Hello Everyone!!!!
Hope you all had a fabulous weekend, we did for sure, starting it off with a surprise 50th birthday party for one of our close friend!
Gerri is Filipino-Chinese and since we know she followed a lot of Chinese traditions and customs (and never fails to explain or inform us all about it ;-)), we thought of a Chinese-themed Birthday party!
I'll let the pictures do the talking...
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| I set-up the buffet on our Kitchen Island - take note, there's still lots of food and desserts on the other side!!!!! |
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| The birthday cake is Mocha Chiffon, a Filipino favorite. And as per tradition, we had CaraCara or Li'l snapper oranges - something sweet and round is considered lucky as well as the color RED! |
Since it is the season of LENT, we had to go with fish and vegetables for our menu!
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| Food was potluck - I cooked the shrimp a.k.a. Camaron Rebosado and Tinolang isda or Fish broth soup. The rest were brought by my co-party-planner friends! |
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| Of course, what's a party without champagne?!! -I used snow to cool off this baby |
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| I had food warmers of course to keep everything hot and steamy, and as with any asian feast, lots of condiment should be available |
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| Just had simple balloons c/o our friend Grace. The parasols came from our friend Vivian which I think made this setting really beautiful! |
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| Simple centerpiece with flowers and a picture of the celebrant, and of course, FORTUNE COOKIES! |
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| My table setting was very simple - Chinese Horoscope on the placemats, chopsticks and chinese bead bracelets as napkin holders! |
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| This was the set-up in the main dining room - there were 16 adults total - all the kids were 'escorted' to the basement where they would prefer to play games and hang-out of course. |
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| A closer look - dragon centerpiece, red candles and red flowers |
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| My Blue & White Chinese Pottery Collection fit perfectly with our party theme |
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| More details on the decor - the garland is the symbol for PROSPERITY |
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| I also googled the CHINESE CALLIGRAPHY of the names of the guests ! My friend said it wasn't bad at all considering I just used Sharpie! ;-) |
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| I set each table to sit 8 - tight, but still ok I think |
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| Birthday girl was thrilled to hear us all sing "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" IN CHINESE!!!!! |
It was a real fun night of eating , chatting, dancing and eating some more too!
We were all happy to show our friend Gerri how much we appreciate her and love her as a friend, and I think, as with any Birthday celebration, Big or Small, that's what matters most, right?!
And before I end this post I just wanna share with you this....
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| My little China doll |
I had to take advantage of all the Chinese decor right?!
Ok, need to catch-up on my reading, wonder what you guys have been up to?!
Have a Wonderful Week!
VEL
Would love to hear your thoughts! Please share away...
SOURCES:
Dragon Centerpice, Garland, Place setting cards, chopsticks, wooden Chinese beads, plastic table cover - ORIENTAL TRADING
Parasols, hanging good luck charms on light, pouch for souvenirs, fans & fortune cookies - bought from a Chinese store in St. Louis
Linking back to...
Linda's Coastal Charm, Savvy Southern Style, Fluster Buster, Dwellings the heart of your home, Carolyn's homework, Gingersnap Crafts, The Style Sisters, Serenity Now, Friday favorites, The Shabby nest, A Tray of bliss, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Our Home away from home, A Stroll Thru Life, From My Front Porch to Yours
Linking back to...
Linda's Coastal Charm, Savvy Southern Style, Fluster Buster, Dwellings the heart of your home, Carolyn's homework, Gingersnap Crafts, The Style Sisters, Serenity Now, Friday favorites, The Shabby nest, A Tray of bliss, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Our Home away from home, A Stroll Thru Life, From My Front Porch to Yours
Posts
What a lovely surprise. The food and decorations look so pretty and wonderful. Love all the details.
ReplyDeleteRosezeeta.
Wow, what a spread and I see lots of my favorites. Oh, that last photo is so sweet!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful party and theme.............you went all the way. Just beautiful and true testament to you friend. Your China Doll is sooooooooo cute!
ReplyDeleteVel, you throw the best parties! If the doctor thing doesn't work out, you could be a party planner, lol! I am sure your friend felt very special and loved. Super cute Sophia pics too - she's a beauty! Jane
ReplyDeleteThat looks like such a fun party! How sweet of you to host it! And I could just squeeze little Sophia!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun party and beautiful decorations. My favorite is your little China doll. So adorable!
ReplyDeleteWow! Gorgous decoration! Your beauty China Doll is so sweet - special child!:-)
ReplyDeleteYou always throw the BEST parties, and your decor is unmatched!! So beautiful, Vel!
ReplyDeleteThe decorations look fantastic and the food looks delicious! And sweet Sophia! Adorable!
ReplyDeleteYour China doll is adorable and what a fun birthday party! I love all the decoration!
ReplyDeleteLove the photo of sweet Sophia! You truly host the best parties! How cool that you chilled the champagne in actual snow! :)
ReplyDeleteThe decoration for the party was great and it's always fun to see your kitchen and your little doll!
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing party! Sophia looks sooo pretty! Can't believe how big she is getting. :)
ReplyDeleteWow, you're the best at throwing parties, the food and the decor are amazing! Your sweet Sophia is just adorable!
ReplyDeleteThis is soooo beautiful, Vel! So many thoughtful details! I love that you used snow to chill your champagne!
ReplyDeleteWow! It looks like a lil Chinatown.
ReplyDeleteLoving how you put all those decos and the planning with Ms. Lil China Doll.
Hope you had a great time together. Yeah! Photos speaks louder than words.
Heart Ms. China Doll above all.
I can hear you singing Happy Birthday in Chinese :) Is that Cantonese or Mandarin? And well done there, Vel. The foods looks soooooo yummy! I want a big piece of that mocha chiffon cake. Happy Birthday to Gerri :)
ReplyDeleteWow Vel, what a gorgeous spread. Everything looks absolutely delicious. And baby Sophia is a doll.
ReplyDeleteVel will you plan my next party? Ahhh to be a guest at one of your soirees
ReplyDeleteSo festive and colorful, Val! But the prettiest of them all is your china doll!....Christine
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely beautiful ... the colors are fantastic! The tables and decor are so special! Job well done! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThat party looks so fun, I would love to attend a party just like that!
ReplyDeleteWow what a fabulous job you did! Love the bright cheerful colors and the presentation of the food looked wonderful! My favorite is the parasols and the ballons at that one table setting- just perfect! Your little china doll is adorable! She's grown a lot!
ReplyDeleteNow that looks like it was a wonderful party, and I'm sure it was very special to your friend! Sophia does look like a little China doll -- so precious!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fabulous party! You really know how to throw them! Red is one of my favorite colors and I love all of the red in the decor!
ReplyDeleteDuring planning sometimes I wasn't sure what I wanted, but my event coordinator would try to attend as many vendor meetings as she could and seemed to always know what’s best. She doesn't worry you about details that she can handle without me.
ReplyDelete