The Green Scene

Welcome to the new green scene.

Last Thursday, Notes on a Party invited the city’s most fashionable event planners, bon vivants and green advocates to the Astor Center for “A Night of Eco-Chic Entertaining,” and there was nary a Birkenstock in sight. An elegant cocktail reception, the event showcased some of the best new products and services that we’ve discovered in the green marketplace. In a way, it was our luxe version of Green Drinks created to get people talking about how to party green with style.

Co-hosts of the event were Annie Churchill and Billy Gilbane III (New Yorkers for a Green New York), Josh Dorfman (The Lazy Environmentalist), Gerald Prolman (Organic Style), Danielle Venokur (dvGreen), Danna Weiss (Conscious Jewelry), Adam Devine (GreenSQFT), Lorien Gabel and Margo Spiritus (pingg.com), and Collette Leonard (Reyka Vodka).

Putting our own Top 10 Tips for an Eco-Chic Event to the test, we gave our VIP guests the full green experience from beginning to end with cool, digital invitations by pingg.com, music by Audiostiles, and organic catering by The Cleaver Co. who created delicious passed hors d’oeuvres such as Parmesan Cups with fine herbs floral salad and Niman Ranch Lamb and Feta Burgers with Tzatziki.

Notable guests such as restaurateur Jennie Yip, Top Chef’s Nikki Cascone (an organic chef), Food & Wine’s Gail Simmons (also a Top Chef judge) and celebrity wedding planners Ann David and Nicky Reinhard were spotted visiting the Reyka and Frutzzo martini bar, the ‘wichcraft sandwich bar and The Cleaver Co.’s lavish farm table of raw and grilled organic vegetables, local artisanal and farmstead cheese, organic fruit and Tuscan brick oven breads, crostini and grissini breadsticks.

NuNu Chocolates’ Justine Pringle may have spent the night in the corner but only because her table of handmade salted caramels (the runaway hit of the night) was completely surrounded at all times.

Josh Dorfman chilled out in the lounge (which was decorated with modern eco-furniture from his Vivavi showroom and stocked with a Parducci organic wine bar) with Annie Churchill, designer Alvin Valley, Domino’s Lauren Goodman, Prada’s Melissa Skoog, Miu Miu’s Flavia Kelson, Style.com’s Michal Oberlander, Base Design’s Geoff Cook, BWR’s Mary Kaye Daniels and Global Goddess Beauty founder Shalini Vadhera.

On the far side of the room, Lisa Anastos (founder of the Whitney Contemporaries), artist Ed Baynard and New York Magazine’s design editor Wendy Goodman – fresh from their hybrid car service pick-up by OZOcar – admired the unique furnishings and accessories by Cardboard Design which were paired with opulent gold rimmed glasses and plates by Party Rental.

Each of the three showcase tables, styled by Danielle Venokur of dvGreen, featured a different style of dining and signature look. VivaTerra presented an elegant dinner table with recycled sea glass plates and wine tumblers. The dvGreen table opted for a casual picnic look with bright yellow and white organic linens by Harmony Art, compostable plates (made from fallen palm leaves) by VerTerra, beeswax candles from Big Dipper Wax Works and lime green reusable and recyclable Preserve tableware (made from 100% recycled plastic).

Organic Bouquet provided all of the sustainably grown flowers (arranged by dvGreen), which accented the showcase tables and decorated the space. The company’s CEO Gerald Prolman and his wife, Raquel, held court in the middle of the party greeting guests like Treehugger’s Graham Hill and Sage Events’ Leslie Nilsson.

Stationery companies Bella Figura and Joy by Mel Lim showed everything from wedding invitations to thank you cards, made with either 100% organic cotton or recycled paper and printed with vegetable inks. The baby announcements were especially popular with Kelcey Kintner, founder of mama bird diaries, and, Lynn Russo, a stylish mama-to-be.

One of our favorite green ideas of the night was our gifting table, which featured an array of goodies including mini bottles of Reyka Vodka, Organic Style gift cards, Pear & Peony packets and small bundles of long stem roses by Organic Bouquet (that were left-over from the arrangements). Guests were encouraged to take only what they wanted (or what fit in their own bags). Watch out for this new eco-trend at future events!

And, for the less glamorous (yet important) aspects of green entertaining - clean up and garbage – we made an effort to compost and recycle as well as donated all leftover food to the Bowery Mission.

Finally, to get our carbon free stamp of approval, we made a donation to Carbonfund.org who has a great program for planners looking to offset the emissions from their events. Remember to reduce first, then pay for the rest of your party imprint!

For a complete list of resources used to produce our fabulous Eco-Chic event, please email us with your name, company, title and mailing address to receive an exclusive event brochure printed on FSC certified 100% recycled paper with low VOC vegetable inks by Rolling Press.

Have a favorite eco-vendor or green entertaining tip? Leave us a comment below.

PHOTO CREDIT: Christopher London of Manhattan Society (people), Ron Holtz of Ron Holtz Photography (décor)

For more coverage, visit Treehugger and Ecorazzi. For additional photos, visit Manhattan Society.

Eco-Chic Entertaining is a special series for the month of April that is dedicated to the best green vendors, products and services.

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