Hosting Thanksgiving this year and looking for those last minute essentials to bring your tablescape to the next level?! We’ve got you covered with some of our favorite table accessories this year!
Thank you to Harry and David for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.
Y’all know I love a luxurious and gourmet dinner party. Nothing makes me more excited than dreaming up a beautiful tablescape, spending hours planning and cultivating the perfect menu and inviting our friends over for an incredible evening.
Sometimes, though, there just isn’t enough time in this busy life to do the shopping and planning needed for a WOW-worthy party – Especially true for Landon and me as we get acquainted with a new city AND with a baby on the way. BUT! This doesn’t need to stop us from hosting the jaw-dropping dinner parties we all love… We may just need to outsource a bit 🙂 ! And that’s where Harry and David comes in.
I recently discovered Harry and David Gourmet when I wanted to host a dinner party for some of our new friends in Denver; however, I honestly didn’t have the energy to put everything together (hello 1st trimester sleepiness). I’ve always been familiar with their annual pear and fruit deliveries but had no idea that Harry and David Gourmet had an inspired collection of thought-fully chosen appetizers, entrees, desserts and wines that are perfectly curated for the well-defined palette and for those who love to host dinner parties… Ummm, hello! I needed this in my life! I wanted to show our guests the full Everyday Hostess experience with a unique theme and ambience. With Harry and David’s ready-to-serve premium gourmet meals and paired sparkling wine, I was set!
Ever since we visited friends in Boston, I’ve been dying to bring that east coast, nautical charm to one of my dinner parties – and this was the perfect excuse! I set my table accordingly with a color palette of red, navy and white and incorporated the cutest lobster plates, starfish, boating rope, and of course this adorable lighthouse candle set as the centerpiece. I ordered two of Harry and David’s ready-to-serve gourmet meals and sparkling wine, and that’s literally all I did for this event. Harry and David did all the rest!
A gourmet charcuterie board is a classy way to open any dinner party, and Harry and David did a masterful job with theirs – pairing Artisan cheeses with salamis and crackers. After some mingling we enjoyed our main event, which was Harry and David’s Gourmet Lobster Truffle Mac and Cheese meal. Y’all, I could rave about this meal for hours. The quality, the presentation, the ease was absolutely superb. And it meshed wonderfully with my theme to boot!
You wouldn’t believe what was included in the Gourmet Lobster Truffle Mac and Cheese! This beautifully crafted meal included Citrus Herb Scallops with a mouthwatering Truffle Lobster Mac and Cheese and the sweetest fresh peach crisp made of ripe peaches and topped with a toffee crumble. Un.be.lieavable.
Harry and David could not have made this dinner party any easier on me. Not only was everything perfectly presented with the scallops displayed in individual sea shells and the Truffle Lobster Mac and Cheese in individual ramekins, everything was already prepared and just needed to be heated for a maximum of 25 minutes. So quick and easy, yet with the seafood coming from Maine, it tasted so fresh as if it had been caught and flown in on the same day. All I had to do was un-package the boxes and set the table, and voilà! A spread made to impress! And did I mention the paired sparkling wine they included with the meal?! No detail was spared.
The party looked like I had been preparing for days and all I had to do was review all of H&D’s gourmet options, click to order, and it showed up on my doorstep fresh and ready to wow in just a matter of days!
It’s the perfect way to host a luxury event with friends and family without getting bogged down in all the details leading up to the evening. I also love the idea of sending these meals to friends and families as gifts or as part of a meal train for someone with an illness or to new parents (no casserole from you!).
Check out their full list of gourmet selections for your next dinner party. It’s sure to impress and you’ll have all your guests asking for your recipes and tricks!
Enjoy!
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We had so much fun this weekend hosting the cutest feminine chic tea party with Tea Forte! As you all know, I drink tea like it’s my job, specifically Tea Forte tea. 4-5 cups is a totally normal day for me, though I’m trying to slow it down quite a bit with this pregnancy.
We had 4 of our Denver besties over for an afternoon of tea, scones, macaroons, and of course lots of laughing and stories. I knew I wanted to serve Tea Forte’s classic black and green tea collections since they host most of my favorite tea flavors, but also the presentations boxes are so beautiful and perfect for this occasion.
I designed the full tablescape around these boxes and used a color palette of blush, sage and gold, complete with a blush gingham tablecloth and spray-painted pumpkins to bring the full look together. With a little help from some of Michael’s florals, faux pumpkins, and spray paint, this look was super easy to pull together and created the perfect feminine flare to our fall tablescape for the girls!
Each guest left with their own Presentation Box to enjoy over the season and share with their loved ones, which was the perfect party favor for our gals who love a little luxury mixed in with their everyday lives!
Check out all the photos below and be sure to check out Tea Forte’s full collection and use code HOSTESS25 for 25% off your order!
We have an exciting announcement! Haaf Party of 3 coming in February!
Landon and I are SO excited to be adding to our little family and can’t wait to welcome our first child in February…on February 29th to be exact! I know there’s only a 5% chance that the baby will be born on its due date, but how cool would a little Leap Year Baby be?!
This first trimester was a little bit of a whirlwind for us both. Landon had to pick up a lot of the household responsibilities (he is a saint!) as I was down for the count dealing with allll day long morning sickness for weeks. The second trimester has been treating us a lot better and we’ve finally learned the gender and have been able to start working on the nursery! If you’ve been following us for a while, you know I’ve made an excessive amount of inspo boards to help me envision the nursery and I can’t wait to share the with you!
As for the gender! We recently had a weekend filled with activities and 2 gender reveal announcements! We had a party with our friends in Dallas and used this baseball announcement and then flew to Denver the next day for an announcement party with all our family! We cannot wait to welcome a little baby BOY to our fam! Check out all the details from our Denver party!
Thank you all for your support! We are so excited about this next chapter!
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Raise your hand if you’re like me and scrambling for the perfect Father’s Day gifts! My dad is impossible to shop for (and father-in-law for that matter) and, of course, I’ve left it to the last minute! To help all of us out I’ve put together the perfect gift guide filled with gifts all from Amazon Prime! Hello 2 day shipping! So technically we have until Thursday to order now!
Happy Shopping!
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Father’s Day is just a couple weeks away and we can’t wait to spoil our dad’s with some fun gifts and a day at the ballpark!
This is my first Father’s Day home in the past 10 years so I’m extra excited to plan some fun events for my dad so we can celebrate in style! And, of course, we need to the perfect gift to accompany it! We’ve put together a gift guide that is sure to have something for every dad. Whether he likes to spend time outdoors and at the grill, loves to travel or needs to revamp the wardrobe, we’ve got you covered! Happy shopping!
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Chic, Sophisticated, Neutral, AND Texas. What more could this Fort Worth turned Denver girl want?! We created this curated look for a Client looking for a neutral and masculine bedroom with a very trendy and styled look. We gave him all the antelope print, because hello who can get enough, and all the repurposed wood with brass finished metal to give it a little industrial flare.
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From a casual tailgate party to a swanky New Year’s Eve soiree, we love putting our personal touch on any event! At the same time, no party discriminates – they can all lead to some serious stress!
And since we probably shouldn’t legally recommend always having a spare bottle of wine at the ready (but like, you should), we’re here with five entertaining and party planning tips and hacks that will make your hosting life easier! The key in my book: Prepare, prepare, prepare…
Let’s get to it!
1. A Few Weeks Out
You can never give yourself too much time to prepare for a party! I prefer to front load all of my preparation in the weeks leading up to the event so that I can enjoy the day of! No matter what, something will pop up day-of that you weren’t expecting (you ran out of ice or one of your ingredients went stale and you need to go back to the store) and the last thing you want to do is have to deal with that plus something else (like trying to select the best floral for your centerpiece) that could have been handled earlier in the preparation process.
The best types of parties are when the hosts are relaxing and enjoying time with their guests, so prepare in advance to help reduce any last-minute stresses!
2. Set up the Night Before
This is my number one party trick and key to success! I always set up as much as I can the night before as if it’s the actual party. So what does this exactly mean?
- Set the table – If you’re hosting a sit down dinner, fully set the table as if someone will be arriving any minute (less the food and drinks, of course). I always have a vision in mind for the tablescape and then find ways to tweak it once I’m actually putting it together. Setting up the night before allows me some extra time to make these small little improvements as I see it coming together.
- Set up Platters – Pull out your platters and serving pieces in advance and label them with Sticky Notes with what will be served on them. Then if you realize you need one more, this gives you more time to find one to borrow or buy. Also, this helps me to ensure that I don’t forget to serve anything on the day of the party! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had numerous appetizers to serve and then just forget one of them on the day-of. Having platters ready with labels helps to remedy this!
- Prep the Meal – Most menu items can’t be made the night before, but they sure can be prepared in advance! For example, if I’m making a chili, I will cut all of the veggies in advance and store them in a plastic bag and refrigerate overnight. The same goes for any dry ingredients. Then all I need to do the next day is mix them together and cook! Gone are the times of hours of chopping on the day of a party!
On the day of the party, make sure you give yourself enough time to complete any final tasks, like doing a final house cleaning or last-minute food and drink preparation. In my opinion, I’d rather start earlier in the day and have an extra hour of free time to finish getting ready or enjoy a glass of wine in the quiet rather than working up until the minute your first guest arrives.
3. It’s all About the Details!
The devil is in the details… and by “the devil,” of course I mean wowing your guests when they walk through your front door or sit down for dinner!
Look, I love channeling my inner Gatsby at a lavish party as much as the next girl, but for one reason or another that kind of grandeur isn’t always realistic. I’ve found that you can make just as much of an impression on partygoers with a shrewd attention to detail as you can by writing a huge check for your event.
From colorful straws to personalized napkins, or coordinated centerpieces and place settings, there are myriad ways to show your attendees that you’ve poured love and care into your party. Some of my favorite detail hacks that go a long way:
- Place cards – I love to incorporate personalization anywhere I possibly can and this usually starts with cute place cards for each guest.
- Printables – Printables are an adorable and very budget-friendly way to add some customization to your party. Whether it’s a cute print for your cocktail bar or labels for each buffet item that corresponds with your party theme, these are the perfect way to add an extra tailored touch to your party.
- Straws and Napkins – These may seem like a small detail, but when your paper straw or napkins perfectly correspond with your party theme, people notice.
4. The Menu
Since he’s probably reading this, I’ll go ahead and say my husband is a GREAT bartender and budding mixologist 😉 But I don’t want him to miss the mixing and mingling at our parties and then blame it on the a, a-a-a, a-al-cohol – even if Jamie Foxx says it’s OK.
So, I like to simplify the drink menu. I always recommend serving beer, wine, and then a signature cocktail that correlates with the party theme. Be sure to choose some crowd-pleasers, especially if you’re getting adventurous with your cocktail – but a signature drink is a great way to make a statement and also allow you (and your husband) to interact with your party guests!
Unless you’re having the party catered, I like to have as many menu items as fresh and homemade as possible; however, a multi-course meal can be difficult to plan and coordinate. Therefore, I like to have a signature and gourmet dish, a couple sides that are delicious but not too time-consuming, and then I’ll add a few pre-made options that I have tweaked to look homemade. For example, I’ll serve a cedar plank salmon with goat cheese mashed potatoes and a caesar salad. All will look homemade, but in reality, I’ll use a bagged caesar salad and then make homemade parmesan crisps to add to the top to make it look like I worked on this salad all day long!
5. Clean Up
Make sure your dishwasher is empty before people arrive. That will make the clean up and end-of-night tear down way easier on you and much fewer dishes will be staring at you from the sink in the morning. Also, try to avoid cleaning while guests are there! Sit back and enjoy and take in every minute with your friends and family. There will be no guest guilt associated with not helping and they will be able to fully enjoy as well!
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If you’ve been following us on Instagram you’ve probably seen many of the interior designs that we’ve been doing for many of our sweet Clients! Interior design has always been a passion of mine and I am so grateful that we’ve been able to assist so many of you with your decor needs through our Etsy Shop!
This black and white master bedroom is one of my favorite designs! We created this for a Client who wanted a sophisticated master bedroom with masculine and bachelor pad look yet still had a designer and curated style. I’m all about patterns these days but this Client wanted a very neutral base that they could change up the patterns and look over the years as styles change. I think this was just the ticket!
We brought in the channels and animal print design in our throw pillows and rug for a very reasonable price so this could easily be switched out with different seasons and styles. And, of course, if you know me, you know I’m all about the metallics so I brought in the brushed brass accents in the dresser, bed side tables, mirror and lamps!
I’m absolutely thrilled with the way this turned out and can’t wait for installation this week! Stay tuned to our Instagram Stories to see the in person look!
We’ve linked everything below so you can shop it directly!
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Huge thank you to Le Grand Courtage for sponsoring this post! All opinions are my own.
Go nuts with your Easter egg hunt, but search no further for the perfect adult Easter basket! The care packages you got from the Easter bunny were a blast when you were a kid, and Easter baskets can still be just as fun for the grown-ups as party favors, hostess gifts or to send to friends and family.
Our Easter basket this year is a date night in a basket for the twenty- or thirty-something hostess, featuring a beautiful bottle of Le Grand Courtage rosé brut! Not only is it the perfect way to either kick off or cap a spring evening in, but the gorgeous pink color and elegant labeling make it a festive centerpiece for our Easter basket! I opted for the full bottle for this basket, but they also have adorable minis that make the perfect addition to any basket! And we can’t enjoy this sparkly number without a classy and festive glass, so we included two champagne flutes for you and your loved one.
