Fall In Love

Patrick and Natalie said "I DO" at the perfect venue on October 20, 2012!

For this perfect couple, finding a unique venue that reflected their love of nature and FALL was important. One afternoon they took a ride through North Georgia and stumbled along The Ruins at Kellum Valley Farm.

The venue was the home of a 19th century school house and dormitory. In 1923 the school and dormitory burned leaving only its stone footprint and large chimneys. These ruins create a one of a kind outdoor venue perfect for a Fall Wedding.
With the history at Kellum Farm, old books seemed a thoughtful choice to add to the centerpieces. Paired with vibrant floral arrangements and vintage candelabras, the centerpieces at their wedding were just as fun as the Happy Couple. Moss tucked in the nooks and crevasses add the "old" feel we were looking for.

 

 

 The best thing about The Ruins at Kellum Valley Farm, besides the breath taking scenery, is their Prop House. With a room full of vintage, unique, and one of a kind  pieces, deciding what to use and where to use it was fun yet challenging. The challenging part is picking out what to use, because one might find themselves wanting to use it all. Upon our first site visit the Bride and I fell in Love with a moss covered table......perfect for cake?

The floral arrangements were a reflection of not only their love of Fall but also they bright and unique personalities. Not wanting your "typical" wedding flowers, a fun assortment of wildflowers seemed the best choice for this bride.  Purple Zinnias, Red Gerber Daises, Trick Dianthus, Montbretia, Blue Thistle, Safflower, Cherry Brandy Roses, Mambo Spray Roses, Safari Sunset Leucadendron, hypericum berries, and sunflowers (with their petal removed) were the perfect combination. For a more natural approach, I placed the arrangements inside Birch Tree bark wrapped vases. Thanks for the help Mom!

 From the sign in to the gifts, vintage furniture and even an old cart....found in the prop house of course..... were used wherever we could think to use them.

With the breathtaking mountain views at Kellum Farm and the unique 19th century school house ruins, Patrick and Natalie were bound to get great PICTURES! Here are a few courtesy of their artistic photographers.... Davy and Lydia.... at JD3 Photography!

 

Oh and did I mention that as of October 20, 2012 Jeremy and I have been married 5 years! What a great way to celebrate 5 years.... with family, at a beautiful location, witnessing the marriage of my cousinS Patrick and NATALIE! I LOVE YOU TWO!

Love Is Sweet

My cousin Patrick is marring one of the sweetest girls I know, Natalie; and I am lucky enough to call her one of my best friends! Parties are always better when thrown for a special friend. As soon as she got engaged, I knew I wanted to host a Kitchen themed shower in honor of Natalie. Lets just say she might need some help in the kitchen, and every good wife needs a set of good recipes to follow.


Like any of my parties it starts with the invitation...

 Since I was told her kitchen colors were going to be blue and orange, my color scheme was set. A simple silverware stamp at the top and a paper band around it were all this invitation needed. Along with their invitation, each guest received a handmade recipe card to place with their gift. These recipe cards would later be used as part of another handmade gift to be given at the shower........Natalie's own one of a kind recipe book!

The table design and decorations for this event we all about the kitchen. The centerpieces for the tables contained the table setting elements for "dinner for two."  They included a stack of recipe books, two plates, two bread and butter plates, two bowls, two cups and saucers, two forks, two napkins, and two vases filled with fresh orange garden roses.

As for the table setting, a collection of salad plates, varying patterns of blue and white napkins, and a simple fork seemed just enough. The three different salad plates used for this shower were all unique in their own way. The  white ceramic plate with the blue an orange design were purchased form my favorite place to purchase plates....Anthropologie, the white set were my wedding china, and the clear were passed down to me by my best friend and grandmother, Iris.

A simple stack of recipe books and coordinating plates were were used as the centerpiece for the food table along with recipe cards for the food labels.  The menu was simple yet filling consisting of  a Spinach and Strawberry Salad with Cider Vinaigrette, Apple Walnut Mixed Green Salad with Maple Vinaigrette, Cucumber and Hummus on Pita, Caprese Skewers, Italian Pasta Salad, Spinach and Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms, and my favorite Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad on croissants.

Now for dessert.... everything white...A menu of Red Velvet Cake, Laura's Lemon Cake, Wedding Cookies, Lemon Meltaways, Mini Key Lime Cheesecakes, Ooey Gooey Bars, and White Chocolate Cover Strawberries.  As for the backdrop, I created a handmade sign cornered with sweet paper flowers... Love is Sweet

Although I am not one for shower games, I knew that my guest of honor was. But of course they had to be kitchen related. As guest arrived to the shower, they were encouraged to peripatetic in our first game. A simple game of how many corks are in the jars OR as we like to call it "How many bottles of wine did we have to drink to get all these corks?"

The next game was a little more chalanging. It was entitled....Spice it Up! Each table recieved a tray of spices labeled 1-14. Each guest wrote down what spice they thought was in each cup. 

The last game was called Tasty Trivia. It was a game of fun kitchen and food related questions. Let's just say Natalie has much to learn about the kitchen.

The last of the festivities was any Bride's favorite.....THE GIFTS. There was no shortage of gifts at this shower. They were practically spilling out the door.  Most of them containing Natalie's new found love,  CHINA!

   

A special thanks to Posh Tot Events for allowing me to host such a fun and special shower in their venue in historic Roswell.

A Party Goes Vintage

Here is another party brought to you by Me and Posh Tot Events !

This time the requested theme was more than I could ever have hoped for......a Vintage Train theme!
It was the perfect opportunity to mix my love of things vintage and elegant into a party.
The most fitting color scheme for this party was  navy, classic vintage lipstick coral, and white/ivory.

 

I started by searching through my beloved grandmother, Iris's, house for things one might take on a  trip aboard a train in the 1920's......Most importantly a suitcase and a satchel, a camera to capture the perfect picture, a dress perfectly paired with a stand of pearls, a pocket watch so that you don't miss the train, and lastly the perfect shade of coral lipstick that could be used for both lips and cheeks.

I used the suitcases wherever I could. Even to  create a "candy shoppe" filled with all vintage sweets. A vintage suitcase was also the ideal choice for holding the train themed water bottles and favors: conductor's kits and train cookies from the talented Yummy Delicious Cookies,

The trackless train might have been the highlight of the party.  Guest were encouraged to board the Ellie Critz Express and travel to different stops placed along the yard. Train Stops included: EC's Candy Shoppe Stop where guest could fill a mini shopping bag with sweet vintage treats, the Posh Paper Shoppe Stop where guest used rubber stamps and crayons to create there own passport/ travel journal, and lastly the Sand Art Cart Stop where guest created their own one of a kind sand art bottles.

 

 The train made its final stop back at "Ellie Critz Railroad Company Depot." To create a  "Depot" feel in the yard, we used a large white tent draped with navy and white handmade flags. To add a touch of elegance, we hung a chandelier in the center. The "Depot" created the perfect space for our seated tables. We decided to set our table formal...using linen napkins, glass goblets, white ceramic plates, and polished silverware. Although our average guest was around the age of four, it seemed most fitting for the theme. In keeping with our color scheme of navy, coral, and white and our Vintage theme, old milk glass bud vases filled with coral roses seemed most fitting.