The enhancement to the live experience was apparent from the get go: people were thrilled to see their #sweetlife2013 photos make the big boards, and the collage of personal perspectives instilled an even deeper sense of togetherness.

Now anybody can project a Live Feed at their next event!

From your Splash’s Gallery, search Instagram and Twitter for photos using your event hashtag. Then click on your favorite images to instantly add them to your on-page display.

As a final step, put “/party” on the end of your event URL, and transform your Splash into a dynamic, projector optimized photostream.

Whether you’re a festival powering a septet of Jumbotrons or a novice planner “party-sourcing” your event pics, projecting content live will always enhance the in-person experience.

To get ready for next year’s Sweetlife: a music + food festival, follow the official Twitter feed. 

Seems counterintuitive, right? Bigger is better has pretty much been adopted as the national motto; and you’d think there could never be too much space for guests to mill about in.

Erroneous.

As far as party aesthetics go, bigger spaces never present as well as smaller ones. With added venue size, lighting gets trickier, acoustics suffer and, most importantly, a level intimacy is lost, sapping your party of that intangible buzz you worked so tirelessly to cultivate.

Remember, parties are among the few occasions in this culture of smartphones, tablets and noise-cancelling headphones that people have voluntarily signed up to engage, meaningfully, with others. Spreading them out just provides an Out Clause.

When you’re setting up, get creative with your lighting, mirrors and barriers to create the illusion of space. The area’s relative smallness will funnel people towards each other, maximizing your party’s level of interaction. If things start feeling a little too cramped, you’ll have planned for this in advance, with your movable barriers doubling as human release valves.

This, our friends, is the definition of Party Science: finding the perfect mix of party elements, many of which are unapparent to guests, to create a meaningful and memorable experience.

Always leave ample space around the bar, but the smaller the venue, the better your outcome.

I recently spoke with Eliza Blank, founder of The Sill, an upstart New York online houseplant boutique boasting the most brilliant potted plants in the city. Below, Eliza shared her wisdom on how you can use plant life to enliven your next event.

What’s the most important thing to consider before incorporating plants into an event space?

Many planners make the mistake of decorating with cut flowers alone, which, despite their reputation, and formidable price tags, wither away in days, or sometimes hours, after an event has ended. Potted plants offer equal the atmosphere, are extraordinarily versatile, and won’t send you running out to the nursery the day of. And the best part? You can use them over and over again!

What’s it about plants that make them such great event decor?

Plants come in an infinite variety of heights, sizes, textures and hues, making it easy to scope out the ones (and matching planters) that will best accentuate your event theme and venue. For example, you can make a statement with a big assortment of plants grouped together atop a table or, for added elegance, choose one stunning potted plant and accent it with white (think tall pillar candles and silver accents).

What are some of the most creative ways people are using plants for parties and celebrations?

First, plants make for great party favors; they’re a living, breathing thank you, and are infinitely more meaningful than goodie bags. I love when people incorporate plants into place card settings, too – monogrammed planters with guests’ names or initials make people feel extra special, and double as an event commemorating keepsake. “Living Labels” are a also great current usage, especially if a guest has a food allergy. At your buffet table or family-style dinner, just stick skewers with flags attached into the soil of potted plants. Then print onto the flag anything from the dish’s name to its ingredients.

Any ideas for weddings?

For the plant-loving brides out there, try using plants to reimagine the “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue” tradition. Incorporate a blue hued succulent in your bouquet for the bride’s “blue,” re-pot a favorite plant or reuse a family heirloom for your “something old,” and, as a couple, make a plant purchase, and keep it alive together as your “something new.”

Thanks, Eliza! Visit The Sill shop to peruse potted plants and search assorted succulents. Then be sure to check out The Sill’s blog, The Plant Hunter, and their newly launched Tumblr, PlantHunting.com, for #PlantPorn and even more inspiration and advice for greenery enthusiasts.

Most notably, however—and this brilliant wrinkle is owed to the masterminds at The Participation Agency—was the variety of ways in which the event linked Acer products to aspirational figures, while somehow allowing the devices to maintain an all-important air of accessibility.

Acer identified a handful of young influencers, whose creative livelihoods were linked to the use of technology: a startup CEO, a DJ, a photographer, and so on. The event then reinforced this link by showcasing the influencers with their Acer devices in several compelling, real-life scenarios.

A mini-documentary featuring these figures set the scene; then they were brought to life as guest presenters on-stage with Acer execs. But it was the final act of embedding each person into a re-creation of their natural work environment that solidified the brand association and captured the event’s overall theme — computers as an extension of our humanity.

The startup CEO (that’s me) was stationed among his team members running the show of a typical development meeting, while using, and demoing, the new Acer touchscreen laptop. The event’s DJ delivered his entire set using Acer’s re-imagined tablet, all the while being positioned in front of carefully chosen signage and light design.

Real world situations were perfectly meshed with a fantastical event space, creating a memorable experience while accomplishing Acer’s overall objective. Balancing guest and sponsor expectations is among an event’s planner’s most difficult tasks, but when executed correctly, it’s as if the marriage was destined from the start.

No, Party Science hasn’t impulsively pivoted to an Olympic gymnastics blog — these are the essential traits of any party planner worth the salt on his margarita glass.

Speaking of margaritas or martinis or mai tais, for that matter — they will spill. Shards of glass be scattered. Dresses will be stained. Tears will fly. Curses will be lobbed like trench bound grenades.

And if it’s not that, it’ll be something else: a no-show photographer, a botched birthday cake, a derelict DJ — the list, sadly, goes on.

To err is human.

And that’s what parties are: events created by humans, for humans, by which the success is dependent on the fallibility of other humans.

The mentality of an event planner should be that there will be a problem; but, more likely, problems, as in multiple flies in multiple vats of ointment.

The success of an event rides on how nimble a planner is on his feet when a snag strikes and everybody’s looking to him for the solution.

Be unflappable. Don’t bat an eye. Greet the problem with a smile on your face. Then improvise an intelligent solution.

Don’t, however, get mad. It won’t solve anything.

Read the problem. React to it. And remember: your guests will only remember the slip-up if you give them a reason to.

The bartender running the show. The guy who has all the keys. The person with access to the music volume and AV equipment. The list goes on (and it could all be the same person), and you want to ID these people early, as you’ll likely need to call on each of them at pivotal party moments.

Get a sense of who among the staff not only knows the lay of the land, but takes pride in what they do. If you can ascertain which bartender, for example, has a flare for the craft and can concoct a quick cocktail, this is who’ll go to when a VIP needs a specialty drink ASAP.

Most importantly though, find out who the decision makers are. This is your event, and you’ll want things done a certain way. Perhaps you’ll even need to break some rules to make it happen.The people who can’t say yes will always say no, so make sure you take your most ambitious wishes to those with the clout to grant them.

You’ll find that most are amenable to whatever you have planned, especially if you’ve arrived early and demonstrated a level of confidence and professionalism.

Just know that almost all projectors emit “white light,” which invariably affects the mood in the room. If you can’t procure a special white light-free LED projector, you’ll need to be strategic in how you use the one you have.

Returning to the concept of novelty — don’t fall in love with your projector just because its, well, fun to project things. Sugary desserts work because they’re mixed with eggs and salt, but sugar alone isn’t intrinsically delicious. Same goes for projectors.

Pick and choose the spots that are best for sprinkling in projection, and be cognizant that prolonged white light emittance can sap your event of its good vibes.

Projecting images with lots of blacks is an effective white light mitigator, but its the awareness of the power light carries, for good and bad, and how to manage it, that will make you a more proficient party scientist.

Admittedly, we professional planners are plagued with an angst, only placated by the sight of our guests having a great time. But we also know that even at the most perfectly planned event, something always goes wrong — so why not take care of what can actually be prevented? Rule number one, the earlier you’re there, the more time you have to fix things.

Next, being the first one there and gathering the early intel establishes you as an authority figure. In the eyes of the staff, and the people running the venue, the first face they see carries a subconscious weight. You’re the one who knows what’s best for your event, so establishing yourself as its undisputable custodian will ensure that an actual custodian doesn’t end up calling the shots.

Finally, immersing yourself in the space, alone, even if you’ve toured it before, allows you to see and understand it better. Is it bigger than you thought? Is the light refracting differently than you anticipated? Did the venue forget to provide you with something you asked for?

These, and a host of other issues, can be remediated, but they require some time to re-plan and expertly execute. Fashionably late is fine if you’re attending, but event planners make their statements with their unprecedented punctuality and preparedness.

Upon securing your venue, find out all you can about the elevator. Any delivery or rental company is going to need to know the elevator’s height, width and door dimensions. It’s also important to know if the elevator goes down to street level.

Further, find out if you need to, or can, reserve the exclusive rights to the elevator for the entirety of the night. Will it be used by another event’s guests? Will it be used by others while you’re loading and unloading your cargo? Find out beforehand.

Getting people and objects in and out of a venue is the most fundamental part of party production. It’s also crucial to safety. Learn your lift as if it was Wonka’s glass elevator —sideways, slantways, longways and backways. And if you really want to add a classy wrinkle to an event, it’s always a great to hire an elevator attendant.

But lest you drive yourself crazy, or kill your credit score to procure what you think would be the perfect party element, please heed this event planning truism:

Good music. Good drinks. Good food. Other than who’s in attendance, these are all that guests actually care about.

Nobody’s leaves an event thinking, “wow that DJ brought the house down, but don’t you think the light design could have been a little more ambitious.”

People will be upset, however, if you skimped on the chicken fingers so you could put out more dazzling floral arrangements.

Ensure these three staples are more than accounted for, and even if you’re hosting your event from a shoebox, I promise you, it will still be worth attending.