Preethi Shanker discloses some major pointers on how to make your next party the talk of the town.
The party scene is interpreted from opposite poles of the spectrum. You have people throwing completely unassuming and humble parties with handmade DIY décor, paperless e-vites and handcrafted goodies for favours. And then you have the overstated parties that would put a full-blown Broadway production to shame. Here, we take you on a DIY guide on how to throw a flamboyant party that would have the entire town gushing for years to come.
Summon In Style
Nothing announces an over-the-top party like a unique never-done-before type invitation. A matchless idea would be to hire a small quartet to sing the invitation personally for all your guests in person. Wouldn’t that be memorable? The key to keeping your invitations glamorous without being flashy is to go distinct, but classy. Your invitation should pique their intrigueand be a way to ensure footfall for your extravagant bash. Think of a wow factor and let the invitation be a precursor to the actual bash. Remember Lakshmi Mittal’s invitation to his daughter’s wedding – a silver invitation 20 pages long. Now who in their right minds wouldn’t want to attend that event?
Ultimate OTT–Keeping on trend with the tech boom, have your invitations delivered on an iPad for each invitee with details of the event added to the calendar and a personal message for each of them.
The Where-When-How
Take a page from model Naomi Campbell’s book and head to the most posh of locations, because nothing screams luxury like throwing your 36th birthday shindig at the Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai. With different themes each day including, all white, Hip Hop and Brazilian Samba, Campbell is said to have shelled out a whopping $1.8 million just for this three-day affair.
Having a theme is one of the basic steps in the lower rungs of the party-planning ladder. A theme sets the tone for the entire party and ensures that the guests are all thinking long and hard about what to wear and how to entice. Make the venue one of a kind again and in keeping with the theme too.
One of the front-runners for party themes in the current season is the Sherlock Holmes Crime Party. Everything is so over the top, where the guests are either requested to arrive in costume, or personalised costumes are provided for everyone and the game is played with utmost seriousness. Imagine a real life Cluedo where you are Miss Scarlet and someone has killed Colonel Mustard with a Candlestick in the study.
Ultimate OTT – ‘Gatsby’ – just the name exudes extravagance. Get your bow ties and flapper dresses ready and transport your guests to the 1920’s.
Fun is where the Decor is
Go all out on the décor too. Take cues from life-size or better yet, go bigger and have larger-than-life installations. Stick to the theme and transform the entire space into something your guests would have never seen before. If you are doing a circus theme, hire a fantastic Cirque De Soleil act and make that the talk of the party.
Remember, your centerpiece is no longer a tall vase with long stemmed flowers anymore. To really knock it out of the park, you need to keep up with the trend. Have a mime artist as the centerpiece, or even a live interactive art installation, build a giant bunny out of flowers, have a working carousel… let your imagination run wild. After all, that is the motto of throwing a party loaded with élan.
Ultimate OTT – Hire mermaids to grace the pool serving guests their personalized cocktails in the water and have unicorns (ponies) roaming freely to give your party a whimsical mood.
The Oomph Factor
What would make your party a cut above the rest? Remember, the Mad Hatter’s madness is encouraged while thinking of your party’s special zing. Splurge on that one standout item like a memorable favour or that one noteworthy act. We promise you won’t regret it. Hire a mentalist to dazzle your guests with his mind-reading prowess, engage a silhouette cutout artist to do a portrait of every guest, have a celebrity perform at the party… the options are endless. Follow in the footsteps of famous celebrities and present your guests with an engraved clock like Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban who spent more than eighty grand in giving a $350 Tiffany Clock to all their guests.
Ultimate OTT – Celebrity performances have become so common now. Why not get an international celebrity chef to cater the event and socialize with all the guests at the party.
Everything from your child’s first birthday to her pre school graduation to her actual wedding day is turning into a big production in itself. Today, anyonecan throw a larger-than-life party. You now have all the ingredients and you don’t even need to wait for a special occasion. Today is Thursday – that’s reason enough. What are you waiting for? Don’t you have a party to throw?
MOST OTT OF THEM ALL
Cake – Costs a mammoth $75 million, and this decadent cake was created by British designer, Debbie Wingham. The cake wasa six-foot long interpretation of a fashion show, weighed nearly 1,000lbs and took more than 1,100 hours to make. But that hefty chequecame from all the bling. The cake has 4,000 diamonds, including a 5.2-carat pink diamond, a 6.4-carat yellow diamond and 15 five-carat white diamonds. Those 17 stones alone were worth more than $45 million.
Centerpiece – An edible model of a Ferrari F1 made entirely of Belgian Chocolate (4,405 pounds) made for a party thrown by Scuderia Ferrari Club. The chocolate marvel cost $23,500 and was broken up after the event, so the party guests could take homea piece each like a party favour.
Celebrity Performances
- The Big Fat Indian Ambani wedding was a week-long party estimated to have cost $100 million and this included a private performance by Queen B herself, Beyoncé.
- Another indulgent party was the Sultan of Brunei’s 50th birthday, where he entertained his guests with a $16 million Michael Jackson concert way back in 1996. With free-flowing champagne and caviar, the entire do came up to $27.2 million.
- A businessman spent close to $10 million for his daughter’s 13th birthday where celebrity performances included Stevie Nicks, Aerosmith, Ciara and 50 Cent.
- The Rolling Stones have performed at a celebration at a cost of $7 million for an hour.
- The Eagles were paid $6 million just to play “Hotel California” at a private event in New York City.