NICK SPANSWICK
EVENTS AND DESIGN
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A gypsy-style engagement in the garden
When a close friend of ours told us her son was getting engaged, we immediately knew we wanted to do something that was as fun, colourful, happy and full of love as the couple themselves.
We designed a simple family-style set-up with long tables radiating out from a central dance space and one centrally placed bar. We created custom lace tablecloths, each one embroidered with unique folkloric flowers and birds like they were part of a family's heritage table linen collection, and each setting was hand embroidered with the guest's name so the couple could show how happy and honoured they were to have them there. Guests found custom gypsy-style shawls at their chairs embroidered with a sweet message, and guests enjoyed each course from custom-designed plates.
Seen here is the site of the party - the garden of their summer home in southern Turkey.
My initial visual for the engagement party showing the tables radiating from the dance floor covered in printed rugs.
We immediately began work trying to create details that would make the decor feel personal and unique for this very special family. Inspired by the beautiful embroideries of Eastern Europe, we wanted to create tablecloths that could capture that sense of simple love and happiness.
Seen here are the floral layouts we designed to be embroidered around our plate settings.
The machines adding finishing touches to the embroidered tablecloths.
We also created a series of plates with a vintage folklore pattern and monogram created especially for the couple - matched with bleu-blanc plates we found in a store, we wanted the combination to create a feeling that they had just been brought out of the family's kitchen cupboard.
A view of the decorated area just before the guests arrived, showing the tables radiating from the dance floor under a canopy of fairy lights, all supported by our central 'Maypole'
The menu was carefully chosen to reflect each of the couple's favorite dishes that they had enjoyed together, each with a little story to explain the background behind them.
A detail showing our magical tablecloths and plates, with clusters of happy village-style flowers that picked out the colors of the custom tablecloth embroideries and each guest's name embroidered above their table setting.