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Plan Your Party Like A Pro

The Early Show's Correspondent Barbara Alvarez plans on her segment Barb Wire a holiday party with one of New York's hottest party planners.


I love parties, and my favorite part is celebrating the fantasy. So when I heard I would be able to help plan Preston Bailey's personal holiday soiree, you can imagine how excited I was.

Bailey's philosophy on parties is just to offer his guests everything as a special gift.

"Music, food, just give them everything, literally. I mean, that's what entertainment should be," he says.

And it seems everyone wants Bailey's gifts. He has planned parties for Joan Rivers and Oprah Winfrey, where an expensive party for just the decorations go up to half a million dollars.

For our party the theme was a holiday, Silver Winter-Wonderland.

Once the guest list is done. Bailey likes to create a frenzy with his invitations. This time, it was a cake that looked like a silver apple baked by none other than cake maven Sylvia Weinstock.

"So everyone, like, freaked when their received it. They were like, oh my God, what's going on kind of thing," he says.

His next extravagant surprise was a different gift for every guest between each gourmet course.

So after eating the wild mushrooms and gruyiere tart, the first present people will receive is almonds. And they get better as the meal goes on.

The rest of day one is dedicated to picking flowers and going over the color-based theme for the party.

Since Bailey says the reds are totally out this season, his color scheme stays within white, cream, lavender and purple colors.

Choosing the table linens was next. To add to the drama of the evening we looked for silver and sparkly.

Once the shopping was completed, it was time to completely transform Bailey's place. By following his mantra: "Keep moving girl and it'll all come together," we were able to do it in a limited time frame.

And as expected the night was an absolute success.

The following are some of his guidelines:

TIPS FOR A GREAT PARTY
Decide who you want to invite
Figure out your budget
Pick a theme
Find a location
Relax and have a good time

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