A Seat at the Table
Maja Lithander Smith staged the ultimate Santa Barbara garden parties
Surrounded by oak trees, Maja Lithander Smith sets an enchanting garden party.
Written by Jennifer Blaise Kramer
Photographs by Sara Prince and Danielle Rubi
There was a triple threat in the world of garden parties as soon as Maja Lithander Smith landed in Santa Barbara. A recent part-time resident, she’s the owner of Found by Maja, a vintage home store in San Francisco. To launch her mini pop-up in Summerland last year, Smith threw three very different events in her signature style—each with a Santa Barbara spin—with Alice Ryan, her friend and publicist.
“As a longtime Montecito resident, I love coming back to Santa Barbara and was excited to help play architect for this concept,” Ryan says. “I drew the guest lists full of creatives who didn’t know Maja but would support her pop-up. We wanted the best of Santa Barbara, and with Maja’s beautiful pieces, there was no need for any rentals. Every table setting in each home created unparalleled beauty and was entirely unique.”
First was a party at designer Penelope Bianchi’s cottage, which is a postcard for Santa Barbara style. “We set a table of celadon, blue, and aqua, with hand-painted plates, vintage champagne coupes, and delicate glassware,” says Smith. “The effect felt both ethereal and timeless, as if her own vintage garden chairs had been painted to match the table setting.”
Whimsical place cards were hand-painted by artist Olivia Joffrey.
“I knew Maja’s store in San Francisco, where I’d bought the most beautiful table with flowers in it,” Bianchi says, adding that when Ryan asked about cohosting a lunch, “I was excited to say yes. It was a beautiful day as we gathered our friends and sat under the oak trees celebrating Maja—just magical.”
Guests mingled and sipped drinks served from a vintage bar cart alfresco, one of the reasons Smith adores entertaining here, where the weather is much more reliable than in the Bay Area. “I do shift slightly for entertaining in Santa Barbara,” she says. “More is done outdoors, which is more engaging as people let their guard down.”
A malachite palette mirrored the greens seen in every direction from the veranda.
“Design is so much more to Maja than simply arranging spaces—it’s about telling stories and sharing emotions.”
Both beauty and color were in evidence at a second party, held at the Klentner Ranch, home of designer Amanda Masters. On the veranda, tables were covered in rich greens to mirror the colors of the polo fields below. “We used a malachite theme for the linens and laid the table with real malachite obelisks, vintage French plates, and layers of greens and blue glass,” Smith says, adding that the view was picture perfect: “Amanda’s sense of design and her ease of entertaining are so enviable.”
“When I knew I was hosting her, I rushed to arrange things the way I thought Maja would most enjoy,” Masters says. “I left everything that way for a long time. Maja has very high standards in her choice of bold color and high design: it’s straight-up American chic.”
Host and homeowner Amanda Masters (left) with guest Nina Takesh.
Finally, Smith set up “the dinner party of her dreams” at the home of editor and author Calgary Avansino. The evening combined outdoor elegance and indoor drama as guests moved among multiple spaces. “Calgary’s home is elegant, and her dining room allowed for a more formal and dramatic entertaining setup,” says Smith, who adorned the table with Italian linens, Provençal aptware, Murano glass stemware, French ceramics, and Swedish brass candlesticks. “The table was perfection and the company was sparkling,” she says.
“Design is so much more to Maja than simply arranging spaces—it’s about telling stories and sharing emotion through the beauty of our surroundings,” Avansino says. “It’s been inspirational to watch Maja transform her love of travel and design into a thriving business. She has this incredible ability to see potential where others see just an object—whether it’s a handwoven textile from a village in France or a vintage lamp from a forgotten market in Italy.”
In such good company, Smith shared her collections and created magic three times over. With the pressure of hosting off the table, so to speak, she could simply connect with like-minded design buffs who appreciate beauty through her kind of storytelling. “Maja has created a bridge between artisans and design lovers who crave authenticity,” Avansino says. “Each piece tells a story, and she has become the narrator.”
