The other night as I was leaving Dick Blick, a building in the distance beyond Houston Street caught my eye. Each of the windows was being rapid-fire illuminated in a different, vibrant color. It twinkled like a sting of Christmas lights, and looked amazing.
I took photos but they were compromised by the distance and the strange balance of light and color that defines the New York City streetscape.
The whole thing reminded me of a favorite party design motif: color. If you love a color or two, why not make that the theme of your entire party?
The Red Party.
A Tea(l) Party.
The Chartreuse Extravaganza.
You can buy yards of inexpensive fabric to drape furniture or walls in your color, or save some bucks and keep it simple by putting single-color lights and bulbs throughout your space.
One of the most famous and controversial parties in New York history was predicated on color (or lack thereof) – Truman Capote’s 1966 Black and White Ball.
Think about it!
On Thursday my husband and I celebrated our wedding anniversary with a date at the sushi restaurant where we had enjoyed our first date. Yes, we had a fabulous time and the sushi was outstanding. But…
…this was the presentation of the fried calamari salad appetizer. I honestly couldn’t believe it, and – although it slightly irked my husband – I had to take a photo. It was for the good of the people!
Please, let us join together as a society and declare a final moratorium on serving anything in a martini glass that isn’t, well, a martini.
Your children and children’s children will thank you.
I don’t want to clog this post with words, but simply showcase the stunning autumnal color transformations taking place in our backyard. The hydrangea in particular makes my eyes spin – would these technicolor leaves not look beautiful wrapped around the candlesticks or napkin rings at your Thanksgiving table?
The plants are: Chinese dogwood, hydrangea, heather, and sedum.
Enjoy!
Monday was my husband’s birthday, and since I know he loves Christmas I figured nothing would please him more than to be surprised by a festively decorated space when he came downstairs in the morning.
There were quite a few elements that went into it, but my favorite – and his – was a series of paper garlands I handmade using decorative papers we originally purchased for our wedding decorations. They were architectural, ornamental, and so cool.
The (slightly strange) tutorial I followed is here. I used the second method demonstrated.
It could not have been easier, and the results, strung up in our kitchen, looked great. In fact, my husband has insisted they stay up, and they are still here a week later. With a variety of papers, a pair of scissors, and a very little bit of time, you could make the most amazing garlands for any celebration.
Whenever we order Chinese food or sushi, I always tend towards the bean curd dishes, and I am a major sucker for age or fried tofu. I have tried to make it at home with horrific results, but after much trial and error, I manged to perfect the technique with three key actions:
1) Tofu must be dried as much as possible before cooking. The best way to do this is to squeeze it in paper towels, again and again, until you get most of the water out.
2) Tofu should be dredged lightly in cornstarch or flour before frying.
3) You do not need much oil to get a nice crunchy shell.
The other night, I whipped up a a tofu dish that would be perfect for a large dinner or a buffet item: fried cubed tofu tossed with sauteed onion, diced zucchini, and bamboo shoots. The dressing was a quick mix of peanut butter, diced onion, chili oil, soy sauce, and a touch of rice vinegar. It was so easy, and super delicious.
As they say on their website, Performa is a non-profit interdisciplinary arts organization committed to the research, development, and presentation of performance from visual artists from around the world.
I have had the pleasure to work with/experience Performa in several different capacities over the last few years. First of all, Avi did what I consider to be one of the most amazing and creative parties for them in 2006. Earlier this year, we did the decor for their 2009 Futurist Banquet, a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Italian Futurist Manifesto and subsequent movement.
Performa is now smack in the middle of a month-long Visual Art Performance Biennial, and this past week, my husband and I were graciously invited by two friends to see one of the performances at Town Hall: Music for 16 Futurist Noise Intoners, a reconstruction directed by Luciano Chessa and performed by the Magik*Magik Orchestra. Our friends’ niece Minna Choi is the Orchestra’s director.
The inimitable Performa director RoseLee Goldberg welcoming the crowd
The instruments were curious: large wooden boxes fitted with hand-cranks and horn-like amplifiers. The program was a variety of pieces created by different artists, each interpreting the sound and talent of these bizarre “noise-makers” to their own artistic end. It was fascinating, and otherwise hard to put into words.
The Magik*Magik Orchestra ready at their noise intoners
A closer view of the noise intoners and the musicians
We had a wonderful time, but more importantly, were reminded of the vibrant, avant-garde art culture that still exists in and sustains this city.
A close friend of mine recently celebrated her birthday by hosting a party at a mutual friend’s very gorgeous apartment. As it was her party, she chose the menu and decided to create a magnanimous spread of the most basic yummies and classic junk foods.
What I loved about it – besides the cheez puffs, a personal favorite of mine – was how elegantly plated and presented the food was: ring pops in a large apothecary jar, pizza bagels and jalapeno poppers in a ceramic chafing dish, tiers of mini cupcakes and, best of all, Tostitos in a footed lead crystal bowl.
Just like my friend, it was a perfect balance of true class and casualness, with a dose of humor, and it worked beautifully.
My article on holiday event planning just went live over at Designer Monthly – take a look!
There is also a great article to which I contributed a bounty of ideas, all about children’s parties during the holiday season. You can read it here.
I was recently honored and delighted to attend the party and auction celebrating the 70th anniversary of VIPP, held at the Design Within Reach flagship Soho store.
Vipp, a Danish design company, celebrates creativity and artistic expression by once a year asking a coterie of artists, celebrities, and celebrity artists to re-imagine and reinvent one of their iconic trashcans. The 2009 results were spectacular, and were auctioned off at this grand party with all proceeds benefiting DIFFA.
This event was very well orchestrated. The bar was set in a raised area in the far back of the room next to coat check, which immediately drew guests inward and away from the entrance. The VIPP cans were arranged in a central configuration, with open areas on either side. Cater-waiters skilled at the bob-and-weave deftly negotiated the crowd, delivering crudites in an continuous loop.
It was fabulous. And? Peppered with celebrities, if you go for that kind of thing.
On a free day last week, I was lucky enough to have the spare time to pop over to the Flower Market and browse some of the floral supply shops.
I don’t actually have much to say about these images from my beloved Jamali Garden Supply and B&J Florist Supply – they are more a feast for the eyes and a spark for the imagination.
*swoon*
