Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Picked Just for You...A Party

 He picked her...
...and she picked him!
  On this special day, we celebrated an engagement!
I didn't think anyone would want to get too messy or wet bobbin' for apples, so we just put a few in with the drinks!  This vintage metal tub is huge, but perfect for holding ice and drinks!
With apples in mind, I went searching for some inspiration at one of my favorite party blogs, Celebrations at Home, and Chris had a lovely Autumn Engagement Party!  It was perfect for the inspiration I needed to add to my apples!  I just love the 'he picked her' and 'she picked him' theme!  Thanks Chris!  My vintage cart sits at the front door for a welcoming display.
The mum was too large for my basket, so I tucked in some burlap to mask the black container and added some decorative ribbon.
This little display is in front of our shed.  Again, to mask the black container, I tucked in some straw from the yard!
I made several of these little pumpkin candles after seeing them in blog land!  I stacked mine inside some lanterns for the front porch and added some leaves, bark, acorns and moss from the yard.  Click here to see how to make them!
Here is another 'shed' display.
I can't believe my hydrangeas are still blooming...I love the fall colors and added little vases of these all over the house for added color.
This little Diadem collection of songs is over one hundred years old (published in 1909.)  I had it opened to 'A Little Bit of Love.'  Appropriate for the occasion! 
I gave this little book to the bride-to-be as a memento from the shower!
Farmer's Market flowers...lovely!
I pulled this vintage European potato basket from my laundry room to hold the apples.
These candle holders welcomed guest at the entrance to our house.
Mums and more mums!  They add such great color, don't they!  I love this pot that my friend Katie painted!
A little spot by the lake is set for those guests who wander and want to sit outside for a while!  The blankets are just in case it gets too cold!  The minnow bucket is old and perfect for holding flowers.
More hydrangeas add to this display of curly willow, pepper berry, sticks and lights on my porch. 
The little pumpkins hold tea lights and add to the soft glow out on the porch.
I simplified my cider stand for the party!  Simple is good when there is a lot going on!

A bonfire is set up next to the s'mores table for warmth and to roast the marshmallows.  I love a bonfire and I love to be outside!
Who doesn't just love s'mores?  I put out the traditional ingredients of graham crackers, marshmallows, and Hershey bars, but our family favorite is Nutella!  You can spread as much or as little as you like of this yummy hazelnut chocolate spread!
I made up individual bags with the s'mores ingredients.  The treat bags are for holding the warm s'mores, so chocolate doesn't drip everywhere! 
Lucy at Craftberry Bush knew I was preparing for this party, so she sent another site to me with some fresh ideas!  The Ritzy Bee Blog inspired me with this little basket of apples and sign!  Check out Lucy's blog!  She is so delightful and very talented!  Thank you Lucy!
Here is my old farm door/table again!  The chandelier looks so pretty lit at night!  More blankets offer some warmth from the cool October night.
The hors d'oeuvres consisted of roast beef with horseradish and rolls, spinach and artichoke dip, pecan and onion cheese ring with strawberry preserves, spicy buffalo chicken dip, crab cakes, veggies, fruit and various cheeses.  I will provide a few recipes later!
The dessert table offered apple pie (of course!) made from scratch by my mother-in-law.  Other desserts were a 'Congratulations' cake, cookie bars, seven layer chocolate bars, almond joy bars and heath bar dip with apples and cinnamon sticks.  I grabbed this burlap at the Farmer's Exchange to make the table skirt.  I gathered the sides for a fancier look!  In a pinch, it works!
Click here to see more pictures of this pumpkin centerpiece.  It looks like it is about to fall over in this picture!

Here is the happy couple!  We wish you the very best Teresa and David!
~
We had so much fun!  I hope you all enjoyed our party!

With us, the shower was hosted by Rob's youngest brother and his wife and my in-laws.  I could not have done all the food without them!  Also, I borrowed glass punch cups and plates from my friend Jen and additional silverware from my friend Katie.  Jen has a set of 50 cups and plates that belonged to her grandmother and Katie has more silver than she knows what to do with!  They are always so gracious to lend me their special things!  I went shopping at my friend Mary's house and borrowed tables, display pieces and stools.  She and her husband graciously came to help host the party by serving drinks and managing the food.  Rob and I are so thankful for good, good friends!

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83 comments :

Angie@Echoes of Laughter said...

Really lovely party and executed perfectly! I love the theme and the smores basket is picture perfect....terrific idea! I so enjoyed looking at and reading this post!! Angie xo

Gail @ Victorian at Heart said...

Such a creative display of joining Fall with the apples for an engagement shower. I love the pumpkin candleholders. It looked so cozy with the blankets. Congratulations and best wishes to the happy couple.

Kimbra Kasch said...

What a party! And I loved all the photos :) So much fun to live vicariously through the cybersocial gathering

Rachel Noelle Pallas said...

~*~How special!!! You made it so lovely and cozy! ;)thanks for sharing~*Hugs,Rachel~*~

Anonymous said...

aaawww.. Congrats to the happy couple.. so sweet!!

loved your theme.. and the apples and the drinks.. and the vintage stuff.. simply perfect!!

My fav.. are those fairy lights on the twigs.. so wow!! Im going to have to try that one.. :-)

It's me said...

Wauwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.great party !! great pictures!!!...happy day darling............love you......

The Charm of Home said...

This is wonderful! All the vignettes look magazine worthy! Such a very nice party.
Sherry

The Decorative Dreamer said...

I just love it! You really outdid yourself with this one. I love how down to earth elegant your whole setting is with the apple theme. You have shown us so much we could use for all sorts parties. I am totally smitten with the smores table. How fantastic is that? I know I will use that one for our next bonfire. The food looks totally delicious too! I cannot wait for your recipes. You, your friends and family created an excellent affair!

The Decorative Dreamer said...

Oops! Forgot to tell you how gorgeous your hydrangeas are! Mine did not hang on that long this year but have in the past. That's so wonderful they were still around for this party and the colors couldn't have been more perfect!

Margitta said...

You did a great job to create a special ambience for a special occation. I'll keep this post in mind :)

Mid-Atlantic Martha said...

What a wonderful fun and "unstuffy" engagement party. I just love all your ideas!

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

Christie, wow! I have been sitting here taking all this in. You should be a professional party planner if your aren't one. You have such a wonderful talent for such great ways of displaying everything so beautifully. I love nutella, too. I may have to look through all this again. I am sure the couple enjoyed every bit of it.

Jen said...

Beautiful! Love all the apples, especially the "She picked Him", "He picked Her". Great little touch gathering the burlap tablecloth on the sides.

Anonymous said...

I love this!

Erin said...

Christie, I am a big fan of yours, but I am afraid that I may cross into stalking with this post, lol. This is the BEST post with the MOST ideas I have seen in a while. I am so inspired by so many things I see here, it amazes me!

Anonymous said...

Lovely party!! All your vignettes look wonderful.

Kathy

LV said...

I have never been to a party like this. You really went all out on it. I enjoyed it right along with the rest. I would have bobbled for the apples.

Robin@DecoratingTennisGirl said...

This is beautiful. Thanks for tour of this lovely party.

Christa @ Stories of a House said...

What a lovely shower! I wanted to jump through the screen and come over. The vintage touches were perfect. I've tucked away some ideas for the future.

Andrea said...

Gorgeous!! Oh my, what a special party that I'm sure they'll always remember.wow.

a quiet life said...

darling picture of you too, fantastic looking party~

Craftberry Bush said...

WOW Miss....you did such a GREAT job!! The people in your life are lucky to have you...Your pictures show all the love and detail you put into it ! Thanks for the little 'plug'to my blog. I'm so fond of your blog and yourself.
I know that your focus is your family but I think that you need to find a career in event planning, you would be extremely successful ! sending you lots of love,
Lucy

Unknown said...

What a lovely post! I'm crashing the Tablescapes Thursday party by checking out all the lovely entries and yours is devine. I might even be inspired to post my own if I can stop reading and set up a tablescape of my own (and maybe pick up a few followers along the way)! I've followed you, and look forward to more of your posts!
Michelle
www.jamiesoninteriors.com

Chris @ Celebrations At Home said...

Thanks so much for the shout out, Christie. You did a beautiful job and I'm so glad to have offered a bit of inspiration : )

Kristen White said...

WOW! What a great engagement party idea... everything looked amazing!!! Love the monogrammed pumpkin...very clever!
Kristen

Vanessa said...

Oh Christie!!!! I am soooo glad you showed us all of these pictures and I had to scroll up and down a few times just to take it all in! What an absolutely wonderful gift you gave this couple by throwing them such a gorgeous party. Every detail was well thought out and executed and you can tell it was done with love! The burlap tablecloth gathered at the sides??? Perfection! The simplicity of the hydrangeas in that copper pot was amazing and your porch all lit up at night was so beautiful. Well done my friend! :-) Thanks so much for coming back over this morning (or last night?) and telling me about that devotional. I'm going to try and get my hands on it but if I don't, would you mind letting me know what the entry you read was about? And, I am soooooo excited for your little corner shop to get up and running! I hope you will be sharing photos of the process so we can all drool and wish we lived closer so we could come buy everything up!
Christie, you are a blessing to me and I am so thrilled to have your friendship!
Vanessa

Unknown said...

super cute! love it!

Jules said...

Very nice! You did a super job!

Al said...

WOW, that looks like it was quite a party. Everything looked beautiful

Anonymous said...

What a terrific party! It looks delightful! I was excited to see the door/table again, looking great as usual! All the decorations and vignettes were beautiful.
The food looked amazing. Wow. What a wonderful, wonderful party.

Coloradolady said...

What a wonderful party!! Now, I am hungry after seeing all of the goodies! Happy VTT!

Marie-Andrée said...

Wonderful! This is not only Halloween but it is all fall time. Thank you for sharing.
Do you know how to make the other pumkins, the one make with willow (I think it is willow!)? I love them and would be happy to be able to do them.
thank you
mandreel@gmail.com

Amy Kinser said...

This is so great! I love every attention to detail! Beautiful!

Anonymous said...

I am so glad I stumbled upon your blog because my oldest daughter is getting married and next month we are giving her an engagement party. She has picked the same theme picnic and I can't wait to show her your blog with all your great touches and details. You did a great job. I love the apples with "she picked him", how clever.

Hope you don't mind if I steal some of your ideas.

Have a great day.

Handy Man, Crafty Woman said...

How pretty!! You did such a great job.

Lacey said...

Wow! Very beautiful setup!

Olive said...

Your night time shots are lovely and you had a great party!

I Love Pretty Little Things said...

Girl!!! Wow! What a gorgeous shower. So much love put into every detail. Love it!
Joyce

Sandi @the WhistleStop Cafe said...

I love your ideas. We are in wedding mode here~ keep those ideas coming.
another friday's favorite for sure :-)

Vanessa said...

Hey! Just had to come back over and say thanks for linking up to the party this week! :-)
Vanessa

Lisa @ Fern Creek Cottage said...

Once again I am blown away by your creativity, your amazing vignettes and your beautiful photography!!

KarenB said...

Wow! You did a fabulous job. Your details made it. I bet they had such a lovely time and were so thankful.

Gloria said...

What a beautiful party you put together and you have so many lovely things! Congrats to the happy couple!
Best,
Gloria

Sandi~A Cottage Muse said...

Wow...how wonderful! Love the porch shot, looks so inviting!!

Blondie's Journal said...

This was a lovely party! I like the apple theme and how you made it so cozy for the guests to be outside. All of your pictures are magazine worthy, Christie!

Happy Weekend! :-)

XO,
Jane

Yvonne @ StoneGable said...

This is a treasure trove of brilliant and creative ideas! I just kepts saying, Oh, that's wonderful, Oh, that's adorable...".
The happy couple and all of their guests must have been thrilled! You did the most marvelous job!!!!!!
I'm bookmarking this post for future reference!
Yvonne

koralee said...

What adorable ideas...I love everything!

Very creative.

Enjoy your weekend...it's Friday..yahoo!

Decor To Adore said...

What a spooktacularly beautiful post! Congrats to the Happy Couple! Have a Happy Halloween.

Lolly Jane said...

new follower from sassy sites.

love your style. so clean & simple and feels cozy.

Anonymous said...

What an incredible party; everything is so gorgeous!

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

Christie, this is such a perfectly wonderful party, so welcoming and and lovely...I've bookmarked the page! Thanks for sharing it!

Unknown said...

What a fantastic party, bravo!!!
I so loved the little pumpkins in the lantern, I am inspired.
I also love the burlap tablecloth and the way you made it do that at the corners.
Thanks for sharing the party.
Michele

saltbox
treasures
said...

Lovely vignettes and a lovely party! Looks like it was a great event.
~ Julie

GardenOfDaisies said...

What an amazing party! Your decor is wonderful!!!

Everlasting Blooms said...

WHAT an adorable idea! I love the "he picked her" "she picked him" apples..SO cute! :) Everything was so cute..

~ Happy pretty Friday to you!

Sarah @ Sugar Bananas said...

This is just dripping with inspiration! I love your vintage cart. You did a FANTASTIC job! What a lucky bride and groom-to-be. I'd love for you to link it to my 'Sweets This Week' Link Party @ www.sugarbananas.blogspot.com

Deborah Kay at The Paint Splash said...

This was a wonderful party! Love the little pumpkin candles and the apples with the notes are so perfect! Debbie

Vicki said...

Everything is perfect! I love the "he picked her" and "she picked him" theme. Great decor!

bj said...

Absolutely BEAUTIFUL...

Unknown said...

What a lovely party. I so enjoyed your seasonal theme! What a lucky couple :)

Blessings!
Gail

xinex said...

Beautiful vignettets. Love your burlap tablecloth! What a lovely party!.Christine

Terry @ La Bella Vie said...

Oh I so wish I could have cometo this beautiful party, its lovely and you did a great job!
Terry

Barbara said...

This is my kind of party - filled with such special touches but so down to earth at the same time. I love all the apple touches and burlap just adds to that wonderful feel. I especially like the "he picked her" and "she picked him". So fun. Thank you so much for sharing this lovely party with us.

Sarah said...

What a beautiful party setting. Love the burlap table cover. Your "picked just for you" theme for this couple was clever. ~ sarah

Bargain Decorating with Laurie said...

Christie, I knew when I saw the picture on my link up that this was THE party. Everything turned out so pretty. Love the she picked him; he picked her theme, and I love how you carried it through with all of the apple touches. Love how you gathered up that burlap for the cloth. Your porch looks so inviting, and the adirondack chairs by the lake are calling my name. Your flowers all look so pretty. I'm going back to look at all of these photos again. I know the happy couple was thrilled with this party. I'm thrilled that you linked it to Favorite Things Sat. laurie

Entertaining Women said...

She picked him...He picked her....that is a darling idea for a theme for your party. Every detail is perfect...I know that it was a party filled with marvelous memories for everyone. Thank you for sharing all the marvelous details. Cherry Kay

Courtney ~ French Country Cottage said...

Hey there Christie- Every time I come over here I am just in awe of all that you do and how you put it together! It is just amazing! I adore the theme all your beautiful settings and decorations! Love your vignettes and what a fantastic party! Thank you so much for sharing this at Feathered Nest Friday! Love it!! :)

Lynn said...

What a fun idea! It looks like a beautiful time and one I'm sure everyone will remember always:@)

Pattie @ Olla-Podrida said...

I love the mini pumpkins in the lantern. Those lanterns are hugely popular these days. I've seen them filled with all sorts of things. I think I want one...or two...maybe three.

The Tablescaper said...

This looks like an amazing party. There are so many wonderful details - everywhere you look. Love, love, love the theme. There is so much to take in, I must go back and look again.

Thanks so much for being a part of Seasonal Sundays!

- The Tablescaper

Marlis said...

What a wonderful party! wow. I loved looking at all the wonderful things you did. I love the pumpkins in the lantern..

Karena said...

Christie, I am amazed!! Beautiful Beyond!!

Come and see my latest find,.... I would love your thoughts!

Karena
Art by Karena

KayC. said...

Love this idea!!!!

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

So creative. Your decorations are all just gorgeous and your theme for the party is wonderful. Love the she pick and he pick. How perfect is that. Your patio is lovely and all of your tables are displayed beautifully. The buffet table looks amazing and all the food so yummy. So creative and beautiful. Thanks so much for linking to TTT. Hugs, Marty

Chari at Happy To Design said...

Hi Christie...

Ohhh my goodness...what a FABULOUS party!!! My friend, each and every detail of the decor is PERFECT!!! I just loved going through all of your photos...it was like looking through a favorite magazine! Your photography is just as fabulous as the subjects themselves! I just adore the apple theme of the engagement party..."He picked her" and "She picked him"! That's just sooo adorable and sooo clever! The newly engaged couple look so happy and I'm sure that they will always...always remember they're sweet party! Thank you so much for sharing it with us...this was such a treat, Christie!!!

Warmest autumn wishes,
Chari @Happy To Design

deb said...

Unbelieveable!!! Just gorgeous! And all your details, just lovely! Great theme too!
*hugs*Deb

Vintagesouthernlife said...

Lovely party. All of you decorations are gorgeous. I just love the burlap table covering.

Moms Crafty said...

Wow. You have great detail and the "picked" theme with the apples is awesome! Love love the tags! So glad I found your blog and this will go in the catalogs for us! Would love for you to link this to our fall party at momscrafty (dot) com. Thanks! Katie

malia said...

You are a partyscape artist. And so many great ideas. Nutella in s'mores is pure genius. Thanks for inspiring us at A Crafty Soiree and hope you share again tomorrow.

Erin @ The Little Apartment said...

Beautiful. How inviting! I want to steal a cup of hot cider.

Jerri at Simply Sweet Home said...

What a lovely party! I love all your cute decor ideas! Thanks for linking up for Friday Favorites! Hope to see you again this week.

Liz @ the Brambleberry Cottage said...

Christie, everything turned out just beautiful! I loved all the ideas with the apples. I hate that I have all these wonderful apples growing right here in my yard but no time to make pretty displays...yet!

Congrats to the happy couple!

Thanks for linking to my party. It's fun to see what you link up each week.

Liz @ the Brambleberry Cottage
http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com

Moms Crafty said...

Thanks for linking up to our party! Love your blog!

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