Voiles for Rafael Saadiq

Recently Rent What? Inc. had the pleasure of working with Raphael Saadiq on some beautiful drape rentals for his concert tour stage design. His crew wanted draping that was simple yet dramatic, something that could be lit to look different at each show if need be, and something that was versatile enough to be able to have its shape and style change from night to night. We came up with gorgeous White Voile draping 24’h by almost 70’w with 100% fullness (lots of pleating) from our Delightably White Drapery Collection, which you can see turned out to be exactly what was asked for.

Because of the sheer textile of White Voile, it could be dramatically lit with all sorts of colors and intensities to help create the right mood for each song being played. They were able to hang these drapes at different angles because of the clever usage of the drapes’ grommets and ties on top, and so they were able to make unique staging while still using the same drapes over and over again.

We love being able to come up with memorable drapery rentals for our clients. This was a perfect example of how we help accomplish what our clients want without them having to spend an arm and a leg on renting multiple types of drapes in order to create a new and unique feel for each show.

Planning a Holiday Show or Event?

It’s hard to believe, but Thanksgiving is past, and the holiday season is starting in full swing.  Now’s the time to think about what custom stage drapes and other soft goods you might need for your holiday show or party.

Need some ideas?   See if these get your creativity going.

That Traditional Christmas Look

Inspiration: David Archuleta’s Christmas 2009 Tour

Specs: Gold Lightweight Velour Drapery, highlighted with festive red bows and large gold balls.  Add Christmas Trees, Wreaths, whatever you can imagine to set that festive holiday mood.

Winter Wonderland

Inspiration: “Silver Satin” and “Delightfully White” specialty drapery from Rent What?

Specs: A variety of Silver Satin drapes, from Austrians to Swags to Borders (and more) combine to evoke a romantic winter scene.  Add a little white with White Voile or Lightweight Velour Drapes, along with twinkle lights and a few snowflakes here and there for sparkle.

An Industrial New Year’s Eve

Inspiration: James Taylor; The Decemberists

Specs: Cool crinkly Metal Mesh gives a great industrial vibe, especially when lighted with spots in different colors.   Think about supplementing the look with stretch shapes, other crushed or textured fabrics in grey, silver and black tones, and metal pieces in a variety of finishes (pewter, silver, stainless steel, chrome, rubbed bronze, etc).

Still stuck for an idea?  Take a look at the Sew What? and Rent What? portfolios and Flickr for loads of inspirational photos and videos.

Carrie Underwood at the CMA awards

Did you happen to catch the Country Music Awards last night?  If you didn’t, you missed a beautiful performance by Carrie Underwood (Entertainer of the Year). 

I am proud to say that our sister company, Rent What? Inc., provided the beautiful White Voile swags and drapes (made by Sew What? Inc., naturally) that provided the gorgeous backdrop for Carrie’s performance.  The combination of the soft floaty fabric and the terrific lighting techniques really sets the mood.

If you missed it (or just want to see it again), check out this video of Carrie singing “Temporary Home” at the 2010 CMA Awards.

Focus On: Voile

Have you ever wondered what “voile” is?  I am sure you have seen this fabric many time, but you may not have known that you were looking at voile.

Voile is a fine plain weave (no nap) lightweight sheer fabric, similar to organza.  It is used for both apparel (typically women’s blouses and dresses) and drapery.  The name “voile” is a French word meaning “veil,” and so the name describes the appearance of the fabric – sheer and filmy like a bridal veil.  Voile may be made from a variety of fibers, including silk, cotton, rayon and polyester.

Drapery voile is typically made from polyester fibers, including Trevira ®, Avora ® and other polyesters.  It is a wide fabric, typically measuring 118″ wide.  Often, residential window sheers and canopy bed draping are made from voile, but voile is also used in professional applications. 

One professional application of voile is as custom stage curtains in music tours, selected by production designers for its beautiful romantic feel (especially when pleated) and the way it lights so beautifully.  As a matter of fact, we made voile drapes for the Rod Stewart Tour, and they were gorgeous – with the colored lighting, it is hard to believe that these drapes are actually white.  Surprisingly enough, it can also be used as a projection surfac, such as in the Beyonce tour, or even as a Twinkle-Light Drape.

Due to its terrific draping qualities, voile is frequently used by event planners to line and drapes tents and otherwise decorate venues, especially for weddings.  We have also seen it used for exhibit booths – a few years ago, we provided voile drapery to Heaven Hill Distilleries, for use in their exhibit booths in a major trade show event. 

Voile comes in a wide variety of colors, though we find that shades of white are the most requested, as the fabric lights so well.  Voile can also be digitally printed, and is particularly effective with an ethereal image such as shown in the Luna Guitars booth.

Using Voile in Tour Design

Voile is usually thought of as simply a wedding and special event fabric.  It is sheer, soft and floaty.  But it actually can be used quite effectively in tours as well.

For Rod Stewart’s 2008 tour, we made a series of gorgeous 200% fullness pleated voile drapes.  With the entire set design focused on the drapes, they were particularly dramatic, especially with lighting effects that made the drapes appear different colors throughout the show. 

Logically, it is hard to imagine being able to use white voile, a sheer fabric, to project lights and images on.  You would think that the projection would go right through the fabric.

Surprisingly enough, voile can actually be a very effective material for projection, if properly lit.  Recently, we worked on soft goods for the Beyonce Tour and, although she mostly used Black Encore masking drapes for this tour, we did make a 24′ h x 56′ w White Voile Projection Drape.  This was a fun gag.  The drape was made with 7′ high slits every ten feet or so, which allowed the dancers to “pop” out from backstage through the drape.  Throughout the routine, different images are projected onto the voile to serve as a backdrop to the dancers.  It makes for a great effect, as you can see on this video.

So, while the tendency is to think of voile as simply a wedding and special event fabric, it is actually quite versatile.  Production designers, keep voile in mind the next time you are looking for a different look for a tour you’re designing.