If you live in San Francisco, have an indispensable budget, and are looking to throw a super memorable party, there is one man and one man only who is capable of getting the job done: event planner super star extraordinaire, Mr. Stanlee Gatti. Stan has spent more than 20 years envisioning the decor of countless high society events with a sense of style that is utterly unique and breath-taking - including the Black & White Ball and several major floral art exhibitions such as the recent ONE at the Conservatory of Flowers. Last week I had the extreme pleasure (seriously I was so nervous he is like one of my idols and there is a character in my novel loosely based off of him) of sitting down with Mr. Gatti in his beautifully light, airy studio in SOMA. When I walked through the front door I was worried I had the address wrong as upstairs is Stanlee's office and downstairs is where the production of designing the look for an event takes place. Downstairs is totally urban with an industrial feel and upstairs is warm and chic - the walls practically oozed luscious creativity. When I asked Gatti about the upcoming trends in party decor, his answer was that of pure confidence and utter genius: I do not know what the trends are because I set the trends. I never look at what everyone else is doing. He only borrows from himself by delving deeper into his history to discover a new way of doing things. A tried and true trendsetter, Gatti sees the world through rose colored glasses literally as he was born with the gift to visually glimpse the world in colors. His infectiously positive outlook, incredible will to translate his ideas from vision into reality, and fun loving attitude make him not only one of the best event planners in the nation, but an ideal human too. For more on Stanlee's way of life and my interview,
