HOME TOUR

Those winter blues getting you down? We just had February school vacation for the kiddos and didn’t do much. We did take the boys skiing for the first time at Wachusett Mountain. It did my mommaheart good to see Cade pick it up and enjoy himself. Here in New England we are buried under a foot of snow and dreaming of warmer days ahead or at least remembering warmer days. This last summer we celebrated a dear friend’s 40th birthday as part of her husband’s three-fold plan to honor her–an intimate date just the two of them, a family celebration and a girlfriend brunch. In the height of COVID, we had it outside in the garden with boxed brunch items and vintage-inspired tablescapes. It was beautiful and small but perfect for the dear friend we were celebrating. I was suppose to tag along with Autumn when she spoke at a conference in Oxford, England. She’s a professor of theology with the biggest heart I know. We had planned a girl’s trip and then everything got cancelled. So I brought out my vintage blue and white plates and plucked ivy from my yard and pretended we were in the English countryside for a blue and white garden party.

DECORATING A TENT

In typical “late summer in New England” fashion we had drenching rain in the forecast. Now the day before was lovely and the day after but party day, not so much. It was 2020 after all. Luckily we were able to borrow some large tents and put them up the day before the party. And I stood there looking at the unsightly metal pieces thinking there must be some way to make this better. I picked up clearance gauzy fabric from Joann’s to create a wall effect in the back to set the table up against and used the extra material to soften the poles.

Once I resigned myself to the tent, I got to work wrapping as much ivy as I could pull out of my yard around the tent’s beams. It didn’t completely mask the metal pieces but it did soften them and add some whimsy. And frankly, the heavy rain held off and the drizzly morning made it feel that much more like a blue and white garden party in England!

FABRIC GARLAND

Many of you watched me make this on Instagram Stores. The fabric garland was an inexpensive, easy and homemade way to add some festivity to the tent. I grabbed several different kinds of fabric and cut them into different widths and lengths. Using fabric glue and a 1/2″ ribbon, I adhered to the ribbon the different pieces of fabric in a random pattern, overlapping pieces to give it a very loose and whimsical feel. This takes some time but the result is always worth it. Whether you’re throwing a party inside or out, garlands make it feel like a party every time.

VINTAGE TABLES

I rented the tablecloths, pearl drop in snow, from La Tavola Linens and the folding chairs and blue goblets from Encore Event Rentals. Everything else I had. The vintage plates were not all matching nor the same size and that added to the loveliness of the tables. If you’re planning a party, sometimes the inexpensive option is buying something, not always renting it. I bought the chargers on clearance from Pier1 years ago for Ruthie’s baby shower for $1.29 each. I throw enough parties to know sometimes you just need to collect some of these pieces to save money in the long run. Which when chargers cost $12 each to rent adds up to a big difference. The white dinner plates are these lovely ones from Potterybarn. The white linen napkins were an Amazon find years ago I got for my sister-in-law’s Harvest party and then I ended up using a striped one.

I made the white and green floral arrangements and used my striped McGee and Co pots. That blue/grey stripe added so much character to the table. These go in and out of stock so you just have to watch for them, also available here. But they are definitely one of the more versatile home decor items I have.

BRUNCH BOXES

These darling Brunch Boxes were the perfect way to be able celebrate a meal with one another while keeping us all safe.  I added a pretty paper liner and ribbon.

All the brunch treats were homemade and I tried to choose the most eco-friendly packaging I could find while still trying to make it pretty. I used these white cardboard boxes to hold the goodies and a pretty piece of printed paper cut to size from The Paper Store. We wrapped the croissant breakfast sandwich in a paper bag and twine, used wooden utensils (similar here), glass jars for the yogurt parfait, the fresh berries in a cardboard container and instead of plastic, used these biodegradable small lidded cups for condiment spreads.

PRETTY TREATS

These beautiful cookies were made by Renee at Pretty Sweet Favor. Cookies are such a lovely part of parties and it is a joy to work with these talented artists. The cake was made by my friend Jocelyn. She’s wonderful! For the beverages we had juices from Pressed Juicery. I have a green juice every day and I love them!

I hope this has helped push those winter blues away! Warmer weather is on the horizon, it will be green again and it will all be ok. Ruthie did a wonderful job capturing this blue and white garden party. I never cease to be amazed by her talented eye.

DETAILS AT A GLANCE

Photography: Ruth Eileen Photography

Calligraphy: Madison Rae Photography

Tablecloths: La Tavola Linen (Pearl Drop in snow)

Bamboo Folding Chairs and Blue Goblets: Encore Event Rentals

Cookies: Pretty Sweet Favor

Cake: Made by a friend, gold numbers here

Beverage Cart: Serena & Lily

Brunch Juice: Pressed Juicery

Vintage Plates: Etsy and Flea Market Finds, similar here and here

My Dress: Anthropologie, similar here and here

Outdoor Table: Clare View Table

Brunch Boxes

Florals: Made by me with the Floral Reserve flowers in these pots