Coastal Luxe Marquee Styling at Lymington Yacht Haven

When you have a 45 metre marquee, 450 guests and a brief that says “Ibiza, but not a wedding”, you have plenty of room to play with.

For the annual Berth Holders Party at Lymington Yacht Haven, I was brought in to style and dress the marquee, creating an atmosphere that felt relaxed, summery and luxurious, without tipping into wedding territory.

The starting point was Ibiza, but rather than going down the obvious route of bright colours and party styling, I wanted to create something that felt more natural to the setting. Lymington Yacht Haven is right on the water, so the design needed to complement that coastal environment rather than compete with it.

Two directions, one final design

I put together two initial concepts for the space: Coastal Luxe and Ibiza Sunset.

The Ibiza Sunset concept was warmer and more vibrant, with stronger colour and a little more of that classic Ibiza party feeling.

Coastal Luxe was softer and more relaxed. Natural textures, rattan, greenery, palms and plenty of atmosphere.

It was the Coastal Luxe direction that won, and it gave us a really strong foundation for transforming such a large space.

The challenge with a marquee of this size is making it feel considered rather than filling it with decoration. With 45 metres of space and 450 guests, there is a lot of ground to cover. Every element needed to have a purpose and work as part of the overall design.

Bringing the outside in

Greenery became a big part of the design.

We used trees, foliage and coconuts throughout the marquee, alongside rattan pendant lampshades to bring in that relaxed Mediterranean feel. The combination of natural textures and greenery helped soften the scale of the space and made the marquee feel much more inviting.

On the tables, there were 108 individual arrangements in total. Rather than creating one identical centrepiece and repeating it hundreds of times, I used a mix of arrangements to give the tables variation while keeping everything cohesive.

The overall effect was deliberately relaxed. It was about creating an atmosphere rather than making every table feel overly decorated.

Two six metre hanging installations

The ceiling was another opportunity to make an impact.

We created two six metre hanging installations running through the marquee, bringing greenery and lighting up into the space and drawing the eye upwards.

In a marquee this large, the ceiling can easily become an afterthought. For me, it was an important part of the design because it helped break up the huge volume of the marquee and made the styling feel much more immersive.

It also meant guests experienced the design from the moment they walked into the space, rather than only noticing the details on their tables.

A two day transformation

The installation took place over two days, working alongside the team at Marlin Marquees.

Large scale event styling is always as much about logistics as it is about the pretty bits. There is a lot of planning behind the scenes to make sure everything arrives when it needs to, that the installation works safely within the marquee and that hundreds of individual styling elements come together on time.

The team at Marlin Marquees were fantastic to work with throughout the install. Everyone was incredibly friendly and helpful, which makes such a difference when you are working on a large scale event with a tight setup schedule.

By the time the final details were in place, the huge marquee had been transformed into a relaxed coastal setting ready for 450 guests.

Event styling that works beyond weddings

One of the things I particularly enjoyed about this project was that it was completely different from styling a wedding.

Corporate events and private parties do not need to follow the same visual rules as weddings. There is so much scope to create something with personality, whether that is through lighting, fabric, furniture, florals, greenery or unusual installations.

For this event, the brief was Ibiza, but not wedding. The final design stayed true to that brief while still feeling right for Lymington Yacht Haven and the audience attending the party.

That is always the aim with event design at Maroux. Take the brief, understand the space and then create something that feels right for the occasion.

Coastal marquee styling in Hampshire

This project was a brilliant example of what can be achieved with the right combination of styling, design and planning, even when working to a defined budget.

From the 108 table arrangements to the hanging installations, rattan lighting, trees and greenery, every element was considered as part of the wider experience.

I love working on events where the styling has a job to do. It should change how a space feels, give guests something to talk about and make the whole event feel more intentional.

And, ideally, it should look pretty good in photographs too.

If you are planning a corporate event, private party or large scale marquee event in Hampshire, Dorset or further afield, I can help with everything from the initial creative direction through to the finished styling and installation.