Our Christmas Party!

The Saturday before Christmas we hosted a little party. I attempted to keep things simple, but I then realized my "simple" and others perceptions are not the same! Luckily Oliver knew what I meant, he wasn't shocked by my vision or party prep plans. We prepared lots of appetizers and desserts, setting up the bar cart for wine, bubbly, beer, & a signature cocktail!

Surprisingly even to me, I went for a white and silver theme. I have been really into gold tones so I wanted to switch things up a bit for this party. I decided on winter white with silver and sparkly accents. For flowers I went with hydrangeas & Ranunculus with a bit of holly for green and pops of red. I made several arrangements and had them spread throughout the house. I also took leftover ornaments from the tree and placed them in tall vases filled with greenery to continue to theme throughout the house. The tree had white, silver and grey ornaments with a white tree skirt. My wrapping theme this year was also silver, I went with a shiny silver paper with white snowflake tags.

I placed all the food on the dining table with the leaf in it to extend the space. I used various platters to give the table some height and visual interest. Luckily my registry items played well into this theme as we have the "Roulette" setting from Crate & Barrel. My Mom also recently gave me these beautiful trays she bought in Italy so I used those as well.

For appetizers we made bacon wrapped asparagus, crostinis, homemade pretzel dippers with a bourbon cheese sauce, shrimp cocktail, bacon-onion dip, spinach & artichoke cups, a meat & cheese plate, onion dip with homemade bread to dip. My sister in law made almost all of the desserts which was super helpful. She did a great job! Oliver also made this cinnamon bread wrap which was incredible!

We had so much fun preparing for the party as well as seeing everyone! We played heads up which was a total blast! I think it was a huge success and I look forward to next years party! :) 

NYE Style Guide: The Dress Option

When I was eleven my parents surprised my siblings and I with a trip to Aruba on Christmas morning, we have been taking that trip every year since. In the last few years I haven't been going as often because it can be difficult to get that time off work. There were a few years where I would complain about having to go (I know how crazy that sounds) and not getting to spend NYE with my friends. Looking back I value those memories, being able to ring in the New Year with the people I love most in the world! I am surely missing being there this year, but I will be working so I couldn't go. :(

Regardless of how you celebrate this year you will want to look your best, so here are a few ideas for various settings! I always find I have the most fun when I feel good about how I look and what I am wearing, and of course when I am with people I love & who make me happy!

I love this JCrew chevron dress, I think it is fun and sparkly- perfect for a NYE party! I would pair this with black tights & over sized earrings. It looks like a few other people might be thinking the same thing- it is sold out in most sizes online but I would check your local JCrew store for available sizes!

I love this Express dress, the front is pretty but the back is definitely my favorite part! Even better it is on sale right now for $35!!

I personally can't pull off the crop top trend but this sure makes me wish I could! I love the peek of skin with black and sequins! Another Express find- these are sold as separates so you can mix & match all of the different crop top and skirt styles!

This dress is from the Kate Spade Saturday collection, check it out here. I love this dress, its structured up top but has movement in the skirt. I also love that its on sale using the code SALEAWAY



If dresses aren't your style keep an eye out for my jumpsuit & pant options post to follow! :)

Gift ideas for the 'Hostess with the Mostess'

With the Holiday season rolling in I thought I would share with you some of my favorite ideas for hostess gifts! When I am going to be a guest in someone's home I always try to think of a thoughtful gift they will enjoy receiving. I tend to politely decline when guests offer to bring a dish or dessert to my home. I have many reasons for this but mainly I want my guests to enjoy their time and relax instead of stressing over what they are going to make or bring. I do have an exception to this rule and that is my Aunt who makes a mean butternut squash dish! She makes it every year for Thanksgiving so instead of attempting to recreate it I gladly took her up on her offer to make it for me!

With all that being said, my Mom always taught me you never go anywhere empty handed so I have cultivated a list of staple items I bring to someone's home to thank them for having me!

1. A bottle of their favorite drink- whether it be an aged scotch, or bottle of bubbly I feel it is important to bring something that the Host/ Hostess will enjoy. If they so choose to open said bottle with you it would be lovely, but the intent is that it is primarily something for them to enjoy! Speaking of favorite drinks how cute are this seasonal Chandon bottles?

2. Flowers- know your host on this one, I would never bring flowers to my Mother, she hates them and would likely forget to water them. A dear friend of mine however loves fresh blooms so for her I would certainly find this an appropriate gift. I like to go to Whole Foods or Trader Joes' and pick up some of their loose blooms and arrange them myself. If you want to bring flowers make sure they are already arranged, if you did them yourself or purchased them that way and they are display ready upon arrival.

3. I saw this idea on Pinterest a while back but I absolutely love it! A "Next Morning" box, complete with breakfast items, such as coffee, tea, scones, tea towels & jam.  You could also make a batch of your favorite cookie dough and gift it with instructions for cooking so the hostess can make it on her own time as a little treat! We had a very sweet friend do this for us and I loved the idea! As someone who hosts quite frequently (& loves every minute) waking up the next morning to a messy kitchen is stress inducing, but a beautiful breakfast basket would be the perfect pick me up!

4. A personalized item is always a hit- Etsy is a perfect place for something like this! I received a return address stamp from a friend as a housewarming gift and I love it! Whether it be a cutting board, ornament for their tree or stationary, something with a personal touch shows you planned ahead & thought of the Host!

Regardless of what route you choose to go make sure to drop a "thank you" note in the mail when you leave. Snail mail is a lost art, but is far more meaningful than the "thank you text", which I have without a doubt been guilty of, however I am trying to make a more concerted effort to fix!

Happy Holiday Season!

Holiday Decor- Gold & Creme

 Over the last few months I have been acquiring items for my Thanksgiving table as well as some of the smaller touches which I feel really make the experience. Some of the items I've purchased have been featured on the blog before, the champagne flutes & charger plates both from Target, as well as the Kate Spade table runner. I also had some great luck at Joann's where I found a tree wedge and some branches which I am using to add some height and texture to the table. I have also worked with some amazing Etsy vendors to create custom napkins, coaster, & edible gold sugar!
 

The napkins I had made are beautiful- I absolutely love them! They are from Sincerely Yours Lauren's esty shop. I went with the ivory napkin with gold monogram, I really loved this particular font, Sonnet, I felt it was very elegant but not over the top. I decided to go with the single monogram in place of our couple's monogram because I wanted these to represent our family for many years to come if we do add to it one day! :) Lauren was absolutely fantastic to work with, she was very prompt and patient with her responses to my many questions, and there is no denying the quality of the napkins! Thank you, Lauren! :)

Next were the coasters, I went to Dinglewood Design for these beauties! I loved the scripted "cheers" as well as the polka dot ones. Christy has a great variety in her shop, from wedding invitations to stationary she really makes it all! I will be revisiting soon for some personalized stationary! 

Ruffled Paper made these adorable gold stripped straws! I had similar ones I had purchased from Target last year but they no longer make this color so I was on a hunt that Jessica helped me solve! She also has some great confetti, and decor that I will be purchasing for my next party! I especially love this I love you dearly print!

 Then there was Dell Cove Spices which helped me to fulfill a longtime lust for gold sugar rimmed champagne cocktails! I saw this on Pinterest a while a go and pinned it for the future, and then I found this shop. They have literally every color you could imagine, and they now have flavored sugars, I have a "Christmas Cosmo" I only make after Thanksgiving so I will certainly be ordered the Christmas cocktail sugar! :)

I did a little practice run for some girlfriends the other night! They photograph very differently the photo in the tin was impossible to get good lighting so I wanted to include how great it looks on the glass! 

I am so grateful to all of these vendors for their help in making our first Thanksgiving a memorable & beautiful day! :) Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!