{DIY} Pie in a Jar

{image via Paiges of Style}

Lately, I have had an obsession with pies in a jar! I haven't made them yet, but I plan to and just placed an order for these tiny mason jars. The recipes seems easy, just maybe a little time consuming. But so worth it in the end! Take a look at the following DIY Pie in a Jar recipes from some fabulous blogs...

Our Best Bites provides a full tutorial complete with step by step instructions, pictures and a scrumptious basic recipe for any fruit filling.

Green Wedding Shoes shares beautiful photography and a styling idea for the cute pies. They also provide step by step instructions and an easier recipe using store bought pie filling.

Paiges of Style is a favorite blog of mine and I always enjoy her tutorials! Paige shows how easy it is to make pies in a jar and I love the way she packaged the favor!

I'm really looking forward to trying these little goodies out!

Adorable Muslin Favor Bags

{images via Perideau Designs}

I love this simple favor bag idea from Perideau Designs which I spotted over at Hip Hip Hooray. The design is so simple, but still makes a statement!

{Favors} Ice Cream Basket

This is such a cute and creative idea that I found via Keely Thorne Events! Although this was a welcome basket for a wedding, it would be perfect for any ice cream party.

The bride ordered empty Blue Bell Ice Cream gallons with the flavor "Grooms Cake". How cute is that?! Then, they filled each bucket with essentials and snacks for their wedding guests. For a children's party, you could order the gallons in "Birthday Cake" and fill them with games, stickers, custom cookies and any other goodies you want to share with the little party guests.

{images via Keely Thorne Events}

{Real Parties} My Birthday Dinner

A few weeks ago, we celebrated my birthday in a special way! My parents, being the kind and generous people they are, had a private chef and a small staff come to our house and wine and dine us for the evening. I had such a wonderful time spending quality time with some of my closest friends. Of course, being the party planner that I am, I had to try and make the night as memorable as I could for our guests.

The color palette for the party came from my china which is the Queen Victoria pattern by Herend. It is bright and colorful and is filled with intricate flowers and butterflies. My talented friend, Hayley Hardcastle, designed the most gorgeous invitation which she hand wrote for each couple. My best friend, Whitney, asked Hayley to paint the door sign {shown above} as a surprise gift for me! My jaw dropped when I opened the package!

I had so much fun pulling the dinner table together! I wanted to combine modern and traditional touches which I did by using my china, silver and crystal along with modern white vases from Crate & Barrel.

One of my favorite parts of the decor were the pink napkins I purchased from World Market and had monogrammed with our initial.

As our friends sat down, they found a gift at their seat. Each lady received a butterfly frame with a picture of them and their significant other. This also helped direct them to their place.

The guys each received a monogrammed Jon Hart koozie which was wrapped in coordinating pink toile paper. I know, PINK! But I was not about to wrap their gifts in a masculine paper that took away from the table setting. Sorry guys! It's the inside that counts though, right?!

The table was filled with beautiful pink peonies and roses. I was beyond pleased with how the flowers turned out!

Hayley Hardcastle also hand wrote each menu card which served as the place card as well. Each guests name was written in a dark pink pink to give it a fun pop of color.

The guys monogrammed koozies which they found packaged in their seat.

Before we sat down for dinner, we sampled many delicious bites. My favorite had to be the tomato basil soup shots with mini grilled cheese sandwiches!

I changed the specialty drink the day before to Champagne Slushies after I saw this gorgeous photo shoot on Style Me Pretty. The drink was light and refreshing and perfect to start with. On the drink tray that the waiter passed, a card was placed near the glasses so guests could see what was being offered.

Another goodie for my friends to take home! I individually wrapped mini pies from my favorite source, Royer's Round Top Cafe. They are divine!

I tucked bamboo forks {from Garnish} which Hayley embellished with the word, Indulge, inside the ribbon.

It truly was such a memorable celebration for me and I hope my friends had a wonderful time as well. Here is a picture of me and my hubby before everyone arrived...

Ellen Johnson took all of the beautiful photographs and was such a pleasure to work with. Ellen also photographed the clothing swap that I hosted last August.

Party Sources:

* Invitations, menus, specialty drink card & hand painted door sign - Hayley Hardcastle

* Flowers - Whole Foods {Woodway/Jose}

* Pink napkins - World Market

* Gold beaded chargers - A Finer Event

* White, square vases - Crate & Barrel

* Butterfly frames - Z Gallerie

* Jon Hart kozzies - Bering's...stamped at Maidas

* Toile packages - wrapped by Bering's

* Mini pies {chocolate chip, buttermilk & pecan} - Royer's Round Top Cafe

* Bamboo forks - Garnish

* White boxes - Palmer Packaging

* Sheer, pink ribbon - Michael's

* Catering - Abuso Catering

Great Girlie Party Favors!

Melanie from Scout, A Mom's Guide to Stylish Living (whose blog I LOVE & read daily!) is now designing the cutest bows...and you can buy them as party favor packs to match your party theme! This is such a great idea and a very special treat for the young ladies!

The pink and red bows above were made for an Olivia themed birthday and the following bows were created for the ever-so-popular cupcake theme.

Melanie is one stylish and talented momma and I know her bows will sell well! The prices are great and if you order 10 or more, she will throw in a special bow for the birthday girl at no charge!

Visit Melanie HERE or contact her at melbellesbows@gmail.com

A Very Chic Twilight Inspired Wedding

Ok, I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I am a newly crazed Twilight fan. In the past, I rolled my eyes when I heard stories of people reading the LONG novels in hours and standing in ridiculously long lines to see the movies. But alas, I finally saw Twilight and New Moon and I was hooked! I rushed home, borrowed book 3 and 4 and finished them in about a week. Yes, I have turned into one of those people. Anyway...when I stumbled across this gorgeous photo shoot, my jaw dropped. The details and creativity are stunning and I can't believe it was inspired by the wedding in Breaking Dawn (did I just ruin the book for someone?!). I'm so used to seeing gothic Twilight parties and this was very refreshing to see...much more my style.

You cannot see it well on this picture, but the ribbon on the bouquet reads, "so the lion fell in love with the lamb". I feel incredibly cheesy saying this, but how sweet and creative is that?!

Sweet and Saucy contributed to this gorgeous photo shoot and that is where I found the pictures. You have GOT to see their write up on the event. My words will not do it justice. Read on to learn about the details and to see a lot more eye candy which can serve for inspiration for many types of events! I love how the event planners took the iconic apple from the original cover and ran with it in a stylish way...apple place cards, hot apple cider and a painted apple on the cake.