On Thursday, September 8, 2022, PartySlate brought together two hundred of Atlanta’s most high-profile and visionary event industry leaders for an evening of color-drenched glamour and wow-worthy entertainment. The InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta provided the perfect ballroom and terrace setting for an inspiring cocktail party planned by the renowned team at KIS(cubed) Events.
Brian Ettleman from the InterContinental notes that the event was the “who’s who of the Atlanta event scene” and was eager to host the celebration “to showcase the hotel renovations to the upscale event community.”
Nijary M. Desai of KIS(cubed) shares insight behind her dramatic vision: “We wanted the vibe to be universal but fun, so when someone walks into the space they can see a wedding, a corporate event, a fun milestone birthday, or just a party!” She created a celebration that was universal, yet somehow totally unique.
Desai worked with the progressive team at event agency Visional to produce the experiential soirée. She says of the collaboration, “We tried to create spaces and unique entertainment that would keep everyone chatting for a while, even post-event.” Kyle Means of Visional adds, “Interactive elements really enhanced the experience for guests by giving them unique, themed activities to try out with their friends and colleagues.”
Read on to see how guests were wowed by unexpected design and surprise performance moments — then use these ideas to create your own memorable event.
A Glimpse of the Evening to Come
Guests were invited to PartySlate’s Atlanta gathering via luxe digital invitation, custom-designed by VS Invitations. The print and invitation designer evoked the rich hues and glamorous vibe of the celebration with jewel tones paired with feather, palm, and gold-facet imagery. Above you can see how VS translated the KIS(cubed) mood board into a gorgeous invitation.
The VS team also created the party’s printed materials, which guided guests as well as showcased and honored event partners.
Design: Immersive Lighting Meets Cutting-Edge Conception
Visional, with their expertise in production and experiential technology, helped bring KIS(cubed)’s vision — of an extraordinary and resonant gathering — to life.
Welcoming Entrance
Guests were greeted with an immediate photo opportunity. MomsKloset Balloon Boutique created a gorgeous PartySlate-branded picture spot with a cascading balloon installation in hot pink and gold in varying sizes and finishes to frame partygoers’ images against the cotton-candy pink backdrop. After snapping a pic, guests continued into the decked-out ballroom.
Vibrant Palette
The defining aesthetic of PartySlate’s Atlanta gathering was its palette of vivid jewel tones. And the longer that the PartySlate team spends looking at the thousands of gorgeous event images that get uploaded to our site monthly, the more we realize the key to immersive design: lighting.
Means from Visional says, “Great lighting is one of those things that can really elevate an experience and make it feel bespoke. For this project, we really wanted to take the already-elegant Venetian Ballroom and give it a warm, luxurious feeling — like wrapping it up in a plush blanket on a velvet couch.” To accomplish this, the team added depth with LED uplights to “paint the walls with a color-changing mixture of magenta, deep purple, and blue.”
He also shares how the team added texture to the space: “We used moving lights with patterned gobos that cast color-shifting patterns on the ceiling and dance floor.” Visional also used strategically-placed pin spotlights to highlight floral designs and key features of the party.
Beautiful Gathering Spaces
Every party needs good spots for gathering, spaces for connecting with others — so why not make those areas beautiful? That’s exactly what Willow Event Designs did with lush florals that married the palette to the areas most used by partygoers: tabletops, lounge spaces, and even the seating.
The AFR Furniture Rental team impressed with jewel-toned furniture groupings as well as unique bench seating upholstered in greenery with an opening at the top that allowed Willow to extend their designs upward. Willow also brought their floral designs to the buffet tables (another gathering space, of course) with towering trees that almost touched the ballroom’s glittering chandeliers, and beautiful tabletop flowers that sat on truly-stunning sequined linen from Nuage Designs.
Creative Branding
In addition to the photo spot at the entrance, this corporate event featured lots of branding honoring not only PartySlate, but our team of hard-working partners. Visional worked with KIS(cubed) to curate branding opportunities that coordinated with the theming and vibe of the party.
One such unique installation was a giant gallery wall of framed video screens with images inspired by the invitation design by VS, which itself was inspired by the mood-board by KIS(cubed) — lending cohesion to the entire event. Means of Visional says, “Our creative team worked early on to take the theme illustrations that were made for the event and animate them to give them life.” They created a seamless video loop that “cycled through all the sponsor companies’ logos and content, using the theme animations as transitions” on the gallery wall as if they were art pieces.
Another branded moment was a scenic wall behind the stage featuring a 10-foot wide custom PartySlate logo made of laser-cut black gloss acrylic. Means of Visional shares, “We built beautiful LED strip lighting…that made the PartySlate logo shimmer with life.” The team has in-house branding, creative, and fabrication to help with these kinds of custom jobs.
Entertainment: Surprises Galore
Entertainment wowed from start to finish. Erin Elyse DJ set the perfect tone for guests upon entry with music just right for networking while also creating a party vibe. Meanwhile, Bailey Entertainment riveted guests with a mirrored ballerina, an electric violinist on stilts, and other unique performers.
After guest had a little time to network, The Fabulous Equinox Orchestra made their grand entrance — marching in and parading around the space, filling the room with the sound of trumpets and saxophones. More hometown music delighted when the Savannah Institute of Art Design’s acapella group, Honeybees, took the stage.
Then, when partygoers thought it couldn’t get any better, American Idol twelfth season winner Candace Glover appeared. Desai of KIS(cubed) says, “Candice Glover was incredible and a total show stopper.” Glover belted out several songs before being joined by Honeybees and Equinox for an epic joint performance that guests will remember for a long time to come.
A vibrant purple dance floor, from Intercom, was wrapped custom-wrapped by Luxury Lounge and Lighting in bold purple, creating a design moment as well as a place for guests to gather to enjoy every last note.
And those last notes were provided by skilled DJ Mike from Drop the Mike Productions who brought a fun club vibe to the affair and kept the floor filled to the very end.
videographer: Gaines Productions
Fresh Fare: Authentic International Cuisine
Our venue host, InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta, also catered the affair with delectable bites and custom cocktails. Desai says, “Cuisine is an important part of any celebration, and it was important to us as a company who often works at the venue to showcase the diverse capabilities of their multicultural culinary professionals.”
She worked hand-in-hand with the team to curate an international menu with a nod to the South Asian weddings that often take place in the space. Desai says, “I shared some great traditional recipes for samosa, chili paneer, chicken tikka masala, pani puri, and unique chutney sauces.”
Ettleman says of the menu, “We also included Mediterranean lamb shawarma carved from the rotating grill, shrimp and grits to offer a local Southern-inspired taste, and our fun donut station. We had a station with selections from our new restaurant, The Americano, such as pasta pomodoro, chopped antipasto salad, and their famous meatballs.”
When it came to cocktails, the mixologists themed their offerings to the palette (and the palate). They served pink drinks like rosé, cosmopolitans, and a rose granita. Ettleman adds, “We also passed our boozy milkshakes as they have become a popular late-night trend at our weddings.” Cocktails were garnished with stirrers in shapes like feathers and gems from the creative team at Acrylic Sticks — and served with beautiful themed napkins from MY DRAP (which offers an elegant, eco-friendly napkin solution).
Dessert by Desserts B4 Dinner was just as spectacular, with elegant treats that matched the party’s sensational hues. Guests indulged in delicious cupcakes, mini cream puffs, and macarons in both classic and unique flavors. Mini cookies and scrumptious dessert shooters, ranging from vanilla bean panna cotta to strawberry cheesecake, had guests reaching for seconds.
All of the Memories Made (& Captured)
This was an evening worth remembering. Guests can relive the night with their keepsakes from ShutterBooth ATL. Means from Visional says, “We partnered with our friends at ShutterBooth to create a projection-mapped photo booth experience that used the animated theme content we created as a backdrop. It was so cool to see the videos they were able to capture, showing guests surrounded by themed luxurious feathers and florals.”
Meanwhile, the skilled team at Styled & Snapped beautifully captured the soirée. They shot gorgeous candid pictures of guests interacting and having fun, as well as of the bright and fun scene. Moving images from Gaines Productions also told the story of the celebration with a video that will remind the hundreds of guests of their good time (and will make those who weren’t there — wish they were).
Desai from KIS(cubed) says her favorite part of the evening was “being able to see our industry come together after two long years of uncertainty and celebrate being back to fierce business!” The busy-again event professionals in attendance were grateful for the gathering, but also for the original take-away treats from Added Touch Catering. The catering team conjured a “hangover kit” for partygoers that was as clever as it was delicious with a streusel blueberry muffin, a syringe with vanilla icing, and a medicine container holding nuts for topping.
And More Thanks
Producing a thoughtful celebration like PartySlate’s Atlanta gathering requires a talented team of partners. We’d like to extend additional gratitude to The InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta for not only providing the space for our party, but also guest rooms to ensure that our well-traveled team was comfortable and well-rested.
photographer: Styled & Snapped
venue, catering & bar: InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta
planning & design: KIS(cubed) Events
production & experiential technology: Visional
floral & décor: Willow Event Designs
entertainment: The Fabulous Equinox Orchestra
interactive entertainment: Bailey Entertainment
DJ: Drop the Mike Productions
DJ: Erin Elyse DJ
lounge furniture: AFR Furniture Rental
videography: Gaines Productions
stage surrounds & dance floor wrap: Luxury Lounge and Lighting
desserts: Desserts B4 Dinner
linen: Nuage Designs
invitation & signage design: VS Invitations
balloons & ceiling installation: MomsKloset Balloon Boutique
photobooth: ShutterBooth ATL
takeaways: Added Touch Catering
custom acrylic sticks: Acrylic Sticks
custom cocktail napkins: MY DRAP
host: PartySlate