Perhaps it’s my talent for design, or maybe it’s just my love of entertaining, but I’ve always enjoyed party planning.
Even before I started my interior design career, I had a reputation for throwing elaborate and creative events.
Now, as an established interior designer, I don’t have as much time as I’d like to devote to event planning. (A girl can’t pursue everything she’d like to do, right?)
But occasionally, when the right opportunity presents itself, I am able to apply by creative talents to designing and planning a gorgeous birthday party, bridal shower or anniversary soiree.
Earlier this month, one such event turned out so spectacular, I just had to share it with you.
A longtime interior design client, Connie Nave, came to me with this event project because she wanted a bridal shower that would wow the guests.
Connie and Jane Asselmeier hired me to plan a spectacular bridal shower for the bride-to-be of their nephew, Cliff Woodford. The couple, who live in Los Angeles, will be getting married in St. Louis in August.
When I first met with Connie and Jane, we walked through the venue.
Connie and Jane already knew many of the particulars – the event was to take place at 11:30 a.m. on June 3 at the Waterloo Country Club. They also knew that the event would be very intimate, partly because the bride is from out of town.
They wanted my help deciding on a theme that would make the party memorable and special.
Together, we decided on a garden tea party theme. We knew right away that all the guests should wear hats to really bring the theme to life!
From there, Connie and Jane wanted me to run with the theme in terms of décor and design. I recruited my longtime friend and co-party planner, Brandy Werner, to help me execute this event.
After several brainstorming sessions Brandy and I came up with a plan to make the large banquet area at the WCC more intimate. We designed and ordered a custom backdrop from Etsy and rented pipe and drape from Weinhardt Party Rentals.
We discovered gorgeous paper tissue flowers from an Etsy shop, and added those to the pipe and drape.
The result is an elegant backdrop that not only divided the space and made it more cozy, but also set the scene for the entire event.
Since this was a small event, we wanted the tables to be joined so that everyone could talk to one another.
We really had fun with the garden tea party theme in our table décor. We used white tablecloths as the base with green moss runners down the middle and a lace runner on top of that.
Fresh flowers were everywhere! We arranged them in tea cups with saucers, and in the most beautiful teapots.
Renee’s Bokays in Columbia did a truly amazing job. She even created an arrangement of flowers that cascaded down a teapot tower than served as the centerpiece for our dessert able.
Because you can never have too many flowers, we also rented some live flowers from Shady Creek Nursery to set the tone at the entrance.
We took extra care to set each place setting with fine details, and made sure the desserts were as elegant as the décor.
After the event, I heard the guests said it was the most beautiful shower they’d ever attended. That is the best compliment we can receive.
If you know someone who needs help planning an extraordinary event, contact Jill at jill@myjsbdesigns.com.
