What a year! We’re sharing a few of our best DC Event Designs of 2025. We began the year with the Catholic Gala, went on to do another annual gala for the National Italian American Federation, and ended it with the 10th anniversary of the White Hat Gala for the Children’s National Hospital at Union Station.
Here is your behind the scene ticket to all three of our best DC event designs of the year!
2025 just may have been the year of milestones for Washington area charity balls. For instance, the Catholic Charities Gala Celebrating 40 Years was a love letter to four decades of service, compassion, and unwavering commitment to the region’s community in need.
Our team at Encore Decor transformed the ballroom of the Washington Hilton into a living storybook. The stage was conceived as a mosaic of moments with layered circles of soft blue and silvery gray floating across warm Austrian drape. Each circle represented a story, a family, a turning point. At center, a medallion bearing the 40-year anniversary mark anchored the narrative, framed by sculptural white cherry blossom trees symbolizing renewal, hope, and the growth still ahead.
Then came the reveal. As the evening shifted from reflection to celebration, the gold drape gracefully parted and the entire stage breathed open. The circular elements retracted with intention, unveiling a clean white cyclorama — a visual reset that kept the anniversary emblem firmly at heart while making space for joy, music, and shared triumph.
Beyond the stage, the room bloomed. High and low floral arrangements drifted across patterned linens in a loose English-garden style using quince branches, ranunculus, lisianthus, tulips, and blush roses in an airy palette of ivory, green, and apricot. Metallic pedestals and soft gold cylinders elevated the experience, creating a ballroom that felt both reverent and radiant.
For the National Italian American Foundation’s 50th Anniversary Gala our team handled every design detail including scenic décor, florals, custom branding, drapery, lighting, and AV. The event, attended by 2,300 guests, paid tribute to the Altare della Patria in Rome and was one of the best DC event designs of the year.
The Washington Hilton’s iconic International Ballroom was completely reimagined through a sweeping 60-foot scenic treatment that transformed the stage into a neoclassical showpiece — complete with grand stone textures, columned façades, and tiered seating banks wrapped in custom graphics. We’ve included a few closer look at the scenic, the dais and the detail work.
This year marked our 15th year as NIAF’s decor partner and we were thrilled to partner with Event EQ and Erin Leonard Events to make it happen flawlessly.
As best DC event designs go, it doesn’t get much better than the White Hat Gala, a charity event for the National Children’s Hospital. A James Bond theme gave us the opportunity to express our fondness for this dashing literary figure, starting with a 16-foot-high martini glass, a photo opportunity featuring gold accents and dramatic red and gold centerpieces.
