A Wine-Tasting Bachelorette Shower

It’s my first time on MOH duty! And in celebration of my sister finding the man of her dreams, I planned two separate bridal showers, worked with four different amazing vendors, and fancy-partied it up with fifty of Lorae’s closest friends and family. Today’s post is all about shower numero uno – a smaller wine-tasting bachelorette party of sorts, with pretty gifts of a different kind… ;) My sweet aunt Torrie (one of the most giving people I know) let us use her GORGEOUS wrap-around porch for the affair. Not to mention her dining room chairs. An antique side table. And whatever pieces of china/silver we could put our hands on. THANK YOU Torrie!!

I had the BEST time working with Leslie of Felicity Paper Custom Stationary Studio for the invitations. The mint green chevron pattern and beautiful calligraphy brought a touch of modern whimsy I’m STILL stoked about. :) And do you see those fabulous cocktail tables? They, along with so much of the prettiness you’re about to see, were a contribution from Hannah Elissa Floral Design & Event Styling. The tables worked really well in establishing the space as a sweet hang-out. All linens were rented from Cooperstown Event Rentals!

Ok… The florals. You must know by now what a genius Hannah is. She’s done the flowers for OUR wedding, our friends’ weddings, my bridal shower, THIS styled shoot a little over a year ago, and will be designing for Lorae and Brent’s wedding as well! I feel like a proud little momma when I see how ridiculously incredible my friend’s work is. Hannah is constantly outdoing herself, and I am THRILLED she was such a large part in making both of Lorae’s parties so lovely! I am particularly partial to the zinnias and amnesia roses in the arrangement below. :)

This is the antique side table I was telling you about. It provided a perfectly pretty surface to display our two reds, our white, and our bubbly Prosecco! I CANNOT thank my dad enough for his help with these wine selections. (He knows his STUFF, people!) We also borrowed his carafes to both decant and show off the libations. :) LOVE how this little vignette worked out at the opposite end of the porch! All sorts of thanks go out to my dad!!

Everyone’s FAVORITE wine was a 2010 Apothic Red. It was sweet enough for all seven girls to like it, but still dry enough to taste like wine and not candy. If that makes any sense whatsoever… ;) We got all our bottles from Empire Wine in Albany. (Pssst… I’m digging the way the picture on the right hints at what’s to follow!)

And by what’s to follow, I mean the main table, and the FOOD!! We had a vast array of delicious and wine pair-able goodies. We’re talking table water crackers, melba toasts, two different types of grapes (something about the pits made it feel fancier, okay?!), prosciutto (my fave!), four different yet equally scrumptious cheeses (Brie, goat, Havarti, and some sort of spread that probably shouldn’t have been called cheese but still tasted AMAZING), all sorts of Ghiradelli and Lindt chocolate (including dark with sea salt), perfectly red cherries, oven roasted almonds, an olive medley, a French baguette, and mustard and horseradish spreads. AKA, YUM!!

I can’t tell you how many fun Skype dates Hannah and I had in order to pull all loose ends together. But one thing we knew from the start – we wanted the table florals to have a very wild sort of feel. With deep-hued flowers to compliment the plum-like colors of the wine. I was also excited to see how Hannah incorporated such a sense of movement into our table arrangement. I honestly couldn’t have been happier with the fabulous outcome…

This arrangement was designed in an antique silver vessel and composed of dahlias, roses, zinnias, lisianthus, godetia, scabiosa and astilbe. But believe you me – I had to email Hannah for those correct names. They’re all either zitheranthica or abisthetishcaran to me. ;) Hannah also grew a number of these babies in her own garden!

Since this shower was to be much more intimate than the larger one later that weekend, I really wanted to incorporate the food all throughout the table scape. I loved how it made the party feel like a big family dinner. “Can you please pass the chocolate/cherries/cheese?” was heard throughout the night. And it made me smile. :)

Another quick story about my dad… He has a wine glass collection. And when he learned I’d need 21 glasses – seven identical glasses of three different kinds – he went out and purchased even more. Thanks to him, we had a glass dedicated to our reds, a glass dedicated to our white, and a glass dedicated to toasting with some sparkly!

Oh yes – the napkins! Rest assured that by the end of the weekend I was an expert napkin-folder.  But I digress. See that pretty vine wrapped around the claret-colored napkins? It’s called angel vine. And it was heavenly!

What isn’t pictured here is the slumber party that commenced after the shower was over. There had been wine, after all… ;) As girls, Lorae and I LOVED spending the night at our aunt Torrie’s. Having a chance to snooze back in those sleeping bags once more before we’re BOTH married off was a sweet, sweet thing. And to be joined by our friends was the cherry on top. (No pun intended. Okay… TOTAL pun intended.)

Ain’t nothing like melted tapers. (That’s the pyro/wax-enthusiast in me talking. TELL me I’m not the only one…) The beautifully delicate hurricane globes and wooden holders pictured below belong to Hannah’s grandmother, who was so gracious to contribute to our cause. :) We were also happy for the extra light as the sun went down.

Another angle I just love of Hannah’s centerpiece… Placed near the front of the porch, it gave us the feeling of sitting at a head table. I mean, technically we WERE the head table. But still, it made us feel fancy. ;)

Have I mentioned that every bit of this bridal shower was a surprise to Lorae? Apart from knowing the location and the time, she was totally surprised by just about everything. And that? Was my goal all along. And to blow her away… Which I hope we did. :) Here is the bride, soaking it all in. With NO idea how even-awesomer (yes, that’s English, people!) her SECOND shower would be. STAY TUNED for more pictures of that one soon!!

Happy Thursday, blogettes!!