A Fancy Woodland Picnic
You know I love hosting small dinner parties for friends and family, and when our wedding anniversary rolled around, I knew I wanted to celebrate with a handful of friends here at Teaselwood Farm. But I didn't have any good anniversary party ideas.
And then I found these amazing plates . . .
And it came to me: A fancy, romantic woodland picnic!
I feel so lucky to have such a beautiful setting right here on Teaselwood Farm.
I took the party's slightly moody color palette of quartz pink, aubergine, smoky grey, and balsam green from the plates (which are reproduction vintage from Pottery Barn but I think they look like the real deal!). It's the palette's moodiness that keeps it all looking romantic without being too sweet and precious.
Whether it's for a party or for designing a room, I always love mixing vintage and new items. That's a little design trick that never fails because it blurs the lines between old and new, formal and relaxed. That way, the look and feel isn't quite one or the other - it's something entirely unique and interesting.
I layered in the vintage crate and trunk for a cool, casual, collected look.
That's actually not my good silver, believe it or not. It's gorgeous stainless steel flatware from Liberty Tabletop. They have so many beautiful patterns, but I think this one's my favorite.
And those pink (or should I say rose colored?!) glasses. So lovely!
I added a touch of sparkle with the brass lanterns (from Pottery Barn) and candleholders (from our Teaselwood Shop) to balance things out and to set just the right couples-only dinner party mood.
The table is (of course!) by our favorite Timber Mountain Woodcraft, and those gorgeous linens are from our Shop.
Did you notice the candles?
They're branches! I'm completely obsessed with them. They're from Stick Candles and I want them in pretty much every single color.
Whitney didn't just take these amazing pictures - she also put together the perfectly romantic flower arrangements using roses in shades of pink, along with a few red blooms and a sprig or two of eucalyptus.
Dinner was wonderful, but let's skip straight to the desserts. We feasted on Lavender ombre naked mini-cakes from the Skaneateles Cake Lady (she's the best!) and a lemon hibiscus pound cake, made by me. And since chocolate covered strawberries are the quintessential romantic dessert, I did a spin on that by filling fresh strawberries with Nutella.
Oh. My. Gosh. I'm never going back! It was way easier than dipping strawberries and they were ridiculously yummy.
I love that it all looked so fancy, but it was very easy to create.
You can take inspiration from our woodland picnic for your own celebration. And if you don't have an anniversary coming up, it's perfect for a baby or bridal shower, an engagement party, a wedding rehearsal dinner, or even a wedding reception.
The only trick is remembering not to leave the cake where the deer can get it!
~Charity
All photos: Whitey Nichols Photography
Flowers: Whitey Nichols Photography
Styling and Creative Director: Charity Teaselwood Design