At Evantine, we’re tremendously inspired by interior design and how it can be incorporated into party planning, personal gatherings and home entertaining. Like residential interior design, we, too get very personal with each and every client as we design their party. For Spring celebrations, like this golden delicious wedding at Urban Outfitters in Philadelphia, where traditional appointments like crystal, satin and silver played off raw, urban textures, interior design played a large role in creating a one-of-a-kind experience.

{Photos: Cliff Mautner}

Timeless elegance. Two words we hear often when it comes to weddings but this chic wedding illustrated the words to perfection. From the sophisticated, fashion-forward bridal gown and long white gloves to the vibrant tones of yellow worn by the bridal party, this wedding was stylish with a capital “S”.  Working closely with the bride and her mother, two of Philadelphia’s most fashionable ladies, we created a dramatic event that took advantage of the grand urban warehouse and made it rich, with luxurious interior details.

Celebrated wedding photographer, Cliff Mautner, captured the beauty and romance of the bride during her preparations at her parents’  townhouse in historic Society Hill.

The international headquarters for Urban Outfitters, also known as URBN, is located in the Navy Yard in Philadelphia. The almost-unreal backdrop of decommissioned Naval ships provided a movie-set quality to the bridal couple’s formal photographs taken before the wedding ceremony.

Mixed bridesmaids bouquets of vibrant yellow ranunculus, roses, tulips and sweetpeas were fragrant accessories against the fabulous yellow gowns the ladies wore. The bride carried a garden-inspired bouquet of white peonies and lily of the valley.

To say the URBN warehouse is enormous would be an understatement. But having space cannot be underrated when it comes to event design. Certainly for many social events it may be too overwhelming to entertain in with intimacy and warmth. Yet, it’s absolutely possible. As Evantine’s Creative Director, Brian Kappra, knows so well, breaking up the space into dedicated “rooms” brings focus to each segment of the celebration. Starting with the floor plan itself, or the map, as it were. A cleverly designed floor plan is the way you help the guest experience the celebration, one step or space at a time. You want them to notice the small personal details in each space but then walk away understanding the big message loud and clear. The first of four party segments at this Springtime wedding was the wedding ceremony which took place in the first section of the long warehouse. Although the ceilings in the warehouse are 45 feet high, the ceremony area was divided from the rest of the warehouse with a wall of drape. Guests were not able to see beyond until we invited them to do so. Large white urns were filled with flowering Forsythia branches that we had kept on ice (literally) for the May event. We then suspended a Chupah, made entirely of baby’s breath like a floating cloud, over a raised white stage to complete the ceremony setting.

Each ceremony detail, from the Ketubah to the ceremony program, was thoughtful and sentimental. Not to mention, stunning in artistry.  But it was the candle-lighting ceremony that proved the most endearing to all the guests in attendance. Generally, a “unity candle” ritual takes places in Christian wedding ceremonies. However, the symbolism was admired by the bride and groom’s Jewish families and they were determined to create their own ritual.  We provide two large lucite platforms that held 365 candles which represented the exact number of guests attending the wedding. During the ceremony, the bride and groom each lit a candle from these platforms “taking the love and support from their friends and family” and then together lit their own family candle. It was truly beautiful, and together with the emotional words expressed by the Rabbi, not a dry eye existed in the room.

After the ceremony ended, and timed to perfection by remote, our backdrop of drapery slowly rose to reveal the next segment of the party. COCKTAILS! Guests were invited to make their way down the center aisle and up-and-over the ceremony platform to the festive cocktail reception waiting on the other side.  Food stations were placed on either side of the existing koi pond and textured lighting across the large walls and floors added dimension to the utilitarian aspects of the building.

When event design comes into play – happily, dramatic spaces such as the modern urban loft setting don’t require major adornment. We do, however, believe in the power of a single striking focal point. Using back-to-back incredible weathered wooden farmhouse tables was perfect for a large display of flowering forsythia branches, limoncello garden roses and golden ranunculus blossoms. We also love to personalize tables as we did here with unique treasures such as creamy ceramic flowers holding hand-calligraphed place cards, cut crystal bowls and depression glass vessels, and collections of vintage silver candlesticks. All sitting gracefully under a ceiling of glamorous twinkling crystal chandeliers that were suspended from the high industrial rafters. Dramatic lighting completed the picture, illuminating entire walls with texture and color, and highlighting the finer details and floral displays.

At the end of the evening, guests were given a small wrapped box with ivory ceramic roses initially used as place card holders.  Below, billowy panels of gossamer drape created breaks in the dinner room, separating the large bar lounge from the dinner seating. The wall of windows on the far end of the warehouse became a fabulous decorative backdrop to the pale yellows and soft ivories used in the event design.

Almost too perfect to be believed, Naval battleships docked right outside the URBN warehouse most definitely enhanced the dinner table conversation.

An important element in the event design from the beginning, each dinner table showcased a formal, crystal chandelier or statuesque candelabra. Etched glass compotes and silver vases held compact floral arrangements on traditional satin-covered round and bare rustic wooden tables.  Together with URBN’s salvaged Americana, the space was a the ideal mix of modern elegance the bride envisioned.

Although 365 guests were in attendance, by intentionally placing dinner tables close to each other the space was intimate and engaging as if the celebration was in the hosts’ dining room.

Throughout the event, the bride and groom incorporated family heirlooms into the design such as placing the bride’s parents’ cake topper on top of the wedding cake. Serving as only a nod to tradition, the wedding cake was just one of many decadent desserts and bites available on a large dessert station placed in the middle of the bar lounge.  As the orchestra ended in the dinner space, a friend’s rock band started up in the lounge for an after-hours party.

{Photos: Cliff Mautner}