Friday Favorites

Hey Friday, how you doin?  : )  I'm so happy to see the weekend! Yet another fun one in store for the Bowden's.  Tonight, you guessed it, we grill, although I must admit I have eaten quite the substantial lunch that hubby might, in fact, be the only person dining this evening! Tomorrow, I'll enjoy a much needed hair appointment, picking up my bridesmaid dress from the alteration store for Kim's wedding next weekend, and finishing a few more little errands. Dylan's on yard duty {I did promise, however, to pitch in and help rake those annoying beautiful magnolia leaves in the front yard....urgh!} and then a fun night with our friends!  Appetizers and cocktails at our house for a bit, then on to Little Alley for the best food ever!!!  I can already smell the filet!

Sunday is church at North Point with a new series starting which we can't wait to hear!  Then, I think we'll relax {or try to unless I come up with some project or something, ha!}. 

I do want to get started on a new book that is out called Gone Girl which is a suspense novel and I'm always a sucker for that on the edge of your seat, suspense in books, movies, etc. I'll report back on the novel and if I find it to be as good as the critics say.

Here are my Friday Faves:

1. Cheese Plate Dinner.  I'm sure I've mentioned this before but Dylan and I love having nights of trying different cheeses and nibbly things for dinner.  Especially on weekend nights~usually Sundays.  Well, last weekend we ventured into our favorite store, Roswell Provisions, to pick up some delicious items.  Of course, we always get their freshly baked baguettes and some dipping sauce and some type of meat to go along with the cheeses.  We splurged a bit and also got one of their divine strawberry cupcakes.  Hey, a girl's gotta live, right!



We enjoyed a delish local white cheddar, some peach mango habanero chevre, sausages, baquette cut
into cubes, crackers with black pepper, olives, and three dipping sauces: A balsamic and olive oil mixture, a Roasted Garlic Rosemary dipping sauce we've had for a while from RP {these spices last a long time!}, and finally a creamier Buffalo Chicken and Blue Cheese dip {also from RP}.  All scrumptious!

Instructions are on the package, this one you just mix in to light sour cream and
mayo and stir.  I added more than the 2 Tbs of seasoning because we dig a big kick of flavor!

For this one, just mix in some of the spices with a tbsp of hot water to release the dried herbs fragrance, oils, and flavor and bring it to life.  Then you drizzle in olive oil and give it a stir!  Super easy!

The heavenly strawberry cupcake!!!  We rarely eat sweets but this
pretty little cupcake is so good and moist and not too terribly rich.   I adore strawberries
so the owner gave me three fresh strawberries to go along with the cupcake. MMMM GOOD!!!

2. Unique Color Combos.  I recently completed our guestroom {well all except for finding curtains} and I don't really know where my inspiration came from but I ended up with a color combo of this slate blue-ish gray color for the walls, white bedding with orange {tangerine} and white zebra print pillows and a sky blue additional flower pattern throw pillow.  Sounds strange but it turned out beautifully I think.  Serene enough for guests to enjoy but still pleasantly bright and airy {I think because I limited the paint to only one accent wall}.  The bed frame is a super super old antique bed from my Mama Ruth's house.  I adore it and often think how lucky I am to have received this beautiful piece with so much history. I must walk in this room 2 or 3 times a day when I get home from work to admire the bed and the colors.  I'll have to get a pick of the detailing on the headboard and footboard and post soon.

The sunburst mirror was a huge score from Home Goods and adds
another aesthetically pleasing element, reflection of light and the sparkle it brings to the wall.

The orange and white pillow, another Home Goods find.  $10 a piece, so cheap!
The blue flower pillow from The Painted Monkey in Roswell on Canton Street.

3. Eye Shadow from Ulta in Granite.  This is an eyeshadow I picked up about a month ago during a sale at Ulta and it really is great shadow!  This color works well with my green eyes and helps them to pop!  It looks great when wearing a black dress/shirt or with a crisp white shirt.  A little fancy for day unless you do clear mascara...to me, more night appropriate for a smokey, but not too smokey, eye with a little shimmer.

4.  Trader Joe's Sparkling Lemonade.  I've enjoyed {and posted about} their Sparkling Blood Orange Juice so wanted to give another flavor a shot.  This lemonade is sensational!  Not your run of the mill type lemonade by any means. Its slighly sweet with that kick of sparkle and zing!  I think this would be great to serve at a baby shower or for a kid's birthday party.  I like to have these sparkling juices as a departure from soda's like diet coke and diet sprite.  Those are just not good for you!  So this is my attempt at slowly easing away from those type drinks.

Last week, I curled up on the couch in our living room, sipped on this fabulous lemonade and read all my party planning books!  Pure bliss!  : )

5.  Two Favorite New Blogs.  http://www.brooklynblonde.com/ and http://www.eatsleepwear.com/   Both of these bloggers scream style!!  Love looking at their outfits and ideas.  If you're really girly like me, you'll love it too!  Both have sophisticated yet trendy styles.  And they both frequently sport a high top knot bun!! My fave summer hair style!!! : )

 Hope you have a super wkend!  Of course, I must leave you with pics of our "babies!"

Around the Clock Shower Part II

As promised, here are the rest of the details from the Around the Clock Shower!

The Drinks.  At any party, you want to have plenty different types of drinks for your guests to choose from.  Note: Water is always key at any party whether you use sparkling, flat, tap, or spring water.  Even plain ole clear water can look great if showcased in the right way.  We did water containers in two places, one at the inside drink station {in a clear pitcher with lemons floating atop} and one on an outside drink station {in a pretty glass drink dispenser with lemon and mint}.  Having these said stations are great because it keeps your guests moving throughout the space/house and mingling as they venture from one area to the next.  The flow of any party is very important and this station idea is one sure fire way to accomplish good party circulation. 

In addition to the ever important water choice, we served Merlot and Cabernet at an inside drink station, Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio at an outside station in a large silver drink bucket along with sparkling lemonade, champagne with rasberries at another drink station outside, coke, diet coke and sprite outside in coolers, and assorted beers for the guys.  Of course, every party needs a signature drink.  This is something really fun to play with because of all the different options!  You could do punch, a spritzer, a specific cocktail, and this is yet another way to tie in your theme and the reason behind your party.  We went with "Marry Me Margaritas" to celebrate the point of the shower...their upcoming wedding! You want to make your signature drink something that the bride and groom both enjoy.  It is all about them so you want to make sure to accomodate!


We used this pretty drink dispenser and I attached a label onto the front and tied a red
ribbon around the center.  We served slice lime wedges and had margarita salt for the guests if they chose to add it to the rim of their glass.  Then, I used some clear cups filled with ice and these cute little white and grey straws found on etsy.com.  We placed red and white cocktail napkins out to the side.

Outside Station.  We hung red pom poms and white lanterns from the tree! Then, I simply placed a white tablecloth down with some jute fabric with the point coming over the  front of the center of the table.  The silver and red drink buckets housed the drinks I mentioned.  Red solo cups {although we did bring out wine glasses for the white wine}.  Cocktail napkins, a wine bottle opener, and a mason jar with a candle in it in an effort to keep mosquitos at bay. 
Then, we have our spring water with lemon and mint in a clear, glass drink dispenser.



Champagne station {before we put out the rasberries}.  We put another
citronella candle here as well for no bug bites!!

The Gifts.  As explained in the theme section {here}, the gifts were tailored to a certain hour of day that each guest had listed on their invitation.  This type of shower is really fun because you never know what to expect!  Kim and Justin got great gifts and everyone really stepped up and got super creative!  Make sure to have someone write down each gift and who it was from so the bride can log the list in her wedding book later and have it for her thank you notes.

The Game.  I wanted to do a fun game that resembled the Newlywed Game but with a slight twist.  When guests can participate, it always makes for a fun party.  So, with that being said, instead of the soon to be bride and groom seeing how much they knew about each other, this time the guests had to see how well they new the couple!  I had a multiple choice list of questions in a packet along with instructions.  I came up with a list of questions {mostly funny ones} and Kim and Justin gave me the answers prior to the party so I could determine the winner.  I called out the questions after everyone completed the game packets and then the bride and groom shouted out the answers after guests took time to say what they'd chosen and why.  Very interactive!!


Here's a fuzzy pic of the front of the packet. 

Hope you've enjoyed the details of the shower in these last two blog posts.  The shower was a truly a hit and we had so much fun preparing for it and toasting the happy couple!  I could not have pulled it all off without Jenny and all that she did to help cook and set up, Dylan for all the "you do this..and then this" to do list I gave him the day of the party, Nick for coming to help set up and be the "dj" with the outside music as well as the record player inside, and Greg for helping set up as well as hanging those poms and lanterns!  Team work!! Thanks guys!

Can't wait to celebrate Kim and Justin's upcoming nuptials!!!  : )

Around the Clock Shower Part I

I'm finally getting around to posting about the Around the Clock Bridal Shower that myself, my husband, and my sister Jennifer hosted at my house for our friends Kim and Justin back in June.  Their wedding is fast approaching and we couldn't be more excited and happy for them!

The Theme.  Any time you plan a party, it's important to base the party around a certain theme.  This shower theme, Around the Clock, is when all the guests bring gifts for the bride and groom based on a certain time of day.  That time of day is listed on each person's invitation.  So say, a guest that receives their invite time of 10 a.m. can bring a gift like a waffle maker, coffee pot, breakfast recipe book, etc.  A guest that has 10 p.m. can bring a basket of bubble bath, candles, blankets, bedding that the couple registered for, etc.  This "time of day" assigned to each guest on their invitation starts as early as you need and ours {because of the # of guests} went all the way round the clock to 1:00 a.m.!That was a fun gift! ; )

Everyone got super creative and Kim and Justin got some really cool, great gifts!!!  Below is the invitation.  At the very bottom is a blank line {hard to see here, ooops}to fill in the time of day each person has.  I found my invites {here} and customized them to fit the party. 

Tip: Any time you plan to host a party, give yourself enough time to alot for eating and socializing, gift opening, any shower games you might play, etc.  Our party was from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm.  You want to have enough time carved out so as to not rush your guests through each component of the party.

The Decor.  Your decor should echo the theme of the party.  For this one, clocks clocks and more clocks!  For the food station, I made clock signage and attached them to mason jars to detail which time of day the food items represented.  For example, I made a clock that said "Morning" for the part of the table that housed the breakfast foods.  I also did "Noon", "Cocktail Hour", "Night", and "Late Night" clocks.  I'll explain more in the Food section to come.  The mason jars worked beautifully because they held the clock signs as well as served as holders for large serving spoons and forks!



I simply used a clock template and added the verbiage on each clock
then printed it on heavy white paper, cut each clock out and glued onto round gift tags from Target. 
Done!  And super cheap! 

My mason jar {in the back} with some burlap ribbon inside, the "Morning" clock signage
and this particular mason jar held the forks since the buffet started at morning time foods!

As part of the decor, and something special for the bride and groom to take home as a momento, I made a "Time Capsule" where guests could write a little note to them or predict their future.  After guests wrote their notes, we locked it up tight! I put the date they they will be able to open it on a decorative label on the jar...one year to the day of the party!  I can't wait to hear what's in it next year!

I placed the notecards for guests to write on in a silver tin pale along with black
and red pens, the jar {from Home Goods} served as the time capsule, and I placed a little clock that Jenny
got from a teacher supply store in the center with the clock "set" to the couples wedding date. 8/18!
Always remember to have a sign to explain details like this at a party so your guests know what to do.

The Time Capsule sat at one end of the gift table and in the center of the table I placed a
clear vase {I had from a purchase a long time ago from TJ Maxx} with some cool red, black and white decorative
sticks {From Michael's} in keeping with the red, black and white color scheme.  Then I leaned a white "H" up against the vase as a nod to the soon to be hubby and wife's first initial of their last name.

We also had a welcome sign at the front door.  I used a dry erase board and decorated it with another one of the clocks like on the gift table with the same time set 8:18 {the date of their wedding}.  How I didn't get a pic of that I'll never know!  Ooops.


The Food.  This is probably the most labor intesive part of any party but I truly enjoy it because there are countless ideas out there on what to serve and how to serve it!  For our party, the Around the Clock theme was carried through in the food as well.  The buffet started at "Morning" and we had breakfast type food, then to "Noon" where we had lunch type items, then "Cocktail Hour" with appetizers, and on to "Night" filled with dinner foods.  I also did a "Late Night" snack for guests to take home with them! 

I used little chalk boards to describe each item on the buffet.  People want to know what they're eating!! Especially, someone with a food allergy of some kind, vegetarian, vegan, etc.

Here are some a whole bunch of pics!  : )  I'll recap after the pics of our full menu.

 



This pic was before we put the caesar salad out but it sat right behind the
mac and cheese in a large oval shaped white bowl we received as a wedding gift. 

Menu.

Morning:
Mini Muffins with Honey Apple Butter
Mixed Fruit Bowl
Mini Vanilla Yogurt with Balsamic Strawberries {cute little cups and spoons via Party City}

Noon:
Orzo Salad with Feta, Basil, Arugula, and Craisins {aaaamazing!!! my sister Leah's recipe!}
Chips with Fresh Salsa
Assorted Pinwheels: Tomato Provolone, Turkey Pepperjack, and Turkey Bacon Ranch
Veggie Tray with Ranch Dipping Sauce

Cocktail Hour:
Large Cheese Platter with Assorted Cheeses, Grapes, and Olives.
Sweet and Spicy Meatballs

Night:
Mini Turkey and Roast Beef Sandwiches with Havarti and 3 Spreads {honey mustard, bbq sauce, and mayo}
Mac-n-Cheese {Ree Drummond's recipe here}
Caesar Salad
Mini Red Velvet and Wedding Cake cupcakes from Jilly's.  {100% the best cupcakes I've ever had!}
Late Night:
Oreos and Twizzlers {to go with the red, black and white theme of course!}


Later, I'll be sharing the rest of the party with you.  From the drink stations to the gifts and the game!
Stay tuned!! : )

Friday Favorites

This week flew by {yessss} and now onto another great weekend with hubby.  Tonight, of course, we grill.  Tomorrow I have a mile long list of errands, then a walk with Abbey by the river, then an evening with some new friends!  Sunday is church and relaxing time finishing a few DIY projects for our house because I apparently cannot sit still!

Here are my Friday Faves.  Hope you have a fab wkend!

1. Southern Living Magazine.  Particularly, the August issue. Why, you ask?  Our little community is showcased in the issue...for two whole pages!  Yaaay. We totally love it.  Our fave restaurants are mentioned with their background information as well as their top rated menu items.  It's about time to visit!  ; )

Want more proof?  Here is a pic of a scrumptious appetizer we had at Salt last weekend.
The Salmon Tartare with pickled baby bok choy, ginger, wasabi aioli, and wontons.  I die!

2. A fabulous bottle of Beaujolais from Roswell Provisions.  Although we've majorly cut back on any type of wine besides Trader Joe's, this bottle was worth the splurge.  Well, I say splurge.  It was only $12. Ha!  Splurge for us I suppose. This French red is recommended to be slightly chilled but I prefer it at room temp.  It's very fruity, I taste fig and pear.  Great with chicken or fish if you go the slightly chilled route.  Otherwise, its a good table wine for any pasta dish.  It won't overpower.
Mmmm so good!

3. New Beauty Products!  Unfortunately, most of us ladies need a little help looking the way we do and thankfully their are many products out there to provide a little monumental amount of help.  Healthy skin and hair are so important in the effort to look younger and rejuvenated and fresh!  So I found these two products that I simply adore.

Loreal Collagen Moisture Filler for skin and Organix Coconut Milk hair serum.
I purchased both at Target but have also seen both in CVS.  I would venture to say Walmart could even carry both.  May your wrinkles be gone and your hair be shiny!  Note: a tiny bit goes a long way on both of these items so no need to be heavy handed...less is more.

4. Black and Gold Jewelry.  I'm so glad black and gold jewelry never goes out of style. Well, maybe I should be clear and say fun, more costume type of black and gold {"ghetto gold for fun" to quote Carrie Bradshaw}.  Both colors are so versatile and mixing the two is even more fun to me!

These bangles are from my new favorite store Dress Up Boutique in Alpharetta. 

This one, a necklace by way of Forever 21. Yep!  A $4 find!! : )  I'll take it.

5. Cedar's Edamame Salad.  Delish!! This is a great little lunch.  One container will get you through at least two lunches.  I get this at Publix. Edamame is a huge fave of mine so this little salad filled with corn, red peppers, cranberries, cilantro and a vinegar base dressing is so wonderful to me! And healthy to boot.