Tablescape Tuesday

image via blownoutparty.com

I am loving the hanging mason jars on this outdoorsy tablescape.  And how adorable are the mini berry parfaits?  Whatever this party is; I want to be invited!

Happy Friday!

Happy Friday!!  My husband is taking me on a wine tour tomorrow afternoon so I thought in the spirit of things I would share a few pictures.  If I could re-do my wedding (which I wouldn't do, but if we are talking hypotheticals...) I would have my wedding at a vineyard. And I would imaging it looking a little like this....I am obsessed with these chandeliers hanging from the vines and I love how intimate this feels!!  Happy weekend!!!

image via stylemepretty.com

image via stylemepretty.com



Tablescape Tuesday

I love tablescape design so I think show-casing beautiful table scapes should be a weekly thing.  Lets kick off "Tablescape Tuesday" with this lovely modern idea that is so simple and beautiful!  Submerged babies breath displayed on mirrored placemats with uplighting....how cool?!  This will wow your guests and not shock your wallet :)

image via weddingbee.com

Its the Simple Things

I love flowers. There is something about having fresh flowers around that instantly brightens my mood.  I have an extreme appreciation for elaborate floral arrangements - sorta like this one (seriously, how gorgeous is this?!)

As much as I love an elaborate floral arrangement the thing about flowers is that they are all nice and add something beautiful to a table scape.  Even the simplest of arrangements can bring life and beauty to any event.  Check out a few of my favorite "simple" arrangements.  Many of these can be DIY - you can buy flowers in bulk from a floral shop and collect your own vases to put the flowers in from antique shops. 

photo via weddingwire.com

Babies breath in empty wine bottle wrapped in lace

Arrangement by Mocha Rose Floral Design - photo by Michael Williams

Large open garden rose in lace wrapped mason jar

Arrangement by Mocha Rose Floral Design Photo by Michael Williams

White Hydrangeas in lace wrapped mason jar

photo via insidetheloop.tumblr.com

Sequins in water with single rose blossom

Simple floral arrangements are especially great on small tables such as a round cocktail table, cake table, guest book signing table or as decor on a bar!  Simple arrangements on larger tables can look great too - try using them as accents to either a larger floral arrangement, lanterns or  large hurricane candles. 





Distressed Window Pane Tutorial

Photo via Michael Williams Michealwill photography)

You will need:

·         Old windows -depending on how many guests you have will determine the number of window panes you will need.  We had 230 guests attend our wedding and used 3 window panes.

o   Finding the window panes will be the hardest part – I suggest looking at antique shops or contacting a contractor.  We got the window panes from a contractor friend of ours who was replacing windows as a job and the old ones were just going to be scrap, so he salvaged them for us. 

·         Two colors of paint - whatever colors you want.  I chose to do blue and white because those were my wedding colors

·         Painters tape

·         2 paint brushes

·         Electric sander

·         Fine grit sand paper

·         Water-based polyurethane

Step 1: Prep your window panes.  Make sure they are free from any dust or dirt by wiping them down with hot water.  If the panes are covered with a shiny coat you will need to do 1 additional step before you can get started and that is sanding off any previous coating – a good way to tell if you need to sand first is to hold the panes up to a light – if the surface is glossy at all, you should run the electric sander over the painted wood part and then wipe off any dust you created.

Step 2:  Tape around the edges to avoid painting on the glass

Step 3: Choose what color you want to be the secondary color (ie. You see just hints of this color) and apply that color to the wood first using the paint brush.  In the picture above, I chose blue to be my secondary color. Allow the first layer of paint to dry completely.

Step 4: Apply your primary color to the wood on top of your secondary color.  This is the color you want to see the most of – pictured above is white primary color.  Allow your primary color to dry completely.

Step 5:  Using find grit sandpaper and an electric sander gently start to sand away streaks until you see hints of your secondary color showing through.  You can show as much or as little of your secondary color in this step- it just depends on how “distressed” you want the window pane to look.  Feel free to use the edges of the sander to make knacks in the wood to make it look more authentic. 

Step 6: Clean up the dust you created by sanding by using a vaccum cleaner.  Use the small brush attachment to remove most of the dust from the window panes.  After you vaccum run a damp rag or paper towel over the panes to make sure there are no remaining particles on the wood. 

Step 7: Use the water based polyurethane to put a protective coat on the panes.  This will give the panes a nice finished look and will make the wood a little bit more durable and a smooth feel to it.  Allow to dry completely.  Add a second coat if you choose. 

Step 8: remove painters tape and apply your seating chart to the glass panes.

Pictured above – the seating chart was applied to the glass using a large clear sticker like this product  from staples:  http://www.staples.com/Avery-18665-Clear-Inkjet-Full-Sheet-Shipping-Labels-8-1-2-X/product_663672

Or you can use a paint pen and write the names and table assignments yourself….if you have a smaller wedding this is great option, but we had 230 people so we chose to have the computer print each name and apply the sticker to the window. 

photo via Michael Williams

Lakeside Lemonade

Photo by Michael Williams (via stylemepretty.com)

It's been another beautiful early spring week here in Baltimore and the warm weather has me thinking about sipping a cool cocktail on the deck.  Here is a recipe for the signature cocktail we served at my wedding.  It is sweet, yet a little tart and very refreshing. 

Photo via stylemepretty.com

Lakeside Lemonade:

1.5 oz citron vodka

1/2 oz. tripple sec

4.5 oz. sweet and sour mix

1 spash of lemon lime soda

1 splash of cranberry juice

Simple Tablescape for Two

I swoon over a beautiful tablescape for any event even if its just dinner for two.  Every time I walk past Williams Sanoma or Pottery Barn I want to buy new wine glasses and serve red, white and water with every meal along with a plate on a charger and linen napkins.  However, simple tablescape can be nice too.  This is is how my husband and I celebrated Christmas together - just the nice china, crystal, silver and some fresh hydrangeas.  I found this picture in my iPhone and decided that less can be more too and I also decided that fresh hydrangeas make anything look beautiful. 

Story Wine Bar

I am on a "bar" kick today.  After posting about the popcorn bar and the Bloody Mary ideas I realized that I really do love these types of things (OK, maybe I am obsessed a little)...we had multiple types of 'bar's' at my wedding - a wine bar, candy bar, cigar and whiskey....really, something for everyone if you include the regular bar too :)

When I was planning my own wedding I knew I wanted to incorporate wine somewhere in the mix because I love it so much.  Thing thing about wine though is that it can be a very overwhelming topic to conquer - there is so much about history that you need to know to really understand wine.  So, rather than bore people with a history lesson of where the grapes in each bottle came from and the flavors they should be tasting I decided to have my wine bar include wines that I could tell stories about.  This was a great way to add some personality to our wedding - we chose wines from local vineyards, from a vineyard close to our college and wines that had special meaning to us whether they were just something we enjoyed together or we enjoyed drinking them over a special holiday or event.  The possibilties to personalize this are endless....do you have a wine that you drink together on your anniversary, your birthday, at Thanksgiving or Christmas?  What about a wine that you tried on a trip together?  Write a little blurb about things you were doing the first time you tried a particular brand of wine; it lets your guests know a little something about things you enjoy.

The cube jars holding the wine corks (collected by my mom and I....I told you, I like wine...I get it from her) are from Michaels.  The winecork napkins were from Sur La Table.  The store cards were designed by More than Words located in Mt. Lebanon, PA and all photographs were taken by Michale Williams (MichaelWill photography).

Cheers!! 

Bloody Mary Bar

While I am on a mix-it-yourself-bar kick I thought I would share this great idea for a Bloody Mary bar!  I love how colorful this can be - I don't even like Bloody Marys but this photo is making me think I should re-try them.  This would be a great little station for a brunch (I can see it now, a Bloody Mary and mimosa bar - how fun?) or a football party at your house, or any other time that you may be hosting a morning or afternoon get-together. 

photo via smithratliff.com

Ingredients/fixings:

Tomato Juice

Spicy Tomato juice

Vodka

Lemons/Limes

Olives

Cucumer sticks

Celery Sticks

Cherry Tomatos

Pickled onions

Pickles

Horse Raddish

Hot Sauce

Worchestire sauce

Salt/Pepper

Old Bay

Inspriation: Popcorn Bar!

I'm a big fan of make-it-your-own bars, you know come up with a theme and put out different options and let your guests pick and choose what they like.  Candy bars have become really popular at weddings, bridal showers, baby showers, etc. I had a candy bar at my wedding too, and it was a HUGE hit...no leftovers except for a few gummies stuck in the grass the next morning that my brother's dog thoroughly enjoyed; but I am totally loving this idea for a POPCORN bar and I think it would be a HUGE hit. 

Photo via thepartydress.net

There are so many options you could do for this popcorn bar here are just a few ideas to get you thinking!

Ingredients:

Popcorn - you can buy bagged butter popcorn at the grocery store or you can pop your own plain popcorn using a popcorn maker like this one (from Target for $19.99)

photo via target.com



Sweet toppings:

M&Ms

Raisins

Craisins (or any other type of dried fruit you may like)

Reese's pieces

Chocolate chips

Peanut butter chips

White chocolate chips

Candied nuts

Salty Toppings:

Peanuts

Almonds

Cashews

Old Bay

Ranch dressing Seasoning

Salt

Cheddar cheese powder

Butter powder (like Molly McButter found in the spices aisle in the grocery store)

Another idea is to have different flavors of popcorn already there and your guests can choose their favorite kind....or they could mix and match!

Plain Popcorn

Butter popcorn

Kettle Corn

White Cheddar flavored

Cheddar cheese flavored

Caramel Corn

.......Get Poppin!!

Engagement Party from Inspiration to Reality

One of my very very best friends got engaged in January!  Any not only am I am extremely happy for her, but I always jump on an opportunity to plan a party.  Our bride-to-be had just moved into a new house so we decided to do a combined engagment and house warming party.  After scowering the internet for a few minutes I was inspired by a few things - mini finger foods and lemons!  I loved the brightness and freshness that lemons have and who doesnt enjoy mini bites of comfort food?  The party went over really well (I loved hearing "who was the caterer" when my mom and I planned and made everything!) especially considering that I had never seen her house until the morning of the party.  The whole thing was planned long distance and was pulled off without a hitch!  Here are some of the inspiration photos and some pictures from the party.  Congratulations to one of my favorite friends on your engagment - I can't wait for all of the celebrating to come :)

Centerpiece Inspiration

Photos via theknot.com

Food Inspiration

Photo via pinterest.com

How cute are these mini grilled cheese?

 (photo credit Michael Williams. Catered by JPC Event group)

These mini ceasar salads were served at my wedding and they were a huge hit!

photo via pinterest 

Our interpretation:

Marinated shrimp displayed in mini cups and cheese spread

Lemons and baby's breath floral arrangments (done by me)

Dessert bar of mini cupcakes and mini chocolate, red velvet and lemon whoopie pies

Lemons, babys breath and snapdraggon centerpieces (done by me) and Mini Salad and Pasta display

Salads:  Ceasar and Chopt

Pasta: Marinated tortelini with fresh mozzerella and basil and Vodka Cream sauce

Roast beef, goat cheese and radish sliders displayed on mirroed placemats