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The city that likes to party It’s a source of great pleasure to receive an invitation to a party, especially when that invitation comes on a beautiful card and is hand-written. And when the anticipation of that summons is met with a fun-filled occasion with family, or friends old and new, the whole party experience is perfectly complete. A pair of Bath mums who know just how to throw the perfect party have set up their own business doing just that. From small but stylish second wedding lunches to gatherings for clients and friends, You Are SO Invited is a bespoke party organising service. Claire Hardy, who has many years experience in hospitality, and Helen Godfrey, who was a personal stylist, became friends and then realised there was a gap in the market for arranging parties right down to the smallest detail. With an organisational skill that would make others tired, the duo can arrange a florist, beautifully hand-written invitations and place names at the table, and even take care of finding a private chef for the occasion or hiring glassware and a dinner service. “We’re not caterers,” says Claire, “but we can organise everything for you, from sending hand-written invitations to dressing the venue. We enjoy personalising the party, for instance, with photos of the happy couple’s wedding day reproduced for their anniversary party, and buying guests personalised gifts to take home and to remember the occasion. We like to bring a bit of magic to the party – and make it an event that people will talk about for a long time.” The pair specialise in small events and can
MIX AND STIR: guests enjoying the transformed garden at cocktail bar Sub 13 in George Street, decorated for the occasion by You Are SO Invited’s Claire Hardy and Helen Godfrey
help with anything, from transforming a garage into a teenage party space, to finding a mixologist to make and shake cocktails. Most recently You Are SO Invited was asked to transform the city centre gardens of cocktail bar Sub 13 in George Street for a Perrier Jouët Champagne party to mark the bar’s eighth anniversary. Fresh flowers, carefully placed
mirrors and candles, white napery and even gorgeous scent bottles and packets of Lovehearts sweets in the ladies’ cloakroom helped set the scene. Champagne cocktails, nibbles and live music helped the evening go with a swing. Visit: www.youaresoinvited.com or tel: 07764 928 471.
School’s music centre hits the right note
Pop-up shop The latest pop-up shop to spring up in Milsom Place will be wedding accessories business Poppy In Pearls, which will be open from 21 July to 19 August. Already an online business, Poppy In Pearls was founded by Sarah Ross who, when planning her own wedding, wanted British made products for decorating the tables and giving as favours and found it difficult, so decided to source products especially for creative brides. Stock includes invitation sets, bride and groom cake toppers, and gifts for men and women too. 62 THEBATHMAGAZINE
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JULY 2012
Opera star Dame Felicity Lott performed the official opening of Monkton Senior School’s new £3.2m music centre in front of a crowd of more than 1,000 staff, pupils, parents and VIP guests, including songwriter Richard Stilgoe, pianist Bobby Chen, musician and writer Julian Colbeck, former Bishop of Thetford Timothy Dudley-Smith and David Bowerman, exchairman of the Elgar Foundation. The school celebrated the occasion with music, with former Monkton pupils, principal clarinet with the NYO and finalist of the 2012 BBC Young Musician competition Jordan Black, cellist Bea Newman and pianist Tokino Kaga giving recitals and there was a Battle of the Bands competition for pupils. Choirs sang, including one that said it could not sing and another
CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION: Dame Felicity Lott opens the new centre
– a scratch choir – that sang Zadok the Priest after just an hour’s rehearsal. School principal, Richard Backhouse, said: “The combination of this outstanding new music centre – which is
beginning to attract significant interest from professional musicians – together with our inspirational director of music, George Bevan, is set to take music at Monkton to even higher levels.”