living well and creatively within your means

Garden Party (without the garden)

My treehouse is an addition built in the 30s to an arts and crafts house built in the 20s. Arts and crafts homes are one level, making me the only second floor in the neighborhood. My treehouse has so much character and the way is it decorated has somewhat evolved naturally to fit in with the mood already set by the bare bones of the space. I decided to have a garden party, a perfect opportunity to show how you can make your party, space and lifestyle, creative and special no matter what your means are. I have an ecelectic style centered around things classic yet preppy yet chic. Whether you have the a similar style or your taste is completely opposite, these ideas and approaches to living spaces and entertaining are meant to transcend.

Limited supply of vases? Save your pellegrino and other glass bottles and disperese your blooms into the narrow necked containers for a loaves and fishes effect. Stick to one or two types of bottles to avoid a cluttered look.

Rather than writing a step by step guide, I thought I would give you a few images.
Some food for thought...

Need more serving bowls? Try your kitchen-aid mixing bowl and bring the kitchen into the dining room.

Tea votives can break outside. Try using berry containers from the market when lighting a walkway.

Make snacks and sweets part of the decor. Pile vanilla meringues into a vase and put the flowers in a pellegrino bottle!

Champagne must stay chilled. Borrow a planter from your garden for a perfect champagne bucket. Line with a trash bag to ensure a leak free party.

This one resulted from a collapsed bookcase. A perfect work table can be built from work horses and an old shed door. Sturdy and perfect for the space. Books can look organized even when not on a proper shelf!

Be sure to designate a bar area. Sick of hanging pictures? I like to lean simply framed photographs against the wall rather than taking out the hammer.

While champagne flutes hold more bubbles, I am a huge fan of the old crystal champagne bowls. Whether is be juice or a cocktail they add a flair to any situation.

Rescued a couch because it was cheap or even free? Use a stretchy romantic or favorite blanked to soften the look of the eyesores that are random sofas.

wooden wine boxes are perfect trays for tabletop flowers and decor.

Mimosas are tasty, but why not give a variety of juices and purees for your bubbly. The pellegrino bottles come into play again for the peach, passion and calamansi juices.

I love vanities, but I just don't have one. Build a vanity with a shelf or table and in my case a found mirror from the 30s! Complete it with a swell picture of your grown man of choice!