An elegantly festive doorway at Parterre, the Newport home of Bettie Bearden Pardee, is open to greet a few cherished friends on New Year’s Eve. Photo credit: Vibrant Optics
Glory be and alleluia! Finally, it is a new year that brings with it the promise of a new beginning with renewed hope.
I was inspired to reach out to a few dear friends to learn how they were planning to celebrate their own private debut of 2021. In consideration of the guidelines that Covid has forced us all to respect, I wanted to be inspired by their vision of bringing in this rather peculiar new year and share it with you. I posed the simple question: How will you be spending this New Year’s Eve?
Bettie Bearden Pardee, the creator of Private Newport, is a precious friend who is exceptionally accomplished in ALL aspects of lovely living. If you are ever offered an invitation to visit Parterre, her glorious house and gardens in Newport... go! She is a fabulous cook, too.
I'll be recalling a wonderful and ever more meaningful tradition of my mother's… a day after Christmas turkey curry buffet. But ours will be on New Year's Eve, with just 6 close friends, sitting fireside in the library. It's such a perfect selection for this setting as it's a "one-fork" dish (no knife needed). And the 8 condiments that accompany the curry add another level of festivity. Bon Appetit!
Tim Davis is the number one real estate broker in the Hampton’s, New York. My daughter-in-law, Karen, introduced me to Tim. I am so grateful for his enthusiastic support of my Instagram posts and MMM newsletter. Talk about an eye for real estate… he certainly has the gift.
A far cry from our New Year's Eve celebration two years ago, viewing the fireworks display from the penthouse at the Corinthia Hotel in London. This year we will enjoy a quiet evening with my son, his wife, and our grandchildren at our 1855 historic home in Newport, currently in the midst of a major restoration project. Two of our five pups will be with us as well. 2020 will go down for us as a year of challenge and change, self-reflection, the arrival of our grandson, and creative Covid-safe connections with our loved ones. A Happy 2021 and God’s blessings to you and yours.
My dear friend, Andrea Kavanagh, the very clever creator of the divinely classic and quite notable Glam Pad blog, is a charming southerner who delights in all things elegant and beautifully timeless. She kindly shared her evening plans, capped with the ball drop at midnight!
We are homebodies and always enjoy staying in on New Year's Eve, so this year will be no different. Our tradition is to make delicious cheese fondue and sip champagne and ginger ale throughout the evening. My father and I have watched the New Year's Twilight Zone Marathon on SYFY every year since I was young, and now my husband enjoys watching it with me as well, along with the Times Square ball drop on television. This year we have all been living in a real-life Twilight Zone, so hopefully, everyone will make sure to eat their black-eyed peas (a classic Southern tradition we also enjoy) for good luck on January 1!
When we were first married, Stuart and I celebrated New Year’s Eve at a ball at The Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia. In the last few years, we have hosted an intimate black-tie dinner party with darling friends at Fox Hall. This year our celebration was spent in the snow, around the fireplace in our house at Stratton Mountain, Vermont, with our son’s darling family. Putting our best foot forward for the new year, we happily participated in a virtual wine tasting (courtesy of CEO.org) with Salvatore Ferragamo, the grandson, and namesake of one of my favorite fashion houses, Salvatore Ferragamo. He is the CEO of their Tuscan winery, Il Borro. Well, I have always adored and collected their shoes, and wouldn’t you know… now I am an advocate of their wine. Yes, they excel at designing divine wines too!
Having fun in Vermont with our family tasting the Ferragamo wines on New Year's Eve!
2021 will undoubtedly bring challenges. I wish you strength, happiness and all good health to carry you through to what we remember as a proper world filled with friends and travel. Even though it shall never be the same world as we remember, it will be one we are all richer for, with a newfound appreciation for what we love and care about. Cheers to 2021… to you, my dear subscribers!