As we looked back on the events we design every month, one thing is constant: the venues, and the venues we love. They are the structure beneath the story with their steel girders and wood beams, grand architecture and blank walls waiting to be transformed. Here, we share these spaces with you. The places where stories begin.
Venues We Love: SMITHSONIAN AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM
When the venue is the message . . . and the decor!
The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, an annex of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, is designed for maximum awe. With soaring ceilings and aircraft spanning generations, the space houses some of the most iconic artifacts in aviation history.
This past month, this extraordinary setting was the backdrop for the 25th Anniversary Celebration of Service. Hosted by the PenFed Foundation for Military Heroes headed by President Andrea McCarren.
“Our forte is event design, but this was one of those moments when less is more,” says Ken Rosen, CEO of Encore Décor. “Especially when the venue is as spectacular as this.”
Venues We Love: THE WASHINGTON HILTON
The ballroom of The Washington Hilton is iconic. One glance and you know exactly where the event took place. Which is why, when designing events there, we always work on two planes. On one hand, we enhance the architecture with lighting. On the other, we introduce something new and imaginative through the stage design.
For this year’s Catholic Charities Gala, where the theme was hope, we searched for a way to bring a sense of calm, lightness, and joy into the environment.
Our Creative Director and President, Sara Rose Harmon, chose birds—whimsical, pastel, and in flight—to carry that message across the stage.
It was a design solution rooted in symbolism as much as beauty. Since ancient times, birds have represented resilience, renewal, and the enduring belief that we can rise above the earthly world and move toward something greater.
Venues We Love: FLAG HALL AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN HISTORY
Flag Hall is something of a chameleon. It feels distinctly Washington, DC in character, yet its expansive architecture and open walls allow us to layer many different themes onto the space.
For this month’s patriotic celebration honoring America’s 250th anniversary at the NBWA Legislative Conference’s “Cheers” event, we embraced that flexibility fully. Lighting was one of the most powerful design elements. It transformed the hall into a living expression of American heritage.
Strategic uplighting in a red, white, and blue palette washed the space in color. Bands of light placed beneath the flag installation extended downward. This created a layered effect that emphasized both the height and architecture of the room. The result was an immersive environment that surrounded guests in color, movement, and emotion.
At the heart of the room, a striking vertical installation anchored the main bar. A cluster of oversized 12-point inflatable stars in red, white, and blue rose dramatically from a 16-foot black support. The effect was a sculptural focal point visible from across the hall.
Venues We Love: Union Station DC
Union Station’s grandeur made the perfect backdrop for the annual “White Hat” Gala benefiting the Children’s National Hospital Foundation. One of Washington, DC’s most iconic venues, Union Station brought a sense of cinematic scale and timeless elegance to the evening’s James Bond–inspired theme. Beneath its soaring ceilings and historic architecture, the celebration unfolded with layers of gold accents, black drapery, and flickering candlelight that transformed the landmark space into a glamorous Bond-worthy setting.
Union Station–iconic, sophisticated, and unmistakably Washington.
Venues We Love: Union Station DC, East Hall
Set in the East Hall at Union Station, this gala created an elevated feeling that was still warm and inviting within such a large, historic space. A custom two-tier circular stage anchored the room and gave the string trio a clean, intentional focal point. The entire look was built around candlelight. Hundreds of ivory pillars were arranged in a soft crescent around the stage, layered on mirrored risers to reflect and amplify the glow.
