Jan

19

DIY Swaying African Palm Tree

Filed Under Baby Shower Ideas, DIY (Do-It-Yourself!), Lollipop Events | 2 Comments

Don’t throw away your paper grocery bags! Use them to create a forest of pretty paper palms instead. Make an eco-friendly and stunning statement at a baby shower, birthday party or fun fete. We placed our swaying African palm next to the dessert buffet at the Safari Luxe baby shower!

INSTRUCTIONS: Eco friendly & cost effective do-it-yourself paper palm tree

Cut leaf shapes out of used brown paper grocery bags
Crumple up the bags as much as possible to give them a weathered and ‘veiny’ look. Let the kids help with this part!
Spray paint the front and the backs of each leaf with a hi-gloss white paint. The paint won’t cover the crumpled parts giving it the weathered and leafy look you’re after.
Starting with a Styrofoam ball as your base (ours was approx 8” diameter) hot glue the leaves around the ball in layers until you’re tree is a full as you want it to be. We started with the larger leaves around the bottom and went with smaller ones at the top.
Poke a hole on the bottom of the Styrofoam ball to insert your tree base. We used a yucca pole (only $6-$12!!) but any other branch or wooden dowel could work as well.

We would love to see a whole forest of these swaying palm trees created, what a statement that would make!

Jan

18

Inspiration to Creation: Safari Luxe

Filed Under Baby Shower Ideas, Inspiration to Creation, Lollipop Events | 12 Comments

Our main goals when designing a baby shower is to personalize the event, to keep it elegant and refined yet still baby shower appropriate. We like to go a chic route that is more glamorous than cutesy, but that still evokes the feeling of a ‘baby’ shower. (Sidenote: also see this party featured on Hostess with the Mostess.)

Without further ado, we cordially invite you to step into the wild with this Safari Luxe style baby shower. Silver elephants, wooden giraffes, hanging monkeys and white ceramic elephants came out of the wildlife to play!! Inspired by the parents-to-be’s safari honeymoon trip (see our inspiration board), we transformed the rugged feel of the African adventure to the glamorous conglomeration of white animal sculptures, mirrored details and rhinestone elements.

To create the opulent décor style, we conjured the color palette based upon the Safari inspiration, mixing the main colors of tangerine & aqua with cream & white to create an elegant element to the design. Mosquito netting draped over the table, hanging from the center focal point to both sides of the cabana. Instead of using tiebacks for the mosquito netting drape, we filled white lanterns with baby’s breath. For the main floral centerpiece we mixed white flowers with wood branches and cattails, combining the white palette with the rustic natural feel.

Substituting the standard chandelier, we created a custom mobile, which hung over the main tablescape. The mobile glittered in the sun with hand strung crystal beads, rhinestones and wood animals, which hung at different heights.

Custom made linens created a bold look, earth colored twine tied together the utensils, while lavish silver elephants created the luxe feel for this tablescape.

Passports were not needed to enjoy this Safari adventure! Guests ventured to the dessert and catering table, which were styled for a treasured journey. Mosquito netting hung from the center focal point hovering over the catering table, creating a whimsical feel. To play with heights, we overturned tree-like vases and topped them with white platters. Custom catering tags were made to thread the design concept throughout every detail of the décor. Mixing white ceramic elephants with earth tone risers created plush habitat feel.

Jasmine Marie Photography did such an excellent job capturing the details on this African adventure!

For the drink and dessert table, we hung a canvas art installation of birch branches as the backdrop. A combination of mirrors, white ceramics and modern vases created an refined feel, while the hand-made Palm Tree (DIY) shaded the table below it, bringing the wildlife back to the decor. Every guests was reminded of their adventure as they sipped their straw reading, “Sippin’ Safari.

Tomorrow we will post the the DIY instructions on the swaying African Palm Tree we crafted!

Jan

14

Inspiration to Creation: Safari Luxe

Filed Under Baby Shower Ideas, Inspiration to Creation, Lollipop Events | 8 Comments

We were approached to do a baby shower with a ’safari’ theme, because the ‘mommy-to-be’ and her husband had honeymooned in Africa. Rather than going the cliche animal themed baby shower route, we wanted to go with a more luxurious African safari direction. We pulled inspiration from the posh resorts in Africa, particularly the resort pictured below in Sangrita Africa. We added in mirrored elements with white ceramic elephants and cattail arrangements with backdrops of draped mosquito netting.

INTERVIEW WITH OUR CLIENT:

As the hostess for the baby shower, what was your initial vision for the event?
My vision for the event was to have a baby shower that was warm, bright, and friendly and that went with the safari theme that my girlfriend was creating for her little boy’s room.

For your best friend, what was the main element of the baby shower you wanted unique and perfected just for her?
I wanted everything to be perfect for her that’s why I chose the Lolliladies. My best friend had family coming in from Brazil and friends from all around. I wanted it all to be special and it really was.

How did that initial vision evolve when working with the Lolliladies?
Once I gave the ladies a few of my preliminary ideas they just ran off with it which was fun to watch. Being a designer myself I knew how much fun it is to be given some direction and then let loose to bring it all together.

What was your favorite aspect of the design process with the Lolliladies?
My fav part was watching the ideas develop. They were easy to work with and they had endless ideas. They would inspire anyone. I heart create people!

What part of the décor surprised you the most?
Everything! It was gorgeous. The Lolliladies made the Safari theme come to life. Everything was impeccable right down to the food/drink labels and the hanging handmade chandelier. They really transformed the clubhouse.

What was your #1 favorite aspect of the design?
It’s hard to pick one thing but I love the use of space and the materials that they draped from the terrace. It gave it an elegant look. Also all the different textures from the design on the table cloth to the unique flower arrangements.

I must add that the organizing of the set-up, food, drinks and clean-up was fantastic. I was able to enjoy myself at the shower and focus on the important parts…enjoying my guests, a few games, and making sure my mommy-to-be was happy. Thanks Lolliladies for all that you did.

Oh and the cake and donuts were a hit!!!!!!

Always Loving the Lolliladies,
Stephanie Perez

See the photos from the party tomorrow!

Aug

26

SPOTLIGHT ON: Our Favorite Details!

Filed Under Baby Shower Ideas, Birthday Party Ideas, Bridal Shower Ideas, DIY (Do-It-Yourself!), Weddings | 11 Comments

The devil is in the details. Or as we like to say, the design is in the details. What makes a special event so special are the small little touches that really make the event a memorable one. Here we showcase some of our special touches that we have done on some of our crafty tables such as Alice in Wonderlandia, Barnyard Chic & Where does your Eco Garden Grow?

Jun

24

Sweet DIY Tips: B is for Baby Shower

Filed Under Baby Shower Ideas, DIY (Do-It-Yourself!) | 15 Comments

‘B’ is for Baby shower and Baby Boy Baron! We took the ‘b’s to a whole new level with this swanky gender neutral shower that could just as easily be transformed into a ‘B’ridal shower!

_MG_2597edit

The candy buffet and one long table were both nestled under cabanas that were handmade specifically for this event and draped with white cotton muslin for delicate shade. (We can’t wait to reuse these for a night event and cover them with lights!) Both the candy buffet and long table had their own gorgeous ribbon chandeliers swaying from them. Strands of butterflies were draped around the posts for the fanciful effect sure to lure. We had the structures custom built but found a great tip from Sunset on how to build backyard cabanas.

_MG_2631edit

_MG_2776edit

The candy bar also featured an array of yellow and white candy and confections! We even transformed simple white marshmallows by sprinkling them first with a small amount of water then tossing them in a bowl with yellow bakers sugar. Tons of various height apothecary jars were filled with sugarlicious yellow candies and had custom tags (contact us to purchase) draped with yellow ribbons calling out what their delicious bellies held.

_MG_2809edit

To make each place setting special we baked 40 individual coconut cakes topped with mini-handmade marzipan bees set on vintage doilies! We found the DIY for the marzipan bees over at Martha Stewart here. (We made extra bees and placed them all over the darling desserts on the candy bar as well.) To make the coconut cakes we purchased jumbo size muffin tins from Sur La Table and turned them upside down. For the mix we bought the Betty Crocker moist cake mix, added a bit of coconut extract to it and topped it off with whipped cream cheese frosting and shredded coconut. Barefoot Contessa also has a similar mix that can be purchased from Sur La Table.

_MG_2609edit

The gorgeous retro linens featuring a warm yellow, white and grey color palette were the inspiration for the palm springs retro soiree. We found the adorable yellow and grey floral patterned fabric on Etsy and designed custom linens trimmed with bright yellow burlap. To do this we backed the patterned fabric with the yellow burlap allowing a 4″ flange, we simply cut the edges of the burlap instead of sewing them because we wanted to leave a raw edges (this was a big time saver as well). We then created place mats by simply cutting out circles of the burlap and used a 12″ dinner charger as our template!

For the floral chandeliers we started with two sizes of embroidery loops and attached tons of various shades of yellow and white ribbons and yarn through each of them. Then we covered the smaller loop with a thick ribbon to give it some form and hand sewed white carnations around the large top loop. White yarn and wire was used to attach the chandelier to a smaller top circular frame and then to the roof of the frame itself. The more the wind blew and the yarn unraveled at its ends the more charming it became!

Vintage vases and vessels were filled with bright, energetic mums, daisies and exotic sunflowers accented with craspedia balls. We actually found a lot of the retro vases at our local thrift stores for eco-chic entertaining! Baby bottles served as the glasses for the Baby Bottle Bellinis (triple B word!) and proudly wore ‘B’ flags of their own. We even found the baby bottles at the 99 cent store!

_MG_2868edit

_MG_2703edit

_MG_2859edit

_MG_2894edit

_MG_2853edit

Honoring the Big Baby Bump the festive event had accents of Birds, Bees, Butterflies, Balloons and we even served up a cute bowl of bright yellow Bananas! Guests signed the Baby Book, ate at the Baby Bash Bistro and played non- traditional shower games such as Badmitton and Bocce Ball, and before leaving even visited the candy bar to fill up their own Baby Boy Baron Bag of candy. You can also see the shower featured here on Hostess with the Mostess and more pictures on our site below.