This weekend’s party was beautiful to look at, but even more beautiful to be at.
You know, ever since I was a little girl I’ve gotten a bit teary every time a party comes to a close: once the food is eaten and the drinks are drunk and the candles are burning down and everyone’s gone and it’s just me and Kendrick puttering around, picking up discarded glasses and plates and wiping down countertops and floors, I look around and think wait.
Come back.
I miss you.
And Sunday’s garden party at our place – the last party we’ll ever throw here – made me feel like that maybe more than any party I’ve ever had, because it was a celebration of spring…but it was also a goodbye of sorts to the friends who have made up our little East Coast family these past few years. I know we’ll be back, and I know that these people who I love so much will stay a part of our lives, but still:
I miss them. Already.
But it was such a special way to welcome the first beautiful day of the year and to begin our last few weeks in our home: the sun came out (finally), the house was filled with flowers from floor to ceiling, the kids fought dragons in the yard, and I laughed so hard that I cried…even while the party was still in swing.
Since the East Coast weather is still a little questionable this time of year, I brought the outdoors inside and transformed our living room into a beautiful garden inspired by Aromatherapeutic Living brand, Caldrea. The theme of the party centered on my favorite Caldrea scent, Basil Blue Sage.
The Scent
I filled the house with Basil Blue Sage candles – a fresh, elegant scent with basil, sage, thyme and spearmint – so it smelled incredible. (This scent, incidentally, is perrrfect for spring – it’s just exactly what you want your house to smell like when you finally throw open your windows and let the warm air in.) I set the candles on candlesticks of various heights throughout the lower floor of our house, put one in each bathroom, and then gave each of the other rooms in the house a quick spritz with linen spray before our guests arrived.
The Food
Since it was an afternoon party, I kept the food light: toasted country bread topped with mozzarella, pesto, peas and mint (recipe coming up later this week!), and then white buttercream cupcakes with gold sugar beads and faux sage leaves for dessert.
The Drinks
I wanted to serve a classic, easy, light drink, so I made white wine spritzers and threw a couple of frozen melon balls and a sage leaf into each drink to add some light flavor and color.
The Décor
Oh, this was such a fun party to decorate for. You know how I’m always going on about inspiration boards and how much they can help you a) figure out the look you’re going for and b) save you tons of money and time? I’m certain you think I’ve been lying and don’t actually make them myself…but…
PROOF COMIN’ ATCHA.
Ta daaaaaa.
I knew I wanted the décor to be white, sage green and gold with hints of grey-blue, in the spirit of the Basil Blue Sage fragrance, and so I imported the items I already had (a striped futon, garden chairs, gold side tables) into Polyvore and started loading in images of other items that I thought would be pretty. When I arrived at a look that I liked, all I had to do was pick up the pieces I needed (and twenty thousand flowers) and: done.
Additional elements:
– Handmade terrariums that I filled with moss and flowers and used to display my favorite Caldrea products (with silver frames showcasing the product names set nearby);
– Moss carpets dotted with white, green and gold decorative pieces set atop every flat surface I could find;
– Green leaf garlands handmade by my friend Erin;
– Mismatched blue vases filled with green hydrangeas, pale-pink berry branches, purple delphiniums and grass;
– Additional potted greenery everywhere.
– An Astroturf rug. Because while spring has sprung, it has not yet sprung that much. And so: the fake (and yet also very pretty) stuff it was.
The Gifts
Every guest went home with a bucket filled with Caldrea products (a candle, dish soap, hand soap, and hand lotion). Indy helped me put them together (really; it was the first time he’s for-real helped me as opposed to “helping mommy”; a.k.a. “making mommy’s life significantly more difficult while ‘helping’”).
To learn more about this scent and other new releases from Caldrea, head over to their blog; it’s truly stunning and a must-see, with aperitifs, tables cape ideas and more inspired by the different virtual “gardens” that you can unlock.
Caldrea is a sponsor of Ramshackle Glam; as always, my opinions remain my own.
