Creating a Venue from the Ground Up

3 Tent Rental Companies Share Behind-the-Scenes Peeks at a Top Tented WeddingBy Shereé Bochenek, Après Party and Tent Rental, 
Edina, Minn.; Sadie Gardner, Sadie's Couture Floral and Event Styling, Grand Forks, N.D.; Dominic Mitchell, Raj Tents, San Francisco; Jennifer Perez, Town & Country Rentals, Van Nuys, Calif.Après Party and Tent RentalTimelineTuesday, June 3Rental crew arrivesWednesday, June 4Tent installedThursday, June 5Draping, furniture, tables, linens, and china loaded inSaturday, June 7Wedding, floral, and dance floor installedMonday, June 9Tent takedownDate: June 7, 2014Guest count: 475Inspiration: Throughout the planning and design process, the bride and groom designed every element so the day was a reflection of their love for each other and their family and friends. The bride wanted a mix of pastels and gold for the reception. The design was elegant with a bohemian element. Bridesmaids were asked to choose dresses within a champagne/taupe palette so each bridesmaid could choose a dress that reflects her own personality and style.Budget: Unavailable.Location: The couple needed a non-traditional reception venue to accommodate the size of their guest list. As a result, they settled on a beautiful plot of land at the Grand Forks Country Club. The ceremony was held on the fairway of the 18th hole. The couple wed under two beautiful trees that created a natural arch to which a large wooden cross from their church was placed.Vendors: Après Party and Tent Rental, Sadie’s Couture Floral and Event Styling, DBA North Dakota (event design, coordination, and floral design), Shawna Noel Photography, Backspin Productions, La Tavola Linens, Imagine Lights MN (dance floor).Tents: 80' x 130' white Century tent with Cathedral windows.Labor: The tent installation required eight hours with seven labor staff. A décor staff of four worked for 12 hours on draping and installation of the chandeliers. The tent takedown took six hours.Rentals: Tables, white satin tablecloths, gold chiavari chairs, domed chandeliers, sheer white tent draping, Challenges: The greatest challenge was the travel distance from Minneapolis to Grand Forks, at 318 miles each way.  The tent staff arrived in Grand Forks on June 3 and installed the tent the next day. In addition, the facility was only capable of handling 200-guest events. As a result, all of the elements needed to be brought in (tent, tables, chairs, china, glassware, cocktail tables, lighting, generators, restrooms, etc).Logistics: The wedding planner and design company had Après Party and Tent Rental deliver and install as many rental elements as possible to eliminate additional delivery charges. Within North Dakota, rental items are limited, which is why planners look to companies outside of the state. Additionally, North Dakota is known for extreme weather conditions and although the event occurred in June, strong winds can always be a factor. As a result, the expertise of the installers from Après was a guiding reason to hire their company for the event.Town & CountryTimelineThursday, Oct. 239:00 a.m. Town & Country begins to load trucks for Friday delivery4:00 p.m. Crew departs Van Nuys and heads to motel in Rancho MirageFriday, Oct. 248:30 a.m. Town & Country arrives on site to stage vehicles and begins transferring equipment to shuttle truck9:00 a.m. Town & Country begins installation8:00 p.m. Town & Country leaves propertySaturday, Oct. 259:00 a.m. Town & Country returns to complete installation12:00 p.m. Good Gracious arrives to pre-set2:00 p.m. Town & Country standby man on-site to operate heaters and lighting3:30 p.m. Guests arrive for ceremony9:00 p.m. Screening ends/reception begins10:00 p.m. Event endsSunday, Oct. 269:00 a.m. Town & Country arrives for takedownDate: October 25, 2014Guest count: 150Budget: $45,000 Town & Country budget ($125,000 overall)Vendors: Town & Country Event Rentals, La Fete Wedding (planner/coordinator), Solomon Estate (venue), Good Gracious (catering), Michael Segal Photography, Cody Floral Design, DeBois Productions (DJ/band, ceremony music), Ambient Event Design (lighting and sound), Burrtec Waste Systems (restrooms), Exquisite Desserts (cake), J.P. Reynolds (officiant), Cardiff Transportation, NR3 video, Shaylee Blatz (hair), Erin Lockard (makeup).Tents: 50' x 50' tent with velon frame wrap and Amalfi cabanas with swagging placed within the tent to create private dining vignettes. Also used was Cielo Blanco cabanas on 10' legs. The wedding design included a main tent with no top, so the wedding party and guests could take advantage of the warm desert evening. Labor: It took 12 hours for a crew of 12 to unload and install the tent, cabanas, stage, and dance floor, setup the catering kitchen and the generator and eight hours to strike.Rentals: Stage and dance floor, catering kitchen, ambient generator.Challenges: We had a limited installation timeframe of 12 hours, which we were able to meet. Another challenge was the wind. The cake table had an umbrella over it but, due to the winds, the umbrella wobbled in an uncompromising way. An attempt was made to catch the umbrella and save the cake; however, the umbrella knocked over a large vase centerpiece with floral. This created a domino effect and knocked over three additional vases. The wedding party was taking photos and guests were in the middle of cocktail hour when this occurred. This took about 45 minutes to pull it all back together. Luckily, the florist was still on-site, had extra flowers, and was able to recover some of the original florals to recreate the arrangements. Town & Country had also brought along extra linens and place settings and used these to replace those that broke or became wet during this mishap. In addition, the Town & Country semi had been parked in a sand embankment off of the road and in front of the estate. Because the winds were kicking up the sand, the truck got stuck and had to remain there until the completion of the strike on Sunday evening. The crew was able to get the semi out by placing plywood in front of the tires to create traction.Logistics: This wedding involved a long carry. Since the semi needed to be parked in front of the estate, all equipment was unloaded, put onto a pickup truck, and driven 500 ft. to the front of the estate. From there, the crew dollied and hand-carried all of the equipment an additional 500 ft. to the set up location on the lawn. Also, since poor weather was a potential issue during the event, there was a backup plan in case high winds or other inclement weather occurred. Tenting walls and the tent top were brought in case the weather and winds were too extreme for open-air setup. In addition, the swagging in the cabanas was pulled tight due to the winds.Raj TentsTimelineMonday, Aug. 25Installation of pergolas and pavilions. Evening: Prayer ceremonyTuesday, Aug. 26Installation of pergolas and pavilions. Evening: Shagun ceremonyWednesday, Aug. 27Pergolas and pavilions moved. Grand Maharajas installed, luncheon for 200. Evening: mehndi for ladies of the familyThursday, Aug. 28Sangeet for 500Friday, Aug. 29Family dinner, 60 guestsSaturday, Aug. 30Ceremony at Selma Sikh Temple. Evening: Family dinner under tentsSunday, Aug. 31Reception for 4,000 at Fresno Convention CenterTent takedownMonday, Sept. 1Tent takedown completedDate: Aug. 25 – 31, 2014Guest count: 4,000Inspiration: A traditional, Indian Punjabi wedding at a fabulous estate home in California’s San Joaquin Valley.Budget: $400,000Location: Private residence, Caruthers, Calif.Vendors: Raj Tents (tenting and décor), KSB Company (event planning), Light Up the Walls, Best Party Rentals, Design & Décor by Janice, Sweet Memories Flowers, Manohar’s Delhi Palace, Platter Servings by Vance, Asoka Indian Cuisine in Selma, MogaVideo.Tents: Three Grand Maharaja tents (27' x 44' each), five pergola tents (10' x 10' each), two pavilion tents (13' diameter each), one grand pavilion tent (20' diameter).Labor: Raj Tents’ tenting and lighting, 10-person crew with Co-founder Maurice Walsh personally supervising. Monday and Tuesday were full days installing the pergolas and pavilions. The entire day Wednesday, along with Thursday morning, were spent moving pergolas and pavilions and installing the Grand Maharajas on the main lawn. Raj Tents had a standby crew available throughout the events. One-and-a-half days were needed for strike. For lighting, Erik Hess, of Light Up the Walls, and his crew required one full day for lighting on the house, along with another day for lights on the palm trees and tents. Staff for catering, flowers, and décor were on hand every day for multiple events.Rentals: Round tables, chiavari chairs, various other tables, linens, china, glassware, flatware, chargers, bars, Raj Tents’ low seating vignettes, generator, extensive lighting, AV, stage.Challenges: The estate home was in the final stages of construction, with the driveway and landscaping being completed as installation began. Bulldozers finished leveling the lawn area and sod was laid immediately prior to set up. This made the installation more complex as crews needed to work around one another. For example, palm trees were being planted as the tents were being set up. An advantage to having a brand new lawn was that all power cables could be hidden under the new lawn for a far neater finished look. The lighting team had to install while making allowances for the landscapers to finish their projects. Lights were located around the house, tents, and palm trees, including 90 up-lights with more than two miles of gold Christmas lights and four gobo pattern projectors. The home is centered among pistachio groves and vineyards in California’s San Joaquin Valley. August is hot and dusty. Temperatures were in the 90s with the work day starting at dawn to make use of the cooler morning hours. During installation, the soaring temperatures put extra pressure on everyone.Logistics: Raj Tents’ crew came up from Los Angeles and stayed nearby to get an early start each day. The family’s property manager was on hand to ensure the work was done in compliance with the owner’s wishes. The family was involved with many aspects of the design and coordination. KSB Company handled what was a logistically challenging wedding installation. As this was a multiple day, elaborate wedding installation, there was constant maintenance of the wedding site to keep all optimal. This included freshening the draping and scalloping and, for lighting, recharging the battery-operated lights on a daily basis. A traditional Indian wedding consists of several different events, each with its own ceremonial purpose and flavor. The wedding environment was changed during the wedding week to suit the different events. Coordination was the key to this event.Tenting Experts Pitch in on the Latest TrendsWhat are the latest trends in tents? Wedding Planner Magazine asked three top tent rental companies in the United States about the latest trends shaping the industry, and here’s what they said:Trends: Sustainable, eco-friendly tenting; luxury lining; high-quality tenting and décor; natural fabrics. “Many clients are interested in more sustainable, eco-friendly tenting with minimal waste. Luxury lining sets for large frame tents are tailored to fit the tents and are reusable, which has advantages over fabric or Velon treatments where much is trashed after teardown. High-quality tenting and décor is definitely trending, with clients wanting more detail and colors. Natural fabrics are also popular and lend a more authentic flavor to events. Raj Tents’ linings are made for frame tents from 20' to 40' wide and for Loesberger tents 20m wide. They are available in a number of colors and themes, from classic cream through aqua tones, warm earth tones, and hot and spicy orange and red. Indian and Moroccan themes are always popular as are the more neutral color palettes. Overall, luxury linings are suitable for frame tent structures where you get all the advantages of a readily available, weatherproof structure and the beauty of a luxury interior lining to transform the tent. An advantage for our clients outside of California is that the structure can be rented from a local company, and we only need to ship the lining set, which makes this very cost effective.”- Dominic Mitchell, co-founder/CEO, Raj Tents, LLC, San FranciscoTrends: Clear tents, hardwood flooring, decorative lighting, primitive tents.“Clear tenting has become an important option in the Midwest market. Après is offering many more sizes and styles in clear tents to meet the demand of our clients. Another exciting new trend is hardwood flooring for tents. Flooring the complete area of a tent lends a professional and finished effect to the interior. Options range from faux hardwood panels to real, lay-down planks. We can install flooring on any surface, regardless of how uneven it might be. Decorative lighting has become a staple in tents—ranging from a curated collection of modern barrel shades, to rustic Edison cage lights, to major crystal chandeliers. Another movement on the horizon is the return of the primitive tent —including canvas, sailcloth, and even the teepee. We have provided quotes to a number of clients on these unique products.”- Shereé Bochenek, creative director, Après Party and Tent Rental, 
Edina, Minn. Trends: Salt tidewater tents, fabric, low hanging chandeliers.“Salt tidewater tents make the illusion of having a frameless cloth tent. These are chic and unique and accommodate up to 150 guests. They are more intimate, and they also are limited from a structural standpoint on what you can do with them, which makes them well-suited to small, intimate, cozy weddings. For big weddings requiring large tent structures, fabric, fabric, and more fabric with low-hanging chandeliers are trending.”- Julio Villasenor, event director, Town & Country Event Rentals, Van Nuys, Calif. ••