVE SENSES

Touch: eclectic lounge vignettes that combine patterns and colours for a more luxe, personal selection.

Sight: stunning lighting, smart and different surface spaces and sizes. It is less about perfect symmetry and more about using lighting to highlight key design elements within the room to maximise the effect. Lighting can make or break an event.

Taste: Celebrity chefs and mixologists are leading the charge. Both clients and guests love a menu designed by celebrity chefs or even better yet, be in attendance. Other key trends include organic, home grown produce and gastronomy.

Hearing: with the rise of reality talent shows and celebrities turning their hands to the decks and DJ’ing, there is a lot more options. Once upon a time you could only secure a celebrity DJ trough contacts, but now you can have a celebrity spin their tunes at your event and that adds an 
extra WOW factor.

Smell: Aromatherapy is playing a much bigger part in events to make the space more inviting, particularly scented hallways and bathrooms. Our favourite is the

Jo Malone event service where every experience is designed to pamper and leave guests with a scented memory.

 

3.     OPPULENCE IS BACK

After a slight hiatus, mainly due to the global financial crisis, opulence is back in at events but in a far more understated manner. It’s upscale but downscale. It is less about throwing money at making all elements completely over the top and more about spending on elements such as venues, food, waitstaff, paper stock and finishes for invitations that impress but don’t gloat.