Setting Your Theme

Every event is different. You have weddings, graduations, anniversaries and birthdays. You have cocktail parties, house warming’s, reunions and fundraisers. They all have a theme; they pull in an idea or item that means something special to the bride and groom, the birthday boy or girl, or the organization that is trying to raise funds to continue their research, their work. When deciding on the theme, the first thing is trying to make it work in a way that looks nice, fun, and elegant or casual, without being too much of each. You want the look to get your point across, but you need to decide, do you want to keep it subtle or point blank and how do you incorporate everything that you want. 

You need to pick the colors, what is to be displayed on the table (from the center pieces, china, etc.) What color goes where, and do they all work together? 

Many people write specifically on weddings, they show the beauty in someone’s special day, or birthday parties where there is so much fun, where you can let your imagination go wild. Organizations that host fundraisers tend to bring out emotions in the people who attend, because many are either personally affected, or are close to someone who is, by that particular group.

I decided to focus on Autism, as it is something that affects my life on a day to day basis. Therefore, the theme that I choice for my table setup here is Light It Up Blue. On April 2^nd, Light It Up Blue is one of the many ways that groups like Autism Speaks try to help bring awareness for Autism. Many buildings, not just in America, but all over the world (Egypt, France, Canada, etc.) join together, to light up the outside of their buildings (and homes) blue, in representation of their support for this specific cause. 

How did I decide on my setup? The colors in the Autism ribbon are red, blue, and yellow. Colors that can be very fun together, if done right. The table has poly blue linen with a white striped organza overlay. The napkins and the chair sashes bring in the yellow. I have used the clear glass silver beaded charges, white castle dinner plates and a blue pebbled salad plate, along with the blue wine glasses for the table setting. The clear glass charger and solid white dinner plate are used so the blue, which is the main color of the setup (noting the theme, Light It Up Blue), doesn't over power the table. The red, I felt, if used too much with the blue and yellow, could pose the potential for having more of a carnival theme, rather than something elegant. So the centerpiece, which is from a new collection through Hamilton, is an angel with the Autism ribbon draped around her. And within that ribbon is the red, a subtle touch, without being too strong.