Sang and Frank came to our creative studio to meet with our designers for their Room 1520 wedding, and we were so happy to have met them!  They were such a delight to work with and their wedding featured artistic details at every turn.

The couple’s color palette was perfect for this all-white loft space, pairing a navy blue with pops of bright orange, purple, soft yellows and a natural undertone in all of the earthy details.  The place settings did not fail to impress with bright pink chopsticks and lovely natural toned menu cards.  The stationery pieces were some of our favorite details, the invitations were a custom spinning wheel in navy that gave all the detailed information as you spin the card.  We have never seen such a great way to invite your guests.  The stationery flowed into the centerpieces that were a mixture of earthy elements with a simplistic style.

Our designers created a beautiful lit backdrop that hung mini lights vertically to pair with the couple’s gift table. For the finishing touch, we included strings of Italian globe lights to add a romantic feel overhead.  The fun, earthy ambiance matched the couple perfectly, and the guests truly enjoyed celebrating with the couple, as did we!

// Vendors // 
// Venue: Room 1520 // Lighting & Fabric: Art of Imagination //
// Photos: Gerber and Scarpelli // Event Coordinator: JEM Weddings // DJ: CAS Music //
// Cinematography: WM-Films //

The bride’s style was simple yet overlaid with a modern elegance….the natural light that filter through the inner voile drapery and the hanging teardrop crystals above added a wonderful ethereal feel for the ceremony. Later the up lighting in a soft candle like amber shimmered on the ivory crepe back satin drapes that were swaged open framing the sweetheart table setting.

VENDORS: Art of Imagination: Luxury Fabric backdrops & Lighting // Venue: Room 1520 // ​Caterer: Calihan Catering -Todd // Day of Planner: Event Less Ordinary-Carolyn // DJ: Style Matters-Spencer

Emily and Joel were married this past August at Room 1520 in Chicago’s West Loop. The bride’s style was organic, yet clean and minimal. For them, we created a unique, simple, yet rustic ambiance. A natural branch arch created with birch trees and curly willows was centered against our white sheer voile, perfectly positioned in front of large glass windows to naturally illuminate the setting. As the evening sun set, the two diffused lighting units behind the fabric allowed the etherial setting to glow far into the night. Asian lanterns and small candles hung from above, adding an additional touch of sparkle as the evening progressed.

It was a beautiful wedding and the bride and groom could not have been more gracious. After the event, we received this sweet note from Emily:

“Thank you for creating the perfect ambiance for our wedding at Room 1520 last week. We couldn’t be more thrilled with the outcome of all the details. Thank you for seeing our vision and for adding all your special touches. It was a night we will never forget and our pictures turned out beautifully!”

Emily & Joel

Vendors:
Art of Imagination // Room 1520 // Katie Kett Photography // D’Absolute Catering // Toast & Jam DJs // Elysia Root Cakes

The Brides’s Choice Event hosted by Room 1520 invited designers, paired with planners, to create unique and inspirational settings, ultimately voted upon by the brides themselves. Our design team at Art of Imagination was paired with our dear friend Anthony Navarro of Liven It Up Events. Our space to create was the bridal Head Table. Since Room 1520 is a clean, white canvas, we created an urban outdoor setting bringing nature indoors, with the added essences of chic enchantment.

Birch trees that Art of Imagination often uses, framed the couple and brought in a Spring-like color when we added the cherry blossoms and other pink flowers. The elegant, white voile fabric added an airy lightness, while the diffused white light behind provided the sunny happiness.  The essence of enchantment was a subtle touch, accomplished using a projection of crystal white water waves. The magical ambiance could be felt immediately. To ground this etherial setting, we incorporated one of our grandiose chandeliers with hanging crystals.

In collaboration with Liven It Up Events, Windy City Linen, and Tablescapes our designers personally selected the glassware, flatware, tableware, and other couture rentals that brought the whole tablescape together. Deborah customized the fold on the luxury napkins to include tiny details inspired by the glassware, china, and florals. She tied each with fresh greenery and accented with a galax formed flower nestled inside. Speaking of flowers, Deborah and Anthony both ventured to the wholesale florist to choose the Spring favorites that completed the look. From magnolia tips to seeded eucalyptus, galax leaves were selected, as well as the lovely and vividly fuchsia agonis. Fresh greenery was displayed throughout, from the accents in the small black basket at each place setting (repurposed from Deborah‘s Flower and Garden Show set-up) to the bountiful garland edging the table, beautifully placed and fluffed by Anthony.

The vintage farmwood table is a repurposed piece of furniture from Art of Imagination‘s personal collection, as well as the damask dining chairs. The gorgeous, charcoal studded bench was on loan from Platinum Events and give a unique options to our newlyweds for their sweetheart table seating.

All in all, the challenge was enjoyed by our entire team and it was so much fun collaborating with our fellow industry friends to create this whimsical outdoor/indoor setting. And, as the cherry on top, our beautiful head-table setting won the event’s competition! We are blessed and so grateful to be designated as the Bride’s Choice! Thank you to everyone involved in the makings of this luxurious setting, the event itself and everyone on our Art of Imagination staff. Can’t wait to see what next year will bring!

Our creative juices are bubbling over as we think of all the artistic talents that are going to be in one room. Our friends at Natural Beauties Floral and the amazing Reenie Rose are hosting a unique one-of-a-kind event at Room 1520 (in the West Loop) in just a few weeks. By pairing artists and floral designers together, watch as petals meet canvas in this showcase event.

From the Invite:

FORM: ART + Floral

The only event of its kind in the Chicago area, FORM pairs florists with artists to create an inspired arrangement that reflects a collaboration between two distinct and creative fields. Browse the gallery while enjoying hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and music. This year’s fundraising efforts will go to support Snow City Arts, a Chicago non-profit organization that provides arts education to children in hospitals (snowcityarts.org). A $10 donation is requested. April 9th. 6-9pm. At Room 1520, 301 N. Justine St., 312.846.6297 www.facebook.com/formevent

Room 1520 is a blank canvas unlike any other venue in Chicago. The opportunity to work creatively is endless with colors, fabrics, spacial design, furniture… we have even added textured and patterned walls and floors with the use of decals. With so many possibilities we chose a few of our favorites for your inspiration!

Metallics

gold and steel

A Happy Place

sky blues with a little coral

Romantic Palette

reds and pinks

Luxurious & Swanky

blush tones

Fairytale

soft blues with a little pink

These color palettes were made with the help of ChipIt! by Sherwin Williams.

Recently, Room 1520 hosted the 4th iteration of what’s become one of our favorite events in the industry. Titled “Flower, Flow, Flour, Fresh” the party was both fun & irreverent. That evening, over a hundred couples mixed and mingled with dozens of industry professionals who showcased the very best of all aspects of the wedding industry.

The highlight was of course the nearly a dozen bakeries who were paired with dress-makers, with each station having even more decadent and delicious treats than the last – the most interesting part was having the dresses suspended about the treat stations.

Our role was creating the lounge settings and the atmospheric decor throughout the space – we hung a luxe canopy over the central area in a gold & silver material that matched both the space and the logo for the event. At the very back of the space, we created a beautiful lounge setting with platinum fabric and gold spheres and gold detailing.

Maypole Studios was on hand to take the photos – scroll through and share your thoughts in the comments.

Art of Imagination owner, Deborah, on the far right, with Leah from Room 1520, Debi Lilly and Joshua, of Pure Kitchen Catering. 

Mercury glass was all over – as the light dimmed, it sparkled and glimmered – so very pretty! Below is the lounge setting we created for the event, with the fish-wire suspended gold wire spheres.   

Larkspur was on-hand to showcase their amazing bouquets.   

Bethany, from Maypole Studios, goofing around with Mina Lee of Swan Events, Joshua from Pure Kitchen Catering and June, of Room 1520.Another fun shot – they’re clearly having a blast! Kudos to all the vendors who were a part of event. From the top of our head – here are some of the vendors that participated – be sure to check them out.

Debi Lilly  |  Pure Kitchen  |  Baked  |  St. Germain  |  Room 1520  |  Shutterbooth  |  Maypole Photography  |  Larkspur  | Chicago Earth  |  SpeedPro Chicago

We were recently a part of a posh birthday celebration at Room 1520, subtitled “Faithful, Fit & Fabulous” – the event was thrown in honor of a very special lady who was celebrating her 50th birthday with all her closest friends and family.

For the event, we washed Room 1520 with a beautiful, light shade of green. We used various shades of gold and brown to create accents throughout the space. We even created VIP lounge areas for her guests to mix and mingle – one right next to the photobooth to the left of the stairs by the entry, and another at the far end of the space, next to the band, with a huge swag of fabric overhead and a dozen of hanging crystal votives, which created a big focal point for the entire space. Over the dance floor, we hung an overhead swag in a matching gold shade and projected moving water overhead, which was a big hit with all the guests.

Scroll through the photos & share your thoughts in the comments.

Photobooth: Shutterbooth    

Room 1520, the stunning, modern and minimal wedding and event venue in the West Loop  launched in exquisite style. For the event we partnered with a number of Chicago’s top wedding vendors to create this luscious, luxurious event where 350+ guests mixed and mingled, enjoying the very first look at this venue.

The event included upscale treats from several catering companies, a premium open bar and even coffee from Intelligentsia. To top it off, a group of aerialists performed for the guests throughout the evening.

Our part included creating the overall light ambiance with dozens of cool-blue and pale lavender light. We also hung dozens of our chandelier crystals over the seating areas. For a stunning centerpiece, we created a suspended sheer fabric canopy with a matching wall of fabric behind it for several curved sofa sectionals.

Since then Room 1520 has taken off – hosting dozens of weddings, even being featured on Style Me Pretty multiple times. And even though these photos are two years old, we still get calls about these photos so we know it’s not just us who’s falled in love with the simple elegance and cool, modern vibe.

Scroll through for the amazing photos by Avery House

Contact Room 1520 about hosting your wedding, corporate event or social gathering today.

We recently worked on a spectacular civil union project at Room 1520. This West Loop venue played host to a romantic and glamorous affair for a beautiful and lovely couple who were a joy to work with.

Below are just a few teasers of their event. We loved all the details – the mercury glass, the chandeliers and vintage crystals and lots and lots of luxurious panels of fabric and soft uplighting which all combined to create a truly beautiful setting.

Enjoy this sneak peek while we wait for the official photos to come in – all photos taken by Deborah’s iPhone.

Florals by Juliet Tan of Cattleya Bridal. Be sure to visit Room 1520’s website for more information.

This handsome couple had their wedding at Room 1520 in the West Loop. For their ceremony, the pair stood underneath a beautiful chuppah wedding structure covered in curly willow and flowers. The structure held lace over the couple during the ceremony. It was a whimsical and romantic touch to an already elegant affair for 150 guests.

For the ceremony, we washed the aisle with an amber light that made the space glow with warm, bright light, forming a focal point right at the ceremony area. Later, for the reception we transformed the space with a a cool-blue and lavender perimeter lighting all along the exposed brick walls of the venue.

The whole event had a very laid-back attitude very much appropriate for the setting. Scroll through the gorgeous pictures by Olivia Leigh and take in the fun ambiance and gorgeous setting at this West Loop wedding venue.

Hello Darling provided the florals and styling for this chuppah.

 Be sure to visit Olivia’s website to view more of her work. Contact Room 1520 today to host your wedding or reception there.

The Style Me Pretty feature for this Room 1520 wedding is our second recent mention on that blog. The editors over there really adore the West Loop venue’s clean lines and modern aesthetic and it was no surprise to see this lovely wedding featured on their site.

For this wedding, we worked with the couple to create a chuppah fabric structure to match the venue’s elegant look. We kept the chuppah simple, but nonetheless it created a dramatic and engaging focal point for the entire ceremony. It was the perfect canvas for the couple to stand in front of and as you’ll see, it created a romantic and clean backdrop for their pictures, softly filtering the light coming in from the outside to give the ceremony area a beautiful glow.

Scroll through the gallery of photos from Jeremy Lawson’s Photography and let us know your thoughts in the comments!

See the rest of the feature and the amazing team of wedding vendors here. Photos by Jeremy Lawson Photography. Be sure to visit the venue’s website to inquire. Event planning by Engaging Events by Ali.

This was a recent corporate holiday party we designed and produced at Room 1520. We loved working on this event enough that we also created this video slideshow for you to enjoy – take a look and share your thoughts in the comments.

You can see the photos used in the slideshow in this blog post. Photos by Vitaliy Vladimirov.

The West Loop, as the name suggests, is located directly west of Chicago’s downtown core. Where once the area was home to an endless number of factories and warehouses, today the neighborhood is well-known for the way art galleries, some of the city’s top restaurants, such as Girl and the Goat and Publican and meat-packing plants all mix and mingle as more and more empty old brick buildings are converted into luxurious lofts. Less known is how the area is also home to a surprising number of wedding venues.

These West Loop wedding venues, listed in no particular order, are all a perfect match for urban couples looking for something unexpected or unconventional for their Special Day. Over the years we have worked with all of them and wanted to share with you all of these unique wedding venues.

Loft on Lake

This West Loop wedding venue is a great way to start our list – an elegant and refined space, it is distinctly warm thanks to it’s exposed brick and vintage timber beams. The venue’s centerpiece is a sweeping, 65′-long skylight that floods the Loft with light during the day and makes it an ideal choice for hosting a ceremony. Having hosted hundreds of events since it’s inception in 2009, Loft on Lake joined the Green Wedding Alliance, giving couples looking to “Green” their Special Day. Explore our work at this venue. Visit their website.

Room 1520

Just a little over a year ago, this West Loop wedding venue was a virtual unknown but in just a year, it’s modern and minimal aesthetic has charmed Chicago couples who have flocked to the venue to experience it’s clean lines, crisp white walls and a flair for the unexpected, as each couple tends to truly transform the space for their weddings. See more of our work at this venue. Visit their website.

Galleria Marchetti

This venue has been a well-known wedding and event venue for many years – even with the spate of recent venue options popping up in the West Loop, the Galleria has everged stronger than ever, hosting dozens of gorgeous weddings that give urban couples the best of both worlds: an urban setting, a lush outside area the flexibility of customizing their events as they see fit. See more images from the gorgeous purple-tinged reception at this space here.  Visit their website.

Salvage One

Among west loop wedding venues, Salvage One is perhaps most recognized – for years also functioning as a vibrant architectural artifact resale store – the lower level of the building supplies some of the city’s most stylish with unusual and historic elements from all around the world. The rambling setting plays host to wedding and receptions – with ceremonies in the fun outside fountain area and the receptions in the exposed and airy upstairs. Visit their website.

Ignite Glass Studio

Ignite Glass Studio is the newest addition to West Loop’s wedding venue scene – this recently opened space is a functioning glass and art factory, where dozens of artists create beautiful and intricate artworks. We hope future Chicago couples are inspired by the space’s creative pedigree and open & flexible layout for their events.

Kitchen Chicago

Kitchen Chicago may be, even among west loop wedding venues, a somewhat unexpected choice, considering it’s also a functioning shared kitchen space for a number of local bakeries and other businesses. With the right touches, however, the space is transformed into a warm and intimate space that is ideal for couples looking to have a really personal experience in a unique space, without breaking the bank. Visit their website.

As you saw in Part 1 of this real Chicago wedding, the couple warmed the clean and elegant aesthetic of the Room 1520 with our amber and pink lighting.

For the rest of the evening, the couple continued to glow, as if still lit. You can see from the photos how they reused the ceremony draping as a backdrop for their sweetheart table. For the dancing and the reception, we continued the same lighting palette as in their ceremony, using soft blues, purples and pinks to tie the light & decor to the centerpieces and the many romantic details throughout the event.

In case you missed it, the previous post featured this wedding’s soft and elegant ceremony – view those photos here.

Thank you to Jason & Anna Photography for so beautifully capturing our work and for sharing the images with us. Be sure to visit their portfolio.