Party Invitations, Party Planning & Event Ideas

Real Life Entertaining

"Modern, casual, informal." These are the words that Jennifer Rubell uses to describe her entertaining style in her first book, REAL LIFE ENTERTAINING, Easy Recipes And Unconventional Wisdom.

Rubell is one of today's elite entertaining mavens. Her articles appear regularly in Domino and she has been featured in Vogue, Food and Wine and Bon Appetite. She writes "the old rules of entertaining just don't apply any more." This is good news to those leaving convention behind to find more creative and self expressive ways to entertain at home.

RLE is organized in 8 chapters with menus arranged by party theme. They are Drop In Dinners, Sit Down Dinners, Get-togethers, Brunch, Lunch Buffets, One Pot Meals, Dinner For A Crowd and Desserts. At the start of each chapter are The Essentials. The Basic Concept is a personal essay of Rubell's, expanding on the chapter's theme. The essay is followed by brief organizing categories: Ideal number of guests, Who to invite, Minimum acceptable advance notice, What to tell your friends to bring, Setting the mood, Drink of choice, Ultimate sign of success and Why I cook the meals in this chapter.

   

The menus are tasty and chic. The Miami Shrimp Grill is found in Drop In Dinners. Included are recipes for Grilled Shrimp with Garlic and Citrus, Buttered Corn Wheels and Papaya and Cilantro Salad. Other "long on style, short on fuss" menus include a New York Brunch, Middle Eastern Beauty and So South Of France.

Rubell's Party Tricks are shared in highlighted side bars. It is here that she instructs readers to thoroughly clean their tabletop and arrange hor d'oeuvres geometrically on the table, eliminating platters. As a conversation starter for more shy hosts and hostesses: walk around with a wine bottle in hand, offering refills.

Each chapter also features what Rubell calls Real Life Wisdom. For real life entertaining, forgo having an expensive full bar. Instead, serve water, wine and one specialty cocktail. Rubell lets readers off the hook by recommending they save their efforts for the main meal and put out some good roasted nuts or olives for the cocktail hour.

The Dessert chapter comes last but really isn't a chapter of menus at all. Rubell shares her real life wisdom to either bake something, buy something, have a friend bring something or forget it completely and serve some liqueurs. To keep things real, Rubell suggests readers "don't take on the task of playing both roles [baker and chef] for the same event in the limited time you have in your own kitchen."

Highly experienced party givers are not likely to find Rubell's recipes cutting edge gourmet. Yet, Rubell's book is worth adding to kitchen collections for those inspired to find more simplistic and stylish approaches to entertaining.

"What I craved was simplicity and intimacy."

“People are understanding that it’s about having people come to your house and enjoy spending time together. Not so much about having perfectly matching silver and perfectly matching plates."

“My idea of a great party is a party where people meet each other who did not know each other before, where there’s delicious food, and where the host has a good time.”

- Jennifer Rubell

Designer Dinnerware: Fine China at Bed Bath & Beyond

I've noticed that the selection of dinnerware at standby megastore Bed, Bath & Beyond has gotten a lot more chic and stylish recently. In particular there are some really nice designs from venerable British china companies Royal Doulton and Wedgwood.

Celebrity chef and adjective-challenged star of TV's Hell's Kitchen, Gordon Ramsey, has an unexpectedly classic dinner service. Gordon Ramsey White for Royal Doulton. Platinum band on white. $79.99 for a five piece setting.

British designer Jasper Conran's pure white china is spare and spare and elegant. The food will definitely be the star on these plates.  Jasper Conran Fine Bone China for Wedgwood. $29.99 for a 10.5" dinner plate.


My absolute favorite: French fashion designer Monique Lhullier combines a lizardskin border in a taupy gray with a chic white center. It's also the best named dinner service. Monique Lhullier Femme Fatale for Royal Doulton. $139.99 for a five piece setting.

Navigating the Bed, Bath & Beyond site isn't the easiest thing in the world but with designs like these, it's worth it.

S'mores the really easy way

If you are planning a beach barbecue or campfire at your 4th July celebrations you could make dessert easy with these SmorStix Marshmallow Roasting Sticks from Moose-R-Us.

The 30" long White Birch sticks save having to scour the undergrowth or sand dunes for suitable spears to toast those marshmallows and are even more convenient if you purchase the complete S'mores SmorPak that includes Stix, Marshmallows, Graham Crackers and Chocolate. $21 from Moose-R-Us, campfire not included.

In case there is anyone out there who doesn't know how to make their campfire Smores, you will need per person

1 large marshmallow
2 graham crackers
2 squares chocolate

Place the marshmallow on the stick and toast over campfire until golden brown.
Place the chocolate squares on top of a graham cracker. Place the marshmallow on top of the chocolate. Complete the sandwich with the remaining graham cracker. The heat of the marshmallow will melt the chocolate and result in a crunchy, gooey, irresistible summer treat. Enjoy.

At Your Service

We love to barbecue but by the time we've made several trips from the kitchen to the patio with tableware and food we are usually exhausted. What would make the outdoor eating experience more relaxing? A serving cart, or what my grandmother would have called a Hostess Trolley. Here are three of my favorites:

From Conran USA, this fun and fabulous Luxembourg Bar Cart. In apple green powder-coated steel it has 3 bottle holders and a removable tea-tray top. $650 plus delivery.

If wicker fits your patio decor better this traditional Smith & Hawken Marlton Tea Cart from Target has two deep-sided shelves and costs $189.99 online.

At the luxury end of the market comes this contemporary stainless steel and Ipe wood Modern Outdoor Talt Cart available from 2Modern. It's eco-friendly, low maintenance and manufactured in the USA. Priced at $2,399 as shown, the cart is also available in powder-coated steel and polyboard in various color combinations. Prices start at $1,399.

Poster Programs and Invitations

For your next soiree why not design an invitation poster style?

photo by David Willems

Inspired by a Martha Stewart Weddings feature on unique wedding essentials, I asked a close designer friend to throw together a hip program for my wedding. I requested a jpg of a motif from my wedding invitation suite (it's a cute taxi cab image perfect for my NYC theme wedding) and together with a personalized monogram a hip poster program was created for a unique way to give my guests details about my wedding ceremony.

For your next event or for your wedding, create a gorgeous and one-of-a-kind look by thinking big - step out of your ordinary stock-card frame of mind and think 11X17!

photo by David Willems

Finish the look by folding your poster into thirds the long way and again in thirds until you have a small rectangle. Wrap it up with a ribbon and monogram sticker or use a colorful strip of paper featuring a personalized monogram like I did.

photo by David Willems

For more ideas please check out Modern Vintage and enjoy my latest Wedding special week-long feature.

Tips for Apple Pies

As a citizen of Pennsylvania, one of the largest apple states in the nation, I'm happy to present a few tips for making your apple pie a main attraction at your event this autumn. While it's already difficult to pass up this gooey, cinnamon smothered, comfort food, here's a few resources to make your pie perfect.

1) Combine two different kinds of apples to get the most flavor. Try using tart and sweet apples together. If you can find local apples from a farmer's market, use those for the freshest results. Check this list for apples that do well in your area, or look for flavor combos that are appealing to you: Apple Varieties

2) Avoid apples that get mushy when cooked: MacIntosh and Courtland are two you should steer clear of for baking.

3) Mix just-sliced apples with a tablespoon of lemon juice to keep them from browning till you pour them into the pie.

4) Crust Lattice and edging can be very difficult to make. Try this easy-as-pie method of making faux lattice and edging from Martha Stewart.

5) Try dripping caramel sauce over your finished pie--it's more delicious than you can imagine!

Music For Public Events

Picture - String Planet. They are a great concert band to work with and professional for any event or festival. Check them out at www.stringplanet.com! Photo credit - Jeanie Cunningham. The following story DOES NOT relate to String Planet, this is just a plug for these great musicians...

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I had an interesting situation arise the other day involving a non-profit fund raiser. There were plans for music at this event, both live performance and CD sales – by one of the non-profit's members - with CD sales as a part of fund-raising.

I am only marginally involved in project, so it was very late in the game when I finally became aware of the plans for music. I noticed that there were three kinds of music involved with the event - self-composed, public domain and copyrighted music.

I was fairly certain that the musician did not have a performance license and/or recording rights for the copyrighted music, because they are merely a well-meaning member of this organization and a hobbyist musician, not a professional musician. There were several indications that the copyrighted music was not covered legally.

Music gets used a lot in events both as signature moments and background. Music sets the mood and emphasizes a vibe at events. But event planners need to understand that music at events is, legally, considered a public performance of the work. Don't let the word performance throw you- here the word performance can be either live performance or played on transistor radio – it is the aural reception of music.

If it is music in public domain or self-authored, there is no issue. If it is copyrighted music- which most music nowadays is... then you are at risk for lawsuits and fines. The most famous case of this is the “Happy Birthday” song. A quick trip to Google will tell the tale: “The version as we know it was copyrighted in 1935...The company holding the copyright was purchased by Warner Chappell in 1990 for $15 million, with the value of "Happy Birthday" estimated at $5 million...Warner claims that unauthorized public performances of the song are technically illegal unless royalties are paid to them.”

ASCAP and BMI are initiating lawsuits in record numbers. People in the industry must be aware of this, and plan accordingly.

The definition of performing copyrighted music that is at issue includes playing music "any place where people gather," with the exception of small private groups. As long as it's played outside a direct circle of friends and family, it is considered a public performance. Music may be played through radio, television, CD or cassette player, computer, etc. or performed live. Party planners should also be asking their DJs about their performance license - because they absolutely should have one. It can put your organization at risk if they do not.

Back to my little non-profit's saga. Unfortunately, people associated with this fund raiser were not even aware of the potential concern. When it was brought to their attention, they mistakenly thought that the musician should be solely liable in the event that someone reported the infringement. This is not so. In the case of fines – which can be several grand per infringement- they will go after the organization that was planning the event. Whether you agree with this or it makes sense- it does not matter. And it does not matter that it is a fund raiser to help a little itsy-bitsy nonprofit. It would be a public embarrassment. Organizations like this need to be “above the letter of the law” and highly professional in order to keep credibility when they solicit support. Donors expect that.

Event planners need to protect the institutions and individuals that they work for. You should be reasonably aware of liability concerns for your client, because they probably have no idea. ALWAYS ask if the musician or DJ has performance license and/or recording rights for the music that they are presenting or selling. Always advise your client of the letter-of-the-law. If they chose to ignore you, you have given them fair indication of any risks they incur.

If you are a constant provider of musical entertainment, you should know of ASCAP and BMI and if you are an organization that requires a contract.

My suggestion for my little non- profit, which was well received, is that the music performed and sold at this fund raiser be limited to the musician's self-composed music.

Perhaps one of the byproducts of this litigation happy music industry will be that local grassroots musicians will have more opportunities for their original works to be performed as opposed to being begged to perform only covers of popular songs.

hostess with the mostess.

A friend just sent over a link to Hostess with the Mostess, a fabulous blog/website with all the latest tips and trends to make your event a success!

Check out HWTM's newest Halloween themes here.

And remember: it's never too late to plan a party!!!

Designer Gown Sales Event

 

If your idea of gown shopping doesn’t involve camping outside Filene’s Basement and strangling fellow brides over clearance designer tulle, you’re invited to a classy alternative to the chaos that is the New York City “Running of the Brides.”

In October Brides Magazine is hosting the “Something Pink Gown Sale” in collaboration with the Making Memories Breast Cancer Foundation. Half charity benefit, half designer gown sale, the event provides two ways to shop for your gown:

1) PREVIEW SALE

Where: 122 West 26th St
           New York, NY 10001

When:  October 4, 2007
           6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Pay $200 for tickets to the Preview Sale, which allows you first dibs on the goods, admission for one shopper and a guest, cocktails, and a swag bag with goodies from Ralph Lauren, Hanky Panky, Godiva, and Target worth $500. You’ll also be entered to win a $4,500 honeymoon to Maui.

2) GENERAL  SALE

     Where: Lotus Space
               122 West 26th St
               New York, NY 10001

When:  October 5 & 6, 2007
           9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Pay $20 for tickets to the General Sale, admitting you and a guest to two hours of shopping.

Proceeds go to the Making Memories Breast Cancer Foundation, and you can purchase your tickets online at www.brides.com/somethingpink.

FOR OTHER CITIES:

You can find their schedule of sales throughout the country by clicking here.

DONATE YOUR GOWN:

“Calling all former brides! On October 4, you can appear live on Good Morning America and help support Breast Cancer Awareness. Brides magazine is teaming up with Good Morning America to kick off a national breast cancer fund-raising campaign that features donated wedding gowns. If you'd like to give your dress to the cause, e-mail donatemydress@bridesmag.com by September 29 for more details.” ~Brides.com

Kuler Your Party

For both the color obsessed and the color challenged, Adobe Labs has developed a web-based color wheel community called kuler. Designed to compliment the Adobe Creative Suite, it offers a public forum to cultivate and swap color schemes. The easy to use program is self-explanatory. Browse designs by Newest, Highest Rated, or Most Popular.

Click “Create” on the homepage to make your own. If you have a few colors in mind, but don’t know how to organize them, try creating a scheme according the one of the Rules provided. Analogous provides similar colors, Monochromatic will give you colors in the same family but in different hues, Triad will give you three harmonizing color families.

Complementary will provide you with opposites, while Compound will serve up opposites and similar but not-quite-opposites. Shades looks much like the paint sample strip you might pick up at the home improvement store, showcasing the same color in various tints. With any of these selected, you can change the location of flags on the color wheel, or move the spindles on the color levels below each color block to change your scheme, much like any Color Picker available in Desktop Publishing Programs and Adobe Software.
The Custom option is where you can make a truly unique scheme. If you discover something fantastic, save it MyKuler, the area designed for your own color schemes. If you’re especially fond of your scheme, and want to share it with the world, publish it, so site browsers can find your distinctive palate. I’ve used this site for several projects, and I’m always thrilled with the results.