As the winter settles into London I am being asked more then ever about how to throw a party that can scare away the winter blues, so here we go BUT as always I look forward to hearing what your ideas are.
If you are having an event at your home or at a venue these ideas should help create the right mood and magic. I often advise my clients to rent out private rooms from restaurants. These restaurants often offer an economical alternative to jazzing up your event with just a few party essentials that come standard like furniture and a commercial kitchen. Central and Co, a lovely little restaurant in London’s Soho district, is one of those gems in the London restaurant scene that radiates charm ( ask about the space under the restaurant http://centralandco.com/private-hire). In order to create the sleek, modern affair I often use standard concepts, lets call it *Premierpartyparaphernalia ( Trademark pending). Surfaces of mirrors and anything blue and see through make a perfect marriage of form and function for winter celebrations as they create the illusion of even more action and energy ( think about it, as you literally see more people throughout the room) but at the same time, the combination of clear and reflective materials instantly make the room feel more open and create a theme of fire and ice. So we need to create ice-like surfaces and we can use blue fabrics for this while spicy, flavorful tapas, and hot latin music will raise the pulse and temperature of the room.
Capturing the smooth, glassy surfaces of icicles, and the shimmering icy blue hues of freshly fallen snow can be hard work as you want to go over-board and end up with a truly “cold”, hard severe look. Instead, you want to create a magical cavern of shimmering shapes and reflective surfaces that will make your guests feel as though they are surrounded by gorgeous crystal sculptures. There are plenty of ways to achieve the “Twinkle” effect of crystal without using too much of the real thing. Lets begin with the table or event focal point for dinner events. I would suggest using a boxlike tabletop and then fill that with lots of white and two shades of blue carnation petals. You can also get false carnation petals and dye them or dye the real thing, I call these Homicide Carnations ( dyed by your hands). While on carnations, these cost effective little floral gems are usually at every supermarket ( especially around Feb with Valentines) so use them.They will work for this but also add a little softness and poof to a larger floral arrangement.
Atop the table, I suggest creating small pyramids of glass/perspex boxes for the tapas display.
Around this, I would place see through perspex chairs – this will remind the guests of ice and offer them a place to sit, should they wish to, while snacking on the buffet of amazing food.
I then use a series of small cocktail tables and drape them in ice blue tablecloths. I often also create a a “chill out” ( see what I did there)zone, placing ottomans and lampshades ( also covered in metallic blue cloth) in cozy corners. As the finishing touches are now complete, I would bring in large mirrors to create more space. Mirrors have been used since forever to “enlarge” rooms, use them on walls or leaning against them. They double the size of your room and double your decor. Earlier we spoke about carnations and here is something I learned from another great party planner.
A CARNATION PETAL MOSAIC.
* Choose a colour scheme and purchase the carnations in those colours.
* Cut the petals off fresh carnations, keeping as much of the petal intact as possible.
* Be sure to separate the colours
* Neatly pile the petals ina square-tiled pattern or create your own pattern. Let your imagination go wild here.
Back to our event, other then opening and pouring Hawaiian tropic suntan lotion all over the space there are a few ways to create an aromatic atmosphere. You can buy tropical scents but you can also start with a few gardenias in the right spots- by the entrance, by the WC, by the cloakroom and feel free to add some floral perfume where the carnations are. You can also roast pistachios, simmering coconut broth, and sizzling chorizo. Lets also not forget about the bar, and creating pineapple and passion fruit juices will add more scent and “fire” to the event.
Let me stop here and we will continue with the smell of a successful event and taste in my next blog.
Lord Jason Scott beating the winter blues with a fire and ice party.
