Asian Fusion Events

Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, CA

My husband and I went to see the Samurai exhibit in the Bowers Museum last month. He was interested in all the swords and I must admit I was more interested in seeing this premiere wedding venue in Orange County. It was a nice Spanish-style building, the gardens were well-maintained and it had that distinct character that would look so dramatic in wedding photos. I think Braedon Photography captures the essence of a Bowers Museum wedding in this wedding slideshow posted on their website. If you are thinking of a Spanish style wedding in Orange County – if you love the backdrop of old brick, rich wood tones and immaculate gardens – then I would recommend renting the Bowers Museum for your wedding. It’s such a unique location with an old world feel, I’m sure your guests would appreciate the ambiance. I definitely give this wedding venue two thumbs up!

J. Rica Middlebrooks describes the Bowers Museum in an article entitled, Top Wedding Venues in Orange County California, for Associated Content:

For an absolutely exquisite wedding, check out Bowers Museum of Cultural Art located at 2002 N. Main Street in Santa Ana. This facility is one of the top wedding venues in Orange County and offers an elegant setting with music, a dance floor, and a dressing area for the bride, outdoor ceremony and reception area, in house catering (no outside catering), china, silver, and linen. Located in the center of Orange County. The Bowers Museum of Cultural Art is equipped to accommodate 130 guests inside, and 400 guests outside.

I put that in just in case you thought I was biased – absolutely exquisite, elegant setting, top wedding venue – with those adjectives, how can you go wrong? Happy planning!

Asian-inpired Graphic Dinnerware by Ty Pennington

For dinner parties or any party that involves sit-down dining – the simplest way to inject some Asian flair is your tableware.  I personally love the different shapes and simplistic design of Asian-inspired dinnerware, servingware and tableware.  And one of my favorite designers that has a whole line of these is Ty Pennington from Extreme Makeover Home Edition.

I love the minimalist style of this set of dinnerware from his Ty Pennington Style collection.   I have been in love with square plates since commercial dinnerware manufacturers adopted them a few years back.  Why couldn’t you have a square plate?  It’s great for taking pictures of food, it almost frames the food and present it like artwork.  All the better to wow your guests with, right?  I love it when hosts take the time to actually make their banquet look good.

The stark whiteness of the dinnerware also makes it easier to plate your courses individually.  The black graphic is dramatic against the white.  The nature print is actually what makes this set look Asian.  The simple lines depicting plants or birds can always be traced to some Asian artistic style.

Distinctly Asian Wooden Bowls

Wooden bowls are great for serving steamed rice or fresh salads. They bring in earth tones and accents that are also distinctly Asian in character. We are a very green culture, we’ve been using bamboo to make bowls and furniture long before the term environment-friendly was coined because bamboo can be found in abundance in Asian countries. We even have bamboo utensils – and I don’t mean just chopsticks! We have wooden spoons and forks – even serving utensils. And don’t forget the bamboo placemats! I always associate wooden tableware with the Asian culture.

Although in Asian-food-lover cities like Los Angeles, using a pair chopsticks has become a common skill – you cannot be sure that all your guest would know how to use this. That doesn’t mean you should forgo the chopsticks all together – chopsticks are after all the most identifiable Asian utensil there is. I have seen tablescapes where they put the chopsticks as part of their napkin ring – bind the napkin with a ribbon using the chopsticks and a delicate flower as the centerpiece of the napkin decor. Because most of your dinnerware will tend to be minimalistic in design, you will need to add the wow factor of your tablescape somewhere else – napkin rings are the perfect accent pieces to make your table setting pop.

Be creative – there’s no right or wrong in art! And a tablescape should definitely be a work of art.

Colorful Asian paper parasols

Asians are very well-known for their use of umbrellas. They say that if you find someone using an umbrella on a very sunny day, they probably are Asian. I must confess when I was growing up, my mother would not let me out of the house without an umbrella. It protects you from the tropical weather – and if you ever learned that Filipino martial art called arnis – it can be used to protect you from assailants as well! Kidding aside though, Asian cultures are known for their beautifully crafted and very colorful parasols – shown on the left.

They are often used to decorate for Asian-themed parties – and you only have to look at their bright colors and intricate prints to see why.  My husband and I have this friend who is an expert at floral arrangements and while decorating a big hall with flowers, he utilized these paper parasols in a very unique and interesting way.

White orchids

He place these delicate orchid stems on the under side of the parasol, attached them with glue so that the flowers hung over the edges gracefully. Then he hung the parasol upside down from the ceiling of the hall in different heights. The orchids gracefully flowed out of the colorful paper parasol. It definitely made guests look up to admire them. It provided that unique Asian touch that was unconventional yet created the awe that we needed.

Who said flowers should always be in vases?  

Make sure you put your orchids in water-filled floral picks before gluing them to the parasols to make your flowers last longer.  Also, single strand of flowers in a stem look better than clumps of flowers when putting together this arrangement.  Stringing up the parasol so that it stays in the position you want requires having your string knotted on at least four paper parasol supports before tying it to the main handle then to the ceiling hooks.  Make sure your string can handle the weight of the parasol – tie your knots tightly especially if you will be placing guests underneath this floral arrangement.

And there you have it – a uniquely Asian floral arrangement to wow your guests.  Never be afraid to experiment with arrangements and have fun while you’re at it!