11 Wild Uses of Event Decor That Brought the Great Outdoors Indoors

Last year, Birkenstock hosted an evening event at Cipriani 25 Broadway in New York City in the run-up to its 250th anniversary in 2024. Produced by Ken Solomon Productions, the precursor anniversary event featured panoramas of cork trees and bark nestled into moss, hinting at Birkenstock’s use of sustainable natural materials in its products. In the center of the room, exhibitions displayed the brand’s history and some of its first shoe models, as well as a selection of celebrated fashion collaborations including Dior, Rick Owens, and Manolo Blahnik. See more: Clogs and Cocktails: Step Inside This Birkenstock Celebration in NYC

For Tres Generaciones’ 50th anniversary, the team wanted to bring the tequila brand back to its roots—sometimes literally—with a plant-filled gathering earlier this summer at Citizen News in Hollywood. Real plants and soil were used as decor throughout the space. "With roots that trace back to the origins of tequila, it was important to showcase it both literally and figuratively," explained Coltrane Curtis, founder and managing partner of Team Epiphany, the experiential agency that collaborated with the tequila brand for the event. "We loved having the plants all around the venue with real soil. It represents the brand's rich history, and the commitment to the process that goes into the development of Tres Generaciones tequila." See more: This Tequila Brand Celebrated Its Roots (Literally) With a Plant-Filled 50th Anniversary Celebration

At last year's VidCon in Anaheim, Calif., Mars celebrated its candy brands—including M&M’s, Snickers, Twix, Orbit, Extra, 5 Gum, Skittles, and Starburst—with a large, summer camp-inspired booth called Camp Sweet Springs. Each brand had its own separate activation within the space. At Starburst’s pretty-in-pink “feel-good forest,” guests were invited to write encouraging, positivity-focused messages for each other, which were then hung from the trees with wooden clips. The activation was designed and executed by the experiences team at Condé Nast, with fabrication and build by 15/40 Productions. See more: VidCon 2022: 35 Clever Ideas for Trade Show Booths and Brand Activations From the Convention's Big Return

When the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History's beloved fossil hall reopened in 2019 (after a five-year, $110 million renovation), the facility hosted two evenings of celebrations for the big opening. Its rotunda transformed into a jungle for a private donor dinner for 135 guests and then a grand opening cocktail reception for 600 guests, complete with tropical greenery and projections with swooping pterodactyls. Dinner tables also had a natural feel with a live edge and petrified wood. Silver Lining Design Group handled design and decor while Occasions Caterers handled catering. See more: Prehistoric Party: How the Smithsonian Celebrated Its Renovated Fossil Hall

At this year's SXSW, the buzzy festival held every year in Austin, Showtime showed up and showed out with a spooky activation hosted at Fair Market promoting its hit show Yellowjackets, which follows a high school soccer team stranded in the Canadian Rockies following a plane crash. Touchpoints were dedicated to each of the characters in the show, including this Lottie-centered, snowy wilderness scene complete with her shrine. See more: SXSW 2023: How Immersive Experiences Ruled at the Austin Fest

Last year, Savage X Fenty, Rihanna's uber-successful lingerie brand, was the subject of four separate Prime Video documentaries. The final installment, Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 4, billed itself as a “seductive fashion fever dream that blends style, dance, and music with the hypnotic essence of nocturnal nature”—and that’s exactly the vibe Prime Video went for at a design-forward influencer event hosted on release day at NeueHouse Hollywood. In a nod to its description, the event was filled with "nocturnal nature" decor, including this desert catwalk. “For the desert catwalk, we wanted to rebuild the sandstone cliffs and combine them with architecturally stunning silver arches that guests walked through,” said Cat Choate, managing partner of Cat/Alina Productions, whose team designed and produced the event. “The shape of the arches tied into the crystal city animations in the show.”

"We built a massive, 30-foot central tree to anchor the event and immerse the guests into the surreal forest scenes from the show, which also served as a marquee focal point, photo experience, and backdrop for the evening,” Choate explained. See more: How This Rihanna Event Evoked a 'Seductive Fashion Fever Dream'

The theme for the 2020 SAG Awards' official after-party was "cherry blossom forest." Produced by Event Eleven's Tony Schubert, the event mixed trees featuring various shades of pink blossoms with plush furniture, walnut details, and pops of pink. "I pitched an idea of a fall forest with beautiful amber and brown leaves, and my wife said it should be cherry blossoms," Schubert told us at the time. "I guess she was right, because everyone loved the idea." Green Set provided the trees, while Floral Crush Studio handled floral design. See more: See the SAG Awards' Cherry Blossom-Filled After-Party

Musaafer, an opulent Indian restaurant nestled in Houston’s ritzy Galleria area, recently underwent a full transformation and celebrated its third anniversary at its sold-out “House of Illusions” event. Each corner of the restaurant transformed into distinct themed experiences with decor designed by Art Attack. This included an impressive food spread laid out on a rustic "chef's table."

The camouflaged table featured savory and sweet bites, including these truffles, and earthy decor like mushrooms and greenery.

Leaning into a venue's nature-focused amenities counts, right? Last year, Miami's Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science welcomed over 200 cultural philanthropists, city leaders, and science enthusiasts for “An Evening of Discovery: Digging Deep Into Paleontology.” Guests were seated for dinner underneath the Gulf Stream Aquarium exhibit, where they could take in views of sea creatures swimming by. See more: This Catering Team Amped Up an Event Theme with a Clever Menu That Guests Really 'Dug'