PARTY THEME: HOST A BACHELORETTE BEACH SPA PARTY

They bought the dress, pitched in on the shower, purchased a wedding gift, and some even had to spring for an airline ticket to the wedding city. And now there’s the bachelorette party to plan. A trendy bachelorette trip to Vegas or Miami would be memorable, but if you can’t justify the expense, how about planning a spa getaway at home for the bachelorette party fling? A “what happens in the ‘backyard stays in the backyard” bachelorette party is a lot of fun and you won’t have to hassle with airport delays, long security lines, and taking even more days off from work for wedding festivities! After a day in the ‘spa’ head out to a night on the town complete a limousine—now that’s a bachelorette party any bride will love! This party theme is great for so many occasions: a birthday party, a baby shower for that new mom, girls night in party, or a farewell party for a friend who is leaving town.

Use a pop up tent to create a quiet spa area with drapes and tropical plants.

CREATE AN OASIS

A day at a spa doesn’t really allow for much quality time together. Hosting the party at someone’s home is a better way to hang out with best friends before the big day. Select a place with a lot of space. A pool, tranquil fountain area, or large patio is the perfect place. Whether you go DIY and take turns giving manicures and facials using a prepackaged spa kit or hire a mobile massage therapist like we did, start by dedicating a space for treatments. We used a pop-up tent as our treatment room complete with flowing white outdoor curtains, candles, and soft music. We didn’t buy anything— we used items we had to make our spa area feel special including some potted plants and plush robes. The massage therapist supplied the oils, lotions, linens and massage table. Bridesmaids should cover the cost of the bride’s treatments. The service provider will often give the bride a complimentary treatment with the purchase of a certain number of treatments. Make sure to hire someone licensed with appropriate insurance. It is always best to hire a vendor you know and trust.  

Order retro cool pool party decor from Oriental Trading Company. Add an oversized striped beach towel as a tablecloth to make decorating easy.

DECORATIONS AND PARTY SWAG BAGS

If you don’t have the luxury of a lot of space, clear out some furniture for the party and dedicate a room for your ‘spa’ area. Create a kitschy cool vibe with lots of cheap decorations.  We wanted a Hawaiian theme for our party— and wanted to do something completely campy since it was a bachelorette party. We found inflatable palm trees, colorful leis and vibrant beach towels to anchor the decorating theme. Oriental Trading has everything you’ll need. Be resourceful with your decorations and use what you have on  hand when possible. I forgot a tablecloth for our snack table so I used two striped beach towels for a tablecloth and they worked perfectly.  Quirky melamine serving platters were inexpensive and worked perfectly for the outdoor setting and can be used again later. Add string lights, lanterns or candles for a festive glow if your party is in the evening. Each bridesmaid received a gift bag filled with inexpensive treats from the dollar store. Flip flops, scented spa body butter, sunscreen, and lip balm for the day’s festivities and really cheesy light-up necklaces for the evening’s festivities were placed in reusable tote bags in party colors.

Hit up the dollar store for swag bag items your guests can use during the party and afterwards. Sunscreen, lotion, sunglasses, flip flops and more make great favors.

MENU

Since this spa party was a “pre-party” to our night on the town bachelorette party, we opted for “spa cuisine” like wraps, veggies, and fresh fruit. Have beverages ready to pour when guests arrive. Provide an assortment of drinks so guests have plenty of options and stay hydrated. Serve iced tea or perhaps fruit flavored water called agua fresca along with your cocktails.  So that nobody gets stuck with bartending duties, pre-mixed a signature cocktail in pitchers or a dispenser. Serve in plastic margarita glasses with a candy ring pop for garnish, perfect for the theme. We found these adorable Rice Krispy treats in the shape of a flip-flop at a shop but you could easily make these yourself.

ENTERTAINMENT

These days, couples are reconsidering some of the traditional activities that go along with a “last fling” bachelor or bachelorette party in favor of respectful rites of passage from single to married life. That doesn’t mean there still can’t be fun and games! After our spa treatments and a cocktail hour, we hired a limo to pick up our group for a night on the town at a favorite restaurant followed by dancing until dawn. A limousine not only alleviates the issue of driving, you feel like a rock star when  you arrive. Some limo companies have bachelorette VIP packages available with your limo rental that may include special club admissions, etc. We adorned our bride-to-be with some of the traditional bachelorette party finery including a furry pink light up “I’m the Bride” tiara and layers of paper leis. How far do you go with decorations and debauchery? Only you know the limits for embarrassing your best friend. Just make sure whatever entertainment you plan, it won’t cause relationship issues in the light of day.

This party was a breeze to pull together because we divvied up the work load. Most of the food is available pre-made at the grocery if you don’t have time to make it yourself. To save time and gas, simply go online to shop and you can get everything you need for this party in just a few clicks! What could be easier?  You are all set for your bachelorette getaway without leaving town.

Photography: Arden Ward/Arden Photography

MARTIE PARTY TIP: BAR ESSENTAILS AND TIPS FOR SERVING DRINKS AT A PARTY

“Where’s the bar” is the first question arriving party guests will ask as you greet them at the door. The bar is the central gathering place for many parties—even if alcoholic beverages aren’t served. Every bar should be equipped with basic tools, mixers, and spirits; when tools are not handy, it is difficult to get drinks out quickly. Lines begin to form and guests stand empty handed—a big party foul. Here’s a guide for building your bar. The quantities you will need will depend on how many guests you are serving, of course. If you’re not offering a full bar but serving a signature cocktail or just beer and wine, you certainly won’t need this extensive set-up; pick and choose what suits your needs from the list below. 

Here are a few secrets I’ve figured out over the years….

• Put something under your ice bucket or iced down beverages so you don’t end up with a wet tablecloth.
• Get two back up bottle openers and put them away. Bottle openers not only break, but they seems to walk away at most parties, especially at outdoor parties and tailgates. If possible, tie the bottle opener or wine opener to your ice chiller or cooler using a pretty ribbon or twine. 
• I often put an inexpensive plastic backed painter’s dropcloth under my nice tablecloth for the bar just in case there’s a spill. Some dropcloths have a cloth surface so they look great for casual settings.
• For casual occasions, it is perfectly fine to use or rent one type of glass or stemware to be used for wine, iced tea and water.
• When serving a signature cocktail, I often mix the base a day in advance and freeze it. Remove it an hour before guests arrive so it can slightly thaw. Add chilled liquor just before serving and stir well.
• I get large multi-gallon plastic jugs from the restaurant supply store to pre-mix all of my beverages. Store these in the refrigerator, freezer or in a cooler to keep them cold and you won’t need as much ice.
• Estimate 4.5 glasses of wine per bottle and 4 glasses of Champagne per bottle.
• Estimate guests will drink approximately 1 drink per hour.
• Have plenty of water and sparkling water available; pass glasses of chilled water on a tray to make sure guests don’t overindulge.
• Make sure you are not cooling cans or bottles in the cooler with the ice for beverages. Have one cooler just for “clean” ice and provide a scoop and an ice bucket for service so guests won’t be tempted to scoop with their glass.

TOOLS

Ice Bucket

Tray

Ice Tongs

2 Bottle Openers

2 Wine Openers or Corkscrews

Blender

Juicer

2 Martini or Cocktail Shakers

2 Double Jiggers- the dual cone shaped measuring device

Shot Glass

Measuring Spoons

Muddler- essential for drinks like the Mojito

Cutting Board

2 Paring Knives

Zester

Stirrers or long cocktail spoons

Cocktail napkins

Assorted glassware

MIXERS

Club Soda

Tonic

Sour Mix

Water

Coke

Diet Coke

7-Up or Sprite

Ginger Ale

Orange Juice

Grapefruit Juice

Cranberry Juice

Pineapple Juice

Tomato Juice or Bloody Mary Mix

Horseradish

Tabasco

Worcestershire Sauce

Lime Juice

Lemon Juice

GARNISHES

Lemons

Limes

Oranges

Celery

Olives of all types, stuffed, etc

Maraschino cherries

Bitters

Fresh Mint

Salt

Pepper

Margarita Salt

SPIRITS

Vodka

Bourbon

Scotch

Rum

Gin

Tequila

Triple Sec

WEDDINGS: PLAN A WEDDING IN ONE WEEK? YES, I DID!

When a lifelong friend and longtime bachelor calls you on April Fool’s Day and says… “I got engaged yesterday and I want to get married THIS coming Saturday AND we want you to plan the wedding”… the normal reaction is to bust out laughing. Which I did. But when he says he’s serious, it is time to jump on the planning ASAP. Here’s how I pulled together a beautiful, sentimental family wedding in only one week. And here are the photos to prove it.

When you have less than a week to pull together a wedding, you don’t have time to procrastinate and stress about the decisions you are making. You have to make decisions and move on… and that’s what we did. No time to sweat the little things! Trusting your planner is essential:)

I was the vendor for just about everything. I was the planner, the chef, the florist, and even rental delivery… just about everything. What I could not make, I purchased. The one vendor I did hire was the photographer, Mo Davis from Arden Photography. Mo is a rock star, capturing every moment and every detail. Advice to brides: don’t skimp on the photos. The pictures and the memories last a lifetime. AND I must thank my sweet friends Jared and Corey from The Sonnet House in Leeds, Alabama. Corey made the lovely bridal bouquet and boutonnieres… aren’t they beautiful!

For the decor, the couple wanted a rustic theme to fit the farm setting so we used bales of pine straw, pots of spring flowers, branches, burlap, moss, Mason jars, rustic lanterns, and lots of candles. The pine straw along with the flats and pots of spring flowers were used at the front gate and also for the ceremony site. The couple has already planted those in their yard to enjoy all summer long. We also did not want to have to worry with rental china so we opted for this eco-friendly recycled paper and bamboo place settings which were recycled again after the event!

We continued the rustic theme throughout the decor and for the food service. Wooden serving trays, cutting boards, bowls were all used. Charcuterie of cured meats, cheeses, and sausages plus grilled lamb pops were waiting for guests after the ceremony. For the main course, we kept it down on the farm with smoked pulled pork over organic grits and collard greens. For dessert, the two-tiered wedding cake was vanilla butter cream and filled with layers of homemade lemon curd and raspberry preserves. Since there was going to be a fire in the fire pit after dark, I made my signature s’mores with Nutella instead of a groom’s cake and also made plenty as favors for guests to take home.

Wishing a lifetime of happiness to my sweet friends… thank you for letting me be a part of your day! Thanks to my assistant Caroline, my grill master Brad, Lauren, Kristal, and Sohaila along with Mo and Jared and Corey from the Sonnet House in Leeds. You made this easy!