Styled Shoot: CityFlats in Grand Rapids

This past October, CityFlats Hotel in downtown Grand Rapids reached out to us to create a styled shoot that would be featured on their website in new 3D tours of their event spaces, and would later be viewed by over 100 members of the wedding industry during an evening open house. While we don’t often do styled shoots, the chance to freely design in City Flat’s stunning Ballroom with a contrasting design in the more relaxed Event Room sounded too fun to pass up. So, as we wrapped up a very busy wedding season and fresh off a return flight from New York City, we got to work making these designs come to life. 

For the ballroom, I selected a dramatic palette of maroon and green, which played off the painted ceiling, mixed with heavy gold accents and pops of blush pink. I wanted something that would appeal to a variety of couples, while adding the drama and scale necessary to photograph well in such a tall space. Lush, romantic floral arrangements designed by Events by iCandy were paired with taper candles in a variety of different holders, set against gorgeous linens and place settings from Special Occasions West. A beautiful tiered cake from Dreamscape Desserts completed the vision. 

Downstairs at City Flats is a smaller event space that would ultimately serve as the hub for the networking open house, but also deserved to be featured as it provides a more contemporary atmosphere than the ballroom. In this space, rather than designing it as a wedding reception, I chose to design it as it might be for an anniversary party, birthday party, or even retirement celebration. With exposed brick and modern furniture, I selected a cooler palette of blues and whites, with silver accents to contrast with the heavy gold and warmer tones upstairs. Our friends at Ludema’s Floral and Garden partnered with us to create the beautiful, sculptural floral arrangements in this space.

A huge thank you to all the vendors below who donated their time and talents to create these two stunning spaces. Their partnership speaks to the incredible community of wedding professionals we have in West Michigan. Also a major shoutout to my friend, Neri, who, in what turned out to be a very chaotic day for her, still made time to artfully capture our work. 

With immense gratitude,
Holden

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Design: Holden Michael Events | Venue: City Flats Hotel, Grand Rapids | Linens, Chargers, Gold Flatware, Napkin Rings: Special Occasions West | Tabletop Rentals and Ballroom Floral: Events by iCandy | Event Room Florals: Ludema’s Floral and Garden | Cake: Dreamscape Desserts | Photography: Neri Photo