Creative Dining {Round 2}

Happy Wednesday! I shared last week a few images from my Creative Dining piece for LPF Mag featuring items solely from your local hardware store. As promised, I'm sharing some more insight into the shoot as well as some tips and tricks for recreating it at home with you today. I want to focus on the items used in the place setting. A great find was acrylic wine glasses on clearance from the summer. I was struggling with what to use for glasses until I found those. Next on the list to be found were plates, napkins, escort cards, and napkin rings. This is where the hunt began and where the tips and tricks jump in…

Tips and Tricks #1: A great option for plates are plant saucers. I used chocolate brown terra cotta ones that worked out fabulous. This was actually an idea from my mom that worked out perfectly. Another option is to use duct cap covers (like I used for a serving piece as seen last week). They are a bit deep but will work just as well.

Tips and Tricks #2: The painting section of the hardware store is your best friend! The napkins are actually cotton painters rags. I picked up a pack of 12 and used them for everything from napkins to decorative covers for the escort cards. Also found in the painters section are flat paint scrapers that make for excellent serving utensils. You can even wrap the base in twine to make it more decorative.

Tips and Tricks #3: The napkin rings are my favorite idea from the whole shoot. I found a medium gauge steel wire (with the screws, nuts, bolts, etc..) and bent it to spell out the word "enjoy". I then cut a 3" piece, bent it into a circle, strung it through the "enjoy" and connected the two ends. All that was left was to put it over the napkin. Another option is to spell out guests names with the wire. 

Tips and Tricks #4: For escort cards, I found cute little succulents in the garden section. From there I wrapped the bottom in 1/4 of the white rag used for a napkin and tied it with twine. I created the first letter of each person's name out of the medium gauge steel wire and attached it to the succulent to sit at each seat. 

Essentially {At Home Entertaining}

Happy Friday! It's the start of the long holiday weekend and I couldn't be more excited. Hopefully you are as excited as I am. Normally right before a holiday, I like to post all sorts of inspiration for it. But today, I wanted to give you my everyday inspiration, my essentials for easy, beautiful, at home entertaining on the fly. The smallest things make the difference here. It's so easy to over look things like your cutting board, wine glasses, vases, napkins, and tablecloths. But, it a cinch, they can be the key elements to stylish entertaining on short notice at home. Here's is my list of essentials for entertaining at home.

Cutting Board: It seems so simple. A devise to chop food on. But, a gorgeous wood one can double as cheese tray or platter for antipasto. What's so wonderful about a lovely wood cutting board is that it not only makes entertaining on the fly nice, but turns weeknight dinners into a party too!

Wine Glasses: Never underestimate the power of nice wine glasses. Proper ones at that. A big bowled glass makes a world of difference in my book and shows guests that you really know how to entertain.

Vases: Assuming you have enough time to hit the grocery store before a get together, flowers add the perfect pop to a table. While grocery store flowers aren't always the best, a magnificent vase can be just the trick. The perfect vase is of medium height, colorful and not to wide at the top.

Napkins: I'm not talking linen napkins, but fun paper cocktail napkins. The key to at home entertaining and entertaining on the fly is ease. Paper napkins may not be your everyday choice but are key. I stock up on them at places like Target and Party City. They always have a fun assortment in different colors and patterns that fit any occasion.

Tablecloths: Throwing a bright, visually interesting tablecloth or runner over your dining table really takes it to the next level without putting forth a ton of effort. The ideal cloth matches the color scheme of your house and has a bit of pattern to it.

Have a safe and celebratory Memorial Day Weekend!

Oh Happy Day!

It's no secret I love birthdays. I believe everybody's birthday should be their biggest celebration of the year, and I fully believe in joining them in their celebration. But, it can be hard when those you love to celebrate with most don't live near you. That's why I came up with the most ingenious "Birthday in a Box". Filled with all the birthday essentials like cake, balloons, streamers, sprinkles, candles and more, this box has everything for your friend or loved one to celebrate their birthday just as if you were there! I'm sending this box to a friend now living all the away across Canada (she's in Alaska...). After many birthdays spent together, I'm hoping this box will bring back all the fun memories we had and remind her that I'm celebrating in spirit right beside her! Here's the run down of what's in the box...

:: Supplies ::
Box Cake
Icing
Sprinkles
Balloons
Streamers
Plates
Napkins
Candles
Bunting
Birthday Hat
Blow Outs

:: Directions ::
Assemble in a box, wrap in tissue, tape the box and mail to a friend!