I do not know many interior designers that don’t also love to throw a great party.  I hosted one this past Thursday at IBB for STAR Children’s Charities with an ode to their Winter Ball theme  “The Magic of the Orient Express”.  It was a fabulous time!  We had European inspired food & drinks from 6 different cities along the Orient Express.  I’ll fill you in more about it later.

Today, my friends, you are in for a really big treat!  I have asked my fabulous friend Kimberly Whitman (the quintessential Hostess with the mostest!)  to give us her best tips for throwing a house warming party.  An obvious expert in this field, Kim is the author of 4 books (The Pleasure of Your Company, Tablescapes, The Wedding Workbook & Dog Parties) & has made numerous national & local television appearances providing her tips from party planning to spring cleaning.  She also hosts a radio segment for 103.7 every morning on the Gene & Julie show.  Known for being devoted to her community & social events, Kim brought the RSVP social calendar to the on-line world in 1999.  Today it is the “Go-To” place to get all of the info regarding Dallas County  & Collin County’s social & charitable events.

So, grab & pen & take note on how to throw a smashing soiree that your friends will be raving about!

Hosting a Housewarming Party is a great way to introduce your old friends and family to your new home as well a wonderful way to meet your new neighbors!  Moving into a new home or completing a renovation can be exhausting but it is a very momentous occasion in anyone’s life!  It should be celebrated!  Here are a few simple tips to host the perfect Housewarming:

1. Timing an event like this can go one of two ways.  You can either decide to wait until your home is completed and the boxes have been unpacked (give yourself at least a month!) or, if you are simply too excited to wait, host a moving day party or construction party!  I was once invited to a demolition party that was an absolute blast!  Our friends wanted to build a new home so they emptied the home on the property, gave out construction hats and hammers and told everyone they could go all out in hammering down walls and destroying the place!  It was a blast!

2. When sending out the invitation, be sure to include a map as it is often the first time your guests will be coming to your event.  I love the adorable maps that are custom created by Daley Harris at www.merrymaps.com.  They are so precious and you will be able to use them for all of your future parties!

3. A casual come-and-go open house is the best format for a Housewarming Party. It is easier for guests to drop by at their leisure and celebrate with you at your new digs.

4. If you are hoping to show off your renovations or interior design skills, frame a “before” photo in each of the rooms.

5. Keep your decor simple.  Lovely little floral arrangements that complement or enhance your decor are the perfect choice.

6. Set up a self serve champagne and white wine bar near the entrance.  Avoid red wines or any cocktails that could stain your new carpets and fabrics!

7. Instead of a big buffet in the dining room or kitchen, set out small trays of bite size foods in each of the rooms of the house.  As your guests wander, they can pick up a nibble in each room.  Be sure to provide napkins and a place to throw them away in each room. That means you could need up to ten napkins per guest so be prepared!

8. If you are a guest, take a gift.  I like to take something for the home such as a new candle and a cool set of matches or a design or entertaining book.   My book, Tablescapes: Setting the Table with Style would be the perfect choice .

9.  If  you are a host, provide a party favor for your guests.  I love the labels and tags from www.myownlabels.com.  Check out their recipes and ideas for great suggestions and be sure to share your new address on the label so that you friends will be guaranteed to record it in their address books.

Thank you Kim!  What wonderful tips & advice!  Now we are all set to show off our homes to our friends with a fun house warming party.  Be sure to check out her books!  Tablescapes is one of my favorites.  The photography makes you feel like you are part of the gorgeous atmosphere depicted in each setting idea.   My daughter absolutely loves the Gingerbread House featured in her Holiday Dessert Buffet party.

For more tips form Kimberly Whitman, follow her fabulous blog!

We love to grill & cook lots of yummy food for our family & friends.  You may want to try one of our favorite 4th of July inspired burgers.  Or, how about whipping up this Tres Leches cake?  It’s always a a real crowd pleaser.  We usually make it for the 4th or our Labor Day BBQ.  It’s fun to decorate it with fresh berries for some fun patriotic color!  For the 4th, we place the strawberries & blueberries in a flag design.

Ingredients

It was a trunk show like no other.  Last night I had the very fun privilege of co-hosting the Cynthia Rowley “Truck” show with my good friend Shelly Rosenberg at her gorgeous home in Dallas.  You know I love to throw a party & entertain.   I think I’ve found a new friend who shares in that passion & perfectionist attention to detail.  The party was a blast.  We were invited to peruse Cynthia’s fabulous new Spring line & shop ’till we dropped while sipping champagne & cocktails by Firefly vodka.

Me with my co-hostess with the mostest, Shelly!

The eye catching fashion boutique on wheels

You see, the genius marketers behind Cynthia Rowley decided it would be fun to convert an old DHL delivery truck into a fashion show/boutique on wheels.  The Truck travels all over the country bringing the stellar style that Cynthia is known for to private homes & swanky shopping areas.  Shelly & I had met Cynthia while on a design trip in New York last November.  After expressing our enthusiasm in hosting the truck show, we were thrilled when they called & told us they were heading to the Big D!

Shelly’s daughter, Shelly & Amy from Cynthia Rowley (have you ever met a truck driver this cute & stylish?  She is such a doll!)

Although Shelly & I have become fast friends over the last few months, I had never been to her home.  Let me tell you ~ it’s nothing short of amazing!!!  This fellow designer & fashionista’s home is as stylish as Shelly herself is in person.  I also realized that, like me,  she also shares an obsession with cocktail table books.  Above is a photo of her to die for dining room complete with hand blocked wallpaper from Schumacher.  We set up goodies & munchies for the guests to enjoy in there.

The drinks were set up on the kitchen table.  We served Firefly Vodka “Arnold Palmer’s”, white wine & Pomegranate champagne cocktails.  I’m really hoping I can talk Shelly into writing a guest blog post for us with an inside peak at her fabulous abode.  What do ya think girl?

A few of our fabulous guests:  Holly Haber, Shelly, Nicole Cullum Horn, & me.

Our future fashionistas.  Shelly’s daughter & my daughter loved every bit of Cynthia’s spring collection.  They put outfits together & tried to persuade us to buy them ~ LOL!  Very cute girls, but I think your days of wearing designer duds are still ahead of you.  Bravo on the outfit selections, though!  The sequin cardigan that Shelly’s daughter (left)  is wearing was my absolute favorite piece & Shelly actually bought the one that Jaylie is wearing.

My always fashionable friend Molly Nolan taking a peak inside the boutique.

A HUGE thank you to everyone who came last night!  We also want to give a big shout out to Cynthia Rowley for being such a rockstar in the fashion world & continuing to give us fun, flirty, feminine designs to jet set the world in!  And, of course a huge hug for my fabulous friend Shelly for being such a wonderful co-hostess!

Birthdays are a big deal at our house.  My sweet little princess recently turned five and she had her mind made up months before the big day that she wanted to have a Cinderella party.  We had a blast planning out all of the details.  She invited all of her girl friends to come dressed as their favorite princess and join her for a tea party.

Tables setting for the tea party:  I used scrap book paper for the place mats.  The girls all sipped sparkling grape juice or lemonade out of the Cinderella glasses (from the Disney Store) which they all got to take home as part of their party favors.   Mini pizza bites, mini corny dogs and assorted finger sandwiches were on the menu.  A fruit bouquet served as the centerpiece for each table.  It turned out to be a fun way to get them to eat the healthy stuff too .

My mom, my little princess & I in front of the buffet.  Assorted finger sandwiches, ants on a log, fresh fruit, chips, sparkling grape juice & pink lemonade.

Instead of a cake this year, the princess wanted to do cupcakes.  Our favorite place for cupcakes is the Cupcakery (you have to try their Southern Belle ~ OMG!  You will think you have died & gone to Heaven!  It’s a red velvet cupcake).  For the party, we had them make chocolate & vanilla dusted with light blue sparkle edible glitter.  I found the cupcake stand on-line here.  I  adorned it myself by spray painting it blue, adding ribbon and of course a little bling.  The Cinderella mini cake is from Kroger.  I had them add some edible glitter to the skirt of the cake as well.

After lunch, the girls headed up to play on Jaylie’s stage in the gameroom as they anticipated the arrival of our special guest.

Cinderella is here!

Time for all of the princesses to take a ride around the neighborhood in Cinderella’s carriage!

The party was absolutely magical.  The princesses didn’t want the fun to end.  “One more ride in the carriage…. ppplllleeeaasssee!!!!”

A very Merry Christmas to you all!  I hope you are having a very blessed day & enjoying some quality time with your family.  This is my absolute favorite time of year.  I love to decorate my house and my friend’s & client’s homes for this joyous season.  I also love to entertain.  We really enjoy cooking in our family, so we often throw get togethers & cocktail parties.  Christmas is no exception.  We recently hosted a Christmas open house at our home for family, friends & clients.  The night was festive and the halls were decked!

My mom & I cooked all of the food.  We had a huge spread of beef tenderloin, shrimp cocktail, dips, stuffed mushrooms, fruits, cheeses & yummy desserts.  I even played bartender & mixed candy cane & tinsel tinis.  The evening was a huge success & we enjoyed sharing in the joys of the holidays with everyone.

Our entry way

Our formal living room.  We set out Chirstmas cookies, peppermint bark & sundried tomato cheese spread & crackers for guests to munch on as they socialized.

The dinner buffet

The dessert buffet in our dining room

Festive Chocolate cake (We bought this one at Central Market)

The Martini bar set up

The candy cane & tinsel tinis.  I wrapped sparkle pipe cleaners around the stems of the tinsel tinis.  Get the candy cane tini recipe here.

Santa Challah bread

Chair decor for our gameroom chairs (as seen on GMT)

Family room coffee table decor.  I collect vintage Santas.  We had a contest for guests to guess how many Santas we had in the house.  We had a total of 55 including the ornaments on the tree!

Me & my co-host, my wonderful fiance Brian all ready for the party.