Photo By: Alison Herndon ©2005 IBS Design, LLC


Photo By: Alison Herndon ©2005 IBS Design, LLC


Photo By: Alison Herndon ©2005 IBS Design, LLC


Photo By: Alison Herndon ©2005 IBS Design, LLC

Designers:

Peter Ruiz
We Rent Atlanta, Atlanta, 30345, 404-633-2727

Shelley Pedersen, CPCE
Beyond Cuisine, Inc., Atlanta, 404-296-5668

Additional Providers For This Table

Greg Snow, Tabletoppers, Inc.
Tony Brewer, Tony Brewer & Company
Valerie, Creative Tables, Inc.

Table Description:

The design and production of this wedding reception for 80 people provided us with a marvelous opportunity to 'personalize' …and make a bona fide 'connection' with this bride- and groom-to-be. They were eager for ways to customize the occasion with a genuine approach. They embraced this - their very time to entertain as husband-and-wife - with style not fads, and requested that their personal message be incorporated into each guest's "dining environment."

Key elements were critical as table designs took shape. We needed the design to pay tribute to how they met, since both bride and groom felt that their chance meeting at a local coffeehouse was destiny…anything but chance. Next, we addressed the groom's career as a professional basketball player with special-yet-stylish seating accommodations for a reception full of very tall teammates. Third, the bride's career as an up-and-coming graphic designer needed special attention paid to color trends, shape, materials and light to communicate the couple's style; and lastly as a part of 'table design', guests should feel welcomed at the tables…pampered with details. But, the wedding was in just 60 days, so we'd need to jump through hoops for them to meet these challenges. . .

At the outset, tables and chairs were tackled to create the basis for the dining table 'experience' - it would become our canvas, so it had to be right! We thought about how comfortable a typical highboy table with barstools could be for the very tall guests we'd have, but of course… wrong diameter. So, we used 72" square rental tables - easily able to accommodate 10 guests - and safely extended the table legs to meet the 42" height measurement we'd need. Custom-ordered Chiavari barstools, in the bride's favorite pink bamboo, were the perfect seating solution and with custom-made chair cushions, stylish seating and a unique and creative height-for-dining was born out of our necessity to seat guests who could be nearly 7-feet tall and their spouses or guests who were probably not!

Next, fabrics and tableware. Naturally, when table heights are custom, so goes the linen! 156" square cloths were made from a wonderful coppery bichon which we used to address the bride's wishes for a twist on the season's popular chocolate-and-pink color theme… Then fabulous damask overlays/dinner napkins were used to capture an elegance they adored.

What about light - a central theme for the couple. We chose wonderful candlelight chandeliers with iron curves adorned with impressive fresh florals, and fabric shades. But how to suspend them over the tables - rigging was not possible. Here our table came into play again - we drilled holes in the centers and used strong pipe-and-drape poles to suspend each fixture. Proper buttonhole slots cut into tablecloths allowed for smooth fit. Tonal chargers in unique materials framed each placesetting.

A coffee cup memento and a sly little wink to the basketball court completed each guest's personal dining environment with the style and significance that truly made this reception a made-to-order evening for a special couple.