![]() That desk in the living room? Clear off the top and use it as a table for snacks. Push the sofa and chairs against the walls to create an open space in the center of the room, arranging the seating in small clusters to create more intimate nooks. “You have to be more flexible and creative.” Sometimes, you just get locked in on the vision, said Loretta Lester, a Manhattan event planner. Instead, work with what you have and accept that guests will stand. Not everyone needs a seat - this is a party, not a boardroom meeting - so don’t go out and get a dozen folding chairs that clutter the room and strain your budget. And who knows, if they show up, you might actually strike up a pleasant conversation. Even if you’ve never actually met your neighbors, this simple courtesy will help keep the peace. If you’re planning a party that may get loud or large, make sure you extend an invitation to anyone who shares a wall with you. “It’s a longer time commitment, but it guarantees that you’ll get your turnover,” she said. You can suggest guests arrive anytime between 5:30 and 9, so people can have a cocktail with you before heading off to another event or choose to show up after dinner. She starts the parties early and ends them late, so guests can pass one another coming and going. Amelia Nicholas, an interior designer whose company Urban Cottage NYC specializes in small spaces, invites guests to “stop by” the parties she hosts in her Hell’s Kitchen studio apartment. Decide how many people you can comfortably accommodate, and narrow your invite list appropriately. You just have to embrace the close quarters.įire safety rules aside, there are limits to human endurance. Her business focuses on the apartment party, working from the theory that with a little finesse and some well-placed fairy lights, the smallest of abodes can make perfectly fabulous venues. “In Manhattan, people are afraid to entertain because they automatically assume they don’t have enough space,” said Seri Kertzner, who started her event-planning business, Little Miss Party, after successfully hosting numerous soirees for 60 in the 900-square-foot Greenwich Village one-bedroom she lived in at the time. Where do you put all the coats, let alone the people? And what about climate control? A New York City apartment in winter feels tropical on a good day - pack half your contact list into the living room and good luck keeping your makeup from melting off your face. The prospect of transforming a tiny apartment into an event space can feel daunting. Serving platters teeter on countertops, and galley kitchens double as de facto bars, with bottles of liquor covering every open surface because, face it, there was never much surface to begin with. For New Yorkers, the holiday season is often an exercise in squeezing 20 friends and relatives into an apartment barely big enough for one person.
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