The Unforgettable Dinner Party

ALINA APTEKER > FOUNDER OF LONGWOOD EVENTS

“I always pour champagne at the start — nothing puts me in a festive mood like a rose bubbly. For true champagne, my favorite is Nicolas Feuillatte Rose. But there’s no reason to go overseas: New England winery Sakonnet’s champagne is outstanding. Start with good wines (we always start with champagne), then you can lower a bit. And never pull the good bottle at the end. It’s a waste.”

“Even if you are making the food, have some help. Hire a couple of waiters so that you can enjoy the party and your guests. Event Temps is the best option: high-quality waiters, sharply dressed. You can buy scarves or ties for them to match your decor.”

“Go to Zimmans in Lynn, to the basement level, for hundreds of amazing by-the-yard fabrics. Close your eyes and make your picks based on texture and feel. Custom linens let you take today’s runway styles indoors — a perfect opportunity to be ahead of the trends.”

“Keep mouthwash out in the bathroom if you are serving foods with garlic, spices, etc. Guests will be thanking you after.”

“No drinking and driving! Tell people in advance that you will be pouring some amazing wines and that you will have a car service on hand. We live in Brookline, so we always use Brookline Red Cab.”

“By the end of the night, everyone craves comfort food, even if it means bringing in sweet potato french fries or White Castle burgers. But a lot of women prefer dessert wine to an actual dessert. (I like Sakonnet’s ‘Winter’ wine.) I also have tea available; my favorite is Mariage Freres.”

The High-style Soiree

TONYA MEZRICH > JEWELRY DESIGNER

“A great party must always have seven hot, stylish girls in attendance. All dinner parties need an equal number of girls and guys. The Japanese even have a word for this: ‘goukon.’ In Japan, it is considered a serious problem if an uneven amount of people are going to show for a dinner party, so I end up making frantic phone calls in an attempt to correct the ratio. Seating must be girl, boy, girl, boy.”

“Make sure the lighting is perfect. You wouldn’t want your guests appearing in photos with unflattering lighting or, worse, standing under unflattering lighting while trying to chat with other guests.”

“Create the theme or expectation by sending a kick-ass invitation. I’ve found great styles at Papyrus, but there are a lot of budding independent designers that have amazing stuff, too. Setting the theme with a cool invitation also inherently creates buzz.”

“In addition to the quality and types of people, the guest list must be the right size to fit the space you’ve chosen. You don’t want it to appear under-attended, or too crowded to even move. The manager of the venue will know the optimal number of attendees for the space; definitely stick to obtaining this goal, and don’t forget that the day-of, there’s always about a 10% drop-off of confirmed guests.”

“I prefer to give simple edible treats in goodie bags so you won’t be clogging up someone’s home with some tchotchke that they’ll probably throw out anyways. For example, at my husband’s birthday party I sent guests home with a thank-you-for-coming note attached to a homemade Rice Krispies treat. Some faves for party favors are mini cupcakes from Sweet in Boston, and Hotel Chocolat slabs of chocolate.

The Laid Back Get-Together

PETER WHEELER > PRESIDENT, SARA CAMPBELL LTD.

“Personally, at the moment, I’m preferring more intimate, conversational entertaining that tends to center around food and friends. I like cooking a meal that everyone can be involved in — stirring risotto, whipping the cream, dressing a salad.”

“Have the cleanup taken care of — this is not something to share at the end of an evening. I’ve used Harvard Student Resources, for bartenders and more. Some caterers are willing to share names of people that have worked for them to help the waiters to be employed in down times.”

“Make sure there are several different places set up in your home to accommodate peoples’ moods, depending on how long you are planning on having guests stay. Make sure there is dance space in case you have a friend that needs to move, for example. And even a place for little ones to nap.”