CarrieDaway

Turns out Magnolia magic is like pixie dust – all you need to do is believe. After reading about Joanna’s flower workshop, I was inspired to host a flower party for Mother’s Day. I enjoy fresh flowers but more often than not I receive them as a hostess gift and hurriedly cut the stems and plop them in a vase. I loved the idea of having time to literally stop and smell the roses. A get-together with girlfriends on a Saturday morning where we could relax and get creative with flowers. It would also provide a great gift for Mother’s Day on Sunday.

Since Lindsey has a beautiful Victorian home with a large backyard, I asked if she would like to co-host and she graciously agreed. I created a Facebook event to invite all of our female friends and at the end of the day the intimate brunch was just what I needed. I’ve hosted plenty of parties but this was the first one that I was able to feel proud of AND enjoy.

How to Host a Flower Brunch:

1. Ask guests to bring a dozen of the same type of flower and a vase.
2. Provide the basics – greenery, baby’s breath, scissors, flower paper and plastic to wrap flowers if needed. Don’t forget to bring your own dozen flowers.
3. Serve brunch. I made my favorite quiche, breakfast sausage, a fruit salad and picked up donut holes from the local bakery. Lindsey made a mimosa bar with special ice cubes and cookies.
4. Host the party outdoors. Everyone can enjoy themselves more when no one needs to worry about a mess – toss those stems in the grass! And set-up a tent in case of rain.
5. Picture frame party favor. Snag some pictures from guests’ Facebook page and use frames from the dollar store for easy table decor.
6. Set up a flower selection station. When guests arrived I put all the flowers in a bucket so we could easily select our flowers later. The more creative of us dived in and put their vases together at that table. Others (myself included) needed more time and space and went back to the brunch table to organize our thoughts and vases.
7. Start early and keep it short. Everyone enjoys themselves more when they don’t have to worry about all the things they aren’t getting done on a Saturday. We scheduled the party from 10 to 12 and stayed close to that schedule.
8. Take pictures – you’ll want to remember this.