Draped Canopy with Satin Linen

Here's a recent event Party Production Rentals did for a family who wanted to hold an elegant celebration at their home in Rancho Santa Fe. 

Canopy Draping
The standard "work horse" canopy in the party & event industry is a frame tent.  These are assembled at the job site and are very functional for providing shelter.  

There are different ways to dress up a canopy, but one way that provides a very elegant touch is by draping the inside of the canopy top with a tent liner - as shown in the picture below.  We draped the canopy and covered the poles in white so that utilitarian aspects of the canopy are not visible.  These element do add expense to the canopy, but for the right event and budget, it's a great touch. 

Satin Linen
Another standard in our industry is the use of polyester blend fabric for tablecloths.  They are cost-effective and come in a variety of colors and sizes.  However, there are many "specialty" fabrics that make for great table linen as well.  One of our favorites is satin.  Satin linen provide timeless elegance with their silky look, and they draw attention to themselves because of how they catch the light.  This client went with turquoise satin tablecloths and napkins to compliment their dramatic centerpieces and silver Chiavari chairs.  The effect is dramatic! 

Backyard Wedding for 250+

If you have the space - and especially the setting - a backyard wedding can be a really special event.  We recently did a wedding in the Crest area of El Cajon that took advantage of the great views and the large yard this house had to offer.  The clients wanted to transform their dirt pad into an elegant yet comfortable venue for their daughter's wedding.

We put up 2 canopies in an L shape to wrap around their house and provide enough coverage for the 250+ guests.  We covered the ground with over 4000 square feet of green turf, which really transformed the dirt pad.  Inside the canopies, we strung ping-pong lights with paper lanterns, which creates a festive environment and gives off plenty of light. 

  

They had a sufficient budget to do the event right, but as always, there were trade-offs in the areas that were more important to them.  For example, they opted for basic plastic chairs and dressed them up with chocolate brown sashes, but went with a satin tablecloths and napkins for elegance.  They opted not to drape the inside of the canopy (ceiling), but had us cover the canopy legs in white as a more visual element.  This is a delightful family, and we enjoyed working with them to help them meet their goals. 

Overall, I think we were successful in achieving the feel they were going for.  According to the bride's mom, we had exceeded their daughter's expectations... and that, after all, is what it's all about.  

Party Production Rentals provided all the party gear you see in the pictures... canopies, tables, chairs, dance floor, lighting, linen, flatware and china - all except the flowers and centerpieces (though we offer centerpieces as well). Let us know if we can help you plan your dream backyard event. 

How Many Tables Fit in a Canopy?

We do a lot of canopy set-ups at Party Production Rentals, and we often get asked how many tables will fit under a canopy of a certain size.  Generally, people have a preference for round tables under a canopy (though you should always go with personal preference), and there's a simple rule of thumb if you're using 60" round tables.  (60" rounds are the most common size, and they seat 8-10 people.)  For each 10' x 10' square section of the canopy, you can comfortably fit 1 60" round with chairs.  The picture below demonstrates how this would lay out in a 20' x 20' canopy. 

This canopy will fit 4 60" rounds as there are 4 10' x 10' sections, and each table fits 8-10 people, so you can accommodate 32-40 people.  For larger canopies, just use the same approach.  For example, a 30' x 30' canopy has 9 10' x 10' sections, so it will fit 9 60" rounds or 72-90 people. 

Note: I typically recommend capping the number of chairs at 8 per table for more formal events or events where you have a lot of table items (i.e., large place settings, you are serving family style on the table, or you have large centerpieces).  We do 10 at many events, and it's great for those events... but know there is less space, and the chairs don't push all the way under the table. 

Another option which would allow more people seated under a canopy - but is typically considered less formal - is to put rectangular banquet tables under the canopy.  Below I've demonstrated how this might look, though there are other variations. 

Keep in mind that sometimes you want space for other features under your canopy, such as a dance floor, bar, buffet tables, or a different size/style head table.  It helps to break the canopy into 10' x 10' sections, but we are also available to help you design the ideal layout for your event in the San Diego area.  We include this as part of the service Party Production Rentals offers when we do a canopy set-up.  Please feel free to give us a call or email!

Event Pictures!

One of the caterers we work with just sent over a batch of pictures she's taken from recent events we've done with her company.  Here are a few:

New Rental Products

Paula and I just got back from the American Rental Association's Rental Show in Las Vegas.  Besides taking in some good shows and food, we purchased some new equipment for Party Production Rentals from the many vendors who show off their wares at the show. 

We frequently rent serpentine bars to clients who want to have a nice serving beverage serving station at their events.  We now have 2 additional bar solutions in the same price range (see catalog):

The 4' bar doesn't require linen and comes only in the black above, but the 6' bar with linen can come in a variety of colors depending on the feel you want for your event.

We've also been expanding our lighting options.  In addition to having the ability to design a custom lighting package from basic to elegant for all types of events, we have a new lighting option for our canopies:

This is a simple, but interesting lighting option that is cost-effective and provides a good amount of light for smaller canopies (e.g., 20x20, 20x30).

We also get frequent requests for backdrops for events - to go behind a stage, cover a wall or unseemly area, or section off a room.  As a result, we purchased our own pipe-and-drape, with both black and white draping.  The panels are 8' high and come in sections of up to 10'.  Each section rents for $55.

We also purchased a new podium to go with our growing selection of audio/visual equipment. 

There are more new products to come, so stay tuned - and feel free to give us a call if you have any questions about any of these items.

SoNo Park Holiday Fest - Success in the Street!

It's now been a few weeks since we put on the SoNo Park Holiday Fest.  The event was a street fair in North Park benefiting McKinley Elementary, and we had 3 goals:

1. Raise money for McKinley's arts and music programs - our target being at least as much as we did in 2009 with the Chili Cook-Off and Arts and Crafts Fair.
2. Draw in the community to support McKinley.  The school had a tendency to hit up the school families over and over again. We wanted to start an event where the community would pay to participate, and we would build a knowledge and experience base to do it again in the future.
3. Last but not least, put on a fun event! We wanted attendees, restaurants, bands and vendors to want to do it again and go away talking about it so they'd draw in even more people for the next year.  They'd also see what a special school McKinley is because they do this kind of event.

I'm pleased to say that met all 3 goals.  Having goals really helped us focus our efforts and to set expectations with the McKinley PTC and participating businesses.  It's also a basis for us to say we were successful.  While we haven't completed the final accounting for the event, we've surpassed last year's fund-raising from the 2 events we replaced by more than $1,000.  We wanted to get at least 1000 people to attend from the local community, and our best estimate is that we had more than 2000.  And while the "fun" aspect is harder to measure, the anecdotal evidence suggests people had a great time.  We received many compliments from a broad range of participants, such as "This was the best street fair ever!"  Perhaps most importantly, we learned a lot, and we have many insights that will enable us to make next year's event even more successful - especially financially.  In light of our fun goal, we may have erred on the side of providing too much value.  Something for us to consider.

I'll go into some of learning at a different time.  In the meantime, here are some pictures of the event, and I've highlighted some of the gear provided by Party Production Rentals: beer tent, belly bar with linen, stage, canopies, pop-ups, tables with umbrellas. 

Warm

As we transition into fall and winter, Party Production Rentals has the products you need to help keep your guests dry and warm! During the indian summer days, we offer umbrellas, canopies, and canopy lights. As the nights cool off, help your guest avoid running for their jackets! Use our restaurant quality patio heaters.

Although the holidays are not quite here yet, the planning has already begun! Call us with your corporate or personal holiday/party needs. Mention this blog ad and save 10% off your order if you pay for your order by December 1, 2008!