Love & Happiness

This past weekend I had the pleasure of hosting a shower for my best friend. We don't get to see each other very often with her living in Maine and me in Boston so when we do it's always cherished time. I met Allison {the bride to be} freshman year in college and we were fast friends, roommates the following year {and year after that} and pretty much inseparable throughout the wild decade known as our twenties. She is fiercely loyal, non judgmental, hilarious and beautiful inside & out so celebrating her upcoming nuptials has been a very fun and special. Yesterday's shower was no exception. I hosted the event at one of my favorite restaurants in Boston, Bistro Du Midi and went with a full Provence theme to shower the bride with. The color palette was lavender and pale gray with lots of little details. Some photos of the event is below with links to all the resources at the bottom. 

Invitations & all Paper Products - Parkside Prints 

Flowers - Boston Pollen

Cookie Favors - Mayflour Confections 

Lavender Favor Bags  - Six Pence Press

Kraft Bag Labels - The Favor Box

Fresh Lavender Seeds & Stems 

Invitation Frame  

Lavender Dry Soda

Kraft Bags

Lavender LePen

Etsy Love

I love Etsy. I almost always check their lovely little site for hard to find or customizable items before shopping larger retailers. Not only are most shops so grateful for the business, they are so accommodating to make you the customer happy...something that means a lot to me! The coming year has a lot of fun plans in the works and I have been busy favoriting away cute shops to resource for decor, invitations and so much more. A few current favorites are below. 

these mixed print invites are ahhhmazing...I am totally obsessed 

every party has cocktails, therefor a place to put them on is a necessity, these bright colored with gold foil printing napkins are too cute

these diamond pinatas are so cute solo or in a bunch, i love that you can customize them in colors to match whatever palette your special event is sporting

these stylish matches are so fun with their cheeky sayings, a big bowl of them would be fun near candles or in the bathroom

snail mail just got a whole lot cuter with these neon letterpress note cards that suit all different occasions

let the party begin with these hilarious little treat bags to fill with a little hangover kit or recovery snacks for a girls weekend!

***Have a great week & weekend - I am signing off till next Tuesday to spend time with the family over on the West coast. I of course will be sharing snaps of our travels over on Instagram so come say hello over there!***

Let's Party!

Morning friends! I am back in Boston for a few days after an amazing vacation in Nantucket with my love and a week in Connecticut celebrating my nieces birthday and some other special events. Every year I go down to help my sister throw my nieces a birthday party to remember, we always love getting creative and flexing our DIY muscles. The theme this year for Miss Lyla was a casual country fair. There were pony rides, farm animals for petting, concession stands filled with fun snacks, photo booths, games and more. It was such a great time for both the kids and the adults that I thought I would do a little round up of some of my favorite party items to throw your own little celebration!



garland // piñata // coasters // drink mixers // cupcake flags // bowls & forks // party hat // wine tote // drink stirrers // confetti pops // cake platter // sparklers // treat bags

DIY - Tissue Garland

I am so flipping in love with todays DIY brought to you by Becca of Petal Floral Design. I first met this talented New Englander at Blogshop over the winter and again at Cocktails & Conversations and she was a total doll offering to help any of the women in the group as much as she could. I was thrilled to get a present in my inbox while on vacation last week and saw the stunning party decor she had created and gave me the green light to share with all of you! I am completely obsessed with every pretty little detail when it comes to any type of soiree or entertaining and this gorgeous garland is just that. I love that you can customize this garland to match your desired color palette and place wherever you wish. I personally adore how Becca styled the garland in her stylish studio but I think it could also work brilliantly as a ceremony backdrop or even as decor over a dessert or gift table among many other creative places at your special event. Where would you hang this beauty???

Check out all the details on how to make this little lovely for yourself!

MATERIALS USED

 Scissors (I got these amazing babies at Grey's Fabric Shop in the South End)

Heavy-Duty Thread

Tissue Paper

Embroidery Hoop

Sewing Machine

Washi Tape (I get all of mine and so many other goodies from the amazingly brilliant women of Gus & Ruby Letterpress)

STEP ONE

Cut your tissue paper into whatever shape you wish.  I love doing squares, they always look nice, and float beautifully with a breeze.

STEP TWO

Thread your machine and make sure the tension is where you want it to be for your tissue paper to run through, then start sewing your cuttings together, until you have your desired length.

STEP THREE

Tie your garlands to the embroidery hoop.

STEP FOUR

Start taping with washi tape, one piece at a time, until you feel that your garland looks just how you wanted it to look.

then...

STEP FIVE

you're finished, now enjoy!!!

A BIG Thank you to Becca for sharing this amazing design with us. I cannot wait to see what else you have up your sleeve down the road!!!

For the Love of Etsy

Morning friends! I am back again with another installment of "for the love of etsy". A few of my favorite bookmarked items are below ranging from home decor to party pretties. I not only love the idea of supporting a small entrepreneur but also the thrill of finding a unique item that isn't mass produced in the big box stores. It is so rewarding to find something that really adds that special touch to your party or decor in your home that can't be found anywhere else. Do you have any etsy finds worth sharing??? Please do let me know!

Decorating with books is nothing new. I however love that the work of finding perfectly color coordinated batches of vintage books is done for you with this etsy seller. The green beauties below would be so pretty on a well organized book case. 

I love clutches. They are always my go to for a night out. This pale aqua and metallic gold beauty had me weak in the knees the second I laid eyes on it.

You know I love me a cocktail...almost as much as I love a cocktail decoration. The geometric neon adornment below needs to be on my bar cart pronto.

I have a major love affair with beautiful paper goods. These banner labels

for sealing your envelopes is no exception. The best part is you can customize it to coordinate with whatever occasion you like. I personally would order a batch to say "thank you".

All you need is Love. Especially in gold leaf and in an adorable size. I would place these in a child's room on a shelf or use at a wedding on a gift table. 

I have already shared my complete admiration for everything fringed. This piñata decor is no exception. I adore the punchy colors mixed with the metallic gold. It's such a good piece to base an entire soiree around. 

I have been seriously coveting a blog redesign filled with water color details in soft colors. This adorable business card would be a good start.

a neon fiesta

Cindo de Mayo may have come and gone but that doesn't mean you still can't throw a colorful celebration for that special someone or for that upcoming special occasion  I personally am still smitten with the neon trend and especially love it in party decorations. The bright hues are instantly cheerful and uber festive, it just screams lets have some fun! Inspired by my for the love of etsy post I created a style board that is almost entirely available by fabulous etsy sellers. Check out all the neon goodness below and where you can purchase for your next fiesta!

tassel balloon // tassel hello banner // mini pinata // pink heart stickers // "for you" goody bags // neon napkins {more colors available} // fringe spoons // mini succulent planter // cocktail party invitation // rainbow drink pennants // colored drinking glasses // flag cake bunting 

Oh and just for fun, a little neon outfit inspiration too!

dress // sandals {own & love} // bracelet // clutch // earrings 

Want more neon party inspiration, check out some pretty over on pinterest!

for the love of etsy

Its been a while since I have posted some of my favorite etsy finds. The online marketplace is chock full of goodies but if you dont know what you are looking for it can also be completely overwhelming. I usually find myself shopping on here for entertaining items or party decorations when I dont have time to do them myself. Below are a few recent purchases along with other stylish items that have caught my eye that I thought were worth sharing with you all.

Calligraphy treat bags are the perfect little favor for my friends to take home with them after a fun night in. While I am smitten with the ones below, I went with the classic black and white.

Since my J.Crew metal bow key chain was driving my husband insane with its constant clinking against the keys over every single bump on Boston's lovely roads, I decided to replace it with a softer leather tassel in pale gray to coordinate with my purse. 

I adore these petite navy & gold pots. They have a chic nautical feel and would be perfect on a nightstand to hold your jewelry that you dont want too far from your reach. 

This etsy shop has photographer has captured some of my favorite Boston pooches but her talents dont stop with just images of beautiful pups or people. I love her combination of flowers with sketches like this foxy print below. 

We are Boston Strong. Enough said.

Succulents are everything right now. I adore them in every form. Especially how this etsy shop created such a whimsical way to display them. Perfect for a garden wedding or shower. 

I am so not over the neon trend yet, especially in packaging. These little neon tags are a great bright addition to a kraft gift wrap.

I dont have a need for this but couldn't help share this adorable backdrop for a photo-booth  I love the chalkboard look and family details for the less formal photos at your special event. 

Tassels are everywhere in party decor lately. I love them in bright punch colors or soft neutrals. They are pretty on cakes, balloons or as a backdrop to your dessert table. 

I dont know a lot about art but I do know I love anything that has to do with the beach. This Coney Island print is colorful and fun for your bare walls.

Have you found a great etsy vendor that you love???