| The Complete Idiot's Guide to Throwing a Great Party | |
|
The
Complete Idiot's Guide
to Throwing a Great Party
By Phyllis Cambria and Patty Sachs
Macmillan USA, Inc., (296 pp.), $16.95
ISBN: 002863974X
Reviewed by Donna Pilato
Don't let the title of this book put you off. You certainly don't need to be an idiot to learn some great ideas from the party planning duo who co-authored this guide. Any beginner venturing into the world of entertaining will find this an excellent primer that builds confidence from page one.
With decades of experience
in party planning between them, Cambria and Sachs have created an approachable,
fun beginner's guide. As event planners, speakers and authors on the subject
these ladies are certainly qualified to write expert guides on the subject that
could make us all feel like idiots. Instead, this book will enable the novice to
feel
prepared enough to send out party invitations tomorrow.
They manage to cover all the fundamental bases from selecting your party theme, to working with a party professional, to cleaning up after your event has become just a memory. Here is a sampling of some of the chapter titles:
- Home is Where the Party Is; Why your home is the best place to entertain.
- Tiny Bubbles: Stocking Your Bar; Bar essentials and etiquette.
- Strictly Business; Parties that sell, teach, reward, and award.
- Spring Flings; Green thumbs, Easter comes, and Queen Mum.
- Saying Good-Bye; Sending your guests home gracefully.
Not only does this book give you the facts required for each facet of party planning, these upbeat authors work on helping you develop the attitude required to be a scintillating host. By following their many tips, you'll feel in control of your event, your vendors and your guests. The subtle details such as how to create your desired ambience and how to make all your guests feel comfortable have not been forgotten either.
When each guest is met cordially and given the impression that the party could not possibly start without him or her, the host has done her job, and very well. Be sure there is always a greeter present for guest arrivals.
This book is more of a tutorial than a reference guide. There are too many tidbits of information in it to categorize in the index, so you'll miss important information if you don't read each chapter from beginning to end. Besides the basic instruction covered in each chapter, there are little bites of handy information organized as either a:
- Party Pitfall; e.g. Double-check your guest list with another close friend to prevent forgetting anyone.
- Chips and Tips; e.g. Black-and-white newspapers make excellent, lint-free cleaning cloths for windows and mirrors.
- Festive Facts; e.g. SoHo is a New York City neighborhood named after its location, SOuth of HOuston Street. SoHo is famous for the old industrial buildings that grace its streets and for the shops, galleries, and artists who reside there.
- Shindig Sayings; e.g. A smorgasbord is a Scandinavian buffet offering a variety of hot and cold foods.
One word of caution to the experienced party host. As I mentioned in the beginning, this book is geared to the novice level. You may pick up several creative new themes for your parties and will find the anecdotes amusing, but there won't be revelations for you among the basic party planning information.
Finally, there is an appendix with several handy party planning tools including budget worksheets, a wine and food pairing guide and a calendar of U.S. holidays of both the common variety such as July 4th, and more obscure such as National Blueberry Muffin Day (July 11). Once you've finished reading this book, you'll find that the authors have left you no excuse not to party!
Graphics courtesy of Patty Sachs.
