Weekend Recap: ISES 20th Anniversary Gala

This weekend I attended the DC Chapter of ISES 20th Anniversary Gala at the Omni Shoreham and I had such a great time. Since this was my first year-end gala and such a special one, I decided to volunteer (along with about 100 other event professionals)to see what really goes into such a lavish production. I learned a great deal and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Definitely looking forward to next year! My pictures document the transformation process of the ballroom which is really cool, plus my camera wouldn't fit into my evening bag, lol. The color scheme was black and white with touches of green, very jazzy.
Beautiful ice sculpture gracing one of the bars.
One of the spring arrangements of blooming branches gracing the hallway between event rooms.
A lavish calla lily arrangement towering over a guest table.
A lounge area created by Dave Fritz of Cort Event Furnishings. Notice the zebra print wall drapings. Fab!!
You should have seen this table when all of the candles were lit and the lights dimmed, simply stunning. These were mirrored boxes which reflected the light beautifully.
Dee of Amaryllis created these beautiful silver trees dripping with crystal garland and lovely green cymbidium orchids, all attached by hand. When I tell you he has the patience of Job, I am not kidding. Dee is such a perfectionist and every bloom had to hang just so or he reworked it until it, well worked! Great talent.
I loved this tablescape with the fanciful white feathers. Very festive!
This picture does not do the lace-covered lamp shade any justice. With the additional candles and lighting, it really popped.
One of the many volunteers adding the finishing touches to the floral box.

I loved these crystal globes. The pomanders of white carnations echoed the circle designs of the table linens. Talk about attention to detail!

**All pictures taken by yours truly. I will post the vendor details once they become available as well.

Birds Of A Feather

Hello again Dear Readers, last evening I attended my very first ISES meeting. I wasn't sure what to expect, after all most networking events aren't necessarily that interesting, but ISES was a huge surprise! I met a lot of great people last night including chapter president Kelley Gillespie and the membership director Dave Fritz as well as the very engaging Lori Hill and Jacinda Andrews. To say I felt welcomed would be an understatement. Of course I had my new handy-dandy camera to mark the occasion.
This was my table, lucky number 7.

A closer view of the centerpiece.
And yes I even photographed the menu, lol. What can I say, I didn't want to leave anything out of the experience.
This is the dessert course served to each guest. L to R: Hazelnut Napoleon w/caramel sauce, Omelets Nowegian w/Turkish Coffee sauce and "After 8" Mousse w/red currant jelly (inside). Can we say delish?

There was also a cake competition in which three beautifully decorated cakes were on display. I didn't sample any but they looked incredible, don't you agree?
Look at the detail on the shoe topper. And the pearls are a great touch.
I absolutely loved this ombre colored cake, the shading is wonderfully done. The picture doesn't do it justice.

These sugar flowers were wondrous! They were so life-like, I had to restrain myself from reaching out and touching them, lol.

Until next time, have a great day!