Elegant Parties - Cocktail Party

Elegant Parties - Cocktail Party Ideas and More

Out of all the parties, this is one of my absolute favourites. They are such fun gatherings that foster interesting and casual conversation, yet giving us ladies a chance to dress up. You get to meet many people or catch up with a bunch of friends and not have to sit with a dull person at the dinner table all night. Because a cocktail party is meant for mingling, most people stand up and hold their drinks and talk.

The Cocktail Party

Most cocktail parties start at 6 or after work. They can range to a size of fifteen to a hundred people.

The cocktail party is usually a lighter, more flexible affair than the dinner party.

It's about stand up, mingling and socializing, not sit down, be stuck in one corner and be served. So don't be a poor guest, lest you do not get invited the next time.

It is not recommended that you bring a guest without first asking a host. Though in some the cocktail parties, it does not matter if guests bring an extra guest.

It's not about the food, and there's music, ambience, wonderful conversation. There's some chemistry about a cocktail party.

What To Serve at A Cocktail Party

Cocktails, soft drinks and also an option for non gasey drinks.

Sophisticated finger foods variety

A variety of dips and carrots, celery, asparagus etc etc

Assortment of crackers

Bowls of mixtures of nuts and such

Sushi rolls, vietnamese rolls etc

What To Wear

Semi formal to formal medium short to long dresses.

If you are all heading for a night at the opera after, wear elegant evening gowns.

Adapted from this book about French women entertaining... Entre Nous: A Woman's Guide to Finding Her Inner French Girl

Maddness, Refinement, Effort & Heartbeats

One of the objectives of Danielle's parties was not so much the meal itself but the people present at the table and their collective energy - refined but chaotic, animated and fashionably argumentative.

In the preface to 'At Home in France' Marie-Helene de Rothschild speaks of French entertaining: "...however rich or poor one is, certain ingredients are essential: a pinch of madness, two dashes of refinement, three grains of effort - and a few heart-beats."

By the time the third course arrived the sky had turned a gauzy white and seemed to be spinning. Too much wine? No...snow! Conversation hushed as we watched the snow tumbling silently in feather-soft spirals and elegant loops against the tower. It was all so exquisitely French: At once imposing yet familiar, a beautiful thing that was utterly impractical yet impossible to live without.

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