One Charming Party

art weekend: i’m teaching party planning 101

Brittany — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 10:00:58 +0000

If you are going to be in Salt Lake City, UT on October 7-9, 2010 you should come to the Art Weekend. I’m teaching Party Planning 101. There are tons of other great classes too. Like photography, photoshop, illustrator, calligraphy, sewing, blog headers, etc. Registration opened yesterday and it sold out last year. If you attend, please say “Hi” and introduce yourself. I’d love to meet you.

back to college guest post at giver’s log

Brittany — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:00:37 +0000

I love the Giver’s Log and was so happy when Amber invited me to guest post there last week. I could spend hours just looking at all of her great ideas for gifts. She asked me to be a part of her back to school for college series called First Kitchen Love. I wrote about some of the things I used to eat in college. But I only ate that way so I could buy cute shoes. Priorities.

one last book: faves by melissa chappell

Brittany — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:00:34 +0000

I’m so excited about this book Faves by Melissa Chappell. I was hoping to feature it last week with my giveaway, but I just got all of the details yesterday. Melissa was the chef at my husband’s Trophy Husband party last year. The food she prepared was amazing and we all had a lot of fun helping her. She is a huge fan of fresh, healthy food and I can’t wait to have some of her secret recipes. The book has six sections: light meals, desserts, salads, salsas, sauces & dips, and smoothies. Ahhh… I have been waiting so long for this cook book. You can pre-order right now on her blog and the book will be released in September. (I already pre-ordered a few.)

giveaway winner (books)

Brittany — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 15:53:21 +0000

Happy Monday! I finally picked a winner for this giveaway. I added up all of the numbers and then put the total in the Random Number Generator. And the lucky winner is:

Tessa (who said): WOW!! How cool. I would love to try some of these out!

She has already been notified via email. xoxo Brittany

giveaway week (books): the vintage table

Brittany — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 10:00:19 +0000

This week I’m posting about 5 different books. You can comment on every post for 5 entries or just one post for 1 entry. Let me know what you think of the books, if you’ve read them or if you’ve wanted to read them. At the end of the week I’ll pick one winner out of ALL the comments and they can choose which book they’d like and I’ll have it sent to you.

The last book for this giveaway week is The Vintage Table by Jacqueline de Montravel and the editors of Romantic Homes Magazine. I actually bought this book because of its title, a vintage set table sounds great to me. But who wouldn’t be drawn in by the cover of this book? And it’s full of lots and lots more great pictures of vintage finds and eclectic table settings. I also love how the author encourages us to bring out our vintage pieces and use them. Don’t keep them boxed up–they need to be used and loved.

I found as I read through this book that it’s more of a reference book, meaning that it details linens, types of stemware, how to care for your stemware, the difference between earthenware and bone china and how Jadeite and melamine came about. It also talks about how to make a simple flower arrangement for your table, how to add little touches like a plate of chocolates, and how to display your vintage treasures. Because it’s full of so much information, I think it’ll be a useful book to have on hand. Leave a comment if you’d like to enter and I’ll pick one winner this weekend.

giveaway week (books): donna hay kids’ magazine

Brittany — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 10:00:56 +0000

Okay, today’s feature isn’t technically a book, it’s a magazine. My cousins returned home this week from backpacking around Australia for three months and they were so sweet to pick me up a few copies of the Donna Hay Kids’ Magazine. It’s so adorable. It’s full of cute childrens birthday parties, party ideas, and gorgeous photos. I am in love. I love every idea, every picture. Everything. I told my kids that I wanted to live inside this magazine. Seriously, it’s that amazing. I know you’ll love it too.

Leave a comment if you’d like to enter and I’ll pick one winner at the end of this week.

giveaway week (books): what’s new cupcake

Brittany — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 10:00:38 +0000

Today the book I have selected is What’s New Cupcake by Karen Tuck & Alan Richardson. If I’m to be completely honest, I don’t love the cover of this book. It’s not my style and doesn’t really catch my eye in a good way. And unfortunately that kept me from buying it for a while, and even reading it once I bought it. But let me tell you, don’t judge a book by its cover. The cupcakes in this book are adorable. Karen and Alan are so creative and talented, I can’t believe the things they have come up with. But my favorite part of the book is the insider info they give you. Like the recipe for perfect cake mix cupcakes. Or how to make those cute french fries from pound cake. I’d say this book is a keeper. Want one? Leave a comment and I’ll pick one lucky winner who will get to choose which book they want from all of the books I’ve posted this week.

giveaway week (books): handmade soirees

Brittany — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 10:00:35 +0000

Today the book is French General: Handmade Soirees by Kaari Meng. This book is full of gorgeous photographs and simple crafting & sewing ideas for entertaining. What I love most is the advice and general information Kaari gives about throwing a party. It’s a wonderful book to peruse for inspiration as well. I read some of the reviews at online book stores criticizing this book, especially compared to her fabulous previous books, but this is the first French General book I’ve bought. I thinks it’s amazing and there are no complaints from me.

Leave a comment if you’d like to enter and I’ll pick one winner at the end of this week.

giveaway week (books): funky lunch

Brittany — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 10:00:52 +0000

As of today, my kids are back in school. And since it’s back to school time I thought it might be fun to show you some of the books I’ve been excited about lately and we’ll turn it into another giveaway. Here’s how it works: I’ll post about 5 books this week. You can comment on every post for 5 entries or just one post for 1 entry. Let me know what you think of the books, if you’ve read them or if you’ve wanted to read them. At the end of the week I’ll pick one winner out of ALL the comments and they can choose which book they’d like and I’ll have it sent to you.

My first book is by the amazing Mark Northeast called Funky Lunch. I first heard about this book six months ago and I’ve been waiting for it to come out ever since (it will be available in the states in September). From the pictures in the Funky Lunch gallery, I’m sure it won’t disappoint. His work is pure genius. Maybe I can surprise my kids with one of these cool sandwiches in their lunch…

Leave a comment if you’d like to enter and I’ll pick one winner at the end of this week.

party food guest post at simply modern mom

Brittany — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 10:00:01 +0000

Tiffany at Simply Modern Mom asked me to guest post on her fun blog. She recently threw her daughter a darling ice cream party. I guess that got her in the party spirit and she wanted me to share food suggestions for kids birthday parties. I was happy to help so I rounded up some food ideas from parties that I’ve done. The whole point of that post is to show you that you don’t have to serve pizza and hot dogs–kids will eat healthy food too. And don’t feel pressure to serve any food at a party. You can always serve plain old cake. Go check it out and have a great weekend.

Images by Nicole Gerulat. This delicious cake was made by Flour & Flower Designs.