DORÉ

I don’t know where to begin to explain all the things I love that I’m going to tell you about in this post. Maybe the best thing would be to make a list. But first, a little context. I’m currently working with Le Méridien. They have hotels all over the world, one of which is in Monaco. For their summer program, I’m working with them and The Gathery as a…hmm, how should I put this…Creative Ambiance Ambassador in Chief? Professional rosé drinker? Bed quality tester? Basically everything that goes along with the arduous task of working in hospitality. We are planning parties and creating ambiance.

For our first Au Soleil party, we decided to start with the Monaco location, which is one of Le Méridien’s most beautiful properties. They even have a private beach, which, if you’re familiar with Monaco, is kind of a miracle considering the lack of space in this tiny country. So I’ll start by listing the private beach as one of things I love that I wanted to include in the party… And a few other things that just happened by accident!

– First, the French Riviera. I’ve lived there, and what can I say – I adore it. Monaco is a little different, but it has its own charm… especially on the private beach.
– Which is why we decided to host the party there.
– The weather was magnificent.
– I ate the best pudding of my life for breakfast at the hotel there. I don’t even know how to describe those mouthfuls of pure happiness, almost not even sweet.
– I got my sister, Elisa, JJ and Héloïse together. If you’re going to have drinks, it’s better to be with friends – and besides, it had been so long since we’d seen each other, we had whole lifetimes to catch up on.

– Nouvelle Vague, a band I love, came to play some songs. Elodie Frégé is crazy and amazing.
– There was a rosé bar, which I ended up taking over at the end of the night (and no, I wasn’t drunk).
– And we had pissaladières (a delicious tart from southern France)!
– We danced, pretended to remember how to play backgammon, and it kind of felt like we were in a Slim Aarons photo, to be honest. All we needed was Marisa Berenson.
– There was even an incredible female DJ.
– For dessert, we had a variety of sorbets and huge platters of fruit.

And we took our time like only people from the South of France can do. The afternoon at the beach turned into happy hour, happy hour turned into a party, and the party turned into a late-night dance party. But it all happened so naturally – we just let ourselves go with the simplicity and magic of the moment. It made me nostalgic for my old life in the South – and I already can’t wait for the next party…