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Party! HOWParty! TO ORGANISE A BRILLIANT BASH: THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE POLLY BETTON Get together guru - Harper’S BAZAAR Kyle Books www.kylebooks.com Contents Themes Introduction 6 Themes Titanic Pyjama party Futurist Colourscape 1 Party basics 22 Roaring 20s/Prohibition Creative concepts Floral Types of party Invitation design, 6 Al fresco production and delivery 4 Drinks parties 140 parties 70 Hosting Logistics Helpers Creating a soundtrack Health and safety for the evening Cleaning up Unusual venues Scene setting: lighting, Weather texture and scent Themes Sports day picnic Setting up a bar 2 Daytime Al fresco dining Themes 36 Celebratory picnic entertaining Film noir Dressing the part Glow-in-the-dark Tableware and linen 7 Large-scale Seven deadly sins The rituals and parties 160 etiquette of Choosing your venue afternoon tea 5 House Entertainment Themes parties 96 Planning timings Victorian afternoon tea Prop and furniture hire Coffee and cake How many guests? morning Considering Themes Art brunch neighbours/ Love Noise regulations Bal Argentée Quick and easy props Day of the dead 3 Dinner and decorations 52 parties Making use of the Seating whole house 8 Great parties 180 Table dressing Setting up a sound in history system and finding a DJ Wine and food pairing Index 206 introduction MAIN INTRO has more to offer than you think: from exceptions without fuss. If you’re going to offer breakfast to brunch, lunch and afternoon tea, alcoholic drinks keep them as appropriate to it’s no cop-out to entertain your guests during the time of day as possible – Buck’s Fizz works the daylight hours. in the morning because orange juice is a breakfast drink and Bloody Marys go down well Family friendly planning at brunch because they’re quite ‘food-y’. Guests Daytime entertaining is a family friendly choice, who start to drink early in the day are likely to so you’ll probably want to be as need a restorative (or a little sleep) after a few accommodating as possible to all age groups. hours, so have a comfortable sofa ready for the Small details - such as the time your party inveitable crash outs and encourage guests to starts - can make all the difference. For match each alcoholic drink with a soft drink example, small children and older guests often during the party. have regular habits that it pays not to mess up. Extending your hospitality You may need to provide specific/additional Aside from its family friendly qualities, daytime seating, or tailor your menu. These things seem entertaining is a great way to extend the party obvious, but it’s very easy for them to get lost experience. Lunch, afternoon tea or late in the bustle of pulling together an event. You’ll afternoon cocktails can all work as a gentle feel dreadful if a guest has a problem at your precursor to an evening party, while breakfast party, so make a note to think the event or brunch is perfect for recovery post event. through from start to finish beforehand with a That said, don’t overestimate your guests – a view to identifying and fixing potential pitfalls. 7am breakfast is no good if everyone went to bed at 5am, and a day of entertainment that Extending your hospitality stretches from lunch to late night may leave Aside from its family friendly qualities, daytime your guests needing a little time to themselves. entertaining is a great way to extend the party experience. Lunch, afternoon tea or late To drink or not to drink? afternoon cocktails can all work as a gentle Daytime drinking is a moot point. Some people precursor to an evening party, while breakfast consider it entirely unacceptable, while others or brunch is perfect for recovery post event. see a special occasion as the perfect excuse to That said, don’t overestimate your guests – a indulge. Try to be sensitive to the general mood 7am breakfast is no good if everyone went to of your guests and be prepared to cater for bed at 5am, and a day of entertainment that exceptions without fuss. If you’re going to offer stretches from lunch to late night may leave alcoholic drinks keep them as appropriate to your guests needing a little time to themselves. the time of day as possible – Buck’s Fizz works in the morning because orange juice is a To drink or not to drink? breakfast drink and Bloody Marys go down well Daytime drinking is a moot point. Some people at brunch because they’re quite ‘food-y’. Guests consider it entirely unacceptable, while others who start to drink early in the day are likely to see a special occasion as the perfect excuse to need a restorative (or a little sleep) after a few indulge. Try to be sensitive to the general mood hours, so have a comfortable sofa ready for the of your guests and be prepared to cater for inveitable crash outs and encourage guests to PARTY! XXX PARTY 1 basıcs party basics PARTY BASICS Creative concepts Most parties have a purpose: to celebrate, whether a birthday, an anniversary or the start of a new adventure. A group of well-wishers, a couple of bottles of wine and voila! A party. But there are parties and there are parties. Every person should get to be at the centre of an utterly brilliant party at some point in his or her life. Central to a successful shindig is a good concept, an idea beyond the sentiment the party represents. It should be an extension of the person(s) being celebrated: a Bal Argentée for the glamorous type, a scavenger hunt for the outdoors type or an art themed tea for the creative type. Coming up with themes can be great fun – the more bonkers the better in my opinion – but it does require some thought. All themes have potential, but are they appropriate? Consider your audience carefully: try to make sure that everyone you invite will understand and enjoy the party. Your theme should be versatile – it will influence your invitations, your venue dressing, your entertainment, your food and drink and your guest’s clothing. The fancy dress party has been known to strike fear into even the steeliest of adults, so choose a theme that can be referenced with little fuss, as well as giving scope for extravagant dressing up. Try to work with your interior rather than against it. There’s no point pretending that a suburban semi is the Palace of Versailles, but with a couple of cleverly pinned Army Surplus parachutes and some scatter cushions it can make a decadent setting for a Roman Bacchante. Inspiration can be found in all sorts of places, but history is always a good start. Look at famous parties in the past (see the last chapter of this book) or think about eras with a style you admire. You can also look to television programs you enjoy, books that you’ve read or pretty much anything that sparks your imagination. Just remember to really give it some welly, half hearted efforts won’t cut the mustard. XX PARTY! party basics Types of party There are a lots of options open to you as a host, most of which are dealt with in subsequent chapters. Deciding what sort of party to throw is a simple matter of evaluating your circumstances and finding the format that fits. If you’re lucky enough to have both a reasonably large house and relaxed outlook (or perhaps very reliable friends and very few possessions) a house party may be in order. If you have a little budget available and want to make an impact, a large-scale party in a hired venue will fit the bill. For more intimate entertaining an elaborate dinner is a great opportunity to flex your culinary muscles. If you want an elegant event with a fixed start and end time a cocktail reception is a neat solution, but if you prefer an earlier party then afternoon tea is perfect. For those who enjoy going a little off-piste anything from a picnic to a pool party can be executed in style with a little forethought. Think about the venues available to you, the number of people you’d like to host and how much you’d like to feed them. All of these factors will influence the type of event you choose to put together. Never take on more than you want to out of obligation and be realistic about the amount of money you have to spend from the very start. Invitations Your invitation sets the tone of your party. Of course these days not all invitations need to be as thick as a plank of wood and hand engraved to be special, it just takes a little care. If you’d like to produce a polished printed invitation it’s advisable to visit your local printer. Go in armed with a collection of printed items you like to give the printer a bit of guidance on the style you’re aiming for. There are several different printing methods open to you: a) Letterpress: expensive but beautiful, printing process indents the paper lightly b) Litho print: expensive in short runs, but not too bad if you’re printing hundreds. Will allow for unusual or textured paper that digital machines can’t print onto. c) Digital: great value with a good finish, but can only print onto smooth papers up to a certain thickness Of course there’s also the home-made option: buy some nice paper and create your own design.