Blog, Etsy, Parties, Recipes

Styling Harvard: Housewarming Party

Styling Harvard HousewarmingThis past Sunday, we hosted our close family and friends at our “Baby it’s Cold Outside” themed housewarming. We cut it close — Jamie was finishing up little things in the kitchen the morning of the party. We had so.many.issues with our cabinets that we had to push the date back. Twice. We probably should have pushed it back further but I was terrified that it’d be a warm spring day and my whole BICO theme would be irrelevant. Normally I am super organized when it comes to party planning but with all the last minute chaos, my game was off. I didn’t have a chance to snap any pictures ahead of time so I had my sister running around just before the party started taking quick shots. Here’s a look at the food and dècor. Styling Harvard Housewarming

First off, can we just talk about the AMAZING fruit and cheese platter my dad made? It was so gorgeous I almost didn’t want people to touch it! He also made those little cucumber canapes filled with a salmon mousse. I don’t eat salmon but I hear they were out of this world! See those little bacon wrapped crackers of goodness? Those are some of the most delicious things you will ever eat. My dad made them based off of The Pioneer Woman’s recipe. I sure do love that Ree Drummond. Her show always makes my mouth water. My dad made the version with brown sugar instead of parmesan cheese. They’re both good but I much prefer the brown sugar. My dad (also known as my personal caterer) also made the biscotti pictured above (don’t you just love my vintage scale?), a creamy tomato soup, clam chowder, and a winter risotto. He’s so good to me! I made mini grilled cheese sandwiches to go with the soups and my never fail recipe of crock pot meatballs cooked in grape jelly and ketchup. It’s the easiest thing and they’re so yummy. I’ve also made them with kielbasa. All I do is buy a bag of frozen meatballs, a large jar of grape jelly (or 2 smaller jars) and a large bottle of ketchup. Throw everything in and cook on high for a few hours and you’re good to go. Styling Harvard HousewarmingI made the door sign engineer print based off of the invitations I also designed (see sample above) and had it printed at my UPS Store.  I wanted a way to let our guests know to let themselves in but I didn’t want to spend a fortune on a regular poster. Problem solved! I think engineer prints are going to be my new favorite thing. A 16×20 poster for just over $2! How can you beat that? I wanted our guests to learn the history of our neighborhood, what we’ve done in the house so far, and what we have planned for future projects, but I didn’t want to have to repeat myself 50 times. My sister recently went to a housewarming party where her friends created blueprints of the house so guests could explore on their own. I thought it was a great idea, but they’re architects and can do cool stuff like that. Then I thought, “Kate, you’re a marketing maven, do what you do best!”, so I made a brochure! Guests were encouraged to take a brochure and wander around. Everyone who got one said “Of course you would do something like this!”. They know me so well!Styling Harvard HousewarmingI decorated my winter mantle with the party theme in mind. A couple of years ago I scored that vintage sled at a neighbor’s yard sale for FREE! Score of the century! I wanted a huge statement piece for the party and this did the trick. I attached my old figure skates from 1992 – the year I was convinced I was the next Kristi Yamaguchi until I actually got out on the ice. I took a mirror from Dollar Tree and sprayed it with chalkboard spray paint and had my mom do the lettering. I also took some tall glass candles from our wedding, another Dollar Tree score, printed out some free birch clip art online, and wrapped them around the candles. Lastly, the tassel garland is from The Flair Exchange. If you haven’t been to Carmen’s new site, go check it out! I also used some of the confetti she sent me from a giveaway and filled the clear balloons with it. I just LOVE her shop!

Styling Harvard HousewarmingWe set up the office with a TV and DVD player to entertain the kids and give them a space away from all the hot foods and drinks.

Styling Harvard HousewarmingWe turned our soon-to-be guest room into a cute lounge area. We moved all our dining room benches and chairs in there along with some side tables and made little groupings. I love it so much that I haven’t put any of it away yet. It makes me want to open a little cafe in that room so I can always entertain and enjoy its adorableness.  In that room, we had all the desserts set up along with some of the hot drinks. I made a Mexican hot chocolate in the crock pot and some apple cider. We had Irish cream and rum mix ins for anyone who wanted to spice up their drinks. I bought that super cute sign on Etsy from PrintableWisdom. (Note: these pictures were taken post party. Please don’t judge me and the chocolate ring around my crock pot 🙂 )

Jamie’s birthday was last week and I wanted to do something to thank/surprise him for all his hard work. I managed to get everyone together so I could make a little speech and thank everyone individually who had helped us get to where we are today with the house. I had such a nice speech planned out, but when I looked at Jamie, who had no idea what I was doing, my emotions got the best of me and my speech went right out of my head. Everything turned into a big blur but I managed to choke out a quick thank you to my love right before my sister brought out his cake. And yes, it was as delicious as it looks. I ordered a few dozen mini cupcakes for the guests and saved the cake for us after the party. We cut some giant pieces and collapsed on the couch. These pictures have made me realize I talk with my hands WAY too much. The top right is me secretly panicking/trying to keep from turning into a blubbering mess. My favorite is Ben’s face in the bottom right. He was ready to dive face first into that cake. Styling Harvard Housewarming

Jamie and I were so overwhelmed and humbled with the turnout. We have such great friends and family. Huge thank you to everyone who came — we love you!! Beijos!!!!Styling Harvard HousewarmingP.S. Look for the big kitchen reveal this week!!

 

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