Grazin’ In The Grass – 80th Birthday Party

GRAZIN’ IN THE GRASS
(a re-post from April 2009)

My husband and I hosted a much less formal birthday bash for my Mom in 2009 to celebrate #80. We started off with a wine and cheese bar for family & friends.

 

My Mom’s official birth date is March 22, so what better way to ring in the season than with a spring tablescape rich with the colors and elements we miss over the long, cold winter? Mom really got a kick out of my sudden “green thumb” with rye grass grown just for the occasion in clear glass containers. (She then tried to play it off…like, “Whatever, dude. No big deal. I could’ve done that with my eyes closed.” Look at that look on her face…and the one on mine!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 )  Rye grass only takes a couple of weeks to look like this! See Tip #15 under the “Table Tips” tab above. Fresh Gerbera daisies add a playful and colorful element to the centerpiece set atop a length of moss.

 The casual dining room setting included a double layer of placemats. The cabbage leaf placemats were perfect for ushering in Spring! Mikasa stoneware in various Spring colors gave the table a little kick in the pants, while plain yellow linen napkins layered with gauzy floral ones danced above.
 
Just about everybody loves a cupcake! Makes you feel like a kid again, doesn’t it? For this celebration, vanilla cupcakes frosted in spring pastels and decorated with “fluttering” butterflies were the talk of the party! You can’t go wrong when decorating with butterflies…they enchant both young and “not-as-young”!
 The official octogenarian and moi! I’m not scared of aging…I’ve got good genes! 🙂
Other birthday posts on this site include:
The Party She Deserves
Celebrating 85 Years of Fabulous!
88 Years & 88 Keys
Princess Pink Birthday Dinner

Barton’s Easter Brunch

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!
Here’s a glimpse of this year’s Easter brunch tablescape at the Nichols household.

IMG_1253WMBecause I have a childish sense of humor, I just have to point out here how the Bells of Ireland in the background are unintentionally giving the bunny on the table “bunny ears!”


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IMG_1263WMThis year’s Easter table for adults featured fun, durable, microwave & dishwasher-safe multi-colored stoneware from Mikasa.

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IMG_1257WMI bought these Mikasa dishes several years ago and just love all the Easter egg colors! Each place setting starts with the same Pier 1 placemat and white ceramic charger from Old Time Pottery. I then mixed and matched the entrée and salad plate colors, topped off with fun ceramic eggs purchased from Hallmark about 18 years ago. Celery green napkins from Bed, Bath & Beyond, simple stainless flatware, and unadorned champagne & juice glasses round out the place settings.

My very favorite feature of the day’s place settings: the eggs open to reveal a very adult treat inside to enjoy after the kids are all tuckered out!!!

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This is Barton Bunny. I bought him as a prop several years ago when I owned my fine rentals store. He makes such a fun centerpiece and is always the life of the party. Maybe it’s because he’s “stoned” from eating the adult Easter treat! Get it? Stoned? Made out of stone? Get it? Whatever. Moving on….! 🙂

Potted flowers – bright yellow daffodils, deep purple violets, and cheery pink cyclamen  – are from the local nursery. The moss table runner, purchased from a local florist, still had that distinctively woodsy, mossy smell I like so much. Barton and the butterflies felt right at home!

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IMG_1247WMThe buffet held a variety of breads and pastries among the flowers. Coffee was served in multi-hued Mikasa stoneware mugs nestled in a thematic chipwood basket filled with the obligatory pastel colored “grass.”

I hope you had a wonderful, colorful, blessed Easter weekend!
Thank you for stopping by!
I’ll be taking next week off as my husband and I celebrate 20 joyous years together on May 3, but I hope you will visit again the following week of May 9. Happy tablescaping!

Other posts featuring Easter tablescapes on this site include:
Easter Brunch
Easter Floral
Informally Formal
Spring & Easter Around the House
Spring Into Easter
Easter In Pink & Grey
All A’Bloom In Pink for Spring
Easter Bloom
The Party She Deserves
Carousel Colors
Pinky Peter Cottontail

I’m joining Susan and the talented tablescapers of Tablescape Thursday.
Join us, won’t you?