Thursday, April 14, 2011

Bowties & Pearls Dinner Party

{click on the pictures for a larger, more clear image}
Happy Birthday my dear, sweet husband.
Thank you for always taking care of me.
{I was going to break up the party into a few posts but have since decided to bombard the interwebs with the whole kit & caboodle at once}

Here are a ton of pictures of the party!

{Setting the Table}

{puttin' on the ritz}


the boys each received a custom, handmade bowtie

the girls had their choice from a rainbow of handmade hairbow headbands




{the guests}








{the food}fettuccine alfredo with grilled chicken and tomato relish & sauteed summer squashes

rosemary peach lemonade {which was DELICIOUS}
caprese salad

roasted asparagus{let the merriment begin!}



{the sweetest ending}
we sang first for Ryan
then removed a couple candles and sang for Ashley, whose birthday was the day before

surprise!

What I think is most satisfying are all the hours upon hours of work and thought coming together almost just as I imagined. From the 12-15 hours I spent making the chandelier to the day devoted to cooking, each aspect was a do-it-yourself effort that I'm proud of.

I must thank Jane for taking almost all of these pictures while I was scrambling around trying to finish everything {I was running about 30 minutes behind schedule. Of course.}, Casey and Taran for showing up on time and immediately asking what they could do to help, and ESPECIALLY Bobby for helping me with the bowties and cooking and cleaning. There's no way I could have pulled everything together without him playing sous chef. Seriously. He's awesome.

Aaaaannnnndddd a huge thanks for everyone for coming and helping my husband feel special. I'm so glad everyone had a great night!


{Questions about this party or any elements? Ask away!}

23 comments:

Natalie said...

You KILL me Chelsea. I so wish we lived closer so I could mooch off of your amazing DIY abilities. :) LOVE LOVE the bow tie/headband idea! The food and the cake looked fantastic, too! What's the chandelier made of? Did you get a close-up shot of it?

laura said...

A-MAZING!!!!

you blow me away with each new party that you do!

you need to start a party planning business/blog ASAP!!!!

Nichole Christensen said...

You are AMAZING. I am in awe of all of your abilities!!

Anonymous said...

I saw your picture from a friend. You are freakin' awesome! I love your party ideas and I bet your friends all call you Martha Stewart!
Bex

Micah and Melinda said...

You are my hero! One day when I have money I'm flying you out to plan a party!!!

Alyssa Goodnight said...

That. Looks. Awesome!

So adorably clever!

megs said...

You are AMAZING, this is so beautiful... it is like a magazine spread!! Love it!!! So many, many details that put it above and beyond anything I've seen in a while...

Becka Beacham said...

Chels, it was more amazing than your previous post led me to believe. So darling! I love the little boys in the ties. You are so stinkin' amazing.

Annalee said...

Awesome!! I love the chandelier, and I'd love to see how you did it! Do you have pics of it up close?

exclusive_remedy said...

Chels, I agree with megs, it totally looks like a magazine spread. If I didn't know better I would have thought that you just took pics out of a magazine and called them your own - but I DO know better and this is obviously all you! So cool. It looks like it was awesome. I am glad that you were able to let Ry see how loved he is - wish I coulda been there to help make him feel special. Love you both!

April said...

Sister-in-law show down: I win on this one. My sister's sis-in-law has nothing on you. You are CRAZY GOOD.

Erin Skidmore said...

i just died and went to heaven. there had better be some tutorials on the bow ties, head bands, chandelier, and food!!

Chelsea said...

I'd be happy to do a tutorial on those! Probably not the bowties since they were ridiculous to make, but the hairbows were easy.

Erin Skidmore said...

and you look amazing :)

Rob N Amy said...

HOLY COW!!!!!!!!!!! You throw AMAZING parties!!!! I wish I could go to one of your parties. How fun!!! You are so talented! I think I will have to share this on FB if that is o k with you.

Unknown said...

wish i could be partyin w yous! :)

Evie B. said...

For reals? You're my hero - love every inch of that party. And I'm with Erin...anxiously awaiting tutorials. xoxo

Kayla Moncur said...

I hopped over from Party Perfect. I'm super impressed! I love all the details...you did an amazing job!

Kayla
Freckles in April

Moore Minutes said...

Wow! This is just so charming. I love the beautifully simple table setting. BUT my favorite is that garland and chandelier!! Will you share how you made it? I'm your newest follower too. <3

Me said...

Hello! I followed the link from Party Perfect too. What a lovely celebration! I love throwing parties for the children, but I have a 30th looming, and I'm totally stuck, so it was lovely to see your ideas. I love the picture-frame-photos, and the cake looks fab. Looks like you all had a wonderful time :) x

Gingerlylizzy said...

HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLY COW. Dang it. Feeling a little covetous right now. You are IN-CRE-DI-BLE. Wanna plan my b-day?

Carol said...

What a "FUNTASTIC" idea!!!!1 I love it! Looks like everyone else did too :)

ATnell said...

This party WAS amazing! Please plan another one so I can actually be coherent and not still sleep deprived from having a newborn.

It's awesome to see the pictures!