Bridal Tea Party - Decorations

Hello, friends!

Man, am I excited!  I mentioned in my last post that I'm planning to be a lot more intentional with this blog and start to make it a regular habit.  Part of my struggle has been that I wasn't sure what to blog about.  With the way life has been for me lately, I've had to put a halt to some of my creative habits so I didn't think I had much to blog about.  Sometimes all it takes is some focus.  I found a bunch of stuff to share that I haven't gotten around to for the past year.  So I've just planned out the next 18 posts!  I'm excited about making blogging more of a priority and giving you guys some more ideas.

Onward...

As most of you know, my sister was married last July.  Actually, most of my blog posts this year have been about the wedding gift I put together for Kim & Larry, the CHEAP Dates for a Year basket.  Head over and check out some of those ideas if you haven't yet.  I also shared some games with you that I used for her Bachelorette Party, but I guess in all the chaos, I forgot to tell you about the shower that my mom and I threw for her last June.  I can't believe I completely skipped over it, because we put A LOT of work into it, and were both proud of the outcome.

Mom and I wanted to throw a shower for Kim to kind of pull together a bunch of little groups of people and have one big gathering.  It was a way to get a lot of the people together that love her and share in celebrating.  So, we needed something that would sound fun to a variety of people, something that wouldn't be too expensive, and something that would easily fit in most everyone's schedules.  So, we decided on a Bridal Tea Party.  It's traditional, fun, super girly, and cost-conscious enough to feed a large number of people on a weekend afternoon, which most people have available.

Another reason is tied into a few of our family traditions.  I'll get to those in a second.  Like I mentioned, Mom and I put a lot of planning and detail in this shower, so there is no way that I could do a post that includes it all.  At least not one that most of you would read all the way through.  So, I'm breaking it down.  Today, I'll go over the general plan and share some of the decorations and special touches we included.  Later, I'll share four more posts; one for food, one for games and activities for our guests, one for the favors, and one with some tips for all you Maid of Honors out there.  Don't miss them!

DECORATIONS
We wanted this shower to be feminine but not too frilly.  Classic but not "grandma".  Traditional but personalized.  My parents' gorgeous home was the perfect setting because Mom's decorating style is right in line with what we wanted.  The flow of the floor plan and the neutral, classic decor left a lot of ease in the plans for decorating, so we didn't really have to do much.

The first thing we wanted to do was make sure that we had plenty of seating for when Kim opened gifts (we were expecting between 15-30 guests), places for people to sit and chat while sipping on tea and snacking, and different mingling centers.  It's important when you plan a party to provide opportunities for conversation that are natural and comfortable, even for people who don't know each other.  At something as personal as a bridal shower, all guests have something in common so this is pretty simple.

We wanted to include some flowers, but nothing too formal.  Mom had a great wildflower garden to pick from and I have a stunning hydrangea bush at my apartment, so that's all we used.  Use what you have growing in your yard!  It fits right in with your home and most importantly, it's free!

We saw this idea on the ever-helpful Pinterest!  So easy and different.  We just used some wine glasses mom had, put a cluster of wildflowers underneath, and topped with a tea light.  It was the perfect way to spruce up our plate and silverware table.  Mom and I used plastic white tablecloths, but got a couple yards of fabric to match the feel of the shower that we overlaid on top of the white plastic.  This dressed it up a little and pulled it together.

I didn't arrange the hydrangeas that well, just stuck them in a vase on the table.  But I had so much fun making the wildflower jars that hung in the window!

It was really easy but got a great response at the party.  I saw the idea original here.  I had several baby food jars that were sent to my classroom and never used.  My mom had a ton of old ribbon that she got from my grandma which I cut to fit around each jar.  It was as simple as hot gluing them down with a couple dots of hot glue.  Then I used some twine to tie around the lips of the jars and left a long enough tail to hang them over the curtain rod.  I think it's a more dramatic and whimsical to hang them at varying heights.  After they were hung, I used a pitcher of water to fill each jar about halfway, then added a good mixture of wildflowers to each jar.  I wish I had a better picture of them.  We liked them so much, mom kept them up for weeks!

SENTIMENT STATIONS

I know that's a silly title, but I don't know what else to call them.  One of my favorite things that we included in our decorations for this shower were personal items from Kim's past and/or heritage.  I typed up short descriptions for each of them and got frames at the dollar store to display them.  These explain more about why having a tea party was so perfect and fitting for Kim's Bridal Shower.  These also provided the mingling spots I mentioned above.  Once guests spotted a few of these, they talked with others about them and started searching for each one.  

When Kim first asked me to be her Maid of Honor, we spent one night in the pouring rain sitting in my car in the Arby's parking lot near a bridal store where we had stopped to look at bridesmaid dresses.  I'll probably always remember that.  During that conversation, I was asking her all kinds of questions about what kind of showers she wanted, things she wanted incorporated during this special time, etc.  One thing she mentioned was that she would love to have a party similar to one she had when she was younger.  For her birthday one year, mom threw her a tea party and a lady came with all kinds of dress up clothes.  So it was a dress up/tea party.  It was perfect, and definitely something I knew she had to relive as a grown-up before tying the knot!  To tie the conversation and the idea together on the day of the shower, mom pulled out a bunch of old photos of not only the party but other times we dressed up to display.

Phew!  I was still planning on adding more to this post, but realizing I can split the last bit into a whole post on its own.  I don't want to make this too long!  Stick around...I'll tell you more about this special shower soon!

The *Personalized* Red Plate Tradition

If you have been following my Dates for a Year ideas, then you might recall mention of a Red Plate as one of the items suggested for October's "bake a cake" date.  Some of you may have heard of the Red Plate Tradition, and even have it integrated in your family.  This is something I heard about a while back, and you can actually buy an "official" Red Plate to begin the tradition.

Basically, the idea is that the red plate gets to be used by a member of your family on their special day. So, when it is your birthday, you got a good grade, you got a promotion at work, you win a soccer game, etc, you get to feel special by using the red plate!  It's a way to recognize and celebrate special days in your family and a simple, extra way to highlight big events!

I think this is a great gift for a wedding or new baby.  Both are big milestones and a great time to start new traditions.  Since I was my sister's maid of honor and was attending several different showers, I knew I needed a few smaller gifts to bring.  I know I didn't have to, but felt like I should bring a little something to each shower.  I had this in the back of my mind as an idea and thought it would be something cheap and easy to be one of my "little" gifts.  Well, when I saw the price of the "official" Red Plate, I got discouraged.  With a regular price of $39.99, there was no way I could afford that in addition to a nice (larger) wedding gift (which ended up being the Dates for a Year Basket).  However, I still had my heart set on giving a Red Plate and initiating a tradition for Kim & Larry.

So...time to improvise!  Surprisingly, it was VERY cheap and easy to come up with my own version of the Red Plate, and I think, actually better!  I started by heading out in search of a red dinner plate.  It was more difficult than I thought to find a single, plain, red plate.  I finally found one in the discount aisle at Tuesday Morning for a cheap price!  The second thing you need is a glass paint marker that will write on glass, ceramic, etc. and stay permanently.  I used this Pebeo Vitrea 160 marker, that I got from Michael's.  You can get them in almost any color!

Instead of writing on the front, where I was worried the marker might chip or come off, I chose to add some personalization on the back.  This was my first time using a glass marker, and I wasn't sure as far as health and sterilization if it would be okay for a surface where food would be eaten from.  I am a pretty simple person, so I didn't do a whole lot of detail.  Actually, all I did was write "Knox" (their married last name) and Est. 2011 (the year they got married).

I also printed this poem on some card stock and enclosed it with the plate.  Kim LOVED it!  This was so much cheaper than the actual read plate and added a personal touch of personalization.  You could customize it for any couple or family.  Maybe even create a special red plate for each member of the family!  

I hope someone else can use this idea.  Anytime you can save money AND personalize a gift, I think it's the better option!  

Easy Cheesecake Decor

My life is pulling me away from blogging, but hopefully I'll get into some kind of regular rhythm here soon.  For tonight, I've got a quick and easy tip for decorating a cake for any occasion.  My brother's birthday was yesterday.  I asked him what kind of cake he wanted, and he asked for a chocolate cheesecake with raspberry sauce.  So, I found a great recipe for a super easy marble cheesecake.  It was definitely yummy!  The problem is, I'm a cake decorator.  With icing.  Cheesecake and icing don't go too well together.  But, it WAS a birthday cake, so it needed to be festive somehow!  So, here's a simple trick to decorate cheesecake, cakes that won't be complimented with icing, or something to add to a store-bought cake to make it your own.  The best part?  Here's all you need:

Chocolate Chips

Ziploc Bag

Wax Paper

The first thing I did was dump a good amount of chocolate chips into a bowl.  I probably used a cup and a half (maybe a little more).  I microwaved the chocolate for one minute, stirred, and microwaved for one additional minute.  After two minutes in the microwave and some stirring, it was completely melted.  Next, I cut a small tip in the corner of the Ziploc bag and spooned the melted chocolate into the bag.  After you've done that, you're ready!  I laid down a nice size piece of wax paper, and started writing birthday sentiments.  I planned to just do one, but had extra chocolate, so kept going.  I figured the more choices I had, the better.  

This was my first time doing this, so I'll tell you what I've learned.

• Cut a large hole (to match the thickness you want your letters) and write slowly.  I cut a smaller hole, so had to go over my writing a second time, and I didn't quite like the way that looked.  I think if you have a larger hole and write slower, you would get a better result.  
• Make sure all your letters connect for each word.  If you notice, I even connected the "th" after 17 and the exclamation point.  It looks strange and not right when you do it, but it will make sense when it's on the cake. 

So after you've written your sentiments and/or drawn your designs, stick your chocolate in the freezer.  I slid my wax paper onto a cookie sheet to put into the freezer.  I wanted my letters to be flat (my cake wasn't that big), so I used the flat surface of the baking sheet.  You could also place it in a curved bowl or dish if you wanted your chocolate to set that way.  I let my chocolate sit in the freezer overnight plus about 6 hours.  But you're really just looking for the chocolate to be hardened, so it probably would be ready in about an hour.  

I chose my favorite words, and easily peeled them off the wax paper...

...and then just stuck them into the cake!  That's it!  (Please ignore my huge lack of water bath cheesecake crack)

I would change a few things the next time I do this, but I think it turned out alright.  It's different, simple, and still special.

Just imagine all the things you could do!  You could even use white chocolate or almond bark with added food coloring if you wanted to add some color.  I'm excited to incorporate this idea into future cakes and experiment to see what else I can come up with!

First Basket Date!

I told you a few days ago about the dates basket I made as a wedding gift for my sister and brother-in-law.  As promised, I'll be sharing the contents of each month's envelopes so you can use the ideas yourself.  When Kim & Larry got back from their honeymoon, they came back to my parents' house and spent the night so we could catch up and spend some time together.  I knew they'd be hanging out that Monday, so I made one more envelope for their basket so they had one to do immediately.  (Probably selfishly, too...so I can be there for their first and explain how the date cards work).  As I told you before, I included one envelope per month, so this extra date made 13 total dates.


For each envelope, I labeled the outside with different scrapbooking stickers I had in my supplies.  Of course, you could also make labels on the computer in different fonts instead for a cheaper option but still make it cute.  I bet (although I haven't looked) you could even find a set of the month names in clip art or other downloadable images online.  I used the stickers because I had enough variety and supplies to do them all different, but probably would have either made some labels on the computer or written straight on the envelope if I didn't have them.  No need to spend extra money!


So, since Kim & Larry already had an "August" date (stay tuned for that reveal soon), I just labeled this envelope with the exact date of the Monday they'd be at my parents' house.  Inside this envelope were only two items:

• Date Card
• DVD of Kim & Larry's Wedding Reception

Here is the date card that was included in the envelope:  

So as I said, this isn't a date that most of you could or would probably include in your basket.  It took DAYS to take the 4+ hours of video from their reception and edit it down to 2 hours.  I used iMovie to edit and iDVD to format and burn the DVD.  I thought this would be a great way to remember their wedding day and a keepsake for the remainder of their marriage.  If you are giving this as a wedding gift, you could do the same thing for a 13th date or maybe even an album of pictures taken at the wedding.  I'm sure there are a ton of other ideas you have about how to include a "13th envelope" but it's certainly not necessary.  Twelve dates is definitely enough!

Kim & Larry opened their gifts after a long lazy Monday (Kim wasn't feeling too well, either).  Yes, the card did say that it would take place on my parents' "crappy couch"...this is a couch they've had for years and either swallows you or rolls you off when you sit on it.

They were pretty excited to have this keepsake and plan to watch it every year on their anniversary.  

So, this date wasn't super involved, very detailed, or even had a lot of stuff to "do".  It kind of worked out since we were all still getting out of "wedding coma" and Kim wasn't feeling well.  It was a good opportunity for us to take a minute to slow down and take in all that happened together.  Any of you that have been involved in a wedding know that during that night, you are totally absorbed in the moment and running around, dancing, eating cake, and mingling.  Before you know it, it's over!  Watching it back (at least for me) gave me the chance to appreciate it and enjoy it even more.  We had lots of fun watching the video, remembering different moments of the night and seeing things we didn't even know were going on.  There was LOTS of dancing, and I gave them permission to fast forward through some of it.  :o)

There you have it!  Date number 1 of 13 in the Dates for a Year basket!  Stay tuned for the August Date!  Kim & Larry opened the envelope while they were still at mom & dad's last weekend, but I don't want to reveal until they get to go and give me some feedback on whether it was all the fun I think it will be or a flop!  I'm hoping they'll snap a few pics I can share, too.  ;o)