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It’s no secret that May is one of the busiest months of the year. Between graduations, end of year projects, finals, trips, weddings, recitals, and Mother’s Day, May tends to be jam packed with activity!

Mother’s Day is sneaking up on us a bit earlier this year, so let’s get a jump start on preparing for it now before we get busy with all of the other commitments that are surely on our calendars!

Every mother wants to feel extra loved on this special day, so consider hosting a fun brunch or outdoor lunch for the special mamas in your life! To help inspire your Mother’s Day gathering, I have compiled a few of my favorite tablescapes!

Enjoy!

View More: http://katezimmermanpictures.pass.us/camille-styles-garden-partyCamille Styles

Eatwell 101 Mother's Day TablescapeEat Well 101

Lillian Hope Designs Mother's Day Tablescape Lillian Hope Designs

The TomKat Studio Mothers DayThe TomKat Studio

Sugar and Charm Mother's Day TablescapeSugar and Charm

The Decorista TablescapeThe Decorista

Tory Burch Mother's Day Tablescape Tory Burch

I would love to see all the beautiful tables you set this Mother’s Day! Tag #theeverydayhostess on Instagram for a chance to be featured on our feed!

Happy Mother’s Day!

I am SO SO SO honored and excited to be co-hosting this month’s Yeah! Mama event with Stacy of Maxwell + Gray. We are throwing the absolute cutest Baby Bump Brunch for all expecting mothers in the Dallas area and cannot wait to shower you all with lots of love and goodies!

April Photo Invite (1)

Come join us at Rosanne Beck Studios on April 30th at 11:30am for yummy bites, mocktails, and custom Mommy Swag Bags filled with LOTS of gifts from our favorite vendors!

Hop on over to Maxwell + Gray to RSVP today! We cannot wait to celebrate with all of you!

Featured Vendors:

M Calligraphy | Rosanne Beck Collections | Backyard Bouquet | Beckley & Co.We The Birds MacaronsShop Tee Chic | A la Mum | Fresh BiB | Minor’s Baby Boutique | Loved by Sophia Claire | Loved and Found Box | Ella Celebration | Happily Ever Alva | Half Pint Ink Studio | TableLuxe

Is it just me, or has Easter completely snuck up on us this year?! I feel like I was just celebrating New Year’s Eve, and now I’m rushing around trying to get everything I need to host an Easter brunch! If you’re like me, you may be looking for some last minute inspiration for your family gatherings this weekend, so I have compiled some of my favorite tablescapes. I hope you these inspire you as well! Happy Easter!

Easter Tablescape pizzazPizzazerie

Emily Henderson Easter TableEmily Henderson

Easter tablescape minamalistMinimalisti

Easter_table_decor room for renetRooms for Rent

Easter tablescape FrontgateInspired Living

Easter tablescape dear lilyDear Lillie

easter-69In Part 1 of “Hosting a Tea Party” we talked about our tips and tricks for creating the perfect tea party. Now we are taking it a step further and talking about how we designed our own Alice in Wonderland themed Easter Tea Party!

With Easter right around the corner, it is time to start planning ahead for all of the festivities! A traditional Easter brunch following a morning church service is always a wonderful way to celebrate the holiday with friends and family. However, this year, I decided to put a little spin on our traditional Easter brunch plans and had the wonderful opportunity to collaborate with Holiday Warehouse in Dallas to host the perfectly styled Alice in Wonderland themed Easter Tea Party!

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We hosted our tea party in my friend’s forested backyard retreat, which was the perfect backdrop to create a magical and whimsical atmosphere. We kept the guest list small, and just invited about ten family friends, which was an ideal size for an intimate tea party, but still big enough that the kids could enjoy a festive Easter egg hunt!

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I worked with Holiday Warehouse’s stylist, Nancy, to design this beautiful scape, which came together and absolutely exceeded my expectations! She worked with me to understand my vision and brought in all of the decor needed to create this colorful and playful Wonderland! Decorations are what make a simple gathering into its own little world for your guests, and that it was! These life-sized rabbits, beautiful serving trays, floral arrangements, wreaths, lanterns, and even the beautiful sheep are just a few of the decor pieces from Holiday Warehouse that brought my Alice in Wonderland vision to life.

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If you are not familiar with Holiday Warehouse, go check them out! I worked with them earlier this year to decorate my Christmas tree and thought they mainly sold Christmas decor, but boy was I wrong! They have an incredible selection of products for all holidays and events including Easter, Wedding Season, Summer beach parties, baby showers, and much more! They also have an incredible in-house silk floral department that can design arrangements for anything that you could possibly imagine!

Now, no tea party is complete without the perfect menu! Of course I served a selection of hot teas, but also made a chilled peach iced tea in case one of our guests wanted something more refreshing. Based on the timing of my Easter tea party, I decided to serve a combination of light tea sandwiches, scones, and a few sweet treats. I made three different tea sandwiches including a pimento cheese sandwich, a traditional cucumber tea sandwich, and a chicken salad puff sandwich. easter-99

To cap off the perfect tea party and menu, the creative and talented ladies at The Best Dressed Cookie and We the Birds Macarons provided the most incredible desserts, which took my tea party to the next level!  

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The Best Dressed Cookie made the most adorable decorated Easter cookies, which helped pull the entire theme of the party together! Alason made a combination of Alice in Wonderland themed cookies (Do you see that AMAZING clock with the Rabbit painted on it?! Or the cookie with the stacked tea cups?! SWOON!) Plus she made some adorable decorated Easter egg cookies and tea cups that matched the patterns in my tables perfectly. I am a huge believer in the saying that “It’s all in the details” and theses cookies absolutely prove that! The intricate designs paired with the bright colors were an incredible way to tie together the theme of my tablescape and the holiday, not to mention they were absolutely delicious – I could not get these out of the kiddo’s hands!

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We the Birds Macarons also provided us with these gorgeous macarons! Don’t these mint chocolate chip and raspberry macaroons just look incredible?! I didn’t know it was possible, but I can tell you they tasted even better than they look! I took one bite and could not stop myself! Natalie with We the Birds Macarons is so incredibly talented and she worked with me to make sure the colors correlated with the pink and mint colors in the porcelain tea cups and painted them with edible gold paint to bring in the metallics reflected in the silverware. Her attention to detail is amazing and she can customize any order. No tea party is complete without macarons and these were the perfect addition to our party!

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Thanks to Holiday Warehouse, The Best Dressed Cookie, and We the Birds Macarons, this tea party went off without a hitch. The company was a delight, the food was impeccable, and the decor transformed our backyard into the perfect magical Wonderland that everyone dreams of.

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Tea Party Details:

Styled ByThe Everyday Hostess | Nancy Intrator | Holly Haaf

Food –  Tea Sandwiches: The Everyday Hostess | Macarons: We the Birds Macarons | Cookies: The Best Dressed Cookie

Decor – Floral Arrangements & Easter Decor: Holiday Warehouse |

Tea Cups: Gracie China | Cup of Tea Print: PrettyLovely Prints | Straw Flags: CURLbyJSD | Easter Basket: Target

PhotographyBeckley & CO.

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Spring is finally in the air! What better way to celebrate the start of Spring than with a festive tea party?! Whether you are hosting a shower or birthday party or celebrating Easter, it is the perfect time to gather your friends and family and enjoy some of that gorgeous sunshine with a pot of tea and some sweet treats!

If you’ve never hosted a tea party before, it can be a bit intimidating. There is a sense of formality associated with them that can be a little overwhelming. So! We have provided you with tips and tricks to create the perfect gathering! Without further ado, let’s take a walk through Tea Party Hosting 101.

  1. Choose a Theme

The theme will dictate the formality of your tea party and can easily be tailored to the interests of your guests. Traditional British tea parties are always fun and a bit fancier, but be sure to pay attention to the interests of your guests. If they are younger, a princess theme may be popular. If they like Paris, a French theme would be super cute. The ideas are endless. One of my personal favorite themes is an Alice in Wonderland themed tea party. Even with this theme, you can use bright colors and decorate it with more of a “Mad Hatter” style or you can use black and red and decorate it with the “Queen of Hearts” in mind! Check out how I styled my Alice in Wonderland themed party here!

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Stay tuned for Part 2 of “Hosting a Tea Party” and for how I partnered with Holiday Warehouse to style a magical and whimsical Alice in Wonderland Easter Tea Party!

  1. Choose a Location

The location of your tea party should be dependent on the weather. If it is warm and sunny outside, a garden, terrace, or nearby park is a great choice. However, an indoor tea party in your dining room is also beautiful.

  1. Choose the Date and Time

The time of your tea party is very important, as it will dictate what kind of food you will serve. Low teas are typically held mid-afternoon between meal times, while high teas are traditionally between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.

  1. Choose the Guest List and Send Invitations

Customize your invites to the theme of your party. You can easily make your own, send a digital one through Evite or Paperless Post, or there are some super cute ones you can order through Etsy! I recommend sending your invitations out about 2-3 weeks before your event so you will have a final RSVP count a week in advance for menu planning purposes.

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  1. Plan the Menu 

The menu is very much determined by the time of the event. If you are hosting a “low tea” or mid-afternoon tea, chances are it is between meal times, so less food is needed. A few sweet and savory snacks such as pastries, scones, and tea sandwiches on a three-tiered stand is perfect. Proper etiquette recommends serving the scones first followed by the tea sandwiches and then sweets. High-teas served during meal times usually require more substantial food such as savory hors d’oeuvres like quiche, meat pies, or a light soup or salad.

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I also like to serve a few little desserts such as macarons and decorated cookies. These types of sweets can help emphasize the theme of your event. Be sure to check out Part 2 of “Hosting a Tea Party.” We will share our customized tea party menu plus we will talk about the most delicious macarons from We the Birds Macarons and the beautifully decorated cookies from The Best Dressed Cookie and how they made this Wonderland come to life! 

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One of my favorite ways to spend cold and rainy days like today is curling up on the couch with a big bowl of homemade chili. Since my house is the primary gathering spot for all our friends, my boyfriend and I set up this super cute Chili Bar for them to come and enjoy as well!

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This setup is really easy to throw together last minute. The morning of our Chili Bar party, I whipped up a batch of my favorite chili recipe and let it cook all day on the crockpot then about an hour before our guests came, I made some quick and easy Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins, threw a few baked potatoes in the oven, and a skillet chocolate chip cookie for dessert! A quick and simple menu, but filling and SO delicious!

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Since chili is a pretty casual dish, you don’t need a super elaborate set-up either.  To put together this simple and casual-rustic styled bar, all I did was use some extra burlap as a semi-tablecloth to create texture, used my favorite wooden crates to hold the baked potatoes, beverages, and corn muffins and most importantly add some height to the tablescape,  added a cute “Chili Bar” sign that I downloaded and printed at my house from Etsy and then just placed the chili stockpots on the table for easy serving!

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But seriously, how cute is this sign? This took 5 minutes to purchase, download, and print off of Etsy, but it makes the whole bar look like I put WAYYY more effort into it than I really did. It really is all in the details, my friends!

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Don’t forget to lay out some toppings for the Chili! I just picked out my four favorite condiments and put them in some mason jars for guests to serve out of. Mason jars fit perfectly with the casual-rustic feel I was going for, plus they are easy to clean up! All I had to do to put it away was screw the tops back on and put it in the refrigerator for next time I needed them!

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As for beverages, I just picked up some cute Coca-Cola bottles from the grocery store and served them with paper straws. Once again, super easy and convenient, but looks like we put way more effort into the whole set up than we really did!

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Now sit back and enjoy this chilly afternoon with some tasty chilly and great friends! Enjoy!

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For the full details of the set-up, check out some of our favorite products below!

Decor:

Chili Stockpot: Le Creuset (similar) | Wooden Crates: Amazon

Burlap: Amazon | Chili Bar Sign: SprinkledDesign

Lantern: Amazon | Natural Wood Slabs: Save on Crafts

Food:

Easy Crockpot Chili | Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins

Design:

Styled By: The Everyday Hostess

Photography: Beckley & CO.

When hosting a cocktail party it is always important to prepare appetizers that people can eat with a single hand while mixing and mingling. We are all familiar with that awkward situation when you have a drink in one hand, a small plate and a fork in another, and then a friend comes up to greet you and have to re-situate everything that you are holding just to give a simple hug or handshake! How uncomfortable is that?! I literally hate that situation but find myself in it regularly. 

Therefore, in order to avoid this at my parties, I like to serve easy bite sized appetizers that can easily be served on a napkin, so you don’t have the extra plate to hold on to. Then once your guests have taken their bite, they can easily crumple up their napkin, and voila! A free hand to shake as many hands as they want with!

I recently started including Stonefire naan into my appetizers at cocktail parties. The pre-made flatbread can be found in the bakery or deli section of your local grocery store and tastes absolutely delicious. You can easily use the naan to transform any of your favorite snacks into small flatbread bites for your friends and family. 

I have taken three of my favorite traditional dishes (Cranberry Brie Tarts, Spinach Artichoke Dip, and Caramel Apple Crisp) and put a unique spin on them to make the most delicious and easily “servable” appetizers for any cocktail party! Check out these recipes for my favorite Stonefire cocktail appetizers below!

Cranberry Pecan and Brie Flatbread with a Maple Brown Sugar Glaze

The Everyday Hostess - Cranberry Pecan and Brie Flatbread

Salted Caramel Apple Crisp Flatbread

Salted Caramel Apple Crisp Flatbread Bites - The Everyday Hostess

Spinach Artichoke Flatbread

Spinach Artichoke Dip Flatbread - The Everyday Hostess

These are all so simple to make and are absolute crowd pleasers! So simple that you could easily throw them all together last minute for your NYE bash tomorrow! Once you have made the delectable flatbread, all you have to do is slice it into even bite sized pieces and serve! No longer do your guests have to balance a plate and silverware while trying to mingle at your party!

Check out these perfect cocktail party recipes and include Stonefire in your own soiree, and I can guarantee that your party menu will be an absolute sucess! Plus, once you have tried these recipes, head on over to Stonefire’s website for even more flatbread recipes that you can make from home!

Enjoy!

Cheers! at table w wine

Tablesetting with candles

Family, food, friends and football… This is what truly creates a perfect Thanksgiving!

So, of course, they were all featured in this year’s wonderful Friendsgiving party — which also happened to be festive, fabulous and FUN! 🙂 I hosted a group of friends for a potluck dinner, so they came with some tasty Thanksgiving bites and libations. But, every hostess has a few delicious ideas in mind for her dinners, so I had a small menu laid out in addition to what my guests brought to the table!

Menu:

Turkey || Cranberry Maple Brussels Sprouts

Mashed Potatoes || Spiced Apple Cider Cocktail

Cheers! Sparkling Apple Cider CocktailTurkey Thankgiving Cranberry and Walnut Maple Brussel Sprouts

The fall festivities wouldn’t have been complete without the gorgeous farm table, chairs and place settings provided by my friends at Celebration Event Rental. The silvers, golds and coppers were complemented perfectly by the rich-colored woods in the table and my homemade centerpiece … Swoon. Seriously, y’all.

Fall Party Tablescape

Fall Party Tablescape Decor

Two worlds collided at the fall party I recently hosted at my favorite gift and floral store in Dallas: My favorite shop and some of my favorite girls. The T Shop in Lakewood was generous enough to welcome the Circle Seven Five ladies and me into the shop for a hostess gift-making party!

Circle Seven Five

In case you are not local or have not heard of Circle Seven Five, CSF is an absolutely amazing group of young professional Dallas women founded by the lovely Cassidy in order to help form friendships and a sense of community and belonging amongst a bustling city. If you are in your mid- twenties, you know how incredibly difficult it can be to make new and meaningful friendships, but through fun events at local shops, restaurants, work-out studios, etc., CSF helps to form these types of friendships and connections. I have absolutely loved being a part of this organization, and if you are in Dallas, I highly recommend looking into it! Plus, I got to host this amazing party for the CSF girls!

The T Shop

The T Shop is my absolute favorite local gift and flower shop here in Dallas. Owned by the incredible Lori Trent, she has created the most luxurious and beautiful boutique in Lakewood. If you are looking for a flower arrangement or gift for a party or a florist for your wedding, The T Shop is your place. It is my go-to location for all of my gifting needs, plus her arrangements are absolutely amazing. Lori and her team are so detail-oriented and every bouquet comes out looking like it was styled for a magazine. My mom sent me my first flower arrangement from the T Shop, and I kid you not, I emailed Lori and told her how in love with her flowers I was, and I wanted her to do my wedding one day! Seriously, she is amazing!

 

Circle Seven Five Party Girls
We started the fall festivities with a themed cocktail party, where I served a variety of appetizers and a signature drink. The space didn’t call for a full dinner, but the event was at 6 p.m. on a weeknight, so I didn’t want the CSF ladies to leave hungry! Some of the girls were only acquaintances, so I wanted to make sure there was an assortment of snacks to accompany the libations.

I came up with this tasty and festive menu that was an absolute hit amongst the girls!

Appetizers:  

Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup Shooters ||

Cranberry and Brie Pecan Tarts ||Caprese Bites ||

Pumpkin Gouda Dip || Turkey and Havarti Sandwiches

Sweets:

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes || Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Cocktail:

Sparkling Spiced Apple Cider Cocktail

The CSF ladies enjoyed their drinks and bites while mingling and shopping around the store for fun birthday or hostess gifts. The store owner’s daughter, Kiley, and I then gave a fun presentation to the girls about how to give the perfect hostess gift. We talked all about when gifts are appropriate, what types to give, and how you can personalize it for each hostess.

Football Game Watching Party Tablescape

Game Watching Party TCU Letters

Game Watching Party Set Up

Spinach Artichoke Dip Table Layout

Reese's Peanut Butter Cupcakes and Popcorn Tablescape

Game Watching Party Jenga Set

Game Watching Party Jenga Set Falling

It is finally football season y’all! One of the best times of the year (besides Christmas, of course)! That means weekends filled with tailgates and game watching parties, cheering on your favorite teams and enjoying yummy football snacks!

During a TCU home game weekend, you will find us camping out on Saturday’s near Amon G. Carter Stadium jumping between tailgates and reminiscing with friends. However, away game weekends are a little bit harder to centrally gather all of our friends. Of course, there are always TCU game watching parties at the local bars, but sometimes it is nice to enjoy the game from the comfort of your home with some good friends!

I recently hosted a TCU game watching party at my apartment with about 20 of our friends. Kick off was at 3:45pm, so I had all morning to prepare my favorite game watching appetizers for our guests. Football snacks are the epitome of comfort food, so it is usually pretty easy to find some delicious warm dips, sliders, and nachos that the crowd will love. After a little bit of thought into each of my guest’s taste preferences, I came up with this delicious menu that was an absolute hit!

Menu:
Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers || Spinach Artichoke Dip ||

BBQ Pulled Chicken Sliders || Buffalo Chicken Wonton Cups ||

Buffalo Chicken Nachos || Cinnamon Brown Sugar Popcorn ||

Chocolate Reese’s Peanut Butter Cupcakes || Horned Frog Punch

When hosting a game watching party, I recommend providing 4 to 5 appetizers (I usually divide the size of the party by 3 to determine how many appetizers…so 15 people attending divided by 3 equals 5 appetizers) and asking everyone to bring their favorite snack and beer as well. That way, you know for sure that you have the food handled in case someone forgets, and everyone else’s snacks are bonus! This menu was pretty simple and can be done the day of the party. However, since everything the day of a party takes about 25% longer than expected, I like to prepare as much as I can the night before. This menu is the perfect balance of night before and day of preparation.

I started off the night before making the Chocolate Reese’s Peanut Butter Cupcakes. These can easily be refrigerated in an airtight container overnight, so you don’t have to worry for one minute about them the day of your party! The Spinach Artichoke Dip is also an easy appetizer to make the night before and refrigerate. Then all you have to do is pop it in the oven for about an hour before the party and serve!

As far as the day of goes, I woke up a little early to make the BBQ Pulled Chicken Sliders. These are an absolute breeze because they only take about 5 minutes of preparation and then the crock-pot will take over for the next 6-8 hours. Then all you have to do is assemble and enjoy! The majority of the day of preparation is for the Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers, the Buffalo Chicken Wonton Cups , the Buffalo Chicken Nachos, and the Cinnamon Brown Sugar Popcorn. Each of these appetizers take about 45 minutes of preparation and cooking, so I would recommend starting each of these snacks about 2 hours prior to kick-off.

This menu is absolutely delicious and there is sure to be something that will please everyone!

Shop the Post!

Decor:

 Astroturf Table Runner: Home Depot || TCU Letters: Sprinkle of Confetti ||

Paper Straws: Amazon || Popcorn Boxes: Oriental Trading ||

Cupcake Football Decor: Oriental Trading ||

Menu:
Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers || Spinach Artichoke Dip ||

BBQ Pulled Chicken Sliders || Buffalo Chicken Wonton Cups ||

Buffalo Chicken Nachos || Cinnamon Brown Sugar Popcorn ||

Chocolate Reese’s Peanut Butter Cupcakes || Horned Frog Punch

Photography:

Megan Weaver

Fashion:

Dress: Flirt Boutique || Wedges: Michael Kors