Fancy Nancy

Cirque Du Bebe Shower

2010-04-30T21:40:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long my fellow followers! Thank you for being patient and always checking back for updates. Well here it is...the long awaited Cirque du Bebe shower I have been talking about.

A few weekends ago, my fabulous soon to be SIL, Amanda, and I threw a boy themed baby shower for her friend, Charlene. Amanda came up with doing a French circus theme and named it Cirque du Bebe. I know it sounds weird right? But just think...feathers, flowy fabric, masks, rich textures, beautiful trims and details. Our main colors were orange and a gray blue with hints of red which we drew from a beautiful paisley patterned pillow found at Pier 1 Imports. We matched them together with gray blue silk ruffle pillows and a red/orange bowed pillow. Gorgeous tall, blue ostrich feathers and vases from Z Gallerie rounded off our cirque look along with masks and clear blue vases, also from Pier 1 Imports. What's a circus without a tent, or at least a tent like effect?! Yes, with Amanda's help, I swagged our entire patio area with strips of blue chiffon fabric. Let me tell you, it was no easy feat but it made our room like complete and Cirque du Bebe ready!

We wanted to stay true to our cirque theme as much as possible with our spread. So we focused on the snacks. We didn't just have popcorn, we had gourmet popcorn and 3 flavors at that! The popcorn was from Popcornopolis and our flavors were Cinnamon Toast, Kettle Corn and the Zebra. Then of course we had to have cotton candy, so we hired Tasty Clouds to make them in 2 of their popular gourmet flavors, green apple and orange. Boy was it tasty. Amanda made her famous Red Velvet cupcake and Lemon Cheesecakes while Charlene's mom provided the savories. Typically I use white trays and platters to maintain a clean look and I like the food being the main focus. However, this time I wanted to coincide with the feel of the shower and make things a little more fun and whimsical. The cake stand, popcorn and cotton candy holders were made from cardboard and styrofoam covered in fabric with and trims and details that Amanda and I personally chose from the fabric store.

There were no games played at the shower, instead we had activities. All guests were invited to decorate onesies for the parents to be. I couldn't believe how creative our guests were. We also had a wish jar and baby name suggestion jar for Charlene and Keith for a keepsake.

I was so proud of the way everything turned out. I hope you will like it too! Thanks for stopping by!!!

Our sofa set up with our pillows and feather arrangement on the sides. Behind is a lattice screen which we displayed masks, flower cones and a "Cirque du Bebe" sign.

Our signage in a circus font lettering with rhinestones up close.

Corner spot in the room. Here you can see the draping and feathers.

Ostrich feathers and beautiful tall vase.

Pillows up close. You can see some of the paisley print as well as the ruffled pillow. I loved the different textures of each pillow and how well they all sat together making one cohesive "cirque" look.

We hung masks and cones with flowers on a white lattice backdrop.

Flower cone with gerbera daises

Draping in our patio room

You can see more of the draping and gift table here.

More draping...

Gift table deocor

Also on our gift table were "Thank You" lollipops in the same circus font used in our "Cirque du Bebe" signage.

Up close

Favors for the guests: 3 orange and white candy sticks tied with the same ribbon used on our cake stand boxes

"WISH" Jar made by Amanda. Guests put in wish notes for the parents to be.

Baby Jar for name suggestions.

Our fabulous spread...cotton candy, cupcakes, popcorn, fruit salad, savories on the side, etc.

The lovely flowers we had were balls of hydrangeas mixed with mini gerberas and rancunculus on a candle holder that we used as a vase this time.

Amanda's delicious lemon cheesecakes topped with fresh raspberries. Notice the trims and details on the stands behind it. =)

Cupcake station with animal flags on them, how perfect is that for Cirque du Bebe?

Cute!

My little soldiers.

Pretty papers for our eyes... I made these cones out of 8"x8" scrapbook paper. A hot glue gun is the answer to the strong adhesive, everything else just popped apart.

The BEST macarons from Paulette. The flavors from bottom row, left to right: Cassis, Pistachio, Coconut, Raspberry, Lemon and Passion Fruit. The best ones were Cassis, Passion Fruit and Lemon.

Yummmm....

Back side view

Guests hard at work on their onesies...here are a few below....

"Mommy's Little Angel" on the outside and "Devil" on the inside. Very cute and clever.

Preppy baby

California Love

Cupcake Monster, gee I wonder who that was from. =)

This lion onesie had a tail on the back! So adorable, one of my favorites.

Utterly Engaged Tablescape Design Challenge

2010-03-14T22:22:00.000-07:00

It's finally here!!! Utterly Engaged's long awaited Issue #008 is here and in it is featured our Design Challenge from their Utterly Spanking New Year Party. Which means I am finally allowed to post up pictures and blog about it!!! Just to give you a background again since it's been 2 months since I've last talked about it, I did a Modern Vintage theme using bird themed icons based on a plate that I had. I used bold colors of black, red, pale blue (from the plate) and white. A part of the challenge was to incorporate some sort of industrial material or paper of some sort. I used an acrylic candelabra and also made a garland that was made from paper, epoxy stickers and metal.

Floral: J'Adore

Linens, Lighting, Backdrop: Flowers on Mars

Menu and Escort Cards: Paper Girl

Cupcakes: Kayla's Kakes

Photos: Jasmine Star Photography

Nestle Cupcake Challenge

2010-03-04T13:47:00.000-08:00

The annual Nestle Cupcake Challenge took place on 2.20.10 at the Renaissance Hotel in Hollywood. There were 40 different cupcake flavors with about 20 vendors that featured at least 1-2 flavors each. The three categories competing for the title were Best Original, Best Traditional and Best Overall.

Our strategy was to go around and gather all of them and then try the ones that thought were best looking or interesting sounding first, then vote for our favorites. We didn't want to fill ourselves up in the beginning and not have room for the ones at the end, that wouldn't be fair now would it?! My personal favorites were from Cupcake Couture and Tavern. Not only were they beautiful they were delicious and unique.

Shirley's 30th Birthday Party

2010-02-07T22:00:00.000-08:00

I must start off by saying this party was so much fun to plan. I absolutely loved working with Shirley and the theme she came up with. Her guests were so warm and friendly, everyone just had a blast. The ambience was set to her liking and of course to my standards (and yes, including the bathroom in which I taped down the light switch so everyone was forced to use the candles I placed in there for mood lighting.) After 14 bottles of wine, 90 cupcakes, and a table of tapas all gone, it's safe to say that all 40+ guests left happy.

Dining Table: I showed Shirley a picture of a table linen with this same bustled look and she absolutely loved it. We did it in her colors and voile this was the result. The gray linen is a pintucked taffeta and the pink is a satin. In case you're wondering, yes that is bustled by hand!!

Gray tiles with pink paper behind it, 36 handmade paper flowers in total

Paper flowers on the table for decor

Shrimp and Chorizo phyllo cups.

Label reads "Shrimp Chorizo Phyllo Cups" in pink rhinestone sticker lettering.

An up close shot of the empanadas, also done with the same sticker technique.

Potato and Chicken Empanadas

Cheese plate

Dried roses

Centerpiece on the dining table: A mixture of glasses and goblets all filled with tea lights and a vase of dried roses in the center to go with the color theme.

Our Spreads...

Dessert Table: 90 cuocakes made by the famous Amanda. We had 30 of each flavor: Her ever fabulous red velvets, her chocolate ganache with nutella (yes it's as delicious as it sounds) and a vanilla cake with strawberry meringue buttercream frosting. YUM!

Manzanita tree with pink and white flowers (peonies, hydrangeas, cymbidium orchids and garden roses) as the main centerpiece on the wine bar.

Back View

Special wine charm and glass for the birthday girl

Wine claims with guests names on it. They were alphabetized to make for an easy find.

Tealights lining Shiley's wall

Entrance Way: There was a little alcove in her entrance way so we strung and hung flowers, put an uplight and a candelabra on the floor surrounded by a bed flowers.

Candelabra with flowers

We rearranged Shirley's furniture to make it more conducive to a lounge feel with couches facing each other and a table in the middle.

Simple candles on the table to add height but not take away from the space.

"Popped" the Question

2010-02-03T02:01:00.000-08:00

My brother got engaged last weekend...on his birthday!!! It's about time!! They've been dating since she was 15 and he was 18, that's almost 10 years for them.

It was held at our house with close family (in the other room hiding). John and I made a "birthday" video but it was actually a video that was a preface to the actual proposal. I told them I had a birthday surprise and started playing the video. At first it was basic messages from family saying "happy birthday" and then just photos of the two of them. Eventually throughout the video it showed pictures and their song, that only John could possibly know about and have. By this time she's figuring it out and starting to ball, until of course John comes on the video at the very end saying a little message, "I know you thought this was a birthday surprise for me but it's actually from me, turn around." He got down on one knee and popped the question right then and there. By this time I had set up and turned on the video camera and left the room. Only they were in there, but little did she know we were all in the other room watching and listening! Needless to say she was VERY happy and VERY surprised. She definitely didn't see that one coming!

Anyhow, what I wanted to share other than that was the "congratulations" cake pops I had made for the intimate gathering. I had blue pops with white sprinkles made from Just A Bite that spelled out "congratulations". They were all assorted flavors and might I add very very delicious! To display it I had my florist make a very narrow box and put a bed of button mums in there. I love button mums and think they're just adorable. To finish it off, of course ribbon and a broach that I actually wore at my own wedding was tied on for a sweet touch.

Shirley's 30th Birthday Party

2010-02-01T11:44:00.000-08:00

I'm planning a 30th birthday party for this Saturday, 2/6, at my friend, Shirley's condo in Playa Vista. I was really excited to be a part of her special celebration because I know Shirley will appreciate all the little details that I have in store for her. =)

The overall theme is Anthropologie meets W hotel with colors of gray and a blush pink. I love the contrast of the two colors and it can be done so elegantly. I know most people don't think gray is a color but I personally love it and with the pink it'll give it the right feminine touch.

The menu is going to be tapas (think Spanish cheeses, phyllo cups with shrimp and chorizo, skewers of melon balls with ham and empenadas of course) accompanied with wine and sangria. Dessert will be red velvet and chocolate with nutella filled mini cupcakes along with pink strawberry vanilla cake pops all made by of course the fabulous Amanda Prateepsin (soon to be Yuan!). I can't wait to just eat it all!!!

This JCrew dress is where she got her gray inspiration from.

I'm designing something on her dining room wall...here's just a sneak peak...

Those are gray metal filigree tiles in which I put pink paper behind it to achieve the pink and gray look we're going for. In the remaining empty squares I'll be placing 9 paper flowers in it. It's going to rock!

Paper flowers made out of tissue paper...so delish, no?!

We'll be using the paper flowers for other parts of the decor. But our real flowers will be peonies, hydrangeas and garden roses. All very lush and textured. It's going to be so pretty!

Remember these white cake stands from my NYE party? I covered them with pink tissue paper and a patterened clear paper from the craft store.

Looks like a whole new stand, doesn't it?

I will be using these filigree wine claims in ivory. How sleek and beautiful will these be? It goes so well with the filigree tiles!

*Sorry if these pictures aren't the best, they were taken from my iPhone!*

Come back next week to see the final party!! Thanks for visiting

Utterly Engaged Tablescape Design Challenge-Inspiration Board

2010-01-21T15:36:00.000-08:00

As you all know I entered in the Utterly Engaged "Spanking New Year Party" for a design challenge. Thank you for all that showed up to support me!!! If you stayed till the end you know that I didn't win. =( But that is okay because it's not about winning here. I made a lot of great contacts, it was a wonderful experience and I most of all I had a blast with my vendors and friends that came out.

There were a total of 15 tables. I was so amazed at how everyone was completely unique and they interpreted it so differently. We are still not allowed to share pictures from the contest until the magazine has been published so I ask that you stay tuned and patient. I know I'm so eager to share with you all too! But in the meantime here is a jpeg of my inspiration board.

Utterly Engaged Tablescape Design Challenge

2010-01-14T21:10:00.000-08:00

I will be entering the "Utterly Spanking New Year Party" 2010 wedding design challenge hosted by Utterly Engaged on Wednesday, 1/20, 7-10pm at the Astor Classic Event Center. What is this you may ask? It's basically a design contest to display everyone's creativity and talent while networking and gaining more exposure at the same time. Oh and did I mention the winner gets the pot of money gathered in entry fees, so far that's about $800!

So what are the rules? Utterly Engaged is asking for a modern tablescape with a twist. We are going to be judged on our centerpieces which must include elements other than just flowers {ie paper, fabric, industrial materials}, plus it all has to be within $150! My angle is "Modern Vintage" with simple, clean and pretty look that implements icons such as birds, floral vines, birdcages, filigree all with a little bit of a rococco look. I will be including a handmade paper garland, acrylic, mirrors and ceramic as parts of my centerpiece. My colors are very subdued with 1 pop of color. I will of course be adding table settings {flatware, glassware, chargers, plates}, lighting, a backdrop {yes! I know!}, favors, place cards, a dessert, the whole 9 yards.

I can't wait to see what everyone else has in store. There will be tons of eye candy. Guests will be allowed to vote on the best tablescape. If you'd like to come and support, you can sign up here. http://utterlyspankinparty.eventbrite.com/.

Here are a few pictures just to wet your appetite! Check back after the contest to see the whole thing!

Here is one table setting. Since this was taken, things have changed. But the blue plate with the birds and floral is where I got my inspiration from for this modern vintage theme. {don't mind the background}

Graphics that I will be using...it matches my plate so perfectly. =)

Bird cage favor boxes! Aren't they so adorable?!

Up close, so you can see the details.

I'll be using these candy dishes to display my bird nest dessert.

A birds nest that I found at Pottery Barn. Isn't it so perfect?!

New Year's Eve Party!

2010-01-07T09:57:00.000-08:00

Our patio room that I transformed into our lounge area.

Welcome 2010! It is my first blog of the year and boy do I have some goodies to share with you all. We threw a New Year's Eve party and have received so many raves and responses from it. I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for those who helped me {you know who you are}, listened to me talk about my party in the wee hours of the night and most of all my husband who had to endure all of my madness for the last few weeks.

I have to say I debated a lot about what items to rent, what theme and decor to do and just visualized how it would all be. In the end I decided on a peacock theme emphasizing heavily on the shades of turquoise, a deep purple and fuchsias. The lighting and furniture was to round it all out and put a modern twist on something to make it glamourous.

Here are some pictures and captions. Hope you all enjoy it! What a great way to start off 2010, right?

Glow cubes, which can be an end table or act as seats! These things are stackable too {can I say cocktail table idea?}

I love a clean look with glamour and presence. I think this arrangement speaks perfectly of the look I was going for.

Glow bar

Here you can see where the colors really play out {sorry had to turn on the flash to get all the colors, so the beautiful soft lighting isn't there}.

Drink Table: Manzanita tree with hanging crystals, flowers and drink name tags for our guests

Drink tags up close

Lighting does wonders...

In case you're wondering what the base of the tree looks like!

Our twenty-ten-tinis. They aren't as innocent as they look, vodka, peach schnapps and blue curacao

Drink tags being used...

Our spread consisted of all types of finger foods. From dates, to hummus to phyllo cups and of course your basics...cheese plate and veggies!

Centerpiece for our food table

Some of our food.....

Homemade hummus

My future sister in law, Amanda, made those...I can only take credit for the ribbon and sign!

Yum...

Amanda = sandwiches, Me = signs

We had a dessert and candy station too.

Amanda's famous Red Velvet Cupcakes

Peppermint marshmellows

Again, Amanda made these nougats. I can only take credit for the signs and flags

Last but not least our beloved chocolate bon bons which we made, rolled and stenciled out of edible gold powder dust. Yes they were as good as they look!

My Wedding

2009-10-29T21:38:00.000-07:00

JI know it's a little late, but here are pictures from our wedding. The ceremony was at the Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church and the reception was at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. We had a blast with all of our friends and family, it feels like it was yesterday!

Wedding dress by Pronovias

My bling! Okay so my bridesmaid's sister actually let me borrow this diamond and aquamarine set! It was my something borrowed and something blue.

Giuseppe Zanotti shoes

Outside the church

Underneath a big tree across from the church. Tiffany found this gem and Scott Robert Lim made it look breathtaking.

Right outside of the main church door

The church seats 500, we barely took up 10 rows.

Outside of the Walt Disney Concert Hall

A birds eye view of our reception hall

Tall centerpiece arrangements of roses, hydrangeas, orchids, with a stem of cymbidium orchids. 3 pillar candles with matching ribbons and rhinestone buckle complete the tablescape. Jackie Combs did an amazing job!

Upclose

Our sweetheart table. The base is completely covered in dhalias.

Other details on our sweetheart table.

The backs of our chairs

Vivian Chou from Paper-Girl made our invitations along with all other printed items. This picture is the inside of our wedding invitation. It was encased in a chocolate brown satin box. You open it up and this is what you find along with directions and RSVP cards. I found the cherry blossom paper, which we used throughout the wedding (as an accent) for favors, table numbers and menu cards.

The top two layers of this cake was actually fake since we only used this to do our cake cutting and we served mini cakes to each guest instead.

Mini cake. Top layer: Mango with white cake, bottom layer: chocolate raspberry covered in chocolate ganache. Those little white dots are actually sugar flowers, with pink satin ribbon around it. I know it's hard to see. It was cute in person.

11 piece band. Leonard Neil did an awesome job getting the crowd going and everyone on the dance floor.

Bedazzle My Bon Bons

2009-09-21T17:20:00.001-07:00

I found these glittery bon bons while walking the Event and Party Planning Expo at the LA Convention Center. These small glittery bon bons (that also come in lollipop shapes) looked awesome and better yet, tasted great too. I thought these were so cute for non traditional type of favors or decor at a party. They come in different shapes, colors and flavors.
www.bedazzlemybonbons.com

Shake your bon bons

Bedazzle pops

Bon Bon Boxes

Animal Alphabets

2009-09-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

Animal Alphabets was the theme for my godson's 1st birthday. In general, a 1st birthday is a big deal and in Hawaii it's a huge tradition, almost a second wedding if you will. Banquet hall, invitations, sign in table, cake table, photo area, you get the idea. The entire party was themed around K&Company's animal themes. There were 12 tables and our goal was to create each table with a different animal theme. The challenge was finding all the elements and creating unique, fun and relevant centerpieces for each table, all on a budget. Each table had coordinating napkin colors with the centerpieces. Below are just few ideas that was thought of.

K& Company's Animal Themes - Alligator to Zebra

Alligator: 3 alligator soap dishes filled with color coordinating andes mints. Pan filled with water and greenery to create a swamp effect.

Butterfly: 3 pillar candles with gold butterflies etched into it. Fake butterflies attached to the pillar and sign holders as if fluttering and floating on by.

Crab: Sand bucket and shells placed on a wood frame. Ceramic crab sitting on top of sand and candy placed around for guests to enjoy.

Giraffe: Beautiful tall giraffe resin tealight holders - simple and elegant.

Penguin: Cool Hawaiian Penguin...surfboard check, shades check, haku lei check.

Turtle: In the pan is a rock plant surrounded by water and greenery. Turtles are actually soap dishes and toilet brush holder filled with candies and lollipops.

Sign in Table: Guests were asked to guess how many animal cookies were in the frog. Photo collage of the birthday boy dressed in animal outfits were displayed nearby.

Pop Up Placemats

2009-08-24T07:58:00.000-07:00

These fabulous pop up mats by Publique add charm and function to a dinner party or perfect as gifts for a host. These place mats, inspired from children's pop up books, are made from recycled paper. There are 15 designs (below are just a few) in a variety of colors, come in packs of 10 for an affordable $26 per pack. Don't be surprised if you see me using these at the next event!

Tea Party Bridal Shower

2009-08-19T21:25:00.000-07:00

I did a bridal shower for a dear friend of mine. Her shower was at the end of May and we wanted something more Spring/Summer for her. The bridal party had decided on three different themes - Asian, Tea Party or Chic. I know, all very different!!! Luckily, one of the diligent bridal party members found a fabulous tea cup and saucer set from Anthropologie. We thought it would be perfect and emulated the bride's personality well since she loves good teas and appreciates a beautiful afternoon chatting with her friends. Initially my thought was to have a traditional afternoon tea theme, with fine china and roses, etc. However after much hunting around we found elements that would make for a modern tea party.

Room set up - We had two 6' long tables and 15 chairs. The tablecloth is a light champagne. I laid a magenta table runner then added a tiffany blue chair sash over it to incorporate both colors. White chivaris with green chair ties and modern green vases tied everything nicely together.

Tea cup and saucer set - we had blue and green alternating sets. I also found printed square plates and paired them together with coordinating linens, napkins and chairs.

Printed plate up close. These colors were the inspiration for the table cloths. It's hard to tell but in person the colors are hot pink, tiffany blue and lime green.

Food table

We did keep some traditions for afternoon tea such as the tiered stands, finger sandwiches and scones.

Centerpieces

2009-08-04T18:58:00.000-07:00

My girlfriend got married in November. She had 400 guests, which equates to a lot of tables, which means a lot of centerpieces thus leading to a lot of $$$. She had decided that she was okay with not having flowers and go with something branchy so guests can take it home and keep it for more than a week. She wanted a very Winter Wonderland feel. We came up with a branchy look and made all 40 by hand. It took 3 people and about 30 man hours to assemble it. In the end I would definitely say it was all worth it because her wedding looked gorgeous.

Baby Shower

2009-08-04T18:01:00.000-07:00

I had the privilege of helping a friend throw a baby shower. The shower was going to be neutral since we didn't know the sex of the baby. I didn't do a traditional pastel shower (nothing wrong with that!), but instead I played up bold colors such as yellow, orange and red. I incorporated daisies and bees to keep it cute and fun.

Table cloth that had bright flowers and bees on the border. I placed yellow tablecloths underneath for a pop of color.

"Congratulations" banner using coasters and cut out letters

Daisy stickers that I added to yellow paper cups to tie into the theme, give interest and dimension.

Polka dot baking cup (hard to see) and topped with a daisy pick.

The mother to be wanted something simple, so the room was definitely understated but still fun.

Chic Bridal Shower

2009-08-04T15:37:00.000-07:00

My wedding planner and now friend, Mary Sushinski, inspired me to do a blog about my new venture - event planning and designing. This is my first official blog and I want to thank you all for taking the time to read it.

This is a bridal shower that I did in November, 2008. This gal has a very "Hollywood" and glamorous personality. She loves the arts, film festivals, plays, musicals, getting dressed up, going to a nice lounge to get a glass of wine, you know what I mean, the "Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte" in us. So the bridal party and I came up with a "Hollywood Premier" Theme. Somewhere in between we went from there and ended up with a chic Black, White and Hot Pink Filagree, "Sex and the City" theme, which is perfect because she's such a huge fan of the show. The shower was in a home setting and we rearranged furniture, I even brought in a rug from my house. Here's how we put it together.

We covered the couch with black fabric and bought pillows to go with the overall theme.

We redecorated her fireplace mantle by adding pillar and tealight candles, a picture frame of the two of them and a "LOVE" plaque. This ended up being the backdrop for pictures.

The food table. That box is actually my CD box in which I lined with celophane and put wet floral foam and arranged hot pink roses. The candles were basic wax pillars that I covered with coordinating scrapbook papers and ribbons.

Up close on the frame design and pillar candle detail.

The big box is my file box where we placed the favors in. Also we had a message board where guests were allowed to write wishes or advice for the bride. I added feathers and hot pink ribbons to cover the pens (in a vase in front of the memo board). We had a cute poem framed in a beautiful black frame that went with the theme. We used my paper file tray to hold the prizes for games.

We rented cocktail tables and placed them around in the house.

The bar area was covered with black fabric, candles and frames. Signature martini and champagne drink names were framed in small circle frames.

Seating area