ENTERTAINING OUTDOOR entertaining

Silk Lanterns Elevate the Garden Party

silk lanterns for garden weddings by flite

Inspired by the fabulous work of LA-based event design Flite, I examined how to best use silk lanterns in a garden party to get a stunning effect. It starts with the superb Vietnamese silk lanterns, which are a lot more sophisticated than Chinese paper lanterns.

silk lanterns garden wedding in violets by flite

When you are hanging lanterns, mix the shapes and alternate colors. Pumpkin, diamond, teardrop, balloon, cocoon shapes work well together. I encourage you to mix solids and patterns within a hue family. A two-color palette is more elegant. For the garden wedding in violets, you can broaden the scheme by adding a few pink lanterns. I think this installation was really successful.

Since you will need a large number of lanterns to make a statement, it is often best to rent them. Plus, they will do the installation for you, including doing the wiring if your party continues after dark. An event design studio with a remarkable portfolio is Flite located in Los Angeles, California. Looking at their portfolio is a treat.

complementing shapes and tones lanterns

If you wish to do it yourself, you can find sources online. Vi Gallery sells 4 shapes of Hoi An Silk Lanterns in two sizes (medium $20 USD large $30 USD) in an array of colors. For a larger selection, check Asia2you, a retailer based in Wisconsin that ships everywhere. This is where I found these beautiful parasol lanterns.

hoi silk lanterns

SOURCING:
+ Silk Lanterns by Flite – Photo credits for my first collage: top left photo by Cat Gwynn and Ben Hoffman, top right photo by Louis Felix, second row photos by Mark Carolin
+ Orange pattern prosperity lantern on sale at $33.95 USD
+ Solid Orange prosperity lantern on sale at $31.15 USD

  • fran66leong
    September 1, 2009 at 16:25

    Silk Lanterns Elevate the Garden Party | At Home with Kim Vallee http://bit.ly/DaJEf

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  • brownthumbgirl
    September 1, 2009 at 16:39

    Silk Lanterns Elevate the Garden Party | At Home with Kim Vallee http://bit.ly/Q2OPr

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  • gargening_101
    September 2, 2009 at 01:16

    Silk Lanterns Elevate the Garden Party | At Home with Kim Vallee: Inspired by the fabulous work of LA-based even.. http://bit.ly/hmn4

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter