Girlfriends’ Valentine’s Brunch (and a Giveaway!)

Wednesday, January 30, 2013 / Comments (83)

Valentine’s day is right around the corner and although you might be making plans with your honey, sometimes it can be about showing your friends that you care about them!! This year I decided to host a little soiree to celebrate a special group of girlfriends that have supported me this year – close friends and our Sacramento Street contributors (a new lovely lady debuting next week!). Minted was kind enough to provide a Valentine’s Day party in a box, which was perfect for the occasion – striped straws, signs, colorful paper goods for the table, and tags.

It was fun dreaming up this girlie-girl tabletop – a bit out of my normal (neutral colored) comfort zone but it definitely had to happen for this Valentine’s Day brunch. My essentials for any brunch tabletop – clean cut tulips from the grocery store, bright linen napkins, candy in the colors your decorating the table with and lastly, a fun drink to serve guests as they arrive (in this case blood orange soda with prosecco).

One of my favorite things to do for parties is to have something special for guests – in this case, I worked with Minted on creating personalized journals for each of my girlfriends. It was fun to add them to the tabletop as their place card.

When you combine love, laughter and amazing friends around a table, there really isn’t anything better! This brunch made me realize I need to host more parties to celebrate the girlfriends I love.

Now for the fun part! Minted is giving away a $150 gift certificate good for any Valentine’s Day items! Perfect for the holiday that is right around the corner

Here’s how to enter the Minted Valentine’s day giveaway:

~ Leave a comment on this post, telling us which Valentine’s Day items are your favorite from Minted – classroom sized valentines, regular valentines, gift tags, journals, art prints, or the party in a box (which I featured). That’s it! Just be sure to include your email address.

~ One winner will be chosen randomly and win a $150 gift certificate good for any Valentine’s Day items on the site!

The winner will be chosen randomly and announced on Monday, February 4th!

UPDATE: Congrats to Whitney for being our winner this time! You’ll be receiving an email shortly.

Photos by Caitlin Flemming // Napkins from Hudson | Grace in San Francisco

Posted in: entertaining, giveaway, minted, party

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Mark & Graham Challenge: A Rustic & Elegant Holiday

Wednesday, December 12, 2012 / Comments (13)

Styling tabletops has always been a passion of mine because it gives me a reason to put together a gorgeous tabletop for guests and surround myself in joy and happiness. When newly launched Mark & Graham asked me to participate in a fun Design Challenge against an amazing group of bloggers and designers I was excited to see what I could create with my surprise box of Mark & Graham monogrammed goodies! The idea behind this challenge – all five of us would be competing to see which tabletop readers loved the most. What’s in it for you? If you vote over on Facebook, you’ll be automatically entered into winning a $500 gift card to Mark & Graham. Luckily, my dear friend Emily Anderson was able to shoot this feature for me. Read on to see the items that I had to style . . .

When I think of monograms the first thing I think of are napkins. Ever since I was young I’ve traveled to flea markets around the world and collected antique linen monogrammed linen satin stitch napkins. Even if they don’t have the right initials, I love collecting them. These will definitely be making an appearance at future dinners.

Sacramento Street // Mark & Graham Challenge
Since it’s getting cooler and I find myself bundling up more at night, this beautiful monogrammed cashmere throw is perfect for those who get chilly.

A dinner party isn’t complete without a cheese plate – pick your favorite cheeses (two or three usually works for a group of four to six), honey, nuts and fruit. Don’t forget sharp cheese knives – these bamboo cheese spreaders are the perfect weight.

I’m thrilled with the way this rustic and elegant holiday tabletop came to life. What do you all think? Be sure to check out the competition! See the other Mark & Graham designs by Cassandra from Coco + Kelley, Camille from Camille Styles, Jenny from Little Green Notebo ok and Emily Henderson.

Now pop over to Facebook to vote for your favorite design!

Photos by Emily Anderson / Styling and Flower Design by Caitlin Flemming

Posted in: entertaining, sponsor, sponsored post

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a taste of summer . . .

Tuesday, June 28, 2011 / Comments (13)

Although there is fog in the city, it doesn’t mean that we don’t get to enjoy summer weather – let’s just say you’ve got to get creative. Like hopping in a car and driving up north to Napa. But on the rare summer days that are warm in the city, you’ll find me soaking in the sun in the back yard with my a good book and enjoying one of these delicious mojitos. My best friend from high school and I always meet up for them at our favorite joint in Portland, but this year we might have to make them ourselves. I can tell you one thing, I’ll definitely be indulging in these over the next few months!

*Photos by What Kate Ate

Posted in: drink, entertaining, food, party, summer, what kate ate

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TGIF!

Friday, June 3, 2011 / Comments (5)

As temperatures rise across the country I’m longing to see a break in the clouds with a sliver of sunshine beaming down. It’s high time for Bay Area weather to peak over 58 degrees. So I’m bringing myself a little bit of hope and inspiration for when those days come in the near future (right Mother Nature?) . . .

A light and airy summer dress is definitely a must-have for warmer temps and of course who wouldn’t want to pair it with a chic hat . . . do you have a favorite this season?

Warm days call for spending as much time outdoors – eating breakfast while reading the newspaper, curling up in that perfect spot to catch some rays and of course throwing impromptu dinner parties to savor the sun setting a little later as each day passes. What do you have planned to take advantage of the warmer temperatures? Indulge me because it’s supposed to rain this weekend.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone! Enjoy the sunshine where ever you might be.

xo,

Caitlin

Photos: Liz Sampson via Lookbook.nu and Fashion Toast

Posted in: entertaining, fashion, style, sunshine, weather, weekend

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