2015 Holiday Season Recap II

We flew in and out of Seattle from California because it was way cheaper than taking a direct flight into Canada. Even though it was a 2 hour drive and a short wait at the Canadian border, the drive wasn't too bad and it gave us the opportunity to stop and have a Seattle day!

Pike Place Market

We got home a couple days before New Year's Eve. I have this strange rule that we at least have to spend one holiday at home during the season. I think it's because in my mind, being home for the holidays is exactly what the holidays are all about. So, since we spent Christmas away, we threw a small NYE game night pajama party with a handful of friends. 

We started off with a nice dinner with friends at Paul Martin's - a nice little neighborhood restaurant.

Then, we got back to the house, prepped some appetizers and desserts and had more drinks, played Taboo and rang in the 2016 with a handful of good friends. 

The next day after breakfast, we were supposed to head to Napa for a leisurely day wine tasting and a nice lunch. However, we underestimated how tired and slow we would be the next day and decided to check out a local winery instead. To our surprise, we had the best time, chatted with the owner and got to have some fantastic tasting wine!

Looking forward to more family time, friendships and fun in 2016!!!

xx, Shiela

Backyard Transformation

Our new home is a new build which meant the backyard was not going to be landscaped. When we moved in, it was all dirt. The good news is that our back yard is way, WAY bigger than our last and starting with a dirt backyard meant we could create whatever layout we wanted.

When thinking about landscaping, we knew we'd have to do it in phases. If you've ever tackled a landscaping project, then you'll know it's a huge investment. But, I think it's a worthwhile investment because you are extending your living space.

A few things we knew we wanted:
1) Large concrete patio - D and I love to entertain and in our last home, we had a small courtyard which we found was difficult to furnish because it felt really crowded.

2) Grass/sod- I love the look of grass and the way it feels during the summer. We would have loved to put in a pool, but since this isn't our forever home, we thought that wouldn't be a worthwhile investment for us right now.

3) Manicured tropical landscaping - ok, so this is the part that D and I don't agree on. I love a clean, manicured look with lots of green boxwoods, light, airy olive trees and large, textured magnolia trees. D, on the other hand, wants large towering palm trees and a more tropical feel.

4) Clearly defined spaces - like I said above, a good backyard allows you to expand your living space. We definitely wanted to have enough room for a dining area, lounge area, fire pit and bbq.

Here's a reminder of what our old courtyard looked like. This was the set up for the 60th birthday party I planned for my mom. 

Our dirt backyard. Yay for more space!

Phase I - large concrete patio.

Phase II - sod! Loved seeing this being dropped off in front of our house that morning!

For now, we had the contractor lay dark bark on the perimeter until we decide on what we want to plant there. 

Ready for outdoor furniture!

Looking for patio furniture inspiration.

Lounge chairs and fire pit.

Dining table and chairs.

And lastly, our first BBQ with some friends.

xx, Shiela

{Easy Fall Centerpiece Tutorial}

One of my favorite parts of entertaining is decorating the house. I'm still slowly decorating here and there for our family Thanksgiving in a little over a week. We are estimating about 20-30 people over at our house that day and are so very excited to see family and eat good food!

Here's a quick tutorial for a simple centerpiece. You don't have to use the exact materials I did. I just "shopped" my own house! Meaning, I took items I already had in the house and recycled them for this look. Enjoy!

{Easy Fall Centerpiece Tutorial}

Step 1: Grab a clear vase. I used a pair of footed hurricanes | Step 2: Add moss or other filler on the bottom | Step 3: Add candle. I used a battery operated pillar candle | Step 4: Add pine cones or other filler that has a more "Fall" feel (i.e. fall leaves, acorns, etc.). Repeat for the second vase.

xx, Shiela

{Party Decor How To: Wrapping Paper Tissue Poms}

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. It's been a weird couple of weeks for me. And by weird, I mean rough! I won't go into details but, let's just say I couldn't for the life of me complete a post on anything! No matter what I started to write about, I ended up deleting the entire post. Anyway, it's Monday and a brand new week! The weird/off/bad last two weeks is now in the past and o.v.e.r. Thank goodness!

I decided to start with a fun, lighthearted post. Last Saturday, I went to a baby shower. I was in charge of making tissue paper poms. I've made these before for D's birthday party (in brown to fit in with the BBQ theme) and another time for my niece's birthday tea party. Needless to say, I'm the go-to gal for making these party poms in our family. Luckily, they're easy to make and reusable. Which is great since buying packs of tissue wrapping paper over and over can get pretty expensive.

Step-by-Step Instructions:
1: Tools - scissors, stapler and string | 2: Stack at least 8 sheets of wrapping tissue paper neatly and position with the shorter end nearest you.  Begin folding approximately 1 1/2 inch sections | 3: Keep folding back and forth until the entire stack of tissue paper looks like an accordion| 4: Staple the middle of the stacked tissue paper to secure | 5: Optional - cut a half circle on both ends | 6: Tie a string around the middle and staple string to secure | 7: Gently pull apart each individual sheet and fluff towards the middle | 8: Repeat on the opposite side | 9: Fluff, adjust and repeat.

Repeat using different colors and sizes. To make different pom sizes, cut the tissue papers in half. 

xx, Shiela

{Sunday Funday}

D (the boyfriend) and I are hosting a small lunch this coming Sunday with a few close friends! I love sit-down dinner parties and since there will only be 8 of us, I figure I could pull off a sit-down lunch! I'm thinking of a beach themed lunch outdoors since the weather has been fantastic. The forecast for Sunday is a clear, 75-degrees. Perfection.

Decor
I'm thinking of setting up a rectangle table and a couple of benches on each side for more intimate seating. It's a good way to encourage conversation as some of the guests don't know each other well just yet. I have a handful of white linens that my mom brought over for our last family get together. White linens are typically associated with finer dining so I'm going to add brown craft paper to line the top of the table for a bit of a rustic touch. I plan to use our white seashell Pottery Barn plates I scored online a couple years back. I'm grateful for succumbing to my intuition that one day, I'm sure, I'll need a set of 8 beach-themed plates. Ha!

Food
We're planning on serving typical BBQ food (i.e. burgers, hot dogs, etc. ) And, of course, wine! There's nothing else that reminds me of summer more than a backyard BBQ. I love, love, love them!

Tips for Hosting
Since buying this house, we've hosted a good handful of parties. Along the way, I've learned a few things. Here are my 3 best tips!

1. Prep as much as you can before the day of the event. For example, make or prep as much of the food you'll be serving the night before. In my case, I'll be making the potato salad on Saturday night since that recipe has lots of steps and need at least a few hours to chill thoroughly in the fridge. Another to-do you can definitely complete ahead of time is to clean your house a week to several days before. Unless you are dragging mud across your living room, you're house won't get that dirty. The only thing I do make sure to clean the day of is the main bathroom that guests will be using and the kitchen since we'll be there most of the day.

2. Enlist help. If you need it, ask. Most guests/family/friends offer to help prep, clean after or bring a dish. Take them up on their offer! It doesn't take away from being a good host.

3. Have fun! It's not worth throwing  a party or get together if YOU'RE not having fun. And, you're setting the mood and vibe of your event so make sure it's a positive one!

{This table set up is what I had in mind}

{Hot dogs never looked better}

{To protect drinks from pesky bugs and flies!}

{Fruit-filled ice cubes!]

xx, Shiela