Graham may be known for her fashion style, but she’s pretty decisive about the style in her home, too, particularly when it comes to setting up her entertaining spaces. “I definitely like the look of [my space] to be chic and yet have a fun aesthetic,” she says. “And maybe a little pop of color.” She loves the monochrome look, she adds, especially when dark shades of blue and gray are included. In partnership with buy now, pay later service Affirm and designer Mikel Welch, Graham recently updated her home with an entertaining-friendly backyard, and her learnings from the process might just inspire your own entertaining update this season. We caught up with Graham—now a mother of three and the owner of a stunning New Jersey home—and chatted about how she balances high-end and affordable decor, how she created a space that’s both family- and entertaining-friendly, her entertaining must-haves, and more.
How Ashley Graham Created Her Perfect Entertaining Space
When she’s hosting, Graham wants all her guests to have everything they need—without going overboard. “I want to make sure that everybody’s happy,” she says. “We definitely have the martini shaker, and we have the wine glasses, and we have the pitcher for the spiked Arnold palmers. But I like also to keep things simple. Sometimes less is more.” With that in mind, when she outfitted her space, Graham considered which items she might save money on—and which she might splurge on. “It’s kind of like my clothes,” she says. “I think about it as something that is an investment piece versus something that’s trendy. I’m not going to want to look at the same throw or pillow on my couch for the next two years in a row, necessarily, so why not do a little high-end low-end situation? I can get a high-end couch on Affirm and pay as I go, and then I can get the decorative pillows [somewhere else]. It’s truly the investment—I like to think about it that way.” While she always knew she wanted her space to be entertaining-friendly, Graham was careful to make sure it didn’t become single-purpose. “Our door is a revolving door of friends and family and then people that we’ve worked with,” she says. “We also are a big snuggle family, and we needed space where we could all gather and snuggle and eat and entertain and also take business calls, so it really has to be multi-purpose.” The items she filled that space with were all chosen with those uses in mind—and also for their durability and weather-resistance. But Graham acknowledges that entertaining takes more than just some useful gadgets. “It’s really fun to have those little trinkets for entertaining, but really it’s about what’s inside, too,” she says. “My mom was really big on hospitality, so she always had a few different types of drinks, homemade, in the fridge.” Graham took her lessons to heart and, she says, always keeps a variety of drinks on-hand. Ready to upgrade your own entertaining space? Graham shared a few suggestions for items she considers entertaining essentials: With these picks ready to go, you’ll be prepared for every visitor—even the surprise ones.
