One of my favorite party ideas is a potluck, so when my friend Kaylin suggested we try some matcha cookies, I saw the potential in taking my matcha love up a notch. Kaylin, Jessica, and I had a matcha potluck party to try a bunch of snacks.

What is matcha?

Matcha is a finely ground powder from specially grown green tea leaves. Usually bright green in color, matcha is rich in antioxidants that prevent high blood pressure, heart disease, and inflammatory issues. It contains three times the amount of caffeine that’s in green tea!

While matcha is a health and flavor trend these days, it’s been around for years. Nowadays, you’ll find matcha lattes on coffee shop menus and matcha-flavored cookies in grocery stores.

Where can I get matcha powder?

When buying matcha powder, you’ll see descriptions like “ceremonial-grade” or “culinary grade.” I got my matcha powder from the bulk section at Central Market. I scooped 0.1 lbs for $5.25. Most recipes ask for a few teaspoons so this is more than enough. You can also try a specialty tea store like Zhi Tea in Austin or Teavana around the country. Of course, if all else fails, Amazon has options also.

Where can I buy matcha snacks?

You can find packaged snacks in grocery stores, especially Asian supermarkets. In Austin, be sure to check out Hana World Market or MT Supermarket for a bunch of options. Matcha Kit Kats and Green Tea Pocky are my favorites!

You can also find many matcha products in Trader Joe’s, from green tea mochi ice cream to 99 cent cans of matcha tea. Matcha Joe Joe’s are like Golden Oreos with matcha cream in the middle.

Grab fresh pastries to go from one of my favorite pastry shops – Tous Les Jours. They have green tea cake rolls and green tea macarons.

Want made-to-order matcha drinks and desserts? Check out the matcha latte from The Factory and matcha cocktail from Kemuri. You can find matcha options all over Austin. Check out this post from Eater Austin.

What kind of matcha recipes are there?

Incorporating matcha into recipes is easy! Just use a bit of matcha powder. I am obsessed with the Lemon Olive Oil Cake at Flower Child, a healthier restaurant here in Austin. I found the recipe (WOOHOO!) and used a bit of matcha powder in the glaze to make these Lemon Olive Oil Cake with Matcha Glaze. They disappeared within two days!

I also made these matcha shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate. They were very strong, so if you make them, add half the recommended matcha powder.

My friend Jessica has a wealth of healthy matcha dessert recipes on her blog Desserts With Benefits. Check out the matcha recipes here.

Kaylin brought these delicious Coconut Matcha Green Tea Popsicles to our potluck party.

It was a tasty get-together for sure!

Have any favorite matcha recipes or have you tried any great matcha dishes? Let me know below!

P.S. Curious what other parties I’ve thrown this year? See them all here!

Keep up with me elsewhere! You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Bloglovin’. You can also subscribe to the exclusive email list.

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Disclosure: Sky Candy provided a complimentary aerial class party for us. Yippee! All opinions are my own.

Have you ever been mesmerized by the performers at the circus or Cirque du Soleil show? You watch them with equal parts fear, anticipation, and amazement at the daring and graceful acrobatic stunts. If you’re like me, you leave wanting to join the circus immediately.

The skills of the performers aren’t acquired overnight, of course, but taking classes at Sky Candy can put you in the right direction or at least, put a little adventure in your life. I gathered some of my blogger friends for an aerials party to see what Sky Candy is all about!

Aerial Class for Bachelorette Party

Sky Candy is an aerial and circus arts studio open since 2010. For ladies or bachelorette parties looking for a unique group activity, I recommend checking out Sky Candy. No experience is necessary and don’t worry, you won’t be doing anything dangerous during your first class! The ideal size of a private party is six people but they can accommodate larger groups by having additional instructors on hand.

Sky Candy is located at Springdale General in East Austin. The complex has a sushi restaurant, coffee shop, bar, and multiple gift shops. It’s also a short distance from additional restaurants and bars.

Preparing for Class

The most important part of preparing for class is to wear the appropriate outfit. Wear workout leggings and close-fitting tops that cover your underarms. The backs of your knees and your underarms will be rubbing the equipment, so you want to dress comfortably. Do not wear any jewelry. You may also want to bring a water bottle for during class.

What to Expect in an Aerial Class

For our class, we started with stretching exercises to prepare for the moves we would do. Then, our fabulous instructor showed us each skill and we took turns trying it out. We tried the silks and the lyra (hoop). All of the skills weren’t necessarily hard, but we did use muscles we usually don’t use. We got to do spins, flip upside down, and learn about balance.

Book Your Event

To book your party, see the party options on the website, and email frontdesk@skycandyaustin.com with your details on date, time, and group size.

Address: 1023 Springdale Road Bldg 8A, Austin, TX 78721

Available for: private events and parties, classes, private classes, workshops, shows

Website: https://www.skycandyaustin.com

All photos thanks to Yvan! Thank you to my friends Kelsey, Caitlin, Kate, Amy, and Nicole for joining me in the class!

P.S. Looking for more suggestions for a bachelorette party or girls weekend? Check out these posts:

• Ultimate Austin Bachelorette Party or Girls Weekend Guide
• Best Austin Restaurants for a Bachelorette Party
• Ultimate Austin Bachelorette Party Itinerary
• 10 Fun Austin Bachelorette Party Activities

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This colorful patterned tablecloth from Target has been waiting for a party and it’s my favorite! Simple flowers brightened up the place.

It’s no party without snacks! I made sure to include cupcakes since I hadn’t made any in a while. These Brown Butter Peach Cupcakes were perfect for a summer celebration. Also, these confetti brownies were chocolate gooey goodness. Those sugar cookies were what we used to DIY.

Plenty of La Croix to cleanse the palate! Thank you to Amy for bringing a yummy bottle of rose that we happily finished.

We made two crafts at the party: flooded sugar cookies and a macramé wall hanging. Here are some shots from the cookie action.

I’ve been wanting to try macramé for a long time! I found the jersey yarn macramé wall hanging kit from Wool and the Gang. They had lots of fun colors for our project. (FYI: the yarn is made from recycled factory cut-offs so the color options change frequently. If you see a color you like, grab it quickly!)

The macramé wall hanging was quite the craft. It was definitely a lot harder and more time-consuming than I thought it would be. Now we understand the time and effort behind all those beautiful macramé hangings on Instagram and Pinterest!

We all spaced out on the floor since the yarn needed to be long. If I had gotten photos of us at work, you would see us intensely concentrating on our craft. None of us finished but hopefully we’ll have finished products in the future!

Jack supervising/”helping” our macrame making.

Here’s macramé progress! I definitely put a lot of “character” in at the beginning.

Have you ever tried macramé? What did you make?

Want more patterns? Check out my Pattern board on Pinterest.

Keep up with my daily adventures. You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Bloglovin’, or Snapchat (@wanderlustanita). You can also subscribe to the exclusive email list.

I’m on a mission to throw 12 celebrations in 2016. This is #7 of 12. See all of #Celebrations2016 here!

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This past weekend, I had the joy of helping with my friend Sarah’s baby shower! (You might remember Sarah from her wedding reception I helped with two years ago.) Sarah’s sister Rachel was the organizer of the whole event and she did a stellar job. The baby shower featured an amazing bagel bar, girly florals, DIY, and lots of fun!

First, the food! A fellow foodie, Sarah made it very clear that she wanted great food at the shower. Rachel, their family members, and some friends prepared all the delicious food. The amazing bagel bar spread had options for all tastes – from lox and capers to Nutella and banana. There was also chicken salad, pea pesto salad, herb and goat cheese frittata, sausage and potato and mushroom frittata, almond lemon cake, and mimosas.

For the décor, I kept it simple with these girly floral hoops. If you’re looking for something different than flowers in a vase, this project is doable in about an hour.

Here’s some info on how to make the floral hoops.

• Those white hoops are small hula hoops from the Dollar Store with two coats of white spray paint. Yes, only $2 plus the white spray paint that I already had. I went this route for the hoop thickness and color. The only problem I had was if I weren’t careful, the paint would scratch off when it touched hard surfaces. You can also get metal hoops in varying sizes (ones I saw at Hobby Lobby were thinner, silver and ranged from $1-5 each) or wood embroidery hoops from a craft store.
• Buy floral wire (thin green wire), wire cutters, greenery, and a mix of coordinating flowers. For the greenery and flowers, I got eight stems of greenery for $2 each at Central Market and two prepared bouquets from Whole Foods for $9 each. I got the bouquets because Central Market didn’t have the flowers I wanted, but the bouquets were good because I didn’t need to think about what flowers would go together and they were cheaper than piecing bouquets together myself.
• Sketch out your loop design or lay out your flowers to get a feel for the desired finished look. For my hoops, I knew I wanted the greenery to open out on the ends and for the big Gerbera daisies to be the focal point. The roses and berries were complementary.
• Start with the greenery and wire each piece strategically onto the hoop, layering on top of each other. I started wiring the outer pieces and moved in to the center with the flowers. You may need to use glue dots to help hold pieces in place. I used it in two spots to cover up the white hoop with leaves.
• Stick the hoops to the wall with plastic hooks with adhesive on the back and glue dots or hang them with clear fishing line.
• Altogether, this project cost $38 plus the white spray paint, floral wire and wire cutters that I already had. Your big cost will be the flowers and depends on the kind of flower. A $4 carnation bunch from HEB could look just as nice. My flowers were from Central Market and Whole Foods. I also hear Trader Joe’s has a good flower selection. You could also make this with fake flowers, which cost an average $3-5 per stem at a craft store.

Our DIY craft was decorating onesies and bibs for the future babe. Everyone did a great job with these! The drying racks came in very handy.

We also had guests fill out two different cards – one of baby predictions (things like height, weight) and another of wishes for the baby (things like “I hope you learn ___”). Sarah’s friend Cristina put these cute cards together and created this impressive diaper cake.

Cristina also created this pretty birthdate calendar that we all put our birthdate predictions on. I’ve guessed Baby Girl will be an early bird! It’ll be fun to see if anyone guessed correctly.

We played Pictionary using words associated with babies, like spit up and breast pump, but with a room full of moms, this game was a piece of cake!

There was gift opening that resulted in a lot of agreeing nods when another box of baby bottles appeared and oos and ahhs when adorable watermelon outfits and hand-knitted blankets were unwrapped.

Guests didn’t leave empty-handed. These bags of popcorn (choice of Dill Pickle, Cheddar, or Caramel) from Austin company Cornucopia were the perfect size. I added the printed labels to the bag for a personalized touch.

It was a wonderful afternoon celebrating Sarah and her babe. We can’t wait to meet the sweet little girl!

Have you ever been to a baby shower? What was your favorite part?

I’m on a mission to throw 12 celebrations in 2016. This is #6 of 12. See all of #Celebrations2016 here!

The post A Foodie and Simple Baby Shower appeared first on Fearless Captivations.

If you love party planning like me, you’ve got plenty of ideas you’re itching to try. I noticed I’ve been pinning ideas for the same themes, so I wanted to share five party themes I’m obsessing over. Most of these can be used for any occasion – from casual baby showers to elegant weddings. I’ve gathered some of my favorite inspiration photos for you. Enjoy!

Tropical Vibes

Palm leaves and tropical foliage (paper or real) would be gorgeous for decoration, and any party that evokes the atmosphere of a relaxing beach day is on my list. Mix up cool drinks like raspberry lemonade or mojitos, cut up some fresh pineapple and mango and grill coconut shrimp. Fresh coconuts would be a big bonus! Of course, doing this shindig poolside will really bring the tropical vibes.

Out in a Field

I can’t get enough of seated dinner parties out in a field or even a lovely backyard. The secluded, intimate, and whimsical atmosphere makes the party unique. It would be a big plus if that field happens to be a vineyard or orchard. It works for me as long as there are open space, twinkle lights, and an inviting table. I like the idea of place settings and centerpieces with flowers or candles. For a dinner party, I imagine there would be bottles of wine, cider, or beer and a three- or four-course meal. Ultimately, it will be a night of stories and laughter under the stars.

Bohemian

I love the fresh and wild look of the bohemian theme. This theme can be dressed up with lots of greenery, dream catchers, patterned blankets, and a mix of colors. Sitting on the floor with colorful blankets and pillows optional. Flower crowns suggested. Finger foods such as loaded bruschetta or Triscuits, sweet potato crostinis, or zucchini pizza bites would be enjoyable.

Cookbook Potluck

You may have noticed from my Facebook posts that I’m a little cookbook crazy right now. I would say great cookbooks are the best kinds of books. They’re filled with stories, culture, personality, food photos, and recipes to try! Pick a cookbook and everyone makes a dish from the cookbook to bring to the party. (Some friends and I did this with our Cookbook Book Club a few years ago.) Though the great thing about potlucks is that the food is the main focus, if you’d like to dress up the space, let your cookbook’s cuisine, culture, and photos inspire you. If I were to do this party, I’ve got my eye on Momofuku Milk Bar. From my experience, the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook would be great for a Cookbook Potluck!

Geometric Shapes

This theme has been done over and over again but I can’t quit it! I did this theme with a DIY party and a geometric wall. I’ve seen many creative ideas with this theme, like gorgeous backdrops, hanging décor, and centerpieces. This theme is made unique by the colors and can include a mix of shapes or a specific one, like my favorite – the hexagon.

You never know. Maybe one of these themes will be my next party and featured here! (Fingers crossed, I hope so!) Check out what I’ve done this year with #Celebrations2016 and all of my #Celebrations.

Geek out with me: what party themes do you love?

Keep up with me elsewhere! You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Bloglovin’. You can also subscribe to the exclusive email list.

The post Top 5 Party Themes I’m Obsessing Over appeared first on Fearless Captivations.

Eating sweets from @briberybakery, @traderjoestexas, and @uppercrust_atx before taking a @britandco watercolor class at @atasteofkoko’s cozy home. #crafty #diy #watercolor #brunch #austinbloggers #britco #painting #paint #lindaeatsworld #macarons #thatsdarling

A photo posted by Linda Nguyen (@curiousnotions) on Feb 28, 2016 at 8:51am PST

Watercolor & brunch with these lovely ladies! @daniaustin @sushigirl_atx @wanderlustanita @curiousnotions @kathyphantastic

A photo posted by JANE KO, Food & Travel Blogger (@atasteofkoko) on Feb 28, 2016 at 9:45am PST

What a fun morning of brunching and water coloring with @atasteofkoko, @kathyphantastic, @curiousnotions, @wanderlustanita & @daniaustin! #diy #britandco #wearecrafty #craft

A photo posted by Amy drohen (@sushigirl_atx) on Feb 28, 2016 at 11:24am PST

 

Fun and relaxing watercoloring morning! We took the @britandco online illustration class and it resulted in these cute foxes.

A photo posted by Anita Cheung (@wanderlustanita) on Feb 28, 2016 at 10:26am PST

The post DIY Watercolor Party appeared first on Fearless Captivations.

My friend Sarah and I hosted a sweet, little Valentine’s Day Party with some of our favorite gal pals this past weekend. We threw together this fun party in a little more than a week! Sarah and I had been emailing back and forth about DIY projects we wanted to do, and the look and feel of our ideas seemed perfectly made for a Valentine’s get-together. Take a look!

Valentine’s is a very versatile party theme. You can do up the room with hearts or use a classic black and white base with splashes of girly pink or red. Sarah’s open, minimalistic kitchen was the perfect setting for the latter. A few pops of color here and there with flowers, a heart garland and a table runner tied in the Valentine’s theme.

Sarah made this excellent strawberry shrub with red wine vinegar for our drinks. One or two tablespoons of the mixture was topped off with Topo Chico or cava.

Getting some fun #diy #valentinesday ideas with @wanderlustanita, @kathyphantastic, @mjsoko & @pbchipses. Pop tarts, chocolate dipped Rice Krispie hearts, Herb infused syrup cocktails/mocktails, flower pepper shakers and more!

A photo posted by Amy drohen (@sushigirl_atx) on Feb 13, 2016 at 1:04pm PST

For our DIY snacks, we decorated rice krispies and made pastry tarts. For the pastry tarts, we used pre-made puff pastry and a selection of jams, including a homemade jam by Amy’s mother-in-law! With a little mix of lemon juice, powdered sugar and food coloring; Sarah made a icing and we topped the treats with sprinkles.

For the rice krispies, I pre-made the rice krispies with my favorite Smitten Kitchen recipe. We used a heart cookie cutter to get our shapes, and then we drizzled chocolate and finished them off with sprinkles.

For our other DIY, we made colorful pepper mills with dried flowers and peppercorn. Sarah first saw this DIY in the Near and Far cookbook. You can find a similar recipe here. We layered peppercorn with dried calendula, roses, hibiscus and lavender. It’s a pretty result that can be cracked onto yogurt or ice cream.

Finally, we also decorated cards for our valentines!

It was a fun time celebrating Valentine’s Day with some of my favorite gals!

#GalentinesDay crafting and baking with @WanderlustAnita and @SushiGirl_ATX pic.twitter.com/kW9EdGSaUP

— Kathy Phan (@kathyphan) February 14, 2016

I’m on a mission to throw 12 celebrations in 2016. This is #3 of 12. See all of #Celebrations2016 here!

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Hello, my little dumplings! Happy Lunar New Year and the Year of the Monkey! Take a look at how I celebrated with a dumpling party.

My mom consistently made dumplings in my childhood. They were packed for lunch, eaten as an after-school snack, and even eaten as a meal. Nostalgia aside, dumplings are very versatile and easy to make, and I’ve been craving them for months! Haha. Also, dumplings are eaten during Chinese New Year for good luck because they are shaped like ancient gold, symbolizing wealth. All of these reasons made a dumpling party timely and fun.

Most of my guests hadn’t made dumplings before so it was fun showing them the very easy process. My mom didn’t follow a recipe when making dumplings but the filling usually included pork and garlic chives. I used this Tasting Table recipe as a very loose guideline for our dumplings. I pre-made the filling about 10 minutes before guests arrived and together we stuffed and folded almost 40 dumplings!

All you need is a little dollop of filling in the middle of the dumpling wrapper, and a little water to seal the dumplings. Dumplings can be wrapped in a number of ways. As long as it is sealed so that the stuffing doesn’t spill out, you’re good. They can have a completely smooth edge, a pleated edge or a pleated edge with a re-shaping to make it look more like an ancient gold piece. You can see all three of these ways below.

We also enjoyed store-bought, pre-cooked dumplings, which can be found in the frozen aisle of an Asian supermarket or the international section of HEB. We devoured (and some guests took the rest to-go) about 90 dumplings!

Our homemade dumplings at the beginning of cooking.

The cooking process is fairly simple. Pan fry the dumplings with oil. When the bottom of the dumplings are browned, pour water in your pan to cover a fourth (height) of the dumplings. Cover and let them steam. They’ll be ready when all of the water is gone, but I always like to tear one open to double-check that the meat is cooked.

If you want, you can also cook them by boiling. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add your dumplings. When the water boils again, add a cup of cold water to the pot and wait for it to come back to a boil. Do this two more times and your dumplings should be ready to eat.

Dipped or topped with a mixture of soy sauce, chili oil and chives; dumplings are an easy, filling and tasty snack or meal.

I always enjoy trying foods from other cultures, so I made sure to gather some Asian snacks I loved as a child. Pocky of three flavors (chocolate, strawberry and matcha), baked shrimp-flavored chips, mandarin oranges, and coconut pastry rolls.

For dessert, we had mochi ice cream, a Japanese dessert. We tried vanilla, strawberry, mango and green tea flavors. If you’ve never had them, the outside is sticky rice dusted with cornstarch and inside is ice cream.

If you’re out and about and would like to try some other Asian dumplings, I recommend my favorites: xiao long bao (steamed soup dumplings), har gow (steamed shrimp dumplings found at dim sum), and wontons (pork and shrimp dumplings that usually come with noodles and soup). At the party we also talked about the dumpling equivalent in other cultures. If you’re curious, check out this Serious Eats article.

I hope you get your fill of dumplings and have a prosperous and lucky New Year! Comment below with your favorite kind of dumpling!

I’m on a mission to throw 12 celebrations in 2016. This is #2 of 12. See all of #Celebrations2016 here!

P.S. I threw a fun Lunar New Year potluck two years ago, and you can see it here.

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Having planned a few bachelorette parties, I know the amount of coordination, time and research that goes into a fun and successful event. For all you first-time bachelorette party planners or those wanting information for your next bachelorette party, here are some helpful tips and ideas for you to think about.

Ask the bride.
Be sure to get the bride’s input on what she wants to do and who she wants to invite. You can have her completely involved with decisions and scheduling or you can get a general idea of what she wants and make the activities and schedule a surprise. I’ve had friends request no phallic paraphernalia, great food and dancing and allowed the planners to decide and plan everything else. I’ve also had friends who want to be a part of every decision. You know your bride and asking first doesn’t hurt. It’s a party to celebrate her so ultimately she gets the final say!

Have one or two main planners.
These planners can get ideas from the bride and bachelorette party attendees but will be the main ladies doing the majority of research, making reservations, and leading the group. If the bride doesn’t have specific requests, the entire group can be a sounding board for ideas. The best thing would be for the bride to not have to plan anything because the bachelorette party is a gift to her and she’s already planning a wedding! You could have a type-A bride that wants to be a part of the process though.

Plan activities according to your group’s interests.
The bride does get final say, but also know your group. Plan activities that the majority of guests will enjoy. Would your guests enjoy relaxing activities like pampering or physical activities like bike riding? If you go out, some guests could hang out at the bar while another group hits the dance floor. Know your guests’ ages before you book a wine tour or go bar hopping.

Plan ahead!
Start planning well ahead of the party to be able to make reservations and get the best deals. This would include reservations for restaurants, activities, and hotels. Also check online deals like Groupon or Living Social for group discounts.

Create a private Facebook group.
This is very helpful for large groups, guests living in different cities, and guests who don’t know each other yet. The Facebook group can be a central location for getting feedback for planning purposes, sharing last-minute details, keeping track of each other during the weekend, and sharing photos after the event.

Book a place for everyone to stay together.
Staying together in a hotel or house through Airbnb is a great way to keep the group engaged. It adds to the bonding experience and keeps everyone on time. A cute Airbnb house would be best for big groups and you can save money by making meals in the kitchen or storing food and drinks for pre-gaming. Make sure everyone has a bed or a comfy place to sleep!

Decide payment ahead of time.
It may be helpful to set a reasonable budget per person so that guests know how much they’ll spend or to be sure the costs are split evenly. You can estimate the full weekend’s cost and ask everyone to pay one amount or have each person pay at each activity or meal. The bride usually has everything paid for during the party. If everyone is paying at each activity, estimate the cost for the bride and request contributions from the party guests to make sure the planners aren’t stuck covering the whole cost. Also be sure individual payment is available at each location ahead of time. Some restaurants won’t split checks or some activities may require a deposit. No matter what, having a plan about money will help things go smoother.

Don’t forget downtime.
Try not to pack your schedule so tight that you are running frantically from place to place. Allow time to freshen up, relax and travel from place to place. Multiple girls getting ready in one bathroom can take some time! Traffic will happen. Finding a parking spot is sometimes difficult. Extra time in the schedule will help keep things on schedule.

Put together an outlined schedule.
Prepare your guests by giving them a schedule or general idea of what you all will be doing during the party/weekend. This will make sure guests pack/bring the right kind of clothes for specific activities or know where to meet you if they’re only dropping in for a part of the events.

Trinkets are fun!
There’s something about matching trinkets that make a bachelorette party extra festive. Get your bride a veil, crown and/or sash. Get matching beads or buttons for guests. You could even take it a step up and get matching shirts or matching cups for lounging by the pool.

What are your tips for the perfect, stress-free bachelorette party?

The post Tips for Planning a Bachelorette Party appeared first on Fearless Captivations.

The idea of Cake Party started as a random idea. I had found a beautiful cake recipe and posted it on Facebook with a quick caption along the lines of, wouldn’t it be heavenly if I had a cake potluck and everyone brought a cake like this? A lot of friends were very enthusiastic about this idea. Fast forward to my birthday party planning time and if you know me and my cake-loving ways, a cake potluck was the only party theme that seemed right. Here are all the details that made my Cake Party so much fun!

Everyone was encouraged to pull up their sleeves and try making a cake. Non-cake sweets and savory snacks were also appreciated. Behold, the sweet table, complete with DIY tissue paper and cardboard CAKE letters and a DIY tassel garland. Please give all your heart eyes to this beautiful sugar spread. We’ve got M&M fudge, saltine chocolate bark, pecan shortbread cheesecake with caramel, Japanese cheesecake, sesame peanut butter banana cake, red velvet cake, Chocolate stout and Irish whiskey and Irish cream cake, tres leches cupcakes, strawberry shortcake, pumpkin pie, and chocolate peppermint bundt. Whew!

Some friends decided to bring savory snacks to balance the sugar and to them, we will be forever grateful. For the savory snacks, we enjoyed fancy goat cheese and crackers and marcona almonds, chips with salsa and guacamole, and brie and bacon jam pastry on toast. My sweet guy, who would probably say cake is the last thing he would want to eat, made his favorite kale salad for the party. His cake label had a few people fooled/confused at first.

My friend Alicia recently started her own mixology company called a.k.a. mixologist and she brought infused liquors of strawberry daiquiri made with rum and a whiskey drink similar to an Old Fashioned. There’s a lot of science behind the process of creating these fresh and natural liquors that takes fancy machines and time, and all I know is, they were refreshing and smooth! You can learn all about it on her website.

There was a Decorate Your Own Cupcake area for a little DIY fun. It was cute watching friends try their hand at frosting and sprinkling.

My very talented friend Kathy graciously created pretty framed illustrations for the event. You can see the “Decorate your own cupcake” above and the party tagline below.

The result was the king of all sugar comas (similar to a previous dessert party), lots of laughs and community, and me going to bed with a smile on my face, thinking about all my sweet friends who made me feel so loved for my birthday. What an extra sweet way to celebrate a birthday!

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