Winter Gathering with a Chili Buffet

For my husband's birthday, my mother-in law hosted a dinner party.  The evening's theme was a winter gathering with a buffet of 3 chili dishes and hearty sides.  

 Chili was served at a warming station full of three different varieties.  Each chili had a label in a white vase with festive winter flowers.

A spinach salad with bacon and hard boiled egg was served to start our meal.

Stacks of colorful plates, soup bowls, and small bowls were displayed by the chili station.  This was a fun way to serve ourselves.

Chili toppings like chives, cilantro, and sour cream were displayed in decorative Nora Fleming serving trays.  No detail was missed.

For dessert she served a gourmet vanilla cake with white chocolate shavings.

Fresh strawberries and heavy cream were served with roasted coffee after dinner.  Isn't this white serving tray with a heart so adorable?  It is part of the Nora Fleming serving collection, which features hand painted "minis" and white platters.

White Bean Chicken Chili with Celery

Spicy No Bean Chili with Turkey

White Bean Chili with Chicken and Corn

Roasted Vegetable Soup

Spinach Salad with Bacon and Egg

Sauteed Purple Cabbage

This party was a hit thanks to the delicious food, beautiful display, and great company.  The hostess truly thought of every little detail.  You should try hosting a winter gathering for your next dinner party.  But if you're next gathering is more formal, consider an elegant dinner party or a mason jar tablescape.

Thanks for stopping by our blog today!  If this post got you hungry for chili, check out Kaylin's vegetarian chili recipe here.

Creative Photo Booth Wedding Ideas

Photo booths are the "it" thing to have at weddings these days.  My guests had a blast in ours at the reception.  To keep your photo booth fresh and unique, coordinate your signs and props with your wedding theme. 

As wedding favors, we gave our guests frames for their photo strips.  You can order picture frames from Amazon for about $1 each.  I printed a thank you note inside of each frame in damask stationary that matched my damask wedding menus and table numbers.

A lot goes on at weddings, so be sure to have signs and an announcement to remind your guests that you have a photo booth.  I designed a simple sign in my wedding fonts so that all the stationary coordinated at my reception.  It was displayed in a clear frame for a modern, minimalistic look.

We ordered a set of handmade props from Etsy for $35 our photo booth.  Since my wedding was very traditional, I thought it would be fun to have mustaches and top hats as props. The Etsy props, combined with boas, big sun glasses, crazy hats, and old costumes, made for great photo strips.  I loved flipping through my album with Kevin the day after our wedding.

If you are having a rustic wedding, consider props like cowboy hats and vintage picture frames.  For a glamorous wedding, try sun glasses and boas.  For a beach wedding, have lays, grass skirts, and Hawaiian shirts.  The possibilities are endless.  Whatever you do, make sure your photo booth reflects your personalities and your personal style.

How to Address Wedding Save the Dates and Invites

Your envelopes can take just as long as your save the dates if you are not prepared.  We collected all of our family and friends addresses through postable.com.  Once we had them, we exported the file and adjusted the addresses to fit the wedding etiquette guidelines we found through online research.  Below are some of the guidelines we found helpful.

1. Write out your guests names in full - no nicknames or initials
2. Address guests by Mr., Mrs., Ms., or their professional titles
3. Spell out all words in an address (e.g., Street instead of St., Post Office Box instead of P.O. Box)
4. Spell out all city and state names (e.g., Washington, District of Columbia)
5. Write out all the words on your return address and include on back of envelope or in upper left corner

To a Single Man or Woman with Guest

If possible, try to find out the guests name prior to sending the invite to make it more personal.  If not, address your friend/family member and add guest

Example:

Ms. Jessica Freedman and Guest

To a Married Couple

If using first names, lead with the female's name.

Example:

Mrs. Jane and Mr. Joshua Smith

To an Unmarried Couple

List the person you are closest to first.  If you are close to both of them, list the female first and follow that by the male.

Example:

Ms. Kaylin Connors and Mr. Phillip Scott

To a Same-Sex Couple

Use the same rules as you would for any other unmarried or married couple as mentioned above.

Example:

Ms. Marisa Miller and Ms. Michelle Smith

To Families

Children under the age of 18 should be included on the invite with the parents.  Children over the age of 18 should receive their own invite

Example: 

Ms. Marie and Mr. Kyle Scott

Daniel, Nathan, and Brittany

I hope this helps you in sending out your invitations or save the dates the proper way.  Do you have any other tips?

Valentine's Day Tea Party

Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and it's a great excuse to call your neighbor or girlfriend over for an afternoon tea.  This heart-themed tea party is simple, pretty, and very festive.

 These mini tea sandwiches are a snap to make.  Mix low fat cream cheese with garlic salt and pepper, then spread on both slices of bread.  Add a slice of turkey and thinly sliced cucumbers.  Cut with a heart shaped cookie cutter.  I used two different sizes to suit anyone's appetite.

Serve the tea sandwiches with mini red velvet cupcakes.  I purchased these cute ones from an upscale market.

 Boil water before your guest arrives.  Then, cut the labels of your tea bags into hearts and display them near your teapot or near your treats. 

Mini cucumber, cream cheese and turkey sandwiches, cut into hearts with cookie cutters

Mini red velvet cupcakes (store bought)

Raspberry tea, cut the teabag label into a heart

Best of luck at your heart-themed tea party!  To have a complete meal, serve heart-shaped pita chips with your tea sandwiches.  If you need a pretty centerpiece, use tea pots or mason jars as vases for a pink flowers. 

Show Stopping Accessories for your Bridesmaids

For my wedding, I wore Nadri crystal chandelier earrings and a coordinating crystal bracelet.  I wanted my bridesmaids to wear similar jewelry, so I gave them Givenchy rhinestone earrings and bracelets as a thank you for being part of my wedding.  They looked stunning in the jewelry, but there are so many other options you can choose from when picking accessories for your bridesmaids.

If you are wearing a bling-tastic necklace, coordinate your girls in statement necklaces too.

 

Another option is to wear statement earrings.  Chandelier earrings look brilliant if all the girls wear their hair up.

A great finishing touch is to have all your girls wear matching statement bracelets.  They don't have to be super sparkly to make an impact.

If you want a truly unique accessory, gift your bridesmaids with statement rings.  They will look fantastic carrying bouquets down the aisle.

Before you complete the look of your bridesmaids, be sure to read these tips for bridesmaid dress shopping. What are your favorite looks?  What are you going to give your bridesmaids?