Tent Decorating
Ensuring your outdoor venue meets and exceeds your party expectations involves so much more than renting and erecting a tent. Outdoor parties with a tent require special planning because your party is space is neither an outdoor space nor an indoor space. As you can imagine, tent decorating can sometimes be overlooked in the planning stages. Still, a great outdoor party can only be elevated by tent decorating. In this month’s blog series, we’ll discuss four tips for effective tent decorating: comfort, flowers, lighting, and themes.
Creature Comforts
For the most part, tents provide merely the bare bones structure for your outdoor party, so take some time to think about how you can make the space more comfortable for your guests. Soft rugs, comfy couches, and other accents help your guests feel more at home without losing the outdoor appeal. Remember, these cozy decorations are in addition to tables and chairs, so they can make your party feel really special.
Floral Imprints
Flowers bring colour, fresh aromas, and warmth to your outdoor tent party – qualities that are difficult to achieve without them. When choosing flowers to decorate your tent, you want to select arrangements that complement your colour scheme but also consider other requirements for flowers. For example, flowers will have specific temperature and humidity requirements, so you want to select flowers that will last in your climate. Some flowers are naturally heartier than others – calla lilies, orchids, daisies, and carnations stay fresh longer. On the other hand, lilies, daffodils, tulips, and hydrangea tend to be more finicky. Also, consider the aroma put off by different flowers as some people may have sensitivities to varieties with a strong perfume scent. But with that in mind, you may also want to choose varieties that provide a bright, uplifting aroma that will highlight your party well.
Light It Up!
No tent decorating plan is complete without careful consideration of lighting. From how many lights you’ll need to the layout of your event, the density and arrangement of lights will require careful consideration. There are many different approaches to lighting for tent parties including perimeter lighting and corner-to-peak lighting. Depending on the style of your tent, access to natural light, and your own stylistic preferences, lighting can be very complex. Ideally, you’ll want to work closely with your rental company or a lighting specialist to ensure you have the perfect lighting for your event. And don’t be afraid to get creative with lighting your tent – lanterns, coloured lights, candles and other lighting solutions can have a huge impact on the aesthetics of your event.
Do I Sense a Theme?
Choosing a theme for your party can be as simple as picking a colour scheme but your theme can be as elaborate as your imagination. I once attended a fairy tale wedding where different areas were decorated to mimic popular fairy tales such as Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast. Guests were encouraged to dress as their favourite characters and every square inch of the tent was decorated in such a way you were transported to a fairy tale land. As you can imagine, setting a theme for your event will help generate decorating ideas, and a theme can be a lot of fun. Still, if you feel overwhelmed at the notion of organizing your theme, rest easy. This is your party and you get to decorate any way you want – a theme is just a great way to make a lasting impression on your guests by creating a truly one-of-a-kind party experience.
