Outfit #1: J.Crew Military Jacket, J.Crew Chambray, J.Crew Floral Skirt (similar), Cole Hann Sandals
Outfit #2: J.Crew Tee (similar), Forever 21 Skirt, Steve Madden Sandals (similar), J. Crew and Henri Bendel Bangles
Outfit #3: J.Crew Sweater, Theory Pants, Tory Burch Sandals, J.Crew Baubles
Outfit #4: Zara Blazer, J.Crew Top, J.Crew Pants, Steve Madden Sandals
I was cleaning out my pantry and came across some TJ’s enchilada sauce that I hadn’t used yet… so I roughly followed this recipe (substituting enchilada sauce for salsa and putting chicken and cheese inside) and topped with avocado, olives and cilantro.
I love this blog and I love Banh Mi, so when I saw this variation (I typically make it with meatballs), I had to jump on it! And boy was it worth it… KILLER marinade, and I topped it with a perfectly fried egg and deliciously pickled veggies…. yum!
Lime Peach Chicken over Brown Rice
After my fair share of events this year, I’ve learned one thing – simplicity is key. I tend to get a little excited and put out to my dishes, too many cocktail choices, too many desserts… But my sisters helped me to rein it in this time, and I couldn’t be happier.
We set up a simple “serve yourself bar” with 5 liquors, 3 types of wine and couple beer options. We had a few mixers available, sliced fruit and one pitcher of ready-made cocktails. It made hosting super easy, and multiple people could help themselves to drinks at a time – ie a non-existent bar line. Now I wouldn’t recommend this for a group larger than 20-30, but with our sized crew, it was perfect!
Here was our bar menu:
I bought this mirror at Cost Plus World Market and then went to the craft store to grab a chalk marker (I didn’t know these existed but they ARE AWESOME – super easy to write with, and come off easily as well!). It is much harder to write on a mirror than I anticipated, but I think it turned out pretty cool! I think communication is key! So any type of menu whether drinks, food, etc. is always a nice addition for guests.
I also wasn’t planning on making a pre-mixed drink, but the concept was such a hit at our “Dancing on the Ave” party, I figured why not? I whipped up a new connection – Peach Ginger Mojitos and I definitely recommend it!
Also don’t forget to have pitchers or bottles of water available… always key when drinking is involved 🙂
I believe preparation is key. My sisters and I were fully able to enjoy the day and even spent the afternoon poolside – and not running around doing last minute errands (for the most part :)!
This is the first event where I delegated more tasks, and although financially it may not be the most sound choice, I HIGHLY recommend it for special events (ie. a cleaning lady, a caterer). But we did take on a lot of tasks ourselves, but with 3 helping hands and months to prep we were happy with the turnout.
Here was our checklist and preparation schedule:
I also created a binder for this event (surprise! surprise!) with tabs for the following:
Having everything in one place (contracts, images, lists, etc.) is super helpful to me and something I REALLY recommend. Plus after your party is complete you have a guide on how to replicate your event!
I also wanted to share some little details that we were proud of!
Place Cards – we searched long and hard for a clever, fun idea on place cards and couldn’t find one we liked! I had read in Lisa Vanderpump’s entertaining book (don’t judge) that she uses little framed photos of her friends for place cards and I thought wouldn’t Polaroids be a fun, contemporary spin on this!? When each guest arrived we had them pose for a quick photo and then we added the image to their seat before dinner. It made for an amazing conversation starter and a great keepsake! (I recommend letting guests grab a cocktail or two before… makes for better pictures 🙂
Personalized Details – I love the idea of a few personalized details at an event and I felt for this party, a modern, metallic monogram would be just the thing. I found a website called Society Social which makes very high quality, custom items and we were excited to grab up the matchboxes and napkins for the party!
Menus: I’m also a huge fan of printed menus. Whether that is a large sign, or individual settings, it makes it much easier than explaining which each course is. I downloaded a fun font via DaFont.com and printed the menu on some gorgeous, heavy stock. I cut it down to plate size and used it as part of our table setting.
Menus: I’m also a huge fan of printed menus. Whether that is a large sign, or individual settings, it makes it much easier than explaining which each course is. I downloaded a fun font via DaFont.com and printed the menu on some gorgeous, heavy stock. I cut it down to plate size and used it as part of our table setting.
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Flowers: I will go to my grave repping Costco flowers… all it requires is a little planning and you will save oodles on gorgeous blooms! For the party I bought 200 white roses, 100 calla lillies and 100 hydrangeas for under $400! I mean you can easily spend $200 for a couple dozen roses at Valentine’s Day! Such a joke. Anyway… You have to order them precisely a week and a half before your event date, but you can pick which date you’d like them delivered in a two day window and once the blooms arrive channel your inner Martha and get to designing. I have been collecting glass vases the past few months, so I made sure to follow my flower prep guide and make arrangements accordingly!
With a little planning, some preparation and a few little details I believe you will have a slam dunk party every time! Entertaining is a love language, and what better way to share the love than going the extra mile? Happy planning!
Although we did hire a chef for our main meal, we wanted to whip up a few appetizers for when our guests arrive. When planning an event like this – dishes that you can prep ahead of time are critical. Also hot dishes are really a challenge to serve at an appropriate temperature, so we went with a fresh, cold dish approach. Here is what we served:
Endive with Grapes, Walnuts and Blue Cheese
Watermelon Bites with Feta and Mint
Crudites with Green Goddess Dip
A cheese plate is also another great idea, but we typically over indulge on cheese and never get to eating our meal, so we passed based on our lack of willpower. 🙂
