Thursday, the day before the party, consisted of last minute morning errands for final supplies with the remainder of the day doing food prep and final cleaning. The window washer made the windows and mirrors sparkle, enabling me to check that off my list, thankfully. By the end of the day I fell into bed.......still with those last minute lists swirling around in my head, note pad on my nightstand jotting them down as I remembered them.
Friday, day of the party....... started at 6:00 a.m.
FINAL LIST FRIDAY--The day included picking up ice, flowers, baguettes and finishing all of the food. As I finished, I plated each item on the platters that I had labeled a few days prior, and sealed them with plastic wrap. Ice was placed in all of the ice buckets, Blood Orange Margaritas were made and the bar stocked. Flowers that came from the supermarket were arranged in vases.
Time to shower and change.
Joe, our server, arrived one hour prior to the party to become familiar with everything.
It's Party time........
My husband and I greeted guests at the door while Joe made sure they were given their first beverage of the evening. He also set up several food trays to pass (photos below). I would highly recommend hiring a server if you are having 40 or more guests. We ended up with 51 and this allowed time for us to greet guests and mingle throughout the evening with Joe taking care of the rest.
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Hors d'oeuvre table set and ready for our guests. The tablecloth was purchased at Yvonne Estelles in Park Ridge, Illinois. It is Beauville, painted by hand in France.  These hors d'oeuvres were displayed on the table for nibbing as guests passed by. We featured a cheese tray from Zingerman's as a tribute to the days we lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan. |
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| Some of the food was passed by server Joe. Upper right, Zucchini Rollups (big hit of the evening), lower left, Cheese Gougeres, lower right Shrimp Shooters. We also served Hot Roast Beef Mini Sandwiches. |
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| The Bar and Beverage area was in our enclosed patio. The Blood Orange Margaritas were a beautiful Fall color and were a tribute to the days we lived in Houston, Texas. They were lethal! |
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| Sunflowers in the kitchen made a great Fall Bouquet. The kitchen is always one of the largest gathering places at our parties. |
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| I made the centerpieces this year with all pumpkins, gourds, and flowers that I purchased at the grocery store and Farmer's Markets. |
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| Another tribute of the evening, were Buckeyes from the days we lived in Perrysburg, Ohio. Huge hit!! |
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| Family Room fireplace decorated for Fall. |
Our day ended at midnight with my husband and I sipping our glass of wine.....feet propped up, reminiscing about the evening events. The tributes we made to some of the places we have lived was a hit and a great conversation starter. Not only did we support businesses we loved in our past, but we brought a little bit of who we are and where we have come from to our new friends.
Watch my future blogs for the party recipes and decorating ideas!
Awwww------parties can be so much fun!! I hope that the steps to organize a Cocktail Party will help you with your future parties.
ENJOY!
