Concentric Champagne arches window display

Window display for New Jersey liquor store

For this project we were asked to build out a gold mirror reflective window display to glorify a series of champagne bottles leading up to New Year’s eve. We built out a gold mirror back wall and floor of the window pocket as well as gold mirror clad illuminated arches and gold mirror pedestals, matching the finish of the bottles on display.

CNC cut pieces of acrylic, PVC and gold mirror before assembly

The largest arch is 20’ long and 10’ tall, so we had to solve the challenge of making them structurally able to stand on their own with a small footprint, as well as making them in pieces that our installers could easily assemble on site. We made each arch in 4 segments, first cutting “c” shaped arcs out of laminated MDF and PVC - leaving a groove along the curved edge to hold wiggle board, which we installed on the curved edges. We had to laminate and flush trim the curved edges after assembling each segment to minimize the seams and account for the stretching of the outer layer during the bending process.

Fabricated arch sections before lamination

Since each set of 4 sections was meant to line up to create a seamless face lit arch, we had to design a way for them to connect together without casting a backlit shadow that would be seen at each segment. We didn’t want to put scab pieces on the curved returns or on the backs because they would be clunky and visible from all sides due to the mirror reflective finish on every facet of the build. We ended up making pieces to cap each segment of the arch out of 3/4” clear acrylic that were strong enough to act as structural connection plates but could let light and wiring pass through to keep the faces looking as seamless as possible.

Reflective gold arches and dimensional spade patterned pedestals

We made the pedestals by laminating 5 sides of MDF boxes with gold acrylic mirror - then laminating a second layer of gold acrylic mirror that we cut on our CNC with a spade pattern.

Ray laminating gold acrylic mirror to one of the pedestals in our shop

Once we had the display built, the next challenge was the installation. We were working in a very tight window and had to maneuver these big arches into place, connect them together structurally, make all our wiring connections, then put on the lenses and trim pieces. The arches were very stable once assembled but had to be braced temporarily as they were being built. We ended up tying safety cables off at the tops to the ceiling for added peace of mind.

Partial window installation with 2 arches in place

Once we got to the last arch we were working in very tight quarters, but managed to get everything placed with room to clean up after ourselves, polish up the acrylic behind us and remove the masking on the acrylic as we were leaving.

Eddie installing trim on a ladder inside the window pocket

The end result was a dazzlingly bright display of concentric arches and gold mirror finishes everywhere you look.

Finished display