The more we talk with other wedding professionals, the more we seem to learn about the importance of point of interest lighting. What is point of interest lighting? Well, quite simply, it’s focusing specialized lights on your features or decor so the beauty and craftsmanship can be showcased to your friends and family.

Every wedding ceremony or reception is unique in its own way. Every venue has seen their site organized a plethora of ways. Each layout will have a personality of it’s own and it should match the feel and style of the bride and grooms desires.

Unfortunately, the pre-installed house lighting systems can’t always cooperate.

There will often be dim or dark areas, building features that are less than desirable, over-lit areas that are too bright or wash out your colors, or in the case of many outdoor venues, just plain no lights at all! Incorrect lighting can hide or erase the beauty that your hired artisans put into your place settings, floral design, bakers or chefs. You’ve chosen your vendors after carefully critiquing their design skills. Why commission their work if you cant show off their talents?

Welcome to the wonderful world of lighting design. Whatever your point of interest is, perhaps your beautiful centerpieces, cake table or desert station, buffet line, guest book, seating chart, dance floor or any other piece of decor, it can be lit with the right color and amount of light allowing it to shine its lovely character. As with any craft, the sky’s the limit. Professional vendors turn no’s into yes’ and cant’s into can’s! Be sure your decor glows like the faces of your guests!

We are so happy to tell you about our featured central coast wedding venue for the month of July: Avila Lighthouse Suites!

We’ve had the pleasure of working with Krysta, Avila Lighthouse Suite’s event coordinator, several times now and we are ALWAYS impressed with their facilities, organization and beauty of the hotel and surroundings. We’ve decided to ask her a few questions about choosing Avila Lighthouse Suites as a wedding venue. Here’s what she had to say!

ALS: Yes, we offer ceremonies directly on the sands of Avila Beach or on our ocean view sun deck for up to 120 guests.

Receptions for up to 120 guests are held in our lovely Point San Luis Banquet room equipped with an outside patio area that is perfect for a cocktail hour. Cocktail hours can also be held on our ocean view sun deck if the ceremony is taking place on the beach.

What months are best for a beach wedding in Avila Beach?

I think that the fall is the best time of year here! It is typically warm with no fog and not as crowded. Avila is a pretty quaint, quiet town in general but it does get very busy here come July and August. Rates for our suites drop after August so that is another plus! We are blessed with nice weather year round though and Avila is located in a protected inlet so we do not get as much wind as other beach areas. I consider Avila the hidden gem of the central coast!

For the ceremony we offer your option of having it either directly on the beach or our glass sheltered sun deck. We do the complete set up and take down of our new padded white resin chairs, white arch and any other tables needed at the site. We also have an on site coordinator to help with the coordination of the rehearsal and ceremony. Our reception package includes again, the complete set up and take down of the tables and chairs, white linens that drape to the floor, and an ocean front honeymoon suite!

We have a noise curfew of 10pm. So, the weddings do have to conclude by then. However, for the ones who would like to continue the party, Mr. Ricks Beach Bar is within a three minute walking distance!

We do not have a restaurant on property so weddings are able to bring in any licensed caterer of their choice. This is nice, because it offers the couple flexibility, they are able to shop around and compare prices/options. I have a list of local caterers that I send to every couple.

Prices for the suites vary depending on the time of year. They range anywhere from $169-$499 on average. I am able to hold a block of suites here for the out of town wedding guests and depending on the month I am typically able to do so at a discounted rate. I think that it is so convenient for guests when they can enjoy the wedding and then when it’s over, just walk right up to their suite.

For brides wearing high heels, be prepared to kick them off before you walk down the aisle, or wear flip flops. Walking in the sand is not easy in stilettos!

String Lights, sometimes called garden lights, are a tried and true addition to any wedding decor. They can be used during a ceremony, reception or both. If planned correctly, a lighting designer can focus the energy to the most important areas. They can separate and create boundaries around an area accentuating the areas of interest, whether it be the dance floor, head table or a complete “net” of light to catch all the fun. They emit a soft warm glow mimicking a star filled sky or for a more full look, can be enclosed in varying sizes of translucent paper Chinese lanterns.

Get creative! The stars are the limit ;)

Chuck and Nicole really have an eye for beauty. It’s no surprise that they chose Dolphin Bay as their ceremony site or the S3 Barn at Varian Ranch near Arroyo Grande. They also wanted a little more decorative flair for their guests viewing pleasure, which we were happy to provide.

The carefully chosen colors were up-lit in such a way that the combination of cool and warm lights really accented the negative space of the barns structure. The shadows separate the squares of beautiful color and the starr-night effect adds a dynamic feel with its slowly wandering soft green stars.

Chloe at Mike Larson Photography got these awesome shots of the barn, but you should definitely check out all the pics she got of Chuck and Nicole’s fabulous wedding day. Corinne at panacea event floral design also showed her talents the the bouquets, boutonnieres and of course the bar and table decor (panacea’s post here). Check out the awesome glass hurricanes filled with white cymbidiums that adorned the bar:

You can really see how important pin-spotting and accent lighting is when you look at unique features like this one of a kind cake. Or even the occasional Elk ;)

Here’s a short but sweet video of the lighting elements we used for Dan and Marcy’s beautiful wedding reception in Robert Hall Winery’s barrel room. No house lights were used this entire evening. We wanted to keep the ambient lighting low so the gorgeous amber, purple and pink uplighting would really accent the barrels, but guests wouldn’t be in the dark. We gave the ceiling a textured pattern wash and let the soft light reflect on the tables. The Starry Night effect projected thousands and thousands of tiny laser “stars” over a deep, nebulous, blue background. Our H20 effect was focused on the dance floor in front of DJ Perry and a leaf pattern floor wash filled in the empty space and matched Dan and Marcy’s theme.

Thanks to Jack at Jack Hutchinson Videography for the awesome HD video.

Thanks to all the volunteers, local fashionistas and the fabulous event staff at Robert Hall Winery, the public got to enjoy a glamourous night of runway action all for a good cause. Nearly 200 people came out to see the local trends, indulge in CateringUnlimited.com’s tasty concoctions, drink fantastic Robert Hall wines and raised $1400 for dear Cheyenne Willis and her fight with dystonia. Our own Melissa was there to DJ the event along with KSBY’s Carina Corral serving as emcee. We couldn’t be more proud of our lighting designer Zach’s work for the brilliant lighting layout. The brick walls were glowing and the spectators could enjoy every models ensemble thanks to the bath of white light lining the entire runway. Sophie from Mike Larson Photography provided the flash bulbs and captured the local talent. Local news coverage can be found here.

Dan and Marcy really know how make their friends and family feel loved. This groups affection for each other really warmed the cavernous layout in the gorgeous barrel room at Robert Hall Winery. With a mix of 80’s pop throwbacks, a lot of latin flavor and some all-time wedding favorites, DJ Perry kept the dance floor packed and made sure Dan and Marcy’s awesome requests were played at all the right times.

With an intent to give this couple a party atmosphere to match the guests personality yet still maintain elegance, Zach lit the room with some of our newest décor lighting features. We decided on a ceiling pattern wash (to give a soft, warm light overhead), a dance floor wash with a leaf pattern to accent the floral textures, an H2O light to designate the dance floor and a fantastic illumination of all the surrounding barrels that really make Robert Hall an amazing place to have your special day.

It was awesome working with Brenda at A Heart to Heart Wedding Consultants. Her and Andy kept everything running smoothly and on time so we could focus on music and the lighting. I look forward to many more events together!

Among the other decor was panacea event floral design’s fabulous additions by way of perfectly chosen flowers. You should check out their posting about the event here for the juicy details. Look how the cake toppers bring the beautiful cake to life.

The extra spot lights on the cake really accentuate the beautiful details

Of course Meagan at Mike Larson Photography captured all of these shots and left no memory un-captured. More shots to come soon.

The perfect moment with our beautiful bride Tiffanie and her awesome husband Eric sharing their first dance. Behind is an example of our damask pattern that Tiffanie had requested and our lighting designer Zach created. The warm, ambient lighting really complimented the comfortable feeling of Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort’s Banquet Room. Big thanks and kudos to Amy Wellenkamp for her awesome talents with the camera.

It’s time to roll out the red carpet and get glamourized! Come to our fabulous event and enjoy fashions from local businesses such as:

Ambiance

Divine

Farm Supply

I Candi

Jayde

Kelly’s Casuals

Pan Jewelers

Pillow Talk of Paso Robles

Vine Street Apparel

Upscale Resale

Hair and make-up by Twist Studio Spa

Indulge yourself in hors d’oeuvres and sweets by CateringUnlimited.com while the floral design from panacea event floral design, flashing lights from Mike Larson Photographers and raging tunes from us, Kramer Entertainment DJ’s & Lighting. We promise to keep the fashion flowing. And don’t forget to partake in the silent auction where all proceeds will benefit a Paso Robles native, Cheyenne Willis who is battling a rare disorder called Dystonia.

Other sponsors include The Broad Street Event Group, Classic Wines of California, Packaging Plus, Taylor Rentals, Wine Away, Wine Wipes and Carina Corral of KSBY6 as the MC.

This sensational event will take place on Friday, April 30^th from 6-10pm.

For tickets and more info, please click here!

In a fit of swashbuckling awesomeness, Mark Padgett Event Design once again wowed the crowd with a superb evening of fundraising for the Hospice Partners of the Central Coast. Sponsors and guests of this fantastic  non-profit organization were treated to a marvelous setting inside the giant ballroom at the Embassy Suites in San Luis Obispo. No detail was spared. We lit the walls a deep shade of blue, filled the “sky” with stars, painted a dancefloor in soft light and let the live-action pirate brigade (The RumRunners) steal everyones attention and leave only smiles behind. The appropriately rustic centerpieces adorned with gorgeous tropical flowers by panacea event floral design really brought life to the table settings. Sophie at Mike Larson Photography caught all the splendor in some amazing shots. She really knows how to capture the ambience, even in the lowest of light. Also, a Thank You to Bill at BGA for the usage of the moon image.