HOSTING A TRULY LUXURIOUS BLOWOUT
There’s no telling what you can do, display and serve if budget is no bar. Fancy hiring an electronic violinist to entertain the guests in one corner of your venue, while a DJ spins tunes in another? How about oyster and cheese stations to start with, and freshly made fish and chips for when everyone is starving at 2am? A Great Gatsby theme can have drinks fountains and personal butlers, while furniture can be customised to transport your guests to another city altogether.
From ample but discreet serving staff to big-name DJs and entertainers, an extravagant house party ensures that its guests are welltended-to for the entire duration. “Hire a capable party planner or events company well in advance and leave it in their hands,” says Sophie Bogdis, founder of Special Occasions Party Planning & Events. That way, once you’ve told them exactly what you want, you can devote the evening to spending quality time with your guests, or even enjoying your own party like a guest.
The key here is to be extraordinary. Don’t just hire a photographer; get one with the white ring light, so your images are flawless. Serving multiple cuisines is a foolproof way to up the food ante, while hosting across multiple rooms means children can be kept happy in their own video-game-equipped universe, even as conversationalists, networkers and dancers don’t get in each other’s hair.
“And even though it’s a ‘house party’, that’s not say that you can’t have it in a hired mansion on the Palm, complete with a helipad,” suggests Innovative Hiring’s Paul Harding. “Remember, it’s all an experience – and people don’t forget experiences.”