The Taste Maker

Hey guys!

I'm really excited for tonights episode. It shows one of my true passions, entertaining! Since I was a child I've always loved food, cooking, and throwing parties. My family entertained a lot and one of my favorite things was to help set the table. I loved to watch a theme or idea come together and still do. In fact, these days I opt for big themes and ideas -- as seen in tonight's episode.

I had already done two sales on OneKingsLane.com (I was their very first Taste Maker Tag Sale. . .thanks to Andrea Stanford!) when Susan Feldman (the co-founder) and I were chatting about my buying trips abroad and she asked "What if we did one for One Kings Lane?" We chatted about exotic locales and India came up. . .I was quick to say yes, and off we went.

India was a life changing trip for me, I've traveled extensively in my life, but have never seen the contrast of beauty and despair cohabiting as it does in India. I quickly fell in love with the people and culture and have such a deep respect for them. Susan, my boyfriend Eric, and I started in Delhi, then flew to the pink city of Jaipur, and from there, drove on what I dubbed "the highway of death" to Jodphur. Each city had something new to offer. The textiles in Jaipur would blow your mind (the jewels were pretty amazing too. . .ask Mary about that!) Jodhpur was the furniture capital. You name it, they make it there. We found so many beautiful things and they all came back and were sold on One Kings Lane in April. . .fortunately we had some more things come in and are having another small sale this Wednesday! The party was to celebrate our trip and launch the sale.

I knew I wanted to go big so I enlisted a wonderful Indian Wedding planner (Sonali Flowers) she helped me achieve the look I wanted especially with those wonderful marigold garlands. I love working with flowers and always do my own, so it was really fun to work with someone and learn something new. . .who knows, if you stop in the shop I may just be stringing up marigolds now that I know how!

Mary and I have done major events together and thrown countless dinner parties, so she is always my second opinion on everything. It's great to have that person whose taste you trust and will always be honest with you. Not to mention she cracks me up!

Editor's Note: Watch a bonus clip of Mary and Nathan's trip to "Little India" now.

One of the things I loved about this party was seeing everyone dress up, it's so much fun when guests participate, I mean how great did Mary and Kathryn look in their saris? The most important thing when throwing a party is that everyone is comfortable and having a good time.

With that said, it was a succes. . .and heck, I think Jeffrey even found an intern.

On the other side of town, i was impressed with how Kathryn handled her Malibu job. It seems kinda tricky, but I know Kathryn can do it -- always love her honesty too!

I thought Martyn's job for the gorgeous Daisy Fuentes was a perfect fit, glamorous with soul  -- just like her.

With summer here I encourage you to throw your own outdoor extravaganza. I would love to hear about it or see pics on my Facebook page or Twitter (@nturnerdesign).

See you next week!