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Photography by Tobin Poppenberg

A fun place for a really fun guys birthday party?

Little did I know this event would turn out to be so much fun when I first met with McKenna from MaryMac Events at the Glen Muse estate in the heart of Ojai, CA.  A great location with multiple houses a rock pool, beach volley ball court, and a small grass clearing flanked by fruit trees and shrubs. The clearing is where the main party would be held for one hundred and fiftyish people to eat, drink, and dance the night away for what was going to be a great 40th birthday part for a very generous and loved person.  Our role? Assist in creating a once in a lifetime memorable experience for the guests, and lighting would play major role in this aspect.  MaryMac Events provided wonderful direction and inspiration for all, while giving us total freedom to create.  Always a pleasure to work with Town & Country RentalsTobin Poppenberg Photography, Jen Williams Floral Design, and Karen Nedivi videography.

The final concept divided the estate into three areas.  The reception would be hosted in the circular drive centered around the fountain with the entertainment on the front entry of the main house.  This would be where guest would get to enjoy the natural beauty and presence of the estate our contribution would be to supply the sound system for the entertainment.

"Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston"“Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston”

The entrance to the main party would be the Oak Tree Grove that we would help to transform into an unexpected scene for guest to walk through and serve as at transitional moment for the party, as guests made their way to the main area for celebrating.  It took a group effort to accomplish this with MaryMac Events leading the way by providing about one hundred paper lantern globes. Some of the guests spent a day hanging the lanterns throughout the grove.  The Islay Events team came in and provided a string light path to guide people through the grove as well as lighting the lanterns and trees in way to complete the “ethereal wonderland” (thank you Tobin for the quote).

"Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston"“Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston”

After passing through the “wonderland” guest entered the party space right into the clearing where a beautiful outdoor night club/lounge setting had been created by the event team complete with dance floor, stage, food buffets, and a bar.  String lights overhead provided area lighting, while the trees and shrubs were lit in changing colors to enhance the “club” atmosphere and define the space.  The stage and dance floor were lit with LED and automated lights which added to the excitement and mood on the dance casino floor.

"Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston"“Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston”

For us the event was a lot of fun and we really appreciated how the guests enjoyed the work we did. They actually asked us to leave the oak grove powered all night until sunrise so they could enjoy it. Of course we obliged them, quite the compliment actually and we couldn”t turn down such great people.  Below are some more pictures and some links to related materials.

Photography by Islay Events

Photography by Islay Events

 

Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston

Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston

 

Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston

Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston

 

Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston

Tobin Photography of Santa Barbara and Boston

 

Photography by Islay Events

Photography by Islay Events

 

 

Here is a link to our Mediterranean board on Pinterest we used for inspiration on the event.

A very cool video overview of the event from Karen Nedivi here on Tobins Blog

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