Please mark your calendars: On Tuesday, November 11 (Veterans Day) at 7:00, the writer Jason Reynolds and I will be having a conversation at Politics & Prose Union Market about my new book*, working together, and all things home.
Hello, Gentle Readers! This might be a little off-topic, interior design-wise, but having thrown a party recently, this is where my mind has been. (The féte was for a specific group of people, so please don’t be offended if you weren’t on the guest list. Next time!)
Even though I love having people over — “home entertaining,” as my Aunt Judy used to say — I do stress out before a big party. Not only about how many people will actually show up, but about how the house looks. I’m sure this surprises no one!
Bottom line: 3 spaces matter most: your entry, powder room, and the food and/or bar area.
ENTRY / FRONT HALL / FOYER
Make space for coats, even if it’s summer. You never know what sartorial decisions your guests will make! Remove ALL of your coats from racks, hooks, and closet and pile them on your bed. (If you have a tiny entry, do the opposite: use your bed for guests’ coats.)
De-clutter the floor by removing shoe racks, baskets of mittens, etc.
I also like to clear the front hall table of everything except a lamp and vase of flowers, which a) looks nice when people enter, and b) gives you a place to put gifts if people are kind enough to bring them.
FOOD/BAR AREA
Because eating and drinking usually involves the dining room, take a leaf (or two) out of the dining room table. It’s such a “no duh” tip, and yet I only started doing this recently. Talk about reclaiming space to mingle! And reducing the surface area for food is sometimes a good thing if you’re also passing hors d’oeuvres. (How large can a charcuterie board be, after all?)
If they’re super tall, move dining chairs to the perimeter of the room or into another room entirely.
Turn down the lights. Better yet, turn off overhead lights and bring in some floor and table lamps. You’ll probably have some tall or hurricane-encased candles on the table, too. Trust me: everyone will look better and feel cozier, and they’ll still be able to see the food and their conversation partners.
Put piles of cocktail napkins everywhere. Not only on the central table, but on sideboards and in other gathering spaces. Guests must have places to rest their drinks, and people usually take the hint ;)
POWDER ROOM / BATHROOM
Pretty it up. This is the one place that requires a deep cleaning, obviously.
Make sure the hand towels are fresh and crisp (or provide disposable paper ones), unwrap a fresh bar of soap, and if there’s space, put a teeny vase of flowers next to the sink. If you’re not me and you’ll actually remember to blow it out, you can light a votive candle, also.
If applicable, remove any toilet cleaning implements. I don’t care where you stash them, just don’t leave them in here.
Bonus tip if you’re sending people to a real bathroom and you have a shower curtain situation: you do not have to clean the tub. Unless it’s horrifyingly dirty, in which case, eew, and just clean it for your own sake. But if you’re short on time, you can skip this. You can skip vacuuming the living room, too, but I digress…
FINALLY,
and this isn’t space-specific: buy a ton of flowers — not only for the dining table, but for less expected places, too. It’s delightful to place small vases of flowers on a living room lamp table, on the front hall table, on a buffet, or on the bar if there’s space. Avoid stargazer lilies, though. They’re too fragrant to be near food, in my opinion.
Did you notice what I am not suggesting? Little votive candles everywhere. But this is a me problem. I think they look lovely, but I worry about forgetting to blow them out (see “powder room” section above), spilling wax/tipping over, and setting things on fire. Avoiding candles throughout is one little way I reduce stress ;)
In the end, parties aren’t about having the perfect house; they’re about making your guests feel cared for. So do what you can, grab a glass of something (preferably gin), and enjoy.
My Neighbor Saw Me Naked, and Other Reasons You Need Drapes: The Essential Decorating Handbook, is now available wherever books are sold.