How Lighting Can Enhance Your Event | Wedding Planning Tips

When designing an event, we find lighting to be a highly underrated tool and element of your decor budget we would definitely recommend investing in. The atmosphere of your event can be completely transformed by the utilization of dramatic, or in some cases subtle, lighting. It helps define a space, highlight architectural features, bring attention to beautiful focal elements, detract from not-so-great elements, add to the mood and set a tone. Below we have discussed the different kinds of lighting we utilize and how we use lighting to bring our weddings and events to life!

Candles

Candles are a great way to add a more romantic and intimate feel. They are an especially nice element to use when wanting to add just a touch of light to a space. One of our favorite looks is a long dining table, lined with tall taper candles in candlesticks. It brings drama and is incredibly effective! We also love using lanterns, they are a beautiful way to light up long tables or create a pathway from one space to another. Most commonly however, we use votive candles to create ambiance and elevate the mood of a space. We probably use over 200+ votives per wedding, placing them on window ledges, coffee tables in guest lounges, guest tables, bars, you name it! They are one of the most effective tools, especially for those clients looking for a really romantic wedding reception.

Market Lights

Market lights are a creative use of lighting to add a cheery, inviting feeling to your event. They add personality to any space and can be strung in many unique ways. We often use them to make a space feel larger, the illusion can lengthen the perception of the room or garden depending on the pattern you hang them. As the sun sets and the stars come out, the bulbs radiate a beautiful glow that create an almost blanket effect over our receptions. We wouldn’t necessarily use these in every scenario however, as market lights can make an event feel a bit more casual. But if that is the look you are going for, then they truly are a wonderful touch!

Up-Lighting

Up-lighting is the most commonly used way to strategically and effectively light a venue. Specifically what we find most beneficial about up lights is that they help to define your space. Whether that be by adding warmth to the walls of a cavernous ballroom, or defining the landscaping of an outdoor wedding, up lights give a visual representation of the borders of your event. We also love utilizing up-lighting when needing to add color to an event space. This is especially fun to incorporate into an after party or corporate scenario where we want to represent a company or brand’s colors.

Pin Spotting

Pin spot lighting can be used to highlight certain aspects of your event, whether it be your cake, floral arrangements, or anything you specifically want to bring attention to! As the party picks up and the lights go down, taller decorative items can become lost in the space. Pin spotting is great way to make things "pop” and stand out.

We hope this brings a little bit of insight on the several different forms of lighting we personally use in each and every wedding we produce. Whether it is through fun color or effects that bring personality to your event, or a simple and understated touch, it truly is an invaluable tool that can completely transform your wedding or event.

Images by: Lauren Fulmer Photography, Mark Williams Studio, Brent Cline Photography, Robin Gerrard Photography, Lauren Carnes Photography, Ashley Seawell Photography,

What it Means to Hire an Event Designer | Wedding Planning Tips

Have you ever wondered what the term “event designer” means? A role that typically used to be delegated to the florist or the caterer, event design is a “relatively” new term within the wedding industry. So much more than picking out flowers or table linens, event design encompasses the entirety of the wedding experience. From the moment your guests receive their save the date until the bride and groom’s exit, there are endless opportunities for an event designer to bring the essence of the wedding to life. And today we are going to break down what it means when you hire an event designer to be a part of your wedding vendor team.

Floor plan Design

One important element of our event design services is floor plan creation and management. More than just sticking some tables into a room and calling it a day, floor plan design is a critical aspect to the flow and feeling of your event. Over our many years, we have found what does and does not work, and what can majorly alter your guest experience. We work with the entire vendor team on the floor plan, everyone from the caterer, to the bar service, to the rental company reviews the floor plan to ensure that all aspects of the event are considered.

When creating our floor plans we try to think of creative ways to utilize the space we’re in. We especially try to come up with unique ideas that have not been thought of before when working at the popular venues in Augusta.  This may mean having the event flow opposite of how it has in the past, using spaces for ceremony that may normally be used for reception or vice versa! It may mean putting the band in a completely different location, or adding a cool feature bar in an unexpected location.

The floor plan is our jumping off point for the rest of the event design, it shows our client their limitations and possibilities. And it can take many iterations to get the floor plan to its final state.

Cohesiveness

When a guest attends a truly exceptional wedding there is something almost inexplicable about the feeling one has when you leave. It may be that the wedding felt so completely reflective of the couple. Or maybe it’s that every need of the guest was anticipated and considered. However we strongly feel that the weddings that truly shine are the ones that have a cohesive thread running through it from beginning to end that ties it all together.

This starts from the very beginning of the event design process. A motif, a monogram, or other element used in the save the date or invitation design, in turn can then be used on the cake, or embroidered onto a dinner napkin, or printed onto coozies! We love when we can carry a color, a pattern, or texture throughout the design. Subconsciously your guests pick up on these details as they become so interwoven into the overall wedding day. That is why we prefer to be a part of our client’s wedding planning journey from the very beginning, to ensure that everything is designed in a thoughtful way.

Something that is important to keep in mind is that this may mean pulling back as well, not incorporating certain ideas, or trends, because at the end of the day it may not be truly reflective of our couple. Our end goal is a wedding that feels intentional. That every aspect has a reason or meaning behind it that contributes to the overall feeling we are trying to encapsulate for our clients and their guests.

A Beautiful Wedding

It would be remiss not to mention that one of the biggest reasons our clients hire us is because they want a beautiful wedding. They want a wedding filled with special details, gorgeous flowers, beautiful linens, and that “wow” factor that your guests get walking into a tent. Our favorite part of the process is that moment our clients get to see their vision come to life. That is what makes our job rewarding!

A classic Greg Boulus Events wedding is one that has first and foremost, beautiful flowers. That’s a given as that is where our beginning is rooted. However we realize that this is not the only element that is important when creating a beautiful atmosphere. A beautiful textured linen, up-lighting on surrounding landscaping, votive candles, decorative pillows, are all elements that add that extra layer of design that makes a wedding feel even more special then it already is!

So yes, while an event planner/designer is hired to not only make your wedding feel and run seamlessly, it is also to make your wedding beautiful. Over the years we have cultivated our little black book of vendors that we entrust to bring our visions to life. Depending on the client, we will recommend the use of different rentals, lighting, venues, linens, draping, etc. We have curated a list of the best of the best in the region to ensure our weddings come together exactly how we, and our clients, have imagined. Access to our preferred vendor list is one of the biggest benefits to utilizing our planning and design services.

At the end of the day, our goal as your wedding designers to create an event that is so completely reflective of you, that is beautifully understated, that your guests leave thinking “wow, wasn’t that something.” It is important to keep in mind though that the most important element of a beautiful wedding day is the unseen element. It is the feeling one has when all your loved ones are in one place, at one time, celebrating with you. That is something we try to remind all of our clients at one point or another during the planning process, and is something to keep at the forefront of your mind when planning your big day!

We hope that this post has helped anyone wondering exactly what an event designer does and how it differs from an event planner. If you have any more questions about our services, please feel free to reach out to us! We would love to be a part of your special day.

Photography by Ashley Seawell Photography, Robin Gerrard Photography, Lauren Carnes Photography, Laura Fulmer Photography.

Jamie + Adam, Fall Garden Wedding | Augusta, GA

We always enjoy producing a wedding for one of our own! And Jamie & Adam are just that! Jamie and her sister Allie (see her Enterprise Mill wedding here!) have both helped our floral design team over the years, so when Jamie & Adam shared that they were going to get married last fall, we eagerly volunteered to be a part of their vendor team!

The couple decided that after their ceremony at Church of the Good Shepherd that their dream would be to host the reception at Jamie’s parents’ home nearby. With it’s beautiful front lawn and lush back gardens, their home was the perfect intimate location for this gathering of friends and family!

Jamie had always pictured very natural, organic-looking florals and with a fall wedding date set we knew the color palate and texture would be off the charts beautiful. Her bridal bouquet was composed of free spirit roses, burgundy and blush dahlias, scabiosa, various varieties of eucalyptus, and astrantia. The bridesmaids bouquets were much of the same but with a small, but fragrant, addition of fresh mint. Fall is one of our favorite times of year to create boutonnieres, the textures are always so fun to mix to create unique, combinations for our grooms and their guys!

Following their ceremony, Jamie & Adam hopped into a friend’s vintage car to make their way around the block to her parents’ home. Jennifer Shuford’s Tastefully Yours Catering team had prepared delicious Southern fare, while guests sipped on drinks prepared by White Horse Spirits.

From the images below captured by Laura Fulmer Photography, you can see the sweet relationship that Jamie & Adam share. We always have our couples eat privately before joining their guests to ensure them a brief time of togetherness on an otherwise very busy day. Jamie & Adam soaked up every minute of their time together before making their way to the back lawn for their first dance. It’s those moments that really make the day special.

See the full vendor list below as well as all the pretty images from this wonderful day!

Event Design & Coordination: Greg Boulus Events | Floral Design: Charleston Street Fine Flowers | Photography: Laura Fulmer Photography | Detail Photography: Amy J Owen Photography | Catering: Tastefully Yours Catering | Bar Service: White Horse Spirits | Hair & Makeup: Cucumber & Mint | Bridal Gown: Lillian West | Bridesmaids Dresses: Sorella Vita| Band: Blue Brindle | Cake: Diana Hall | Ceremony Venue: Church of the Good Shepherd | Reception Venue: Private Home