OUTWARD BOUND
In a festive season following prolonged lockdowns, outdoor celebrations are a distinctly Australian salve. Insiders from around the world share their tips for gathering in sunny alfresco style.
FOUNDER OF FLAMINGO ESTATE AND
AUTHOR OF FLAMINGO ESTATE: FRIDAYS FROM THE GARDEN, LOS ANGELES
“I’ve always said that the garden is the most important room of the house, and the most important room at a party. Under the cloak of darkness, you can create so much drama and anticipation as you move through the garden, into the house and outside again. It allows your guests to go down the rabbit hole, just like Alice.
We’ve all been to parties where people stand in one room and don’t talk to each other. The responsibility of a host is to let people move through spaces, to create serendipitous meetings and conversations.
We’re fortunate enough to have a bar at Flamingo, but I always set up at least two or three others: one by the pool, one at the bottom of the garden, and a third in the orchard. That way, there’s always a reason to drift. Recently we filled an old piano with ice and used it as a bar and music moment. People tend to wander off during a party, so it’s best to provide places for them to stumble onto – a candlelit meandering garden path or a music room or a secret fortune teller in the succulent garden.
Traditionally, we buy thousands of votive candles and put them along the garden in the orchard, up stairways and all over the property. If it’s a sit-down dinner, we always cover the table with candles. We rarely have overhead lighting. Everything feels a little bit more like a fairytale, we usually hang fruit or flowers from the terrace above the main table. [The sign of a good party is] people never looking at their phones, and there’s a high-heel shoe in the pool.”
Party starter: “Tina Turner’s Proud Mary.”