The Party Barn

My latest fantasy? A party barn. OK, so living in a high rise might be a bit of a hindrance to making this fantasy come true, but a girl can dream, can't she? It seems that when these lucky barn owners create their party spaces, there is an incredible amount of ingenuity, practicality, and creativity that goes into planning them.



I was greatly inspired by the barn at the Norfolk, England farm of garden and freelance designer George Carter (image at top and above). One enters the party room via tall double doors in which only the bottom section opens. There are fanciful console tables, black painted pyramid sculptures (what Carter calls indoor topiaries), and a musicians gallery that looks out over the room. Such a chic space in which to entertain. If I were to have a party barn, I think I would design mine along these lines; for me, it would be a place to throw caution to the wind and to experiment. Oh, and to have fun too!


Bunny Williams and John Rosselli's barn was designed with entertaining in mind, and comfort seemed to be the driving force behind the design of their space. I can imagine that you might arrive there as a guest on a Friday evening, and you wouldn't want to leave the cozy rooms until late Sunday. Add a few good books, some libations, and a little nosh and you've got the perfect weekend.


And the barn that is generating a lot of buzz now is that of Ina Garten. This is a building that was very well thought out, but then again that is what one would expect of a serious cook and an authority on entertaining. But there is nothing cold and sterile about Garten's outbuilding. Garten is fond of the word "earthy", and this is a perfect label for both her food and her party barn as well. It's a simple space- quite down to earth- but warm and inviting too.

(Images of Carter's barn: British House & Garden, Jan 09, photographer Rory Carnegie. Images of Williams and Rosselli's space: "An Affair with a House". Garten's space courtesy of House Beautiful, Nov 09, photographer Simon Upton.)