Solus Lighting LTD

JStyle Weddings Bridal Event at The Ritz-Carlton

2012-02-22T17:47:00.000-05:00

JStyle Weddings will be hosting a Bridal Event at The Ritz-Carlton, Cleveland on Sunday from 2pm until 5pm. If you want to receive The Ritz-Carlton White Glove Experience including complimentary valet, champagne, dessert and hourly giveaways then this is where you need to be this Sunday! Solus Lighting LTD, as well as 30 other great vendors, will be on hand to speak with you one on one about how we can make your special day spectacular. We will be featuring one of our lighting techniques that you will surely want to have incorporated at your reception! Check out this video preview and visit JStyle Weddings to pre-register for the event. Use the coupon code "EXHIBIT" and receive your ticket for only $10. This is one you are not going to want to miss!

Seeing light in a new light

2012-02-02T17:14:00.000-05:00

Solus Lighting LTD was hired to provide an assistant lighting designer, as well as technical support for the Philips Healthcare Mega Meeting 2012. This four day event, held at a Disney property hotel in Orlando Florida, had everything from meetings to an awards banquet. Solus Lighting LTD provided our skill sets in the main ballroom for the welcome ceremony, the key note speakers presentations, large group meetings as well as the awards banquet and party to close the conference.

Many of the brands that Philips owns were represented in the lighting rig, including Vari-Lite, Color Kinetics and Strand Lighting products. You may be thinking, "what can healthcare and lighting possibly have in common?". Well, not only can the high quality lighting that Philips companies provide greatly reduce stress and tension associated with admission to hospitals it can also provide therapy and healing. Philips is bringing to the forefront that not only do LED lights save power, but they can also provide a process of healing. Patients that are confined to a room or a floor of a hospital can be put to ease with LED lighting fixtures that replicate the 24 hour cycle of natural light. Philips is also working to provide an LED fixture that can teach and relearn basic human skills that may have been lost due to a physical life changing event.

Please take a moment to visit the Philips Healthcare website to learn more about the great things they are doing with lighting worldwide.

Grand Pacific Hotel inaugural bridal soirée

2012-01-25T12:30:00.000-05:00

Solus Lighting LTD was honored to be a part of the Grand Pacific Hotel's first ever bridal show. Held in the main lobby of the historic Grand Pacific Hotel located in Grand Pacific Junction, the bridal show was an excellent opportunity for us to show how we can transform any space. Many of the brides we got to interact with have already selected the hotel as the site of their reception. Solus Lighting LTD offered them the opportunity to see what light can do in the space first hand. "Not only did the neutral tones of the venue allow color to show remarkably well, the uplights showcased the character of this historic venue", says Lead Designer Maureen Patterson.

Check out some before and after shots below, as well as on our website and Facebook fan page. More information about this magnificent hotel can be found on the Grand Pacific Hotel website.

New resident at CMNH

2012-01-10T15:28:00.001-05:00

There is a new resident at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Alice the Allosaurus joins Happy the Haplocanthosaurus and others in the Kirtland Hall of Prehistoric Life. Solus Lighting LTD is excited about getting to add Alice into our light design for weddings and other special events in Kirtland. Check out some shots of Alice all lit up below as well as on our website and Facebook fan page!

Happy Holidays from Solus Lighting LTD

2011-12-29T11:35:00.000-05:00

Solus Lighting LTD hopes you and yours have a fantastic New Years. Stay tuned to the Solus Lighting LTD special events lighting blog, website and Facebook fan page for news in the upcoming new year!

Solus Lighting LTD moves into the political realm

2011-11-29T14:48:00.000-05:00

Solus Lighting LTD was recently hired to light the official Vote No on Issue 2 Watch Party. Held on election night, the watch party was for all types of union workers to assemble in one place to watch the results of the election, Solus Lighting LTD provided up lighting around the room in the official Issue 2 blue as well as the stage lighting. The stage lighting was of particular importance for this special event, as the watch party was covered on all local news stations here in Cleveland, Ohio as well as on the Ohio News Network. Check out some pictures below, as well as on our website and our Facebook page!

A night to remember

2011-11-08T15:21:00.000-05:00

Solus Lighting LTD was pleased to provide the décor lighting for a b'nai mitzvah this past weekend. Ninety percent of the lighting elements consisted of LED lighting fixtures. There were sculptures around the edge of the room that were lit with led strip lights. Other elements included under table lighting, which were lit with wireless led fixtures. Wireless led fixtures is something that we haven't talked about too much here on the blog. The advantages of wireless fixtures, is that there is no power or data cable running to these fixtures. So when a client wants their spandex covered tables to glow and change color, there is no better choice than a wireless led fixture -- no cables, and no heat generated from the light source. Another element the decorator used was six 10' tall white corrugated plastic columns. These columns were used as set pieces for the dj booth on the stage. We, again, used the wireless led fixtures inside the bottom of the columns for amazing bold colors that changed through out the night. Check out some pics below. More pictures can be found on our website and Facebook page. We have also posted some videos of the fixtures in action on our You Tube page.

Update...Solus blog 2011

2011-10-26T11:48:00.002-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD was the exclusive special event lighting company to participate in the "I Do" Bridal Soirée at the 100th Bomb Group last week and it was a bridal show to remember. We had the pleasure of lighting up the Jeffrey Room for the mock reception for brides-to-be to get ideas for their upcoming wedding receptions. Our previous blog post showed the before shots of the space, and here we are featuring the shots of the final outcome.

The lighting for the event featured; uplighting the walls of the entire space, a custom wedding projection on the dance floor, the pinspotting (highlighting) of all of the table centerpieces and lighting the food stations and bar. Please check out our wedding info page on our website for more explanation of how these features can help enhance your wedding reception! More pictures can be found on our Facebook page, as well as in our design gallery on our website.

SLL @ the "I Do" Bridal Soirée

2011-10-14T12:05:00.000-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD is gearing up for another bridal show. The "I Do" Bridal Soirée is coming up next Thursday, October 20th 2011, at the 100th Bomb Group. Solus Lighting LTD is honored to be the exclusive lighting vendor of the Jeffrey Room. We, along with other great vendors, will be setting up the Jeffrey Room just as we would if it were a real wedding reception. We love the concept that Amy Nixon of Amy Nixon Events, LLC came up with for this bridal show and we jumped at the chance to be involved.

Here are a couple of shots of the Jeffrey Room "before"...stay tuned to see the transformation, or better yet come out to the 100th Bomb Group next Thursday and see for yourself!

Record setting weekend for Solus Lighting LTD

2011-10-06T15:52:00.001-04:00

After 6 shows in 5 days, over 700 miles driven and the dust cleared, the first weekend of October was record setting for Solus Lighting LTD. The weekend included a bridal show, two weddings, a corporate gala, a corporate awards dinner and a theatrical show thrown in for good measure! We implemented several different lighting concepts and effects to keep up with the themes of the events. The weekend featured a custom gobo, turning a courtyard into a sapphire wonderland of shimmering lighting effects, and plenty of uplighting. Take a look at some of the shots below, and you can check out more in our design gallery on our website as well as on our Facebook fan page.

Bridal Fairs with Bridal & Beyond

2011-09-27T13:14:00.000-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD is proud to be a vendor at all five of the Bridal & Beyond Fairs. You can find information on all of their fairs on the Bridal & Beyond website. We just completed the first of the five this past Sunday, at the Sheraton Cleveland Airpot. We met a laundry list of excellent vendors and an even longer list of great brides.

Check out some shots below of what we did for both the Solus Lighting LTD booth, as well as the Bridal & Beyond booth. You can also see more on the Bridal & Beyond Facebook page, as well as our Facebook page!

Solus Lighting LTD now represented in local ISES chapter

2011-09-21T21:24:00.000-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD now a proud member of ISES

The International Special Events Society (ISES) is an organization dedicated and educated to deliver creative excellence and professionalism in special events. Maureen Patterson, Lead Designer for Solus Lighting LTD, jumped at the chance to join the local Cleveland ISES Chapter.

"One of the most inspiring things about the special events industry is the sense of community we share," says Patterson. She adds, "ISES provides educational programs, workshops, and networking events that help us grow professionally. Having the opportunity to to share experiences with others in the industry and learn from one another strengthens everyone's ability to provide the "wow" factor for each and every client."

The mission of ISES is to educate, advance and promote the special events industry and its network of professional. ISES strives to uphold the integrity of the special events profession to the general public, acquire and disseminate useful business information, foster a spirit of cooperation among its members and other special event professionals, and cultivate high standards of business practices.

What did you do Labor Day weekend?

2011-09-12T19:00:00.000-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD was busy, as usual. However, we got to do something a little out of the ordinary for us. We lit the Glockenspiel at the 2011 Cleveland Labor Day Oktoberfest. Fun was had by all in attendance, especially when the Glockenspiel show's got rolling, every hour on the hour.

Check out some shots below and also on our Facebook page and website!

The Cleveland Pops Orchestra Salute to the Magnificat 1955 Founders Society

2011-08-27T13:38:00.001-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD had the pleasure and distinct honor of lighting the VIP donor party for the Cleveland Pops Orchestra Salute to the Magnificat 1955 Founders Society event. The VIP donor party was held in the Resource Center of Magnificat High School. Solus Lighting LTD transformed the library into a more intimant space for cocktails and dinner before the performance. For this particular event, Solus Lighting LTD did some general lighting through out the space. Also, there was lighting for the food stations and bar. The donors are given a commemorative bowl for their donation, which were on display that got Solus Lighting LTD's extra special attention. Magnificat High School is a special tie for Solus Lighting LTD, as our lead designer and owner is a 1997 graduate. Check out the shots below and more on our website and Facebook page. Contact us to see how we can light up your special, special event!

Patrick Joyce Scholarship Fund 5K/1 Mile Walk/Kids Races

2011-08-03T13:25:00.000-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD is a proud sponsor of the Patrick Joyce Scholarship Fund 5K/1 Mile Walk/Kids Races. The fun and festivities kick off @ 8am at Lakewood Park on Saturday August 13th 2011.

Come out and join the fun for a great cause. For more details just click the peanut!

Refreshed and back at it

2011-07-27T13:42:00.000-04:00

After a hard earned and well deserved weekend off, Solus Lighting LTD was back in the game this past weekend. Last week featured a birthday party and a wedding reception.

The birthday party was held on the beautiful grounds of a private club that had several lakes on the premises. The design was a double ceiling wash, with no color stars laid over a blue wash. Since the party was being held in a tent, we highlighted the food stations and the bar area. The tent had clear panels for the gabled ends, and that gave our designer the opportunity to create some depth to the view with some landscape lighting. Landscape lighting is something that we haven't talked about so far, so bear with me as I elaborate...I'll try to keep it short and sweet. Landscape lighting offers a variety of effects and benefits. First off, landscape lighting is a visual "wow factor" when your guests arrive at your venue. Most traditional venues, i.e. banquet centers, will have there own landscape enhancements. However, as you will see in the pictures below, when you are in a tent it adds to the overall visual impact. Secondly, and especially at this particular event with the clear gables of the tent and the lakes on the premises, landscape lighting adds depth to the space as well as creates a picture of the landscape at night. You might be surprised what an impact uplighting some of the trees around your space can have on the landscape and your guests. Check out some more shots of this party on our website and on our Facebook page!

Less than twelve hours after we were done lighting up the birthday party, we were back at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for a wedding reception. This wedding reception was held in Kirtland Hall of Prehistoric Life. We had uplighting on the skeletons of Kirtland, as well as a palm leaf texture wash from above shining down on the entire reception floor space. As always, you can see more shots below, on our website as well as on our Facebook page.

Solus Lighting LTD is extremely excited and proud to announce that we are now the preferred lighting vendor of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History!

Last week re-cap

2011-07-12T10:02:00.000-04:00

Hello out there in blog world. I thought that I would take a moment and re-cap what has been the busiest week in Solus Lighting LTD history. Ok, well it's only 7 months in the making but still...it's history!

We were honored to have the opportunity to light the Sean Moore Memorial event. This benefit was to raise funds to give some local students a vocal scholarship. Many many great irish bands played the event and fun was had by all. We took the irish theme of the event to a whole new level by projecting shamrocks on the ceiling of the main hall, as well as making the Irish flag with uplights in the new banquet room of the venue. Check out some pics below and more on our Facebook page!

After we were done creating fabulous lighting for the memorial event, we at Solus Lighting LTD took our talents to the east side to do some wedding lighting. First up was a wedding with festival lighting. We hung "east 4th" (a little hometown reference for all of you Clevelanders out there) light strings over the dance floor. With a zig zag design and the swags at all different heights, many people choose this type of lighting design for several reasons. It is a fun, festival lighting feel. However, it can also serve the purpose of bringing a high ceiling down so that the space has a more intimate feel. We also had some uplighting at the base of the small maple trees at each corner of the dance floor.

We finished off the great weekend with another wedding. This one had many different elements of lighting that we have talked about before on this blog as well as on our website. Uplighting around the perimeter of the venue, palm leaves for a ceiling wash with texture, a custom monogram projected on to the dance floor and chinese lanterns hung over the dance floor. Now typically I am not a fan of chinese lanterns, but this design has changed my mind. Check out these amazing shots below...and don't forget to stop by our Facebook page and website!

What is your lighting vendor doing for you?

2011-07-06T19:18:00.000-04:00

I have been a lighting designer for over 12 years. The last 5 years, I have primarily focused my services to special events. Planners and coordinators are the lifeblood of my business, and I was hoping to get some opinions and feedback on what is most important to all of you. It doesn't matter where you are located to participate in this discussion. After all, customer service and producing stunning events are universal in this industry. Any insight you can offer on the following questions would be appreciated:

-What is your current lighting vendor doing that you like?
-What is your current lighting vendor doing that you do not like?
-If you could wave a magic wand and change things about your current supplier, what would you change?

Other thoughts, ideas, and comments welcome!

-Maureen E. Patterson

Light up the Museum take 2

2011-07-06T10:33:00.002-04:00

Museums are a unique space in which to hold an event. Solus Lighting LTD recently lit up the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for a wedding reception. The lighting package consisted entirely of incandescent lighting fixtures...some used as uplights for the skeletons of the Kirtland Hall of Prehistoric Life and some used to project palm leafs around the space. We also recently added fixtures to highlight some of the permanent exhibits that show creatures in their natural habitat.

Have a look at some of these shots and to see more check out our website and our Facebook page. Contact us for more information about lighting up the museum for your event!

Light up the Museum

2011-07-02T20:48:00.002-04:00

Solus Lighting LTD had the excellent opportunity to light up a wedding at the Akron Art Museum. It was a night to remember for all. We had many lighting elements in all corners of the space. The lighting package consisted of a mixture of LED and incandescent lighting fixtures. The LED fixtures were used for lighting the architectural features of the space, for a ceiling wash outside on the terrace and also for dance floor lighting. The incandescent lighting fixtures handled the work of uplighting, pattern projection and food/bar stations.

Check out some of the shots of the event below as well as on our website and on our Facebook page. You can also see some awesome pictures taken by Ken Love Photography.

Sean Moore Memorial Event

2011-06-30T12:06:00.000-04:00

Please come out and join this great cause - awesome live music, good food and tasty drinks. Lighting by Solus Lighting LTD. Tickets available at the door.

Tent Lighting

2011-06-08T17:10:00.003-04:00

A popular choice for summer and fall wedding receptions is to hold them in a tent. There are all different types and sizes of tents, and therefore all different design options and price scales for lighting a tent. You have all of the same options of designs in a tent that you would in a more traditional reception space (i.e., a ballroom, or banquet center). Most people wouldn't think that would be the case, but there are very little limitations when dealing with lighting a tent.

Check out our website for some awesome tent pics, and then give us a call to talk about how we can light up your tent.
Below is an example of a recent graduation party that Solus Lighting LTD lit. I have included some shots of the tent before we started, a day shot of the completed hang and a shot of the final result.

Uplighting

2011-05-19T15:26:00.000-04:00

Ok, it's been a while since my last intro blog. I have known that I wanted to talk about uplighting for a couple of weeks, but have been trying to organize my thoughts. That hasn't happened yet, so I am just going to wing it here.

Uplighting is probably the most common type of wedding venue lighting. It can be used for most any event, but it seems that these days uplighting is a must at wedding receptions. Wether you go with a static look, or have color changes happening through out the event, it is an affordable way to change the entire feel of a space.

Let's talk a little about what options are available to achieve this look. First up is the simple one color look. This can be achieved with incandescent lighting fixtures. Solus Lighting LTD can provide you with any color you can imagine for your uplighting. We will sit down with you and talk about the theme of your wedding, what colors you are going to have in your wedding party apparel and what colors are being used in any decor elements for the reception.
The second option for uplighting is to use light-emitting diode (LED ) lighting fixtures. These fixtures, while a bit more costly, have the greatest flexibility. We can have a subtle scrolling color change through out dinner at your wedding reception, a classic look for the first dance and then use these same fixtures to get crazy and do some fun looks during the party/dancing portion of the reception. The LED fixtures while having this awesome flexibility, are also very green - as they do not use much power at all and will not produce any extra heat in the venue.

So that covers the "how", now on to the "what". What should we uplight in your venue? One option is to uplight all the walls through out the entire space. This can make an extremely impactful first visual impression on your guests. If your budget doesn't allow us to uplight the entire space, then we can scale it back a bit and just uplight the architectural features of the space. Yet another option would be to put uplighting just behind the head table, food stations and/or bar area.

This might sound like a bunch of decisions to make, but we can walk you through the entire process from beginning to end. As always, Solus Lighting LTD offers free consultations and site walk throughs to ensure that we are going to make your big day just as you envision. So check out our website or give us a call.

Blog - Intro

2011-04-08T17:09:00.000-04:00

Here goes. I am going to try and have some inspiring and innovative thoughts on the subject of special event lighting. I say try, not because I don't have the experience - I have been in the industry for 12 years, it's just that writing isn't my strong suit. So, if you can keep up with my, sometimes, rattle on sentences then good luck and welcome. I will also try to convince my business partner, who is the designer and who actually comes up with the ideas that I will be talking about, to be a guest blogger. She is a much betterer writer than I.

I guess I should start with who we are. Solus Lighting LTD is a special event lighting company. In fact, Solus Lighting LTD is the only company in Cleveland, Ohio dedicated exclusively to special event lighting. We have experience lighting all different types of events; weddings, galas, fundraisers, corporate parties, private parties just to name a few. Other companies in town are a so-called "one stop shop" which handles lighting, sound, video and staging for an event. We are solely focused on lighting, that is what we know and what we do best. We do, however, have tremendous relationships with the other vendors in town and would be more than happy to recommend a vendor for any other service you need for your event.

This blog exists as a tool to open the creative world of special event lighting. I will be posting some ideas, news, and photos of our events soon. In the meantime, please check out our website at www.soluslightingltd.com and become a fan of ours on Facebook