Home Sweet Home

There are few things that make you more grownup than buying your own home: it costs a lot of money (which one usually has to be a grownup to have), takes a lot of patience and dedication (VERY grownup traits), and you can't call your dad anymore to come fix the plumbing (unless you're very lucky like me and your dad lives a mile and a half away). When one really has their grownup life together like Anne, one of my best friends, one buys a condo in Brooklyn and asks lots of cool people to come over and break it in. If that awesome person also happens to have a best friend who is an event planner, one flies that person (that's ME, if you're getting confused by my lack of pronouns) out to visit for a fun-filled weekend and help make sure the party is a success. Since I'm an event planner and Anne gets paid to organize things for a living, you will not be surprised to hear that the party WAS, in fact, a success. So rather than tell you about how to throw a good cocktail party in general, I'm going to list a few specific tips that made this party great and can be applied to any type of party you have.

TIP: If you are making (or opening bags of) the food for the party yourself, you'll save yourself a big headache if you organize your shopping list by grocery store departments (dairy, grocery, produce, bakery, etc.) rather than by the recipes (ie., spinach dip, quiche, chocolate cake). This way you can make a controlled circuit in the store rather than running back and forth, and you should be able to pick up everything you need each time you stop. Additional TIP: If you're in a big or unfamiliar store, make friends with someone who works there, because s/he will be able to take you right to what you need. If you're lucky enough to be shopping in the Brooklyn Fairway, make sure that person is the incomparable Yvonne. Amazing.

TIP: When you're planning your party menu, add the total time each recipe takes to figure out how far in advance you need to start preparing the food, and then add a little more. There is no such thing as having too much time, but there is such a thing as not having anything ready for your first guests to eat.

TIP: If there is a red wine spill, and there almost certainly will be, pour white wine on it. You heard me. I can't even pretend to understand what the chemistry is behind this genius trick, but it works. I have had it take red wine out of wedding gowns (and therefore save a panicked bride from committing an act that might require her new husband to post her bail), although it did not work 100% on Anne's new beautiful blue wool carpet. Anne swears by salt for the same purpose, but I haven't tried it so I can't vouch for the efficacy of this one. Additional TIP: If you are the person who spilled the wine, apologize immediately, help with the cleanup, and offer to pay for cleaning or replacement of the item you spilled on (all of which this classy spiller did).

Okay, I lied: here come two generic tips. TIP: Be flexible. A party (and the prep) is never going to go 100% the way you want it to, so be willing to change your plan a little bit if necessary. For example, Anne planned her menu weeks in advance, but on the day of the party we ended up having to handle a bunch of other stuff that cut our prep time short and meant we couldn't make all the food she wanted. Although she was sad to do it, Anne took her sharpie to the menu and cut a few items, and just like that ... Poof! Enough time to prep everything else!

TIP: Remember to enjoy your party (the prep time tip helps with this too, since you'll be done well in advance). You're asking people to come celebrate with YOU, and if you're too busy running around and freaking out about making the party perfect, no one is going to get to do that. By all means be an attentive host: offer to refill drinks if you see that someone's is low, make a circuit by the food every so often to make sure there's enough, and toss plates and cups that you're sure aren't being used any more, but don't let these tasks keep you from having a good time.

Follow these tips and your party will be just as fabulous as Anne's. Party on, dudes!

Those three little words

I can't believe I actually have to write a post about this, but it has come to my (horrified) attention that there are still some people out there who don't behave in culturally- and civically-approved ways. People litter. People don't open doors for each other (regardless of gender). And apparently there are people who don't use the three most important words in any kind of relationship: please and thank you. I find this to be distinctly un-awesome.

Granted, I am an over-thanker. When I was a prosecutor, a judge once asked me to come into her chambers, whereupon she requested that I not say "thank you" when witnesses answered my question because it made it sound like I'd inappropriately coached them. Oops. So, okay, that's ONE situation where it is not appropriate to say thank you. ONE. If you can think of another one, please let me know and I will do something that duly expresses my chagrin, à la eating my hat.

So other than criminal witnesses, PLEASE remember to thank people. This is especially important when someone is offering you their time, service, or personalized product such as, for example, oh ... making your wedding cake. Yes, you are paying this person. Yes, you are the customer and the customer is (almost) always right. That doesn't mean you get to be rude. If you went to a spa and paid $65 for an hour massage, you'd thank your masseuse when it was over, right? You'd thank your waiter for bringing you your dinner, right (I hope)? Same goes for people in the event industry, especially in difficult economic times when they may be offering their services at a discount. Saying "thank you" takes less than a second of your time (and moving your mouth even maybe burns a calorie), and it goes a loooooooooong way towards making sure you maintain positive relationships with people you work with. They may even throw in a little something extra.

If you're really looking to go the extra mile (which I always recommend, except at the gym), write a thank you note. No one gets paper mail any more, and it's pretty exciting when you do and it's not a bill. (A special thanks to bride-to-be Lindsay who sent me a beautiful card after her bridal shower last weekend). It takes only a minute, and the fact that you spent that minute and the 44 cents on a stamp will really impress the recipient.

In closing, here's a TIP: Please, say thank you. Duh.

The flowers and the trees (and, I guess, the birds and the bees)

It seems safe to assume that when there's a bridal shower, a wedding is not far behind, followed by the wedding night (hence the birds and the bees part, which I'll spare you in this post - you'll need to find some teenage mother's blog for more info on that). One of the most important elements of a wedding and the events leading up to it is the flower arrangements, which, let's face it, you have to be pretty visually adept to create. As a Type A organizer kind of person, my visual skills are basically less than zero ... and that, thank goodness, is where fantastic event designers and florists come in.

If you're a fan of Events Laureate on Facebook (and if you're not, you should be! www.facebook.com/eventslaureate), you probably saw that I have an amazing new floral designer who will be our go-to gal for in-house arrangements: the lovely and talented Jenni Hohensee. Jenni's first gig with Events Laureate was Lindsay's bridal shower last Saturday, and boy did she start out with a bang! For her wedding in late May, Lindsay wants big, full flowers in champagne, pink, and bronze, so Jenni did some genius shopping and found beautiful early spring versions: stargazer lilies, gerber daisies, sweetheart roses, and ranunculus. We were also lucky enough to have a generous friend whose budding maple tree broke in a snowstorm last week, and who gave us an incredible bunch of the maple branches for the arrangements! TIP: Champagne + maple sprig + ranunculus = hilarious Harry Potter impressions. 

Being a non-visually creative person, I have absolutely no idea what Jenni actually did to make beautiful arrangements; I only know that it involved tape, wire cutters, pruning shears, and a crowbar. Okay, maybe not that last item.

Suffice to say that I looked at cookbooks for a few hours to create a menu for another upcoming event (stay tuned, readers ...), and when I looked back up there were 6 incredible flower arrangements waiting to amaze Lindsay's bridal shower guests. Everyone at the shower commented on the beautiful flowers the next morning, including the happy bride-to-be. Keep your eye on the blog to see more pics of Jenni's beautiful work!

 

Everything you ever wanted to know about cake but were afraid to ask

Cake is pretty much everyone's favorite part of a wedding (or frankly, of life), so it's important that you have a good one. Unfortunately, many bakeries know how important it is and charge you accordingly. One reader needs help navigating the wilds of deliciousness vs. priciness, so listen in!

Dear Party People,
Do you have any suggestions for a cake shop in Denver that is good quality, but affordable? We want to have a very simple cake, but still elegant and tasty!! We don't have a huge budget for it so any help would be great!
Sincerely hoping to melt in frosting,
Eagerly Excited Fiancée


Dear Eagerly Excited,
Don't worry, it's possible! The primary thing to keep in mind is that most of your guests won't remember what your cake looks like, and they'll also probably forget what it tasted like the morning after the wedding - it's only important that YOU love how it looks in your pictures, and that you think it's tasty enough to eat another piece on your first anniversary. Cakes can get expensive quickly, especially if you want lots of intricate decoration, but it sounds like you're already on the right track by wanting a simple but elegant design.

My biggest money-saving TIP: (it gets its own paragraph because it's such a big one): get just one or two tiers of the decorated cake that you want to display during the wedding and cut for pictures, and then serve your guests equally-as-delicious but undecorated and much less expensive sheet cake that the caterer will keep in the back. No one will ever know.

Now for the cake itself. Most bakeries price bridal cakes by the serving, and the more cake you get the more the per serving price goes down (although, of course, the total cost will go up). In the Denver area it's possible to find prices anywhere from $3.50 per serving to $9.50 or more per serving. Usually the less expensive servings will cover a tier that has a basic buttercream or chocolate frosting, one filling, and little or no design. Once the design starts getting complicated or includes fondant, the price goes up fast. A few delicious and reasonably-priced Denver recommendations:

Mermaids (mermaidsbakery.com): $3.50 for vanilla/chocolate cake with buttercream frosting and filling. Their website has a great, clear explanation of how the prices go up for fillings and decoration. Their half sheet cakes feed 35-40 people and are $69.

Cake Crumbs (cake-crumbs.com): $3.50 for cake with filling, frosting, and basic decoration. This is one of the few bakeries that includes fondant dots on the cakes for no extra charge (per Greg). Their half sheet cakes serve approximately 30 people and are $60.

Mulberries (mulberriescakeshop.com): $4.25 for cake with filling, frosting, and decoration including some piping. The extra-awesome news about this bakery is that their full sheet cake serves 100 and is $69.95!

One last thing to remember: some bakeries will include delivery and set-up within a certain mileage from their shop, but some charge for it. TIP: Don't forget to ask about this when calling bakeries, because a delivery fee will add to your overall total. Hopefully this helps give you a few ideas. Congratulations on your wedding and best of luck finding a delicious, elegant, and affordable cake. Now go out and do the fun part ... tastings!

Happy partying,
Party People

Party People to the rescue!

It seems that people out there were listening, and have started sending some event questions to us for expert help! Hooray!


Dear Party People!
I'm going to be hosting a house-warming party in a few months, and I would love for it to be fabulous but inexpensive.  I'm quite a good cook (if I do say so myself), and would love to cater it, myself.  Also, I'm not much for decorations... and shouldn't the apartment speak for itself? It IS a housewarming, after all!  How do you suggest I proceed?
=Thanks for the help!
Sincerely,
Welcome to my Home

Dear Welcome to my Home,
Congratulations on moving in to a new apartment! People love any excuse to attend a party, so a housewarming is a great way to show off your new digs and visit with friends whom you may not get a chance to see very often. It's best to host an open house (no pun intended) for this kind of event, so people can come and go as they please and your apartment is less likely to be filled to the brim with guests for the whole time.

In terms of decorating, you're absolutely right - your home should speak for itself since that's what people are there to see! If you want to have a theme (luau, toga, whatever) by all means go ahead, but don't feel like you have to do anything extra to dress your home up. Decorate your apartment as you want to live in it, and let people get a feel for your personal style and taste. If you have the budget, it's nice to place a few bouquets of fresh flowers around the party area (and especially the bathroom) to make it extra-homey. TIP: buying flowers wholesale and creating arrangements yourself will save a bundle.

Fabulousness comes from the warmth of the host, and making sure that your guests don't go hungry or thirsty, so catering is extremely important. Doing it yourself will save you the most money but cost you the most time. If you're short on time, a good and relatively inexpensive option is to order catering trays from your local grocery store or deli. If you're up for doing the work yourself, we recommend creating lots of finger foods so you don't have to provide utensils (which will end up all over your new floor). Some classic options are a crudité platter (veggies and dip), a cheese plate with fruit and crackers, deviled eggs, and shrimp cocktail. Some slightly more unusual choices are marinated chicken or beef skewers, soup shots in dixie cups (or shot glasses if you have enough), stuffed mushrooms, and caramelized bacon bites. You can dress this kind of food up (foie gras bites) or down (bowls of chips) to fit with your hosting style. TIP: Websites like epicurious.com, marthastewart.com, and foodnetwork.com have great search functions to find recipes that will let you show off your cooking skills. We like to try to provide at least one meat, chicken, and veggie option to cover most dietary restrictions. TIP: Calculate 5 appetizers per person per hour. So if you are hosting an open house from 5-9pm and inviting 20 people, 20 people x 4 party hours x 5 appetizers = 400 pieces. Also, be sure to save some trays of food for guests who may come at the later end of the party.

And don't forget the drinks! Have a few bottles of non-alcoholic sodas or juices on hand for pregnant ladies and teetotalers, but otherwise plan to serve wine and beer. If you want to serve something harder, we recommend making a special cocktail for the event (the Homewrecker?) and offering just that one option to save on expensive alcohol costs. TIP: Assume that your guests will drink two drinks per hour for the first two hours they are at the party, and one drink per hour thereafter. And don't forget the cocktail napkins!

A last word on gifts: Housewarming parties came about because new homeowners didn't have have many of the items they might need or want for their new pad, so it was common for guests to bring mixing bowl sets, candleholders, and other items you now more commonly see as wedding gifts. If you are hosting the party with the intention of receiving these items we certainly hope you get them, but you are much more likely to receive candles and bottles of wine. If you already have everything you need, just add a line at the bottom of your invitation (Evite or email is perfectly acceptable for this kind of event) that says: "No gifts, please."

We wish you happiness and prosperity in your new home!

Happy partying,
Party People