Easter Table

Last year Andrea and I put together this spring table setting, and I thought I'd share again with Easter coming this Sunday. The glittering cookies were based on a recipe from here, and I posted a little DIY for making the billy button inspired flowers here. Hope you have a blessed Easter! We're preparing for Good Friday tomorrow and a weekend of reflection, family time, and celebration on Sunday.

(photos by Andrea Dozier)

my sister's wedding.

Remember these plans for a bright, fall wedding? Well, it turned out beautiful and since it was for my sweet sister in-law (and friend since high school), I thought I'd share a few quick snapshots/thoughts from the day...

1. Us before the ceremony, she was beautiful and so relaxed!
2. Painted wine bottles with daisies as table centerpieces (we filled the hall with tall cocktail tables for a greet & mingle style dessert reception).
3. Cupcakes galore... and not pictured, the best ever ice cream cupcakes too.
4. Drinks table. We also had stations for specialty cheeses and fresh fruit. It was simple, casual, the real focus on spending time with family & friends. An awesome way to celebrate with 200 people!

black and white halloween.

photos by andrea dozier

There's something so exciting about all of the decorating possibilities this time of year (fall through New Years!). Last year Andrea and I did this little series of table settings for the holidays, trying to use the same neutral basics for each setting and adding in a few seasonal items. It was fun to do a twist on Halloween - a black and white party with polka dot fabrics, mini pumpkins, and little touches of gold.

floating centerpiece.

(images: little green notebook)

I know this is already making the internet rounds, but I like this thrifty table setting that Jenny from Little Green Notebook put together for a rooftop dinner party. Such a great use of cheap balloons! She even painted the pattern on the tablecloth.

a fall party.

(photography: andrea dozier)

Earlier this summer I spent the day with Andrea at the Toledo Botanical Gardens putting together this fall table setting, inspired by the colors* of the fig, for the Autumn issue of Styled.... the magazine is full of fun entertaining ideas and you can read it right over here.

(*It was oddly satisfying to walk into the fruit market and buy big bags of only green and purple produce for that centerpiece.)

classic party inspiration.

The timeless details of this pretty Connecticut wedding caught my eye: soft colored flowers, calligraphy, and one beautiful wedding dress.

(photography: charlotte jenks lewis)

spring table + challenge

(photos: bliss)

Really inspired by this table setting from Bliss - amazing! I came across it last night and my jaw kind of dropped at how creative it was. She gives it a fresh look with bright colors and unique paper flowers (see how she makes them here).

I found Bliss through Justine at Urban Scarlet - she let me know about a fun diy challenge they're hosting together. And they're offering lots of party goods as prizes (yes please!). Check it out here.

easter inspiration: a dessert table

When Andrea was here visiting last month, we decided to style a quick photoshoot inspired by spring. Remember those glittery cookies? They turned out mighty cute in bright colors so we used them for this simple dessert table, perfect for upcoming gatherings or Easter celebrations. And yeah, we got a little carried away with the pink and pastels...I guess we're overly enthusiastic about spring. More to share next week!



Creating the dessert table: napkins, pretty dishes, doilies, jars with decorations (like dried flowers), and a basket filled with fabric scraps for eggs. Tissue flowers and extra doilies for above the table. And most importantly, sweets!



(images: Andrea Dozier photography)

*Post Update: see how we made the yellow billy button flowers here.

happy new year...

(images: Andrea Dozier Photography, styling: hooray)

Hope you all had a wonderful end of the year! We just returned home the other night after a whirlwind trip to see family & friends and celebrate Christmas (a celebration that lasts until Epiphany on the 6th), including a mini getaway for our anniversary/new years.

Here's a little party tray Andrea & I put together for new years. These are fun to do - just fill a tray with snacks, confetti, flutes, and a bottle of champagne. I even painted my nails a festive red (seriously, I'm always too lazy to paint them :), and Andrea captured the sparkle of the lights, confetti, and bubbly perfectly on camera. Hooray for 2011!

mock party: decorating with berries

(images: Andrea Dozier Photography)

Before we started putting together our mock Christmas party, here's what we started with: a simple $9 bouquet of berries from the market. They were so beautiful on their own that Andrea took a few photos before we started snipping off berries & leaves and arranging them in bottles, attaching them to ornaments, and garnishing our apple centerpiece. More to come!

PS. after the photoshoot, these guys lasted for a long time (even though I'm forgetful about refreshing the water)...definitely worth their money.

mock party: christmas

Mock Party is a little series Andrea Dozier & I put together for the holidays (see our first part for halloween right here), to share fun, simple ideas for re-using what you have from one party to the next. Here are just a few ideas we put together for Christmas...







We reused these basics from the last party: plain tableware, white candlesticks, muslin table runner, + white napkins. We swapped out the doily garland for silver ornaments suspended from the ceiling, and made a few different centerpieces using apples, garden herbs, and a bouquet of berries from the market.

(All images: Andrea Dozier Photography)

mock party series: halloween

I'm excited to share the first part of our little collaboration today. Andrea was so great to work with and we've created a few "mock" parties for the holidays, the first one being just in time for Halloween. We thought it would be fun to show how basic elements can be used from one party to the next by simply adding in a few festive details, and here is the first party we came up with: a classy yet casual Halloween bash. Hope you guys enjoy!



The basics for this party are plain tableware, white candlesticks, a muslin table runner, and white napkins. To make it festive for Fall/Halloween we added in tiny pumpkins with black, silver + gold accents, and a quick, easy doily garland..




For the centerpiece we filled a plain platter with white pumpkins + silver ornaments (I love using them outside of Christmas), and had favor boxes (covered in black + white fabrics) scattered around the table for guests. The menu is kept simple with bowls full of soup, and a dessert bar with fall favorites: donuts tucked in glassine bags, thinly sliced apples drizzled with caramel, and tiny cups full of caramel popcorn + candies.



And finally, all of the decorations used in this party are small items that can be sent home at the end of the night with guests. The fabric wrapped favor boxes, tiny pumpkins, packaged donuts, etc. can all double as fun favors.



Some sources:
Photography: Andrea Dozier
Tableware: white dishes - Ikea, silverware - Target
Napkins: dishtowels from Ikea
Centerpiece Platter: Pottery Barn
Table runner + favor box fabric: craft store
Favor Boxes + glassine bags: extras from my shop
Food cups, doilies, + confetti: craft store

We hope everything used here are items you already have or can obtain easily, adding in other details to make it more personal (for whatever type of party you're throwing!).

weekend inspiration: fall parties

If you're looking for some party inspiration this weekend, check out the fall celebration challenge hosted by Vicky over on City Cradle...


(images: melanie, you are my fave)

Five bloggers each styled a party and you can vote for your favorite one. Vicky kindly asked me to participate but I wasn't able to (lame! I know), but I'm secretly glad I couldn't because the other entries are so fabulous . Above is the party that got my vote (because I'm partial to both farmers markets and awesome things), but you can decide for yourself here. Oh, and have a fun weekend!

fall inspiration: river wedding

(images: braedon flynn, via snippet & ink)

This Tahoe river wedding is the prettiest I've seen on blogs in awhile. It's very rustic & elegant, and my favorite detail is the French glass door with guests' names written on it. They did a beautiful job balancing current trends with details that are classic and timeless.

wimbledon & cole haan

Wimbledon started this week and we are pretty excited around here. As an ode to tennis today, I'm loving the new ad campaign for Cole Haan called The Inspired Life, which includes tennis player Maria Sharapova, along with some other people & things they were inspired by.

(found via black eiffel)

(Everything is brilliantly shot by The Selby. See more here.)

birthday favors

This idea works great for a kids party OR an office full of engineers. I did it for the latter as a surprise for my husband's birthday. He loves Lego's, and I remember having Lego-style candy as a kid but I haven't been able to find it since then. I finally found it online here for a good price (amazon has it for more) and made it into small favors for Q's office. It tastes like SweetTarts and the best part is that you can actually build things with it - which, for the record, they did.

By the way, Q's brother Thad works with him and always delivers stuff like this for me. Thanks, Thad.

table setting & succulents

I was really inspired by the simple (but beautiful) tablescape featured on Sunday Suppers yesterday. The occasion was a fresh vegetarian feast, so they kept the table simple with white plates, green striped napkins, pretty menu cards, and an abundance of potted succulents.


(photos by sunday suppers)

I loved seeing the burro's tail succulent as part of the decor (bottom left). Q's mom gave us one recently and it has become a favorite. It grows quickly, and if any buds fall off they can be planted in another pot to start a new burro's tail (so you could have a whole house full if you'd like..).