The Bridal Tea

Warning: Post with LOTS of Pictures and projects!!!

This past weekend, I braved the weather caused by Hurricane IRENE, to co-host a Bridal Shower  for my friend Karen.

Karen is getting married in October,(only 34 more days girl!!)

Karen's mom, her Maid of Honor Crystal, her gf Kim, and I held a Bridal Tea in her honor.

It was very girlie, shabby chic, and the perfect place to be on a Rainy Saturday afternoon.

Here are some of the Details of the Shower..

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Our vision for the shower was to include her colors of gray, ivory, and peach, and we wanted her to have a special seating area in the center of the party.

If you remember the before picture from my "la vieille chaise", you would note that there were two identical chairs...so what happened to the "other" chair you ask?

Here she is now!!

I sanded it down (lightly) painted it a grayish-black, then waxed, painted it ivory, distressed, and finally covered with a clear glaze tinted with a peach color.

I purchased a frame from a yard sale, (which was painted bright red),and removed the gaudy picture. I primed it gray, then painted with two coats of  white. Then Added Chicken wire to the back with some staples. I made a mini banner with fabric, ribbon, and felt to embellish and attached it with mini clothespins! 

Scott helped me paint a Family Name Sign to give to the Bride and Groom, and we continued with the wedding colors and distressed it to match the chair.

I also painted a small "KEEP CALM AND SAY I DO" sign to get a laugh out of the Bride!

I purchased the flower petal pillow at TJ MAXX to add softness and comfort to the chair!

Scott found a white board Easel for me at Goodwill, and I painted it white, then covered the white board with Chalkboard Paint and wrote a little "Welcome" Message for the entrance into the Tea Room

As guests entered the room, they saw a bakers rack Display with old dolls, The Mother of the Brides gloves from her high school prom, a top hat, lace and doilies.

Then they saw a table with a tea pot that was custom painted by the maid of honor for everyone to sign as a keepsake to Karen.

We had a guess how many teabags in the pot game, and requested that everyone leave a word of wisdom about marriage or love for Karen and hang it on the chicken wire frame

Each table scape included a tea cup filled with Italian cookies as a take home favor, and the centerpieces were each different tea pots filled with floral arrangements made by the mother of the bride, and her best friend.

The "lite fare" consisted of tea sandwiches and salads, sangria, water, iced and hot teas, coffee, and punch!

Then Desserts Galore!!

The brides place setting included a personal table covered with vintage lace and linens, a handmade tea platter, her special chair, and a hat from her childhood!

We played silly games, she opened presents, we ate, and enjoyed a fun girls day!

Congrats Karen, looking forward to your special day!!

Lucketts Spring Market 2011

On Saturday, my girlfriend Karen and I drove to Leesburg, VA to attend the Lucketts Spring Market.

It took us 1-1/2 hours to get there, and honestly, the conversation, and fact that it was just us two girls out on a Saturday was sooo relaxing and enjoyable, that the trip seemed a lot shorter.

As we drove into Leesburg, and sat in the single lane traffic, as it was creeping towards the Lucketts store, we were both excited to see the huge field of vendors to our left, along with a line of people waiting to get in the gate. It was only 9:30, and a huge line had already formed.

We parked in a muddy farm field, in a specific area that police directed us to, and we were off towards the entrance gates! (And spot-a-pots!!)1-1/2 hours in the car and an entire bottle of water doesn't sit well on my bladder!!

When we got up to the entrance area, there were a few vendors set up, which was a prime location on their part! They were the first booths that you saw when coming, and the last booths that you saw when leaving!

The entrance area was soo charming. A little wooden booth planked by two displays of "glass houses" with sandy bottoms, seashells, and hurricanne vases with water and live fish swimming around! Why I didn't take a picture of that stumps me, it was very "BEACHY"

Then, into the market area...

It was a beautiful day, the sun was out, but it wasn't scorching hot, the birds were chirpping, and there were live musicians performing all day. It was a great atmosphere!

We started to the right of the entrance, since that's where the banos were located. And I know that this may sound silly, but these were best "portable banos" They were clean, and there were little notes on the insides of the doors, like "Today is a Great Day" and "Are you going to be embarassed when you walk out of this stall?" (Funny) And, there was a table set up outside of the banos with wipes, lotion, soap, Antibacterial hand cleaner, and FRESH flowers in a vase! (There were also portable sinks)

I just had to tell you about the bathroom set up because it is just one of those "special touches" that made this event so "girlie" and "women friendly" It was an appreciated gesture!

So..on with the pictures....

The Design House was our first stop! It was wall to wall Beautifulness.

These are a few pieces that I loved! (And Itook pictures for inspiration)

Then out into the Garden of the Design House



This table was soo pretty, it was a pale blue with glaze on the details!!

Here are a few more from a few vendors!

There was sooo much EYE CANDY!! And, we arrived at 10:30, gates opened at 10, and I could not believe how many large pieces/furniture items had been sold by noon. It seemed like evey piece of furniture that I was interested in  had a S-O-L-D tag hanging from it!

We both bought a couple of items, me- a set of Croquet mallets, and balls for my Rec room, a vintage, Metal Letter E for E's collection, and a really cute vintage wire storage basket.

Karen purchased some accessories for her bedroom, items for her upcoming wedding, and a Beautiful Green

 Ribbon Sun Hat! (I shoulda bought it, I saw it first!!)

We have decided to make this an Annual Trip,

and may even bring our moms along next year(or maybe not!!)

 for a Day of Girl bonding and Shopping!!

Lessons Learned/Strategies for Next Year

1) Just because it is overcast does not mean that you can't get Sunburn.

(We got FRIED!) Bring sunblock and apply it ofter there is not a lot of shade!

Or, wear a tank top so that you don't end up with a Farmer's Tan! (uggh)

2) CASH!!! Most vendors only accept cash payments.

(Thanks Lucketts Blog for that heads up!)

3) Sticker Price is not always the Price

Don't be afraid to ask a vendor if the listed price is the best that they can do,

 I saved $20 just by asking if the vendor would make me a deal!

4) Take Pictures of Inspiration Pieces.
I mentioned to a vendor that I wasn't sure if people liked me taking pictures,
but she said that she welcomed people to photograph her items.
She was flattered, and she also said that we all can learn from one another's projects!

5) If you see something that you really like, BUY it!! If you don't someone else will

6) Visit the Design House, the Lucketts Store and the Polka Dot Store by Lucketts, AFTER you have visited all of the vendors. The stores accepted credit cards, and had Airconditioning!!

You can check out more pictuers at the Lucketts Blog!