[Prom] Dinner 2013

We hosted dinner for Prom again this year.  For all of the same reasons.  Luckily we still had access to Grandma's house.  It is so much easier to set-up a formal dinner ahead of time (as in several days) and away from my kitchen/dining room.  I did most of the prep work and cooking at my house and then transported everything to Grandma's just before the kids arrived.  We used many of the same elements as last year to decorate with.  Why recreate the wheel?  You know what I mean?  We added a robin's egg blue color to the scheme. Which I loved!

I added to the bunting.  More is better when it comes to bunting.  Don't you think?  And I bought several new strands of white twinkle lights.  I made new cloth napkins.   I love the look of burlap and lace and kind of went that route.  We draped the tables with burlap-like table clothes and layered lace doilies down the center.  I ended up using some of the left-over corsage flowers in vases for the centerpieces.  Mostly because I ran out of time to do anything else.  But also because they were absolutely gorgeous! 

My favorite part?  These menu cards/ silverware holders:

I'd seen some similar ideas on the internet and combined a few of them together to come up with these. 

I used a long kraft paper envelope for the menu card.  I just printed the menu right onto the envelope.  I wrapped them with lace and added a few pearls.  Then I put the silverware inside and placed it on top of the napkin.  As you can see, we served a four course meal.  The kids chose their entrees ahead of time.  They chose between steak, chicken, and salmon.  We grilled all of it on the BBQ.  Delicious! 

I also made this rustic cake stand: 

The cake was compliments of my employer.  I deliver wedding cakes on the side.  My employer had a bride cancel her wedding at the very last minute the day before the prom.  The implications of which are very sad and tragic.  But then again, maybe a good thing?  It's hard to say.  The cake was already made and decorated and needed a good home.  Lucky for me!!  It was the perfect dessert to serve to the kids.  And super delicious!

But back to the cake stand.  I bought a wooden round table top at Home Depot.  I think it measured about fifteen inches in diameter.  My son sanded it, painted it, and distressed it for me.  Then we attached it to the base, using some Gorilla Glue.  The base is really just a candle holder from Hobby Lobby.  A substantial candle holder...yes.  But a candle holder just the same.  I was going to make two and use them in the centers of the table.  But once again, ran out of time.  With the gift of the cake, it became the best cake stand ever!  I love it!  It's been a prominent piece in my dining area ever since.

It was so much fun to spend the night with these teenagers that I love!  We were able to serve a delicious affordable meal, and make some awesome memories together.

My niece provided the dinner music.  She is so amazing on the piano!  And Grandma has the most beautiful grand piano you've ever seen.  A huge thank you to all of my "helpers"!  My family was an invaluable source of help before and during the dinner.  Not to mention the gargantuan task of cleaning up afterward.

Thanks everyone!

[prom week] appetizers

As you know, I hosted seven couples for dinner for prom last week.  I saw it as a great opportunity to try some of the hundreds of recipes I've been "pinning" over on Pinterest.  The hands down favorite appetizer recipe?  These honey glazed chicken and bacon bites from Kayotic Kitchen.  Delicious!

I will tell you this.  I made them and served them without even trying them ahead of time.  I do that a lot.  It's the optimist in me.  Chicken-bacon-honey...how can you go wrong?  I knew they would be good.  But I wasn't expecting fantastic.  Anyway.  After the kids raved so much about them, I decided we had better make them for the family to try.  And we did.  And they were yummy.  But, my oven was tied up at the time, so I decided to grill them.  My son informed me that the grilled version was not even half as  good as the baked version.  So, follow the recipe and cook them in the oven.  Over and out.

[Prom Week] Corsages

So, in the midst of all the party preparations, I took some time to make a few corsages.  I have never made a corsage before.  I've never really done anything with flowers, other than plop them into the ground or put them in a pot.  But, I really wanted to try.  Because most florists around here are charging about $25 for a wrist corsage.  That's twenty-five dollars that I would love to spend somewhere else.

About a week before the dance, I decided that I had better practice making a corsage.  If it went terribly wrong, I would still have time to order one.  I didn't want to pay a lot of money for the practice flowers, so I just bought an inexpensive mixed bouquet to play around with.  I looked at several tutorials on-line, and I watched quite a few YouTube videos.  This was my practice attempt:

I found the best place to purchase flowers in my neighborhood was Costco.  I was able to get an assortment of roses for $15.99.  I also purchased some filler flowers (like babies breath).  I ended up making three corsages for about $25.

This is what I learned from the whole experience:

* The more corsages you make the more economical it is.  If I was just going to make one corsage for my son, I would not have saved any money at all by the time I bought all of the supplies.

*Now that I have all of the supplies, I will save even more money next time around.

*You can make a lot of corsages/boutonnieres out of two dozen roses!  Let the word out and help your friends save money too!

*It's really fun to make bouquets out of the extra flowers and display them around the house.

*Take the time to wire your flowers.  There's nothing worse than having the head of your flower break-off.
(I did wire all of my flowers, but there was a girl at the dinner that "lost" one of her roses--just fell right off.)

*It can be difficult to find flowers that match specific dress colors.   Thank goodness for white roses!!

*If you can find them, smaller roses are best.

*Invest in a wristlet that has a substantial elastic band, or replace the cheap band with something better.

*My addiction to ribbon came in very handy!  It was so nice to sort through my ginormous basket and find whatever color I needed.

*A plastic double cupcake box works perfectly for transporting a corsage.

*Making boutonierres is super easy!  Don't ever ever ever pay someone else to make one for you.  Just buy a single rose for a couple of bucks and go for it!  

*Be willing to try new things.  It turns out that I really enjoyed working with flowers and making corsages.  It was fun to discover a new interest!

[Prom Week] Lest We Forget the Boys

I was at the grocery store and found some Breathsavers on clearance for ...50 cents!  Perfect.  I'll take seven.  I wrapped them in brown kraft paper and glued on a little yellow "button".  Finished it off by stamping p-r-o-m in black ink.  Simple and fast.  That's how I roll.

**We had the big party last night.  If the smiles and laughter and really full bellies are any indication, I'd call it a huge success!  I will post more of the details as soon as I sort through the hundreds of photos that were taken.

[Prom Week] Dinner Napkins

Prom.  Saturday.  Seven tuxedo clad boys.  Seven gorgeous girls.  And dinner by me.  If you missed yesterday's post, click here for all the details.  Today's adventure involves my sewing machine and lots of yummy yellow cotton fabric.

As I mentioned earlier, I had most of the linens that I needed to host this shin-dig in my personal stash.  But, I wanted to add some yellow accents.  So, I chose a fun yellow polka-dot fabric to make some cloth napkins for our formal dinner.  Have you made napkins before?  It took a bit of time to make fourteen of them, but the process is simple enough.

You will need one yard of fabric for four napkins.  It's best to use 100% cotton or linen.  Cut your fabric into 18 inch squares.

I decided to serge the edges for good measure, but you certainly don't have to.

Then I pressed each edge into the center just the width of my over lock stitch...maybe 3/8 of an inch.

Then fold and press each edge into the center again, so all of the rough edges are hidden.  Mitered corners are the bomb.  But I didn't have time for that.  A simple folded corner will do just fine.

Now run a straight stitch around the four sides.  Repeat the above steps for each napkin you've cut.  In my case, fourteen times.  Sheesh.

 

But, they are so worth it.  I love cloth napkins.  A million times fancier than paper.

[Prom Week] Bunting

So, this weekend is our high school prom.  My son asked his date about five or six weeks ago.  We have been making plans ever since.  I can not believe how expensive prom can be.  It's craze-balls.  By the time you buy your dance tickets, rent the tuxedo, buy a corsage, and pay for dinner you are easily in the $200 range.  That's a lot of money for a teenager who hasn't had a job since last summer.  Believe me, those funds were exhausted long ago.  And that's a lot of money for Mom to fork over.  Time to get creative.

Color me crazy, but I volunteered to host seven couples for a formal dinner.  Each young man is donating $25 to the cause (which is quite a bargain if you ask me).  We were able to secure a wonderful location for free.  Some friends are letting us borrow a couple of round tables and enough chairs for everyone.  My niece, who is an amazing pianist, has graciously agreed to play the grand piano for us while they dine.  Her husband is dusting off his tuxedo and has agreed to be the waiter.  I have been working on the menu and the table decor.  I still want them to have the experience of a fancy restaurant without the cost.  So, I am trying to recreate that atmosphere as best I can.  I plan on using my fine china and crystal.  I have a couple of long white table cloths and some natural linen table toppers in my collection (leftover from one of my brother's weddings I think).  I decided to accent them with bits and pieces of yellow.  Doesn't yellow just scream "spring"?  It's such a happy color.

And it has all kind of grown from there.

I thought I'd bring you along on my adventures this week as I get everything ready.

First up.  Decorations.  On the cheap.

I purchased some card stock at Hobby Lobby on sale yesterday and made some paper bunting.  I was able to make six long strands for under seven dollars.  I apologize for the really dark pictures.  I could not get the lighting to work.  I used  craft brown, yellow, champagne, white, and polka dot papers.  I was originally going to cut circles, because I love circle garlands.  There is just something about them that I am drawn to.  But in the end, I chose triangles.  For two reasons.  They are very easy to cut and there is very little waste.  I cut the triangles four inches high and three inches across the base.  Then I punched two holes to string them and ran a piece of white yarn through.  Simple.  I think they turned out really cute.

Last night I had the idea to make some little favor bags for the girls.  I decided to incorporate the bunting into the favor.  I used a fine tip black sharpie to draw a line onto some muslin bags that I already had in my stash.  Then I appliqued some tiny fabric triangles onto the line to make the "bunting".  I may stamp their names along the bottom or maybe just put "prom 2012".  We'll see.  I plan on filling these tiny bags with lemon drops.

Bunting.  So fun.  What do you think?