Today, Kelly & Aaron will become Mr. and Mrs. and I couldn’t be happier to help them with their big day!
Their ceremony & reception are taking place at Sierra Madre Episcopal Church of the Ascension which was built in the 1800s. Talk about breathtaking history!
Follow along with me on instagram and be sure to check back next week for sneak peeks!
I’m a huge fan of signature cocktails. Not only are they a fun element to bring into an event, they can also be very cost effective.
For the coral, orange & gold styled shoot that we did, I created a cocktail to fit right in with the color concept.
The Masterpiece.
Keeping with the inspiration found from our bride & groom’s love of art … the masterpiece seemed like a fitting title.
Believe me, this drink lives up to its name.
Ingredients: blood orange soda, strawberries, oranges, vodka, ice, colored sugar
1. Muddle strawberries and oranges together.
2. Add muddled fruit, vodka and ice to a shaker.
3. shake, shake, shake … shake, shake, shake … shake your shaker
4. run orange around rim of glass then rim with colored sugar
5. strain drink into glass
6. top with blood orange soda
7. enjoy!
{You’ll notice there are no measurments involved … that’s usually how I make cocktails. Just taste test along the way until you find something that works well for you.}
diy colored sugar
I can’t believe that all this time I have been buying fun colored sugar when it is so simple to make.
All you need to do is pour some sugar into a ziploc, add in food coloring, seal bag, shake until sugar is evenly colored. To make sugar lighter just add more sugar and for a darker look just add more food coloring.
After the color was just right I spread my sugar out on a baking sheet to dry. It wasn’t wet by any means, just slightly damp from the food coloring and I wanted to moisture out before I sealed it up for storage.
Colored sugar might be my new favorite party trick. Act impressed if you ever see me with some … pretty please?
What is your go to party trick?
Coral and gold happen to be some of my absolute favorites right now, so when I was approached to do a styled shoot I knew just what direction I would be headed in. Teamed up with Veronica, of Cherish Floral Design, Ben, of Wishner Photography, and Jackie, of delish! by Jackie, we set out to create a fun, modern, and colorful reception space. We wanted to showcase the notion of bringing personal elements of a couple to their event design, in this case art & birds. We used these as a starting block for our design without being too “theme-ish”.
It turned out pretty incredible … if I do say so myself!
I love the pleated gold tissue to add some texture to the invitation. I kept with a bold, heavy type alongside a fun, modern calligraphy to bring dimension and a touch of whimsy to the invitations.
The coral in those roses kills me!
Veronica created a stunning gold wooden block of roses that lined the hand-painted table that I created.
This tabletop has a bright gold stripe nestled between two coral stripes on a stark white background. I can’t get over the way the gold pops against the coral and white. Hand-painted flatware continue the gold affair while vintage cut crystal goblets add a touch of elegance.
And, check out these amazing gold foil napkins from Anthro!
While some tables featured the long row of roses others showcased a variety of flowers in the bright color scheme. Artists canvases doubled as place cards and favors to keep with the art inspiration. I love the vintage cut crystal salt cellars with mini gold spoons and pink sea salt!
I love the way that the tulips are framing the huge gold bowl centerpiece.
{A threshold for Target find!}
Our head tabled tied in a bit of the bird inspiration with gilded vintage birdcages, love birds name cards & a pair of kissing love birds on the table. Veronica did a great job bringing in the love bird aspect!
The appetizers, desserts & signature drink were featured with a bit of an art gallery feel. I adore the giant ‘love’ live 3D art made of coral roses then matted on pink in a gold frame. Veronica, you rocked this!
Jackie outdid herself with appetizers that were to die for!
Not only were these sliders cute, they were beyond good!
{While making the tassel garland I also made these darling fringe toothpicks}
The orange candies on this chocolate cake are such a fun pop of color {and yummy, too!}
Basically, a bite of heaven.
The tarts were served on an artists pallet and ‘The Masterpiece’ signature drink kept with the art inspiration.
Check back Thursday for the signature drink recipe and a few DIY tips.
Ben, thank you for showcasing our work with such beautiful photos. Jackie & Veronica, I had such a blast working with both of you!
I am so blessed to have such a wonderful mother {and mother-in-law!}. Love you, Momma!
How are you celebrating mother’s day?
I’m here today to share the easy-peasy but oh-so-adorable tissue paper fringe table skirt that I made for Grayson’s First Birthday.
Materials: Large roll of thick kraft paper (check out home depot!), scissors, tape, painters tape, various colors of tissue paper, measuring tape, paper bags (lunch size)
Cut the tissue paper in half length wise then fringe cut each piece about 2/3 of the way up.
{I stacked the tissue to make this go much faster}
Using your measuring tape, measure around the sides and front of your table and cut your kraft paper to length. I got lucky here and the height was just perfect, but measure to double check.
Attach the darkest color of tissue fringe along the bottom on the kraft paper, with tape, leaving about an inch off the end.
{This prevents the bottom from looking too stiff}
Place the next row of tissue about 3 inches up from the first. I doubled up the layers since I was only using four colors. If you have enough colors you could do one layer of each color to give more of an ombre look.
Add your next layer.
And, your next layers.
{I kept up with doing two layers of each color}
Before adding the final layer I taped my skirt to the table to allow the top layer to bend with the curve of the table. First, I centered the skirt on the table and taped the center with painters tape since it is gentle on surfaces and easy to re-position if necessary. I taped along the front (on the top of the table, which will be covered later) and then folded in the sides to help them follow the curve. Think wrapping a present, does that make sense?
Now for the paper bag layer. I liked how this matched the kraft paper top and was more durable than the tissue since people might bump into the edge. I used a bag instead of the kraft paper since the paper was so thick and didn’t lay flat as well. Simply unfold the bag and cut fringe slits. I placed my bag against my table to decide how much I wanted to hang over and then used that as a template.
Once my top layer of fringe was complete I made tape rolls out of painters tape to secure my kraft paper table top.
{Again, I like the painters tape because I know it won’t ruin my table and I can re-position if I need to.}
Next, I cut a piece of craft paper to be my table top. If one isn’t wide enough, two will work … just make sure to cover the seam with the goodies that you display on the table.
Here’s my table looking all cute and ready to be filled with goodies for the party the next day.
{Thanks for putting up with iPhone pictures}
There it is! Ahhh…. I still love how it turned out!
I’m going to be re-creating this look for a rainbow unicorn party coming up soon … I can’t wait to see how it looks!
What colors would you try?
Oh, the places he’ll go.
Sweet little Grayson turned one and his parents asked me to help plan his vintage-maps-meets-Dr.-Seuss birthday bash. His Mom had some pinterest inspiration that she shared with me and we took it from there. We kept the party one year old friendly with a Seuss spin {that wasn’t too cartoonish} and I love how it turned out! Enjoy!
I know that I’ve said it before, but I love inviations and these are no exception. We brought in the Dr. Seuss theme with the “Oh, the Places He’ll Go” and some whimsical rhyming. Grayson’s Mom had seen some similar wording on Pinterest that we worked with. The dusty blue and tangarine orange paired perfectly with kraft paper and map envelopes.
The envelopes might be one of my favorite design pieces of the event. Created from a thrifted atlas, each guest received an envelope that had some tie to them. From Italy to the US to the Czech Republic to Australia we matched envelopes to each guest then used kraft paper to make address labels. How fun and personalized!
I mean, could he get any cuter?
{I made him a chalkboard of all of his favorite things inspired from the few that have been floating around on Pinterest}
Kids took home an inflateable beach ball while the birthday boy had fun playing with his.
Guests enjoyed caramel corn popcorn and chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting. The dessert table consisted on vintage hat boxes, globes, wooden crates and an oversized map. The fringe table skirt is made from tissue paper and paper bags.
{Tutorial coming on Thursday!}
More dessert yummy-ness!
Perfect cake for a 1st birthday!
Tables were covered in kraft paper with vintage cups of crayons for table-top scribbles then topped with a map runner.
Bricks wrapped in maps helped to hold down oversized balloons.
Tissue tassel fringe and orange twine completed the look on these large white balloons.
Chalk, vintage bikes, and globe beach balls for kids to play with.
Friends and family members filled out wishes for Grayson that were placed into his treasure chest to be opened when he’s older. His Mom and Dad are also going to add in pictures from his first year and a newspaper from his birthday. Such a sweet way to remember his first year!
Happy birthday, Grayson!
Here are a few of my current favs… enjoy!
Rifle Paper Co Notebooks – one of these pretties is always in my purse.
Gold Sequin Flats from Target – I would wear these everday day if I could (I almost do!)
Washi Tape – how cute are these gold polka dots from Modern Tape on etsy?
Succulents – love ‘em! Trader Joe’s has some cute mini potted blooms that are on my dining room table.
I’m seeing a gold trend here … maybe I need to add some gold to my succulents as well. Hmmmm….. might just happen!
What are your go to favorites to brighten your day?
I had the pleasure of meeting some of the women behind 31 bits at The Cream Event. Not only is their jewelry beautiful but it supports the woman in Uganda who make it by hand.
31 bits jewelry is made of recycled paper by women in Northern Uganda who work to bring themselves, and their families, out of poverty. Here is a bit about 31 bits and what they do from their website…
“We are currently working with 108 women in Gulu, Uganda. We’ve combined successful development approaches with current design and fashion to create an innovative program for our women. We purchase jewelry from each woman on a monthly basis, providing them with an immediate, consistent, and fair income. Each piece of jewelry is handmade using 100% recycled paper and other local materials. By selling these products in the international market, we are able to generate a profit that is used to continue purchasing jewelry for our beneficiaries, as well provide them with numerous development programs, equipping them to develop a career and attain social equity on a local level. We are committed to working with each woman until she has graduated from our program and attained a sustainable means of income within her own community.”
Seriously, those beauties are made of paper!
And, good news! 31 bits has just launched their new spring line and … get this… bridal line! Had I known about them then my maids would have been rockin’ a paper-bead necklace on my big day.
I’m thinking that my next purchase will be the Orchid Loop. See it for yourself …. ahhhhmazing!!
Beautiful jewelry with an even more beautiful cause.
Check it out.
Which piece are you loving?
The ladies of bash, please outdid themselves at the cream event this year. Located at Vibiana, a catholic church turned event venue, the cream housed the bridal expo that felt more like a wedding reception. With tray passed yummy bites, signature drinks and wine a plenty, flowers to swoon over, live music in the patio, photo booths (yes, multiple!) this was a party not to miss.
Here a a few of my favs from the night taken from my iPhone … with a cocktail in the other hand. {If you’re going to do it, do it right!}
stir sticks … too cute!
signature drink from the mixologist at vibiana, julian cox
{I will be trying to recreate this soon, stay tunned!}
Treats from Sweet Lucie’s – the cutest little vintage ice cream truck
heck yeah, JL designs and Jesi Haack know how to do it
beautiful venue – crazy dance party
Gather Events plexiglass placemats and menus in gold stands to look like organ pipes with lettering by laura hooper calligraphy and florals by Moon Canyon Design Co.
out of control tablescape by beau and arrow events
my beautiful momma getting dolled up by the ladies at fiore beauty {this might be one of my favorite images of the night}
Check back soon for details about the fab new necklace I grabbed at the event from 31 bits – handmade by women in Uganda
Did anyone else get to check out The Cream Event?
Here is the second half of the beer tasting party that I threw for my husband.
{The party needed two days of blog love … he’s kinda a big deal around here}
spinach artichoke dip … enough said
{thanks, Katie!}
The food tags are made from a watercolor wash mounted on kraft paper to tie in the watercolor beer bottle invitations.
white wine sangria
{I don’t think I will ever host a party without serving this sangria. It’s the perfect blend of white wine, fresh fruit, & a little kick. La Grande Orange was kind enough to share their recipe here. I usually add some vanilla bean … warning, you will never see sangria the same after you have tried this…}
I covered our dining room table with kraft paper {from the dollar tree, attached with painters tape} and this wrapping paper runner from the target dollar bin. I set out pens for guest to write notes to the guest-of-honor, jot down thoughts on must try beers {or don’t bother beers} or just a spot to doodle.
This table was the landing spot for beers and I set out a few quick appetizers to soak up some of the booze.
{ veggies and onion dip, more spinach artichoke dip, & rosemary roasted bar nuts }
For more of a meal, we had BBQ beer beef sliders {in the crockpot for easy serving}, beer cheese fondue with crusty sourdough cubes and fresh veggies to dip, and buffalo chicken dip.
{I was too busy enjoying all of the food to take pictures. Yes, it was that good. I’ll come back with the buffalo dip recipe soon, promise.}
I love blue moon. I love cupcakes. It was the best of both worlds.
{find the recipe for these little darlings over here on spoonforkbacon … if you don’t know that site change that, today!}
These individual pies were my favorite part of the entire party. They were a.m.a.z.i.n.g. Sweet, salty, chocolatey, marshallowy delicousness.
{ I had to show off these pies once more … they were that good. I also feel like I can keep going on about them since I didn’t make them. My friend Jackie made them and I’m not sure if I should be ever grateful to her or hate that I was ever introduced to them. My mouth chooses the first and my hips choose the latter. But really thanks, Jackie! }
Happy birthday, Chris!
Cheers to an even better next 30 years.
