Summertime Wedding

It’s hard to believe summer is already over and the kids are back in school.  Summertime is always full of traveling, swimming, bbq’s, campfires, and sleepovers, but here in the NW it’s also wedding season.  If you’re able to hold off until August, you can have a GORGEOUS outdoor wedding. 

That’s just what one of my lovely clients did and it paid off big time.  A combination of the perfect setting, sunny weather and tastefully rustic décor items gave her special day the country charm she was looking for.  She pulled together all the elements she envisioned and left the design layout up to me.  I had the best time creating a one-of-a-kind look for the happy couple using all materials she had gathered.  Here's what the blushing bride had to say about Lolligags:

 

  "A huge thank you to Jessica Hernandez for making my vision come to life! Everything was absolutely amazing! The dessert table and wedding party table was over the top! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Her wedding was beautiful and the pictures showcase all its beauty.  Craig Mitchelldyer of Mitchelldyer Photography did an outstanding job, as usual, of capturing all the special details and moments.

Thanks for reading! :)

Avengers Superhero Birthday

M and I celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary last month.  You know the saying “time flies when you’re having fun”?  Well, the past ten years have traveled at warp speed.  I know it’s not just because they’ve been fun, but because I’ve be fortunate enough to spend them with a man that I couldn’t love more.

Apparently he’s quite the little party planner as well.  Unbeknownst to me, he had secretly been planning an anniversary party for 2 months, a party that was actually a vow renewal ceremony complete with several of the original wedding party cast members and even a wedding cake.

It was so amazing.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to ALL who helped……and didn’t spill the beans J 

I’ve slightly digressed. 

M and I had planned a little trip to toast our 10 blissful years, and as it turns out, some of our dear friends would be toasting with us.

{Come to think of it, we did a lot of toasting that weekend.  Mmmmm.  Wine.} 

At lunch on our way outta town, we were chatting away with our friends and their sons birthday came up.  I, of course, perked right up and began grilling her on all the party details.

 Where?

 When?

 Theme?

As it turns out, he’s a big Avengers fan.

That was all I needed to hear.

A couple of trips to the store later that week {I forgot to mention that we had the chat about his party only ONE WEEK before said party} and a rummage through my party stash, and we were ready to save the world, or whatever it is the Avengers do.

I have girls.

Sorry.  I’m clueless when it comes to superheros. 

Sadly, I forgot my camera the day of the party and was stuck taking pics with my phone.  It’s supposed to be a smartphone, it’s not.  It doesn’t take the best pics, but when it’s all you have, it’s all you have.  Sorry for the poor quality, BUT even with my crappy pics, you can still see how cute everything turned out.

Through the magic of Photoshop, I made this poster to look kinda like a comic book cover.  Look closely.  It’s the birthday boy’s face!

 

We grabbed lots of red, white and blue décor items from Dollar Tree.

I covered a shoe box with white butcher paper then glued on tons of small black squares to resemble and skyscraper.  We put the Avenger cast around the building.  Hulk was actually hanging from the side, and Iron Man was flying {with the help of fishing line} above.

They had the AWESOME Captain America shield.  We hung it by the front door and put out masks for the guest to wear.

 

Using the same graphic that is on the poster, I made these cupcake toppers.

The kids and even the parents dressed up.  It was so cute!

Thanks for letting me be a part of your party Spencer!  Happy Birthday!!

Class of 2012 Grad Party

Where does the time go??

One of the sweet little girls I used to babysit, who happens to be not so little anymore,

recently graduated high school.

I had the pleasure of being a part of her graduation party this last weekend.  The graduate is big on the equestrian scene and received a scholarship to Texas A&M, thus our party theme was obvious. 

We had this large 2’ x 3’ pic printed then mounted it and hung it above the dessert/candy bar table.

The custom invite I designed was formatted to fit inside the graduation announcements, and the colors coordinated with all the décor items.

Her favorite color is pink, so we paired that with the Texas A&M logo.  All the logo’d graphics, paper goods, décor items and slips covers were custom made by Lolligags. 

Using canvas, I made these ‘slipcovers’ for the hay bales.  I added some burlap ribbon trim and hand stenciled on the A&M logo.  The hay was on loan from a local feed store.  Can’t beat free seating!!

 

Using some twine and wooden clothespins, we displayed photos, artwork, awards and mementos of the graduates.

 

The morning of the party I picked up several bunches of pink wild flowers from a local farmers market, and put them in glass jars.  It’s a super easy, inexpensive and really pretty way to make centerpieces.

The tiered ruffled tablecloths were also made by Lolligags {more specifically my slave laborer aka my mama.  Have I mentioned how much she rocks??  Love ya mom!}  These tablecloths took over 39 yards of fabric and an equal amount of time, but the end result was totally worth it. 

We used lots of galvanized tubs for ‘coolers’.

These canvas table runners were hand stenciled and I added a little white ruffle to tie them in with the ruffled tablecloths.

 

We had to-go boxes available for guests to fill with candy and cupcakes as party favors.

 

 You can never go wrong with an assortment of delicious gourmet cupcakes.

The cupcake picks coordinated with the A&M bunting that we strung outside.

  Did I mention there was a mechanical bull!?!?

Congratulations Avery!!

We are so proud of you and wish you all the best as you prepare to take life by the horns!

{sorry. couldn't help myself.}

:)

Pool Party!

My two oldest girls recently celebrated their birthdays.

This was a big deal not just because my babies are growing up, but because they decided NOT to have their party at our house.

At first I was sad about the party scene leaving our place, then it hit me.

 The mess would be someone elses ..... and I was liking the sound of that. 

There was just one problem.

How would I set up a cute party in 30 minutes??? 

The answer:  keep things simple.

Using some scrap plywood and ripped down 2X4's, M built me a tiki hut that I could set on top of our six foot table.

I stained it, painted on some surfboard-ish stripes, added at thatch roof {made from Dollar Tree grass skirts} and styled it up with a mix of store bought and homemade decorations.

I made this chalkboard menu with an old calendar holder and a scrap piece of wood.

It's super easy.

Just spray paint the frame any color and use chalkboard spray paint {I picked mine up at WalMart for less than 4 bucks} to spray paint your scrap wood.

That's it!

We made the drink stand with a galvanized tub and an old wrought iron table base.

Just attach them together with some nuts, bolts and washers.

I picked up the tub and table base at Digger, so my drink stand only cost me a total of $3!!!

Can't beat that!

Follow these simple guidelines, and even the cutest of swimmers won't be able to resist your food table :)



 Used my homemade cupcake stand, yet again.

This thing has REALLY come in handy.  Everyone needs one of these babies.



Our first 'away' party went great!

The girls had the best time and so did I.

Coming home to a clean house was a major gift to myself.

Thanks for reading!

I'd love it if you'd follow, share and pin :)

Have a great holiday weekend!