Monday, January 25, 2010

A Blue Birthday

By Blue, I mean the color, not the mood....


My Sweet Grandma (yes Sweet. She's the traditional "Grandma" in every sense of the word!) just turned 75! For this big milestone my parents flew her over to be with all of us as a surprise! I hosted her party at my home sweet home. The theme was ALL BLUE and flowers! My Grandma has 3 definite favorite things: the color blue, flowers, and Mexican food! It was simple to combine all three for a custom 75th party just for her!


The centerpiece BEFORE the table was set in the stillness
and before our house was buzzing with family.


And set for a birthday celebration!

The table was set with Mikasa china, (a gift from my awesome hubs)
and some vintage white napkins, given to me by my dear neighbor.

I took a plain white tablecloth and bunched it equally in 4 parts
tying it off with blue and white ribbon and bows.
This made billows of snowy white for a winter table!


I put Epsom salt in wine glasses turned candle holders
and covered the candles also in Epsom salt to give a snowy January look.

For some flair, I filled various shaped glass jars with blue beads.
When filling jars, fill them 1/2 to 3/4 of the way to add more style
and to display the shape and size of the jar better.
This works better than filling them all the way to the brim....
You can see examples above and below.


Also, I used scrapbook paper for easy placemats!
And I tied the flatware with thin ribbon
to change it up from the traditional stiff lineup that is customary.

I wanted the flowers to make a big statement since my Grandma adores flowers. However, blue flowers aren't an easy find!
I spray painted
these WHITE roses, carnations, and baby's breath BLUE with a soft floral paint!


I used my favorite Chalk Ink to turn the glasses into name place cards.


Here I posted "Grandma's Favorite Menu".
Our home was filled with the warm smell of fresh Mexican food for her special night.

To set it apart from boring taco dinners, I went alllll homemade!
-Homemade fresh guacamole
-2 different kinds of homemade salsas
-homemade carne asada
-homemade cilantro rice
-homemade (and fat free!) refried beans.

Taco Bell has nothing on this, yo! ;)

Freshy, fresh...


And to stay in the BLUE THEME, even our tortilla chips were BLUE.


The dessert area is full of blue flowers too.
I searched for blue candy to fill a candy jar.
She was able to take the candy home as a gift.
I chose a square cake to coordinate with the square dessert plates.

And some extra info:
Those 2 matching blue and white creamers I used as vases
are from my dear Great Grandma Henderson, straight from Germany.
I treasure them.


Even the ice cream was blue!
How cool is that?!

Thank you for the love,
thank you for the giggles,
thank you for the sincere hugs that come straight from your heart.
We celebrate YOU!

43 comments:

Michelle @ Delicate Construction said...

That came out soooooo beautifully! And Mexican food has been one of my favorite cravings, chips and salsa are the best!

The Taffs said...

Everything looks beautiful! The food looks delicious and the cake was soo prettY!

Rebecca said...

I love this! You are so amazing! You gave me some great ideas for my daughters pink bday party in a couple months :)

The Tuscan Home said...

How beautiful and special you made everything look. You are so talented! I love Mexican food and yours looked so yummy! Thanks for sharing! Liz

Leanne said...

Awwww, how wonderful for you to do all that for your special grandma. She looks so happy and everything looks so beautiful. You throw the best parties. I might have to party crash one time. I'm having a giveaway this week so stop by if you'd like.

Linda@Coastal Charm said...

What a perfect BIRTHDAY PARTY for your sweet Grandmother. I luv how you did the table runner...fabulous idea!

Blessings,
Linda

Kelly Miller said...

As always, I'm astounded by your talent. Where's the recipes for your salsas and guacamole?

Happy To Be/ Gl♥ria said...

Oh Girl I loved this and how pretty your grandma is and all your choices for dinner and the cake...I bet she enjoyed every minute of this party and your kindness to her...I know I would if one of my grand kids did this for me...Hugs and smiles Gl♥ria

Tammy @ tinselshop.com said...

You put together the most beautiful parties! I love how everything just seems to come together. Where in the world did you find blue ice cream? Right now I am planning an Alice in Wonderland inspired party for the girls 3rd birthday and Emma LOVES all things blue, it would be perfect!

Best wishes,
Tammy

Ruby Red Slippers said...

AMAZING-You inspire me! This is LOVELY!!!

Jane said...

Another lovely party! Your blue table is so pretty. I know your grandmother felt truly special. Your Mexican menu sound wonderful, too.

Happy birthday to your dear grandma. I know she loved being the center of attention.
Jane (artfully graced)

Judy@cutest-little-things.blogspot.com said...

Nicely done, as usual, Lisa! Happy 75th to the lucky birthday girl!! :)

I really love all of your attention to detail (and I'm drooling over the food!!) My favorite part was the chalk on the glasses! So creative!!


Judy@cutest-little-things

Clo by Clau! said...

Love all the details, so cute!

laterg8r said...

so lovely, i am sure she appreciated all the effort you put forth for her :D

caveman said...

So how did you come up with the idea of bunching that table cloth? ;)

This party came out perfect! The tears that your thoughtfulness brought to her eyes were priceless. We are all lucky to have you.

One of my Hobby Blogs said...

you obviously hold the best parties!!!

Kathleen Grace said...

What a beautiful table and a fun party theme:>) I can see the delight on your grandmothers face!

Beth@The Stories of A to Z said...

How beautiful and special! I bet your grandmother was thrilled :). You are the hostess with the mostess!

So Sunny Day said...

I just love the ribbon/table cloth puff in the center of the table. Thanks for all the great ideas and photos!

~ Emily N. from "too Blessed 2 Stress"

Lana Austin said...

This is just wonderful for your grandmother! I love all the blue and ADORE how you do that centerpiece/cloth tied, etc.
And the homemade tacos, etc.??!?!? MMMMMMM GOOD!!
Blessings,
L

Lori @ Dining Delight said...

Looks like a wonderful blue party! I like your ideas of making the glasses into placecards by using chalk and tying a tablecloth to form a runner.

DD

The Southern Belle said...

What a magnificent event. Writing the names on the glasses for place cards was clever. Best part for me (other than seeing my favorite colors) was the smile on your grandmother's face!

Holly Lefevre said...

What a wonderful party for your grandma. Fun details.
Holly @ 504 Main

Americana Lady said...

How delightful! I bet your grandma felt special! Thanks for sharing a beautiful tablescape! Joan

Maureen Stevens said...

that is just too sweet! everything & all the little details turned out amazing!your grandma just looked too happy for words :)

Marigene said...

I love that you did everything in blue for your grandmother...bet she was thrilled! I ♥ the blue/white dessert plates. A big Happy 75th Birthday wish to your grandma!

Anita@Theycallmejammi said...

Beautiful table and great ideas...the tablecloth puff runner is very clever. I'm always looking for new ways to use Chalk Ink...love that stuff. Happy Birthday to your GM.

Jen @ tatertotsandjello.com said...

So pretty. I love the epson salt and candles. And how cool that your grandma loves Mexican food. Yummy!

XOXO
Jen

Missy said...

This looks like it was a very happy party. The table looks great. I was swooning looking at all of your homemade mexican food. Yum! I bet your grandma sure loved it.Thanks for sharing.

Melissa Miller said...

Lisa you are just amazing and so talented at parties. This is gorgeous! I just love the display and blue ice cream. Sigh....It's truly perfection!

Thank you for entering my Spring givewaway sweet friend!

~Blessings, ~Melissa :)

Anonymous said...

you did a great job.. im sure she was overjoyed!

isnt your party today that you helped with? excited to hear how that all goes!

Tardevil said...

Very pretty! Love all of the blue and white, esp. the dishes. The salt in the wine glasses is pretty too.

Tardevil said...

P.S. Any husband that gives dishes is a keeper. Mine gave me a golf club and a bike seat once. :S

Debbiedoos said...

Tardevil...better than a headscratcher that my sister once received LOL!! Anyhow, this was ever so lovely and sweet! Your Grandmother must have been tickled blue that you went above and beyond to make this special day for her even more special!!~ Thanks for sharing....Debbie

Its So Very Cheri said...

Hey it looks beautiful. What a sweet memory for all of you.

cheri

Lynda said...

Beautiful!! I hope your Grandmother had a wonderful birthday!

Kasey said...

What a pretty party! I love blue- it all worked so great together- and the food and cake looked yummy! Happy birthday to her!

BonBon Rose Girls Kristin said...

Another fabulous party. You've most definitely got Taco Bell beat!

Jenny said...

Absolutely beautiful. Are you so talented! I love the setting and the square cake and the joy on her face! You are a really special lady Lisa.

Kristen said...

Your Grandma looks great! What a nice birthday she had!

Kat said...

As always, beautiful and classy. I wish I could hire you for some events around here. I have ideas and sometimes even ability... but never the time!

Unknown said...

just a passing by to your blog and want to say "happy birthday".

Unknown said...

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