Author: CompleteMarquees
When you think of a marquee – you think of the big tent like structure that protects you from the rain, or, more appropriately at the moment, from the burning rays of the sun. But what do you see when you look down? Most people will automatically say ‘grass’ because that’s what 90% of people who put up marquees go with. Which is absolutely fine if you want the relaxed, festival vibe. But what about those who want a bit more of a comfortable, homey or classy finish to their event? Well, we have the solution for you.
Stable Flooring For Your Guests
One of the biggest advantages of marquee matting is the fact that it gives your guests a more stable flooring to stand on. A nice, thick woven mat material will level out the uneven ground, leaving a perfectly flat surface for you to balance tables laden with decorations. It also reassures your guests, with nothing hidden in the grass for them to trip over and no risk of leaning into a dip in the ground and having an accident. It will also prevent high heels from sinking into muddy grass, which female guests will definitely thank you for! As an added bonus, it means that your guests will have the option to sit on the floor throughout the event if they want to, without worrying about grass stains, mud or anything else ruining their clothes.
Weather-Proof
Another big bonus of using capri marquee matting over the more traditional grass route is that it protects your guests from the weather. While we might think of the weather as coming from above (hence hiring a marquee in the first place), mother earth can also play tricks on us from below. If it is a drizzle or even a particularly humid day, moisture in the ground can seep up to the surface and cause a muddy, boggy texture underfoot, even if it’s covered by the marquee. Not a good look! But our capri matting will act as a barrier between the earth and your guests, so they don’t have to worry about their shoes getting muddy, whether they can put their bags down on the floor and any other elemental surprises that might find their way in. Because of its unique texture, it also prevents the floor of your marquee from getting slippery and dangerous if rain or mud is trodden in, so you can be sure your guests won’t go flying.
Creates Atmosphere
Finally, adding a mat flooring element to your marquee brings a sense of comfort and style. If you take a look at some of the photos on our equipment hire and our marquees pages, you will see the difference our capri matting makes to the feel of the marquee. What would have been an empty and quite cold looking space is suddenly welcoming and full of warmth, encouraging guests inside and helping them relax. If you’re looking to split the marquee up a bit, we can also hire out dance floors, which fit on top of our capri matting or just onto the grass to give a unique and groovy feel to any marquee.
At Complete Marquees, we not only provide a wide range of stunning marquees for your event, but we can guarantee you a soft and sure footing with our capri matting. Available in a range of different sizes to suit your marquee and starting at just £100 for 20 square foot, matting can be a fantastic way to add an element of warmth and class to your event. For more information, get in touch with the Complete Marquees team today.
When you need a marquee for a special event, like a wedding, birthday or even a corporate celebration, you need something strong, stable and beautiful to shield you from the elements. That’s where we can help. At Complete Marquees, our full range of Capri marquees will leave you wondering why you ever settled for anything else. But if you’ve never hired one before, you might be wondering, what is a Capri marquee?
What Is A Capri Marquee?
A Capri marquee is simply a different style of a marquee. A far cry from the traditional rectangles and squares with 4 walls and an apex ceiling, a Capri marquee is what you need when you want to make a real statement. They are wonderfully unusual, extremely eye-catching and very versatile. Most easily recognised by their distinctive multi-peaked ceiling, equipped with matting and archway lighting and work perfectly as an open space or enclosed by PVC sidings. They can come in a range of sizes too, with the smallest holding just 35 people and the largest accommodating over 600.
Capri marquees are usually made of vinyl laminate tent fabric, which is strong, weatherproof and durable with a stylish, elegant edge to it. The design of our Capri tents means that they are supported by reinforced corner and pole positions, so they don’t require the use of guy lines. This means that this style uses 60% fewer stakes than a traditional marquee, and 40% fewer poles while retaining 100% of the style and wow factor.
What Makes Capri Marquees So Popular?
Capri marquees are still without a doubt one of our best-selling products, largely because they are so different. When you think of a marquee, you often conjure up images square tent or something with a huge number of poles to slot together. But with a Capri marquee from us, not only do you get a unique shaped, beautify crafted canvas marquee, but it will be delivered, assembled and disassembled for you by our expert team. Their shape and distinctive spiked canopy and smooth, irregular arches create a relaxed, festival style feel, leaving a lot more open space underneath than a traditional marquee would. These marquees provide a stunning canvas for your day, with inner curving arches and beautiful high peaks that allow you more flexibility to decorate and a chance to really put your own stamp on it. And because they are so versatile you can join several of them together to create a truly bespoke design that fits your space needs. With the addition of a few floral garlands or arches glowing with fairy lights, a Capri marquee can be nothing short of magical.
At Complete Marquees, we specialise in providing high-quality Capri marquees for personal and business uses across the country. Perfect for a garden party of any size or to host a team building day under cover, our marquees are guaranteed to turn heads and become a centrepiece for your day. For more information, or to check out our packages, just visit our website or get in touch with one of the team.
Every venue is different, but there is something about decorating a marquee that can be particularly challenging. Marquees can look a bit empty and flat until the tables are laid, the flowers and props are in position and your guests are filling the space. So how do you make the most of the space and really create a unique style for your marquee?
Create Extra Height
Marquees can be quite high, so a good way to give the illusion of a lower ceiling is to create height and drama with your table decorations. Combining tall and short arrangements adds interest and stops the displays from becoming stale. Just make sure your taller arrangements are kept fairly thin, so that your guests can still see each other and talk across the table. You can also do this with hanging decorations to draw the eye upwards.
Warm Welcome
Lighting flares outside the entrance to your marquee will create a special warmth when your guests enter and depart. Lanterns are a fantastic way to create a winding path into your marquee and to other elements of the day like car parks or venues. For softer lighting, go for candles in jam jars or fairy lights to create a warm welcome.
Beautiful Backdrops
If you are having a band, other entertainment or a photo booth area, why not have different types of backdrop. Up-lighters are a very popular and pretty choice for a ‘photo spot’, whereas rustic ivy and wood are fantastic for weddings. It’s easy to create a personal and beautiful area with some simple extras from your other decorations and lighting, which will also encourage your guests to move around the marquee.
Chill-Out Areas
At any event, guests can start to feel overwhelmed, overheated or just need to take 5 minutes out from it all. Adding a chill-out area to your marquee is the perfect way to give them a space to relax and really put your personal stamp on the sling. Contemporary sofas and chairs illuminated with tiny lights will look spectacular. For a vintage look, opt for some mismatched furniture from local auctions with some quirky accessories and activities scattered around.
Lighting
Lighting is really important in a marquee. Most come with up-lighters, but to create the atmosphere you desire, adding your own lighting is key. We love lighting placed over the dance floor or draped over archways for a warm welcome as your guests enter.
Cute Chair Backs
If chair covers aren’t your thing, or you have some beautiful wooden chairs you want to showcase, you can customise them with ribbons, handmade cushions or bunting to match your theme. These little details really tie the whole thing together and give your marquee a ‘complete’ feel.
Of course, part of the appeal of a marquee is being able to create your own unique space, so if you like all of these ideas or none at all, that’s ok! We would love to see some of the ways you have decorated your marquees or your ideas for the future, so please drop us a comment or get in touch with the team today.
It might not look like it right now (actually I don’t know, is it raining where you are too?) but we are set to have the hottest summer in British history this year. Now I know that gets said every year, but we are hoping that this year it might actually happen! So in order to make the most of the hottest summer in history, we have a few ideas to get you out in the sun, marquee style.
Host a Summer Party
If you love getting your friends round for a barbeque on those hot summer afternoons, why not go the extra mile and throw a garden party for them. A garden party is a great way to gather together all of those friends you don’t see very often for one special evening, even if the main reason for the gathering is a barbecue and drinks. When planning your party, make sure you stock up on enough drinks, organise food for everyone and provide some fantastic entertainment. Another important thing to remember is to provide people with some shade and shelter from the sunshine, particularly if they have children with delicate skin. A marquee is a perfect way to provide a shaded space for your entertainment and seating, and of course, it provides protection from any sudden weather changes!
Summer Weddings
If you’re getting married at the height of wedding season, you’ll undoubtedly want to be making the most of it. Outdoor weddings are an ideal way to enjoy the sunshine and get some fantastic pictures, but they do also carry the risk of sunburn and heatstroke. If you’re getting married in a country house or hotel, having a marquee in the gardens can be the perfect way to add your own flare to your day. They give you the flexibility of size and layout, with a range of external styles to suit your theme and a blank canvas inside for you to truly make your own. A marquee wedding also gives you total control over what you eat, as you are not restricted to the venue’s catering options, and can create the perfect atmosphere for your evening entertainment.
Corporate Events
Corporate events in summer often conjure up images of stuffy, overheated venues and lots of ice water and sweat all around. But they don’t have to be. Instead of hosting your summer corporate events indoors and relying on lacklustre central heating, why not push the boat out and opt for a marquee instead? Most types of corporate event can be held in a marquee, giving your delegates the enjoyment of being outside in the warm weather, the ability to be cooled by the breeze (or large fans) and the general feeling of wellness and enjoyment that come from being outdoors. Most marquees can be fitted with power, so you can still display your PowerPoints and films with no problems. Keep your employees engaged, happy and comfortable during your event.
Of course, there are many more uses for a marquee during the warm summer months. If you’re looking for a unique and flexible marquee hire service this summer, look no further. Our marquees come in Capri and Pagoda styles and in different sizes to suit your event and needs and can be erected stably on grass and concrete. For more information or to book your event marquee, get in touch with us today.
No matter what event you’re planning, from a wedding to a corporate event, if you’ve got a theme, you need some character. This extra bit of effort can turn your event from ‘okay’ to ‘wow!’ and it really doesn’t take a lot to create something magical. To show you what we mean, we’ve pulled together our top tips for creating character for your next marquee-based event.
Lighting
Lighting is absolutely essential when it comes to marquees. A majority of marquees for hire can come with uplighters so that you can see the interior, but it’s the perfect way to add lighting that reflects your theme and creates some atmosphere. Add some fairy lights or tea lights across the ceiling for a beautiful, magical glow. Try pairing your uplighting with lit up centrepieces to draw focus to the tables, or you could even hang lanterns with multi-coloured lights to create a colourful, fun space.
Hanging Décor
A marquee is a lot like a blank canvas – a big empty space just calling out to be decorated. But most people focus on the floors, sides and table decoration, often completely neglecting the ceiling. You can decorate your marquee with hanging flower displays, fair lights, lanterns or hanging birds and butterflies to add a touch of whimsy and character to your event. This little touch will really stick in your guests’ minds and have them looking around for other exciting surprises within your marquee.
Enticing Entrances and Exits
If you want a big event that people will be talking about for weeks to come – you need a grand entrance and an equally grand exit. Separating the two creates a structure and flow to your event space, and gives you the chance to surprise your guests one last time before they leave. Spend some time creating themed decorations to welcome your guest and make a really big impact. So if you’re theme is ‘Alice in Wonderland’ for example, you might want an archway of hedges, roses and teacups for guests to walk under. If you’re going for rustic country beauty, try potted plants, flower boughs or an intricate weaving of twigs and lights. This will help your guests feel warm, welcome and in the spirit as they step into your marquee.
Finishing Touches
As with everything in life, it’s the little things that really do make a big difference. So when you think you’re nearly there with your decoration, take a seat somewhere and look around. Are there any bare areas that you could add some little flourishes to? Do your tables look sparse? Adding some themed centrepieces, little surprise decorations or signs can really bring your space to life.
At Complete Marquees, we believe that the perfect event reflects the hosts’ personality in every single way, and that includes the décor and venue chosen. With one of our strong and sturdy marquees, you can create any type event you want, without having to fit in with an existing décor style. For more information, or to hire a marquee for your event, get in touch with us today.
Spring has definitely sprung, and that means only one thing – it’s wedding season! As we start to see more couples tying the knot in the sunny weather, we are over the moon that so many are opting to have a marquee reception instead of staying in a hotel. Marquee wedding receptions can be a truly unique and beautiful experience, and there is not time more perfect for one than the spring. Why do we think that? Well, we’ll tell you.
You Can Plan Everything
With a marquee wedding, everything about your reception can be planned by you from the ground up. Often with hotels, you are limited to what things you can change, and even then, you are often asked to choose between 3 set options, instead of being able to specify what you want. By with a marquee, you can tailor every single detail to your own desires. Want to swathe the entire thing in organza and place the tables in a heart shape? You can do that. Want to have your marquee set up in your own back garden, playing your perfect music with your guests dancing in and out of the beams? You can do that too. A marquee is a blank canvas just waiting for you to put your unique stamp on it – which is all you could ever want for a dream wedding.
Location and Plumbing
Finding the right location for your marquee can be a challenge, as you need lots of open flat space to set it up. Many stately homes and country wedding venues will allow you to put up a marquee on their grounds, but some of them may come with a catch – a such as booking a certain number of rooms or using their caterers. Make sure you research this before you book. The advantage to using a marquee in the grounds of a venue is the easy access to essentials – like toilets. Not the most glamorous thing to think about when planning your wedding, but it does need to be considered. Weddings are big events, so you need to make sure there are adequate facilities in place.
Timing and Atmosphere
Springtime is a beautiful time of year, with new flowers bursting into bloom every day and the fair weather peeking out from behind the clouds. A marquee allows you to make the most of this beautiful time of year while protecting you from the elements if it does decide to rain. Springtime brides can even bring the season into the marquee with beautiful floral decorations that match the blossoming flowers outside, creating a stunning and natural feeling reception venue.
Easy to Manage
Rather than dealing with a hotel, most of whom will have their own rules around what you can and can’t do, to manage your wedding reception, a marquee allows you a level of freedom to express yourself on your wedding day. And despite there being a lot of moving parts, a good marquee and events management company like Complete Marquees can help make the process easy and simple to manage. By briefing us with exactly what you want, we can use our network of trusted suppliers to create your perfect marquee wedding reception on the day.
For more information about using our marquees for a spring wedding reception, or to book your marquee hire now, get in touch with the team at Complete Marquees today.
