Thursday, March 31, 2011

SLS Beverly Hills Hotel Booth at Unveiled

SYED teamed up with the amazing Sonia Sharma Events and Wildflower Linen to design the decor for the SLS Hotel booth at Unveiled on Monday. The decor for the booth consisted of white finials and candle holders which were topped with spheres completely made from roses. The white tulle rosette linen, provided by Wildflower Linen, was a perfect fit for this all rose collection. Check out some of the photos of the SLS booth from the bridal event!

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

An Honored Occassion

As an event designer, we work closely with other Industry vendors like photographers, videographers, venues, DJ/Lighting companies and most intimately Event Planners or Coordinators.

When asked to do the wedding of a very successful Los Angeles based Wedding Planner, we were shocked and very honored. To work together to create a wedding for a coordinator who has impeccable taste, endless resources and a plethora of amazing ideas was extremely exciting for our team here at Shawna Yamamoto Event Design.

We've worked closely with Sonia on several weddings in the past so we both had a good understanding of what each of our styles were and I had a pretty good idea as to what she loved & loathed!

We had so much fun working this wedding. Sonia let me do some free-style designs including succulent, moss high heal shoes & a flowergirl "basket" made of a vintage birdcage and a real yellow bird...

We will treasure this day for years to come. We are excited to see how the amazing and talented Andrena Photography captured this day! I personally attended this party as well and I was able to experience the talented Ajay at Special Occassions Sound kept the crowd rock'n...Seriously, we didn't leave the dancefloor ALL NIGHT! He really knows how to keep the crowd alive! Oh, and after a day in the rain setting up, it was a miracle that Jeannie Jeffries of Couture Beauty Team was on-hand to do my hair and make-up to make me look as if I hadn't worked a day in my life!

For all the other special amazing details, we will leave for a future post when we have more images to share. In the meantime, we wanted to send a warm "thank you" to Sonia & Philipp and all rest of the vendors that helped make this day simply amazing!

Look how stunning our bride was!



Venue: Smog Shoppe
Photographer: Andrena Photography
Coordinator: Sonia Sharma Events
Floral and Decor: Shawna Yamamoto Event Design
Hair and Make-up: Star and Jeannie at Couture Beauty Team
Videography: Daniel Boswell, Imagique
DJ: Special Occassions

Real Men Wear Pink

Let’s be honest, ladies we LOVE pink but we know that’s probably not the first color that will come to a grooms mind when choosing a boutonniere for the big day. Don’t worry guys; we’ve got your back! Pretty in pink? No way! We know how to keep your masculinity at its peak on your wedding day.

Sometimes it is all about simplicity and the selection of a unique flower. Check out this boutonniere, a Gloriosa lily adorned with a plain white ribbon. The unique structure of the flower and the natural outline of yellow make it suitable for a groom. Not too flashy but just enough to make a quick statement.


We have also utilized non- floral elements in order to achieve a masculine look. Wire can be a great tool to create artistry within the design. This boutonniere had a simple orchid stem which was wrapped with pink wire.




Whatever the color, it is often interesting to see how masculinity is found within the simplicity and structure from the design of a boutonniere.


Photo 1 provided by: Braedon Photography

Photo 2 provided by: Samson Productions

Friday, March 25, 2011

Mimi and Robert's Wedding in Bride and Bloom Magazine

Check out Mimi and Robert's wedding which was recently featured in Bride and Bloom Magazine. This modernistic look was created specifically to be different. Adding non-floral elements like unique reed lampshades to the design definitely achieved this modern, elegant and fabulous look!









Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Winter Chic Featured in South Asian Bride Magazine

We had the pleasure to work and collaborate again with Sonia Sharma and Dina Douglass to create a modern take on winter. Put away the ice, crystals, snow and bare branches! Everything that screams winter we took away, creating an interesting challenge for this group of designers.

This look was inspired primarily by some of the most unique and fascinating scenes in the movie Alice and Wonderland more specifically at the White Queen’s castle. Ideas spurred from life size chess pieces and tall domes a top of the castle. These elements became a driving factor for this tabletop design. By combining the distinct carvings of the chess pieces and the inspiration led by the castle and its unique architectural design, we were guided to the main focus for this look, finials. Finials provided just the right amount of height with the extended apexes as well as decorative details which helped emphasize the look.

Other significant details to the look included the addition of greenery to add that pop of color to this all white and mirror design. Individual leaves were adhered to the bases of the finials and hand crafted into greenery-like succulents were place on top of candle holders. Beautiful white phalaenopsis orchids and cattleya orchids were also incorporated into the look.

This table top design is definitely fit for a queen!



Check out this table top spread in the new South Asian Bride Magazine or go to our website to see more photos from the shoot!

Venue: SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills
Photographer: Andrena Photography
Event Design: Sonia Sharma Events
Rentals: Classic Party Rentals
Linens and Napkins: Wild Flower Linens

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Japanese Tea Ceremony

Japanese tea ceremonies comprise many elements of the Japanese culture celebrating the value of art forms, just to name a few: architecture, gardening, ceramics, textiles, and cuisine. Since working with such diverse sets of clients, it important for me and the SYED team to learn important processes, steps, history and other details for different types of ceremonies we participate in. The following research was written by one of our interns, Julie Chung.


It is believed that Buddhist monks brought tea from China to Japan around 6 century B.C. Japanese tea ceremony was designed in the spirit of the Zen doctrine, according to which spiritual elevation is achieved by engrossing oneself in the small details of daily life. The attention paid to the minutest details of the tea ceremony is meant to induce a sense of serenity and harmony among the host and guests. In 1477, the rules of etiquette chanoyu “hot-water tea” were created by Buddhist priest named Murata Shuko. He viewed it as an interlude in which one leads oneself for a moment to the spirit of beauty, quietude and politeness towards others. The tearoom is considered to be an island of tranquility and purity, allowing guests to leave the outside world behind and relax.
The 4 principles of the tea ceremony consist of: harmony (wa), respect (kae), cleanliness soul and body or purity (sae), tranquility or serenity (jubuo) tranquility.




As part of the traditional wedding ceremony, one can incorporate a traditional tea ceremony to honor and thank their parents. Check out some photos from a wedding with a Japanese Tea Ceremony we were able to create the decor for.
Images provided by Sam Lim Studio

Thursday, March 3, 2011

SYED Designer Competition at the Brea Bridal Show

This was our second year participating in the Brea Bridal Show. We were very excited to be a part of this local show. When deciding how to showcase Shawna Yamamoto Event Design as a company we took a different approach to catch our audience's attention. We decided to have a fun competition between the SYED design team and involve the attending brides.

The rules and guidelines to the competition were as follows: the designers were given a budget, a specific event in the wedding process, and color palette. There were also particular details the designers had to incorporate into their designs. Each had to have a backdrop, utilize a hanging decor element and provide an accessory or bouquet for their specific look.

After a great day spent at the Brea Community Center and 200 votes later, the winner to this competition was Shawna Yamamoto with her wedding reception look. The following information is details and insights from the designers themselves. I hope you enjoy it!


Look #1 The Wedding Reception: Vintage Chic with a Modern Twist

By Shawna Yamamoto


This look was different from my typical style. I wanted to show an elegant way to incorporate greens and design it to maintain a modern feel. The flowers I used for this look were spray roses in lavender and ivory, garden roses in ivory and mixed exotic greens, which were place atop a white candle stand. I designed the backdrop to be flowing and almost whimsical, by using strips of white fabric and integrating hanging greenery and single blooms. I also added smaller bouquets of flowers placed in clear faceted vases, surrounding the larger arrangement. I detailed the napkin treatment by adding a refluxed lavender garden rose to the place setting.

Look #2 The Bridal Shower: Divine Damask

By Kandice Owens


The pattern known as "Damask" has been used for centuries, whether it was painted on the walls of ancient architecture in the 1400s by Italian artists or Chinese Emperors and European Queens gracing this pattern on their robes and gowns, this pattern has grown in popularity over the years and is used for many different things.

Being a huge fan of this pattern, and especially the Victorian Era, I knew I had to incorporate this into my bridal shower design. I wanted to raise the bar and create a new chic look for the modern day bride. Adding a pattern like damask, adds so much more impact on your special day and can be added to any color to give it that extra pop. I chose different shades of purple to give it that girly edge, but still kept it modern by using black candle stands and an upholstered lampshade. I wanted the flowers to look like they were falling down, so the cascade effect would only seem appropriate for this look.

My challenge to all of you future brides out there is to be bold and do something different and unique for your bridal showers so it will be extra special when your friends and family can not stop talking about it!

Look #3 The Bachelorette Party: Sexy Bachelorette

By Lauren Guzman


When first designing this look, I knew I didn't want to do the "typical" Las Vegas bachelorette party. Still I wanted to keep the look sexy yet not pushing that sexiness too much. Inspired by Chanel Wedding Inspiration blog I found on Style Unveiled, I used tool to hand craft flowers to add a sexy element. I detailed the vases also with a tool treatment and lined it with rhinestones. Rhinestones were also added to the center of each crafted tool flower. I added white ostrich feathers to come back to that bachelorette theme. With the shine added by the diamonds and rhinestones, I chose to use a sparkly sequin backdrop with a chic black chandelier detailed with tool garlands. My flower choices consisted of lavender garden roses and white hydrangea sprayed lavender. My favorite part about this look was the accessory, rose petal high heels which were detailed with a monogram and wedding date hand painted on the bottom of the shoes, which I wore for almost the whole show!

Special thanks to Glo Concepts for providing the linens, napkins, chair covers, and stationary.

Venue: Brea Community Center
Rentals: Create-A-Party

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Shawna Yamamoto Event Design Featured in Upcoming Bride and Bloom Magazine

We just received the newest issue of The Bride and Bloom magazine, Southern California edition. This issue is the first Southern California concentrated magazine Bride and Bloom has introduced. We are so excited to showcase our new 2011 ad in this magazine and enthusiastic about one of our real weddings that was submitted and chosen to be published.

Keep your eyes peeled! This magazine hits shelves next week!!