Plenty of botanical flowers, bright balloons, fruity cocktails, chocolate fondue and the most supportive group of people. What more could you want for our first ever Details, Darling Launch Party? Not much! We are so grateful that we had the chance to launch our business by throwing an exciting event for our closest friends. It was the perfect way to help promote and grow our company through social media. However, hosting an event for 30 people is not cheap! We understand that better than anyone because all the expenses came right out of our pockets. Here are a few ways we managed to save while adding in the details along the way!
Listen up Darlings... Cost Plus World Market IS YOUR NEW BEST FRIEND. It can get a bit pricey here & there, but the sale section is top-notch. Also, if you sign up to be a member you get 10% off your entire purchase. They also send you weekly coupons for discounts and specials going on in the store. We bought a ton of items for our party from World Market, including:
-All stemmed glassware ($2.50 for each glass)
-Throw blankets and pillows ($15.00-$35.00)
-Mini colorful vases for party favors ($2.00)
-Decorative bowls and platters for serving ($5.00)
For our food table, we were lucky enough to find these funky gold foil balloons from North Star Balloons. One great tip for setting a table is to use levels to your advantage. Wooden antique crates were our go-to decoration for displaying vintage cameras, candles and centerpieces. Use tall flowers to give your table some height and don't throw your utensils in boring old bowls. We spray painted mason jars gold, added twine and finished them off with colorful plastic utensils to liven up a rather simplistic aspect of a party.
No need for a caterer, when you can make all the food look delicious yourself. Chop up some of your favorite fruit, throw it on a skewer, and waahhh lahhh!
It is always important for your guests to have some sort of activity to partake in during an event. Cocktails are nice, but throw in a craft and you've got them hooked. We figured since festival season was upon us, it was the ideal time to make those coveted homemade flower crowns.
We ordered all of the supplies off of Amazon and found the fake flowers at The Dollar Store/Michaels. Thank you Lauren Conrad for the awesome tutorial: Flower Crown DIY
Fondue is an affordable dessert (and a major hit among the chocolate lovers) because all you need is:
1. two bags of chocolate chips
2. one small package of heavy whipping cream
3. cut up strawberries
4.pretzel rods
5. marshmallows
And make sure someone is snapping pics because its hilarious watching people stuffing chocolate in their face!
The bar cart at our event was hands down our favorite piece of decor. An easy way to make glassware look less boring is to wrap multi-colored yarn, twine or string around the stem. We bought generic glassware from World Market and now can reuse the glasses for any event by simply changing out the stemware decoration. Buy a large water jug, throw in some sliced lemons and top it off with festive ribbons. Lay down a funky patterned rug and tie up balloons for those final touches.
Some easy ways to spice up your drink bar is to add vintage frames with the cocktail menu placed inside. Include straws that match the decor and rock candy stirrers to make sipping more enjoyable.
Of course, never leave out the opportunity for a photo booth! Instant polaroids cameras, homemade backdrops and chalkboard signs can never go wrong. This little guy did the trick: Fujifilm Instax Mini
And the absolute best way to save those bucks.... Make your own centerpieces!!! You wouldn't believe how much money we saved on flowers by trekking down to the LA Flower Market on Saturday morning. And we had a blast doing it. The market has every type of flower you could possibly imagine.
We found our cute silver & gold vases at TJ Max HomeGoods for $12. To match our bohemian theme, we went with bright colors in an assortment of eucalyptus, roses, daisies, and billy balls.
For our party favors, we tried to try to stay away from your average gift bag. We wanted to leave our mark, stick with our theme and think of what every girl loves getting... flowers! The mini vases from World Market were easy to fill with our left over flowers from the centerpieces and the tiny tags added a personalized touch.
Overall, we heard nothing but great feedback from everyone at the launch and had an incredible time ourselves. Celebrating with sunshine on a Sunday afternoon.. yes please!
