Parties, entertaining, now showers! ‘Tis the season for gathering friends and family to celebrate anything and everything, to which my last two posts, now this one, are a testament.  It’s always fun and beneficial to hear what the experts, such as Eddie Ross and Tom Kehoe, have to say about hosting a get together.  We cannot, however, have the likes of Eddie or Tom on call to deck-out every gathering, large or small.  So I am dedicating this post to my own take on hosting a party, in this case a baby shower.  

A few weeks ago I hosted a shower for a mother-to-be who is very near and dear to my heart.  Having known Erin for over 10 years, she was our beloved sitter when we lived here in Chicago, and after a brief junket at SMU, she transferred to Miami of Ohio while we were hunkered down in  Cincinnati  (where I opened my antiques store, Crackle.)  Thank goodness that she is now a special education teacher at a local school so we still get to see her often!  Erin and her husband, Lee have been a wonderful part of our lives and being pregnant with her first child, I wanted to throw her a shower that was intimate, personal and lovely.

Rather than holding the shower at a restaurant or country club, I chose to have it in my own home.  I think there is no better way to honor someone than by having a gathering for them in your own home.  It shows a level of commitment, dedication and involvement that I just don’t feel is achieved by holding an event elsewhere.  And besides, this way- for better or for worse- the event planning (and very importantly decorating!) is in your own hands.  

By using my own furniture and place settings and adding celebratory touches such as floral arrangements and balloons, the event retained an intimate yet bubbly and fun feel.  Using things of your own, often in unexpected ways (such as the table which is normally used as a center table in my parlor and chairs from all over the house!) instantly creates a relaxed atmosphere that is far from a stuffy, formal setting.  The delivery of recently purchased pieces from Brimfield could not have come at a more opportune time.  Chairs were everywhere!!!

 

With its fairly open floor plan, tables and chairs in just about every room of my main floor were not isolated from one another.  Rather, each “vignette” of sorts provided an intimate yet unique experience which were united by guests mingling throughout the entire space.  

It was a truly fabulous day full of love, laughter and life.  What better way to celebrate the coming of a new life than by holding a party in honor of someone who has contributed so much to your own?

On the QT….It is a girl 😉