entertaining
What’sthesecrettothroWingagreat
partyathome?
Anunflappableentertainer is onewho
has basicallydoneasmuchpreparation
inadvanceas possible; thebar is set
upand the food is laidout before the
guests arrive so thehost can concen-
trateonbeinga relaxed, charminghost.
should i servedinner, orarecocktails
enough?
The key is to lookat howmuch space
youhave toworkwith. During theholi-
days, anopen-house cocktail party is
agreatway togobecauseguestsmay
haveother parties toattend that same
night. In these tougheconomic times it
also costs lessmoneybecause youdon’t
have toentertain for sixor eight hours.
This allows you to seea larger groupof
people ina smaller amount of time.
Whatshould i serve?
You certainlydon’t have to chop, dice,
andpeel it all yourself. If you’renot
handy in the kitchen, you cango to your
favorite restaurant andhave things pre-
pared, or hirea caterer. I like the ideaof
various stations around the roomwhere
youpair different foodswithadifferent
beverage. For instance, you coulddoa
salmon stationwith frozen vodka, or
a cheesebuffetwithaniceport. I also
love the ideaof a cocktail du jour. Red
andwhitewineand champagne is so
proverbial,whynot serveagoodwell-
loaded cocktail to jump-start thenight?
It doesn’t have tobea vodkadrink. For
me, tequila is thenew vodka.
ReadyToParty
ColinCowie (
colincowie.com
) isknown fororchestratingsomeof theworld’s
mostelegantandelaboratepartiesandhaspennedmore thaneightbooks
on thesubject.Weasked thecelebrated lifestyleexpert forsome tipsonhow
to throw theperfectparty thisholidayseason. —W.K.
©ColinMiller (4)
WINTER 2009
celebratedliving.com
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