Ep. 378: Entertaining and the Art of Gathering with Stephanie Nass

How to Decorate

Ballard Designs

Arts, Business, Design

4.2 • 785 Ratings

🗓️ 10 September 2024

⏱️ 40 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, we're excited to welcome Stephanie Nass—also known as "Chefanie"—who shares her expertise in hosting unforgettable gatherings. As a chef, host extraordinaire, and author, Stephanie has organized parties for a wide range of guests, from celebrities to royals. Her new book, "Swing By: Entertaining Recipes and the New Art of Gathering," provides a playful guide for throwing themed parties with flair. Join us as Stephanie discusses her journey into entertaining, the development of her brand, and practical tips for hosting parties that are both elaborate and approachable. What You’ll Hear On This Episode: Where Stephanie's love of entertaining came from and how she got started doing it on her own. Her experience as the social chair in college and how it helped her practice and hone her hosting skills. How Stephanie's brand "Chefanie" evolved from a catering business. Stephanie's concept of "maximalism" and how her guests react to her highly coordinated and themed parties. The different levels of party planning and hosting, from casual standing parties to more elaborate seated dinners. Stephanie's advice on planning and inviting guests for a small dinner party of 4 people. Stephanie's principles or "North Star" for planning parties and how she approaches the creative process. Tips for party planning with a lot of lead time, and also more impromptu hangs! Fun ideas to get you in the mood for upcoming Halloween and holiday parties - break out the witch finger cookies! Ideas to make your tablescape and decorations come to life and reflect your personal vibe. Also Mentioned: Ballard Designs Chefanie | IG Swing By!:Entertaining Recipes and the New Art of Gathering

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to How to Decorate from Ballard Designs, a weekly podcast all about the trials and triumphs of decorating and redecorating your home.
0:09.5	I'm Caroline. I'm on the marketing team. And I'm Taryn and I'm a product designer. I'm Liz. I head of the creative team.
0:15.2	We're your hosts. Join the expert team at Ballard Designs for tips, tricks, and tales from interior designers, stylists,
0:21.3	and other talents in the design world. Plus, we'll answer your decorating dilemmas at the end of each episode.
0:25.8	We love answering your questions, so don't forget to email us at podcast at balauredesigns.net.
0:30.9	Now on with the show. Our guest today is host extraordinaire, chef, and now author, Stephanie Nass.
0:38.8	She's been hosting parties for celebrities, royals, fashion brands, and of course her family
0:42.4	and friends through her brand Sheffany.
0:45.2	So of course she knows what it takes to throw a great party.
0:48.3	In her first book, Swing by, Entertaining Recipes and the Art of Gathering, Stephanie shares
0:53.3	how she conceptualizes,
0:54.7	plans, and executes parties large and small, and she shares 16 playful theme party ideas.
1:00.2	Stephanie, welcome to the show. Thank you for having me. I'm so happy to be with you guys today.
1:04.8	Now, looking through your book was such a delight. It was so fun. But before we really get into all of the tips and I love how
1:15.0	you kind of share step by step, how to plan any party, but then also how to put together these
1:21.3	specific party ideas that you have at the end of the book, maybe you can share with our listeners
1:26.5	sort of where your love of
1:27.9	entertaining cat came from, how you got started, and, you know, just kind of like what early
1:33.7	on drew you to it? So it all started as a child growing up in my family and my parents are
1:42.5	such passionate and beautiful hosts. And I just watched all of the joy that
1:47.5	they would create for their guests and that really inspired me to take a closer look at how to
1:55.3	systematize that and also how to scale that. And I just, it mostly comes from the joy I felt as a young girl
	...

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