A Page From My Sketch Book

Sneak peek of a dessert & fruit bar for a Couple Shower celebration.

Holiday Trunk Show

I'm so sorry it's been a hectic few months and posts has come to a halt.  Worry not, as there are many exciting events going on this month, starting with my dear friend Joy of Vintage Joy's Holiday Trunk Show.  But why look at post event photos when you can be in it??  You are totally invited!  Come play with us and meet amazing local designers showcasing their latest.  Bubbly, sweets, and goodies...need I say more?

 I hope to meet all of you in person!  Cheers!

Thoughts X

"Happiness is a butterfly, 

which, when pursued, 

is always just beyond your grasp, 

but which, if you will sit down quietly, 

may alight upon you."

- Nathaniel Hawthorne

Breakfast At Tiffany's

I had the pleasure of custom designing and creating a celebration favor inspired by Breakfast At Tiffany's for a bridal shower this past weekend. Beauuuutiful pearl chokers of Mandarin Jewelry were provided by my dear client as the celebration favor and it was up to me to add some à la soirée flavor. Here's what I came up with; what do you think?

In case you didn't know already, I occasionally cater. In this case, my client's original caterer fell through last minute, and I don't know how I did it in two day's notice, but I am so happy I was able to make it happen for my dear client's party. Taking cues from the Breakfast At Tiffany's theme, I pulled together the color story of black, white, and pink and transformed it into a breakfast/brunch inspired snack bar : )

Thank you for reading : )  

Much love, A

Thoughts IX

"Whatever is rightly done,

 however humble, is noble."

- Sir Henry Royce

Budget Black Tie

By Olivier Cheng of Olivier Cheng Catering and Events (Comments provided by yours truly - à)

From my perspective, the elements of a good black tie are food, service, and decor.

• Food: Good food costs money regardless of the cuisine -- since labor can be costly as the food product itself -- so do just a little less and do not cut back on quality. For example, do three hors d'oeuvres rather than five for cocktails, and add some little bar snacks around: great nuts, homemade potato chips, cheese straws. For dinner, have some fun with the main course. Serve it family style on lazy Susans (Party Rental Ltd. rents great ones). The guests become part of the food experience -- and you save a little money. Rather than a full, blown-out dessert, just do assorted treats on the table.  You can do an interactive ice-cream sundae bar or just a variety of cookies or marshmallows. (Since you will already have a well-decorated dining table, go for a buffet as an alternative dinner presentation. Not only does this take the edge off of a black tie party while promoting interaction between guests, it also cuts cost on staffing.)

• Service: Making the table more communal -- even placing the bottles of wine on there so they become part of the theme -- can help cut back slightly on the staffing. But, that is one area where I would tread gingerly. Service, to me, is key to a successful event. (When service is not an option, consider staffing one bartender in addition to wine on the table. This is a good compromise to providing some service where it's needed most.)

• Decor: My trick is to get a vase that you can see through -- white, black, frosted -- and then go to the flower market on 28th Street for stems that look great just in a bunch. For example, hydrangeas in the summer. Put four heads in a vase, and wow, perfect. Another trick I like is to get Japanese bento boxes or a series of glass vases of different shapes and heights (but small) and fill them with sauces and vegetables, and then place then on a table all together as a composition. Maybe mix in a few flowers -- an orchid or two -- and you have a fantastic food and visual display. (Glass vases make great food vessels. We all have some laying around the house, and it's a easy way to impress your guests AND make do when you run out of containers. Since decor is my realm, I must stress on linen, linen, and linen! Crisp white linens, to be exact. Nothing says black tie elegance more than a beautifully draped tablecloth that act as a blank canvas for everything you place on top of it. Try not to skimp on this.)

Have a beautiful party this weekend!  Much love. 

P.S. Come back next week for some "Breakfast at Tiffany's"-themed bridal shower photos.

Impromptu Garden Party

By Antony Todd, Antony Todd Inc. (Tips provided by yours truly - à)

I just threw a last-minute dinner in Istanbul in the garden of a friend's home.

• Over her large wooden table I ran a piece of "ready-to-go" painter's canvas or cotton duck, and the salvage on both sides has a cool undone, natural look to it. (This one is a great tip. I personally love the rustic feel this creates. You can find very reasonable canvas at Discount Fabric right here in SF.)
•  There were a bunch of cool , tall bud vases in the house, and I placed seven of those along the table and cut light branches and places them in, creating a light green canopy above the eye line. Twenty small votives at the base lit the water. (To go along with the rustic garden theme, here is my vase pick: galvanized canisters from Pottery Barn.)
• I made pitchers of sangria (à la Capri) with inexpensive local dry white table wine. In the morning, I put cherries in the wine and cooled it in the fridge, and before guests arrived, cut white peaches and sprigs of mint. (Here's a great opportunity to create gorgeous eye-candy. Using a super-sized glass pitcher will show off the colors of cut fruits in the wine beautifully.)
• I bought some roasted chickens and placed them in large tureen with pieces of pineapple, tangerine, shallots and celery, then made a sauce of sour cream, honey, garlic and lemon, with toasted almonds thrown on top. (I love the idea of catered entrees; it saves you time to create some easy yet delicious sides like this one! These will go great with the roasted chicken.) 
• I served a salad alongside local cheeses and pots of spicy jam, and for dessert, vanilla ice cream and local wild berries. (Just before you begin serving dinner, pull your vanilla ice cream out of the freezer and let it thaw at room temperature. Vanilla ice cream = frozen creme. Melted vanilla ice cream = make-my-life-so-easy-creme-anglaise. When you're ready for dessert, simply pour it over e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g.  *Ahem, I mean, berries...)

Have a wonderful weekend! XOXO