Watermelon & Feta Salad

This Watermelon & Feta Salad is easy and delicious. 

Ingredients: 1/4th of a watermelon, 1 container of feta cheese, 1 bunch of mint, baby spinach, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinaigrette, lime, salt & pepper. 

Cut the watermelon into small 1/2 inch cubes.  Place it in a strainer and put the strainer over a bowl to catch the extra juice.  Cover with saran wrap and let sit for a  few hours in the refrigerator.


Cut feta into 1/4 inch cubes.  Dice mint. Combine mint and feta in a bowl and toss with a little olive oil and 1/2 a lime juiced.  Olive oil should coat the feta and mint.  Add salt and pepper.  Let "marinate", covered in the refrigerator for a few hours. 


When ready to serve, lay washed and dried spinach in salad bowl.  Drizzle with balsamic vinegar.  Place feta and mint mixture in the center of the bowl.  Spoon watermelon around the outside.  Drizzle vinaigrette over entire salad and serve. 

Summertime Dinner Party

Inspiration for a party can come from anywhere.  We recently hosted a dinner party focused around summer foods.  They are all so full of flavor and color, I really wanted to let the food be the focal point so I set the table with crystal candle sticks and wine glasses, white plates and pale yellow flowers and napkins with yellow, white and green stripes in order to let the bold colors of the dishes stand out.  

It can be easy and affordable to use flowers to decorate your table.  These flowers, alstroemeria, were under $5 for a bouquet which were enough to fill four bud vases.

You don't need to buy vases, either - check this out...It's a Smucker's caramel sauce jar.  It's free and you're recycling - that alone is a reason the throw a party! 

Our menu included: 
Hors D'ouverts: Antipasta Platter (See Inspiration Italia)
~ Great smattering of green and black olives paired with red sliced meats and golden and white cheeses


First Course: Watermelon & Feta Salad (See entry)
~ Nothing says summer like hot pink watermelon


Second Course: 
Black Bean and Corn Salad (See Pic -->)
French Green Beans (Haricoverts) 
Breaded Chicken Cutlets
Buttermilk Biscuits (a tribute to my southern roots!) 
~ Great balance of bright yellow corn and red and green peppers with golden brown fried chicken and bright blanched green beans!




Dessert:
Strawberries
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Brownies
~ The bright berries were refreshing after hot from the oven baked goods!

Centerpieces

Often thoughts of centerpieces lead directly to visions of jumbo-size floral displays.  Don't get be wrong, flowers have their place, but centerpieces can be so much more!  Adding other elements can help your budget, make the table more visually interesting and play into your theme.  

A few things to think about:

• Use Dimension: You can use a variety of items as the focal point of the table.  I really like centerpieces that are multidimensional.  For a buffet, I mix the centerpieces in with the food.  For a seated dinner, I prefer letting the food be the star and using smaller centerpieces that still include unique elements.  Some of my favorites include baskets filled with colorful objects such as fruit or towers of cupcakes.  Here are a few examples.

This was the centerpiece from a recent game night that J and I hosted.  This centerpiece was 100% free, using just the games we had in our closet and some casual candlesticks and candy.   

• Use Light: Candles are a great source of light and are very affordable.  It's also a good idea to have other items on the table that will reflect the light.  Silver or mirrors are some great options.  
• Use Flowers: I love small bud vases placed around the main centerpiece.  You can usually fill them with about two bunches of flowers.  Visually, your guests see flowers, but you're able to create a display that isn't too formal or expensive. 
• Use Food: Food is great in centerpieces in two ways.  I like to use food as a display (ex: a basket of apples or a bowl of lemons) which is just to look at.  I also like to use little dishes of nuts, candy or grapes which look great and can also be eaten by your guests.  Remember: anything on the table might be considered fair game - so wash everything and if you use non-edible items (glue, tape) to create the display, make sure no one eats it.

DIY Party Invitations

While there are many great ready-to-print party invitations, I also love creating my own.  

When John and I were planning our wedding, we decided to have the rehearsal dinner at Mickey Mantle's.  Given John's love of baseball and the New York Yankees, it was a great fit.  Given my love of anything with a theme - I quickly got on board...baseball!   Soon, I had a pretty clear idea of how I wanted to design our invitations.  Of course, we could have had a professional do them, but I like DIY projects and, with our budget in mind, I decided that making the invitations myself was the best solution. 

They got great reviews, cost under $1 per invitation and only took a few hours to make. 

This was the front of the invitation: 

Supplies included:

• 7''x 4.5'' Folded Card
• 2.5'' Round Labels by Avery
• 5'' x 3.25'' Flat Card (in a contrasting color to folded card)
• Envelope to fit Folded Card
• 1'' Round Labels by Avery
• Tickets Custom Printed by Special Event Ticketing (which could definitely be done at home depending on skill and time).  They came with envelopes that I used as well on the inside of the invitation.
• Ink Jet Printer
• Double Sided Tape (it is amazing - buy it in bulk!)

I used the envelopes and labels setting in Microsoft Word to create all of the layouts and make sure that the paper, labels and envelopes printed correctly.  The Avery labels come with great templates and instructions which made printing our initials very easy.  I drew on the red baseball stitching.   I used the double sided tape to attach the flat card and the envelope to the folded card.  The inside ticket included all of the key details about the party.

This was the inside: 

Here is the ticket that was in the inside envelope:

I also used the round labels for the mailing and return addresses.  Hand addressing is certainly a great option, but when you have a lot of invitations to address and time is a factor, labels are a great solution.  I liked that the round labels were a little different than your normal everyday junk mail label and the blue text made them stand out.

Party Invitations

From a small informal pizza party email to engraved wedding invitations there are infinite choices and lots of opportunities to enjoy selecting invitations.  I also use my party invitations to help set the tone for the celebration.  

First question to ask yourself: How formal is the event?  

Just a few friends for dinner, poker night, book club...you can send an email.   

I will sometimes change the font or add color or a fun image - just to brighten up the email, but for these parties all you need to do is explain the 5 Ws - who, what, when, where and why (if you really need a reason!)

Evites are great for slightly more formal parties - such as birthdays and holiday parties.  Also, evites track RSVPs, so they can be a big help if you have a long guest list.  Evites are so popular right now, that I love to make mine a little special by making my evite rhyme or creating a funny quiz as part of the invitation. 

Here’s the text from a recent Evite I sent for a Good Bye Party for a friend headed to Yale School of Management.

I included a picture of a school bus driving away just to play into the “Back to School” theme.

“It’s true!  Carrie’s leaving us and heading to Yale.
So join us at Chelsea Brewing Company to toast her with a pint or two of ale.
Soon she will be a finance maven,
Enjoying the academics and live in New Haven.
We wish he well and know y’all do the same.
She won’t be too far away – just a ride on the Metro North train!"

If you're looking for something a little more special than Evite, sites like Paperless Post are very affordable and something new!

Paper invites help send the message that you're having a significant celebration.  They are usually sent for bridal and baby showers, milestone birthdays and weddings.  More traditional hosts (hi mom!) will send paper invites for even less formal events too.  Paper stores like Kate's Paperie and the paper aisle at Michael's Arts & Crafts make it hard to resist the urge to send paper invitations because there are so many unique and adorable DIY options. 

For paper invites you also have a few options.  Creating your own using your computer and printer, purchasing fill-in the blank invitations and having invitations professionally printed or engraved are all great options.   For the most part, budget, time and creativity will determine which options you choose.  See additional posts for ideas about how to make your own invitations at home. 

Photo Place Cards

They might seem archaic, but sometimes place cards are necessary!  As a hostess, I always try to seat our guests so that conversations flow, new connections are made, and those people who shouldn't sit near one another don't!  

 

This place card idea allows you to pre-seat your guests and also adds a fun and colorful element to your table.  (They can be a great conversation starter!)

How to:

• Select a series of photos relevant to the event you're hosting. 
• On the computer or a photo copier, size them to approximately 1 inch wide by 2.5 inches high. 
• Print images and trim as close to the image as possible.
• Use double sided stick tape to secure image to place card (use pre-made folded place cards or you can make your own)

  

 Some image ideas include: 

• Pictures of the guest of honor in various phases of his/her life
• Pictures related to the party theme
• Pictures of guests

Teapot Centerpieces

Wedding Season is here!  It's always hard for me to think of unique bridal shower themes. Here's a great way to decorate the table and send the bride-to-be off with a lovely gift that she will enjoy for years to come.

Simply select a few pretty teapots (you can use a coffee pot or two also). Remove the top of the teapot and fill the teapot with water and fresh flowers.  Bonus if you can select items from the bride-to-be's registry!

I'm loving this brightly colored one from Bed Bath & Beyond.  It will really "pop" on the table. 

 

This antique silver tea pot from Sur La Table, is a little more expensive, but it's so beautiful that it can even be displayed at home when not in use. 

 

  

If you have a lot of tables you can also use large pitchers and creamers like this one from Crate & Barrel so that the bride receives a variety of gifts.