Special party...
It was my turn to host our monthly girlfriend get together. After a year of Covid lockdown, I couldn’t wait to see my friends and wanted to make the party extra special!
Theme...
Usually when I plan a party, it starts with a theme of some kind. The inspiration for this event was the spectacular zinnias and sunflowers that grew in my garden that year.
The colors were incredible! They reminded me of my Fiesta ware dishes! Eureka!
Fiesta ware...
One summer around 9 or 10 years ago, I had the best garage sale year of my life! My daughter had two little boys at that time and occasionally, we would hit a few garage sales together.
I’ll never forget that day…walking into the back corner of this garage, and seeing a huge stack of Fiesta ware dishes (new, not the vintage ones).
There were two platters, two serving bowls, one large serving bowl and twelve place settings of dark colored Fiesta ware dishes!
The place settings included one dinner plate, one salad plate, one bowl and a cup and saucer.She was asking $25.00 for “all of them”!!!
I was so shocked, I was stupefied, lol!
You are not going to believe the rest of this story…but as they say “you can’t make this stuff up!”
Later that same summer, I found a complete set of 8 place settings, in pastel colors…for $30.00!
So my collection of Fiesta ware was started for $55.00! Over the years I have added a few vintage finds here and there, but the bulk of them are my garage sale finds.
I’m so thankful and I love them all so much! Mixing and matching them in every color combination has been the most fun!
Here are some of them, stacked in a vintage cupboard I keep in the utility room.
Linens...
Down in my basement, there are some cupboards on the wall, left from the previous owners. They work perfectly to store my vintage linens and other tablecloths that I use on a regular basis.
Pulling out a few that would go with my zinnias and Fiesta ware was fun. Every time I look at this picture I think, I sure like checks, lol!
Also pulling out a few dishes, helped me decide which looked good together.
Practicing the layout to see the combinations, not wanting to use the same pattern combination side by side, if possible…..
So the linens and dishes were chosen, the zinnias could be freshly picked for vases the day before the party…now for the menu, invitation, and a little favor to send home with everyone.
Invitation...
Sending a invitation in the mail…is “old school”, lol! But who doesn’t still love to get a card or invite in the mail?
After looking around and searching online…not finding something that I really liked that much, I decided to take a few pictures outside.
Some of them turned out so nice and I ended up using it for the front of the invite. It also gave me a name for the party…
Sunset Supper at the Farm
Beginning a Menu...
My niece, Lexi, had sent pictures of her latest baking success of Focaccia bread. It inspired me to try to bake my first focaccia bread. Serving it with olive oil and parmesan, for dipping, would be so good too.
Following the recipe was easier than I expected and the bread turned out really well.
Dressing it up with fresh sliced vegetables, creating a flower garden motif was an idea I took from Pinterest.
Recipe for Focaccia Bread...
Adapted from recipe by Jennifer Segal
INGREDIENTS
- 5 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 packet instant/rapid-rise yeast
- 1 tablespoon + 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1¾ cup warm water
- ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil, divided 1/2 cup + 1/4 cup
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
INSTRUCTIONS
- In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour, sugar, yeast, and 1 tablespoon of the salt. Mix on low speed to combine. Add the water and ½ cup of the olive oil; mix on low speed until the dough comes together, then turn the speed up to medium-low and continue to knead for 5 to 6 minutes, until the dough becomes soft and slightly tacky. It should stick to the bottom of the bowl a bit. If the dough seems too wet, sprinkle with a few tablespoons of flour, and turn the mixer back on to knead it briefly to combine.
- Transfer the dough to a clean, lightly floured surface (it helps to flour your hands, too). Knead by hand briefly until the dough comes together into a smooth ball.
- Coat the inside of a large bowl with about 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl, flipping once so that both the top and bottom are lightly slicked with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in a warm, draft-free spot until the dough has doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours. (The warmer the spot, the faster it will rise.)
- Coat a 13″ x 18″ rimmed baking sheet with ¼ cup of olive oil. (It will seem like a lot, but that’s what makes the bottom crispy.) Plop the dough onto the prepared pan and begin pressing it out with your hands to fit the size of the pan. Turn the dough over once to coat both sides with olive oil. Continue to stretch the dough to fit the pan. Once the dough is stretched, spread your fingers out and make impressions almost all the way through the dough (don’t poke holes, just press down to the bottom of the pan), this is when I decorated with the flower style veggies. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and place in the warm, draft-free spot until the dough has puffed up and doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- While the dough is rising a second time, preheat the oven to 425°F. Set an oven rack in the middle position.
- Sprinkle the top of the focaccia dough with ¾ teaspoon kosher salt and rosemary, then lightly drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil on top so it pools in the indentations. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove the focaccia from the oven and let it cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 15 minutes. Transfer the focaccia to a cutting board and slice into squares.
Fun Cocktail....
Even though I’m a tea tootler, I like to pretend to be a grown up and have a “Shirley Temple” in a wine glass, lol!
Using the fresh blueberries from my garden, sliced kiwi, sparkling mineral water, or Sprite and a few ball glass jars, the drinks turned out so pretty!
The day of the party...
Now mind you….it hadn’t rained in a month. But of course, the afternoon of the party it poured down rain! My beautiful plans of a long table out by the garden with all my friends at sunset….no nope. Plan B to the rescue.
My dear friend Sandi, frantically helps me somewhat “Clean” the barn….if that is even possible in an hour, set up the tables, rescue the water logged flower arrangements from the rain and start placing old quilts everywhere to try to hide some of the mess, lol!
Many hands make work light....
That is one of mine and Sandi’s favorite sayings…as our dear friend Elaine, once again, comes to the rescue and starts helping with the linens and place settings
Using large white cotton tablecloths for the base, we layered smaller ones on top, turning them kittycorner down the middle of the table, setting little bags of cherry tomatoes (for their favor) by each place.
Final touches...
Setting the flower vases on the table, with a few lanterns in-between, it was time to add waterglasses, silverware and napkins.
Have you ever noticed how tiny the original coffee cups were, that came with the Fiesta ware place settings? Way to small for my coffee “Mug” friends, lol. But I wanted to use them and came up with a really cute idea.
I served potato salad in them and set them on the top of the place settings (we had to cover them because of an occasional fly, lol)
Beautiful Evening...
Just before the guests arrived, the clouds floated away and the sun came out… we were able to have appetizers and cocktails in the garden after all.
Using my old potting bench for the bar, we set up a cocktail station. Quickly setting things in place as the girls pitched in to help themselves to a drink.
Queen of plan B...
Here’s me, holding the focaccia bread. Plan B, eating in the barn, made memories for a lifetime.
Thanks to my dear friends Sandi and Elaine, the party was a hit! The table turned out darling and my friends were so sweet about helping out at the last minute!
Sunset...
My Sunset Supper on the Farm….ended up being Sunset Supper in the Barn, lol!
But the evening finished with a nice campfire looking out over the horse pasture after all.
This is my joy…my true love, putting “extra effort” into making a party, dinner, or event a wonderful memory.
See you next time.
Fondly, Sandy
Such a great post, everything looked beautiful! I love Fiesta and have a small collection from my in-laws, I love mix matching them.
Thanks so much Donna! Your comment was so sweet!
Fondly, Sandy