Champagn Punch

Do you want to get the biggest bang for your champagne buck this New Years Eve?  Serving a Champagne Punch is a great way to control the budget and alcohol content, which will ensure everyone has a good time.  This recipe from Taste of Home combines several juice flavors with sprarkling wine for a light and refreshing toast!  Give it a try!

4 cups orange juice
1 cup ruby red grapefruit juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup lime juice
2 bottles (750 milliliters each) Champagne, chilled
Directions
In a 3-qt. pitcher, combine the juices. Refrigerate until chilled. Just before serving, stir in Champagne. Serve in Champagne glasses. Yield: 16 servings (3 quarts).

  Have a Happy and Safe New Years Eve!

New Years Day Brunch

Maybe you're not the stay-up-late & watch-the-ball-drop type on New Years Eve.  Maybe you'de rather go to bed at a decent hour and welcome the new year with a New Years Day Brunch.  Afterall, there will be football to watch and resolutions to start working on.  Cyd of The Sweetest Occasion set up this brunch bar that is a perfect help-yourself display.  Make it easy on yourself and serve pastries & muffins that you make yourself or buy from the bakery, fresh fruit, milk & juice.  For protein you can cook a whole pack of bacon at once in the oven, or serve a spiral ham. 

Offer small jars of jam as a sweet favor for your guests.  You can dress it up with a simple fabric topper tied with string or ribbon.  A pot of coffee and good friends or family, and you are all set to welcome 2011!

Silver & Gold New Years Eve

It's time to break out the blowers and noise makers again and ring in a new year.  I wanted to create an intimate dinner party with the idea of champagne bubbles & counting down the clock.  These are simple ideas you can implement - I didn't buy anything new for this table except the grocery items.  See all the specifics at the bottom.

Simple ideas you can use:

• I used a gold throw to cover the table.  It has a velvety texture and immediately brings a touch of elegance to the table.
• The centerpiece is a fishbowl vase filled with clear, gold, and white ball ornaments to mimic the effect of champagne bubbles.  Adding a clock and hour glass brings in the "countdown" idea.
• I added a single white flower to the center arrangement and embelished the tips with a little glitter glue & glitter.
• Each place is set with gold charger and clear plate.  I love using my clear glass plates as it allows me to do something interesting underneath.  In this case I designed the face of a clock to go along with the theme.
• Mini bottles of champagne are dressed up with a bottle tag and could be used as a favor or served with dinner.
• Offering take home favors is simple when you fill a silver cupcake wrapper with color-coordinated candies and wrap it up with a bow and tag.  I also thought a breakfast muffin would be appropriate for the guests to indulge in the morning after.  

I hope this gives you some ideas for your own New Years Eve dinner party - or any dinner party for that matter.  Cheers!

Your New Years Eve Bar

I still have cocktails on the brain!  This time it's a New Years Eve serve-yourself bar that I actually set up at the same time as my Christmas bar, but I wanted to show you how to change out a few elements to create a totally different look.

Once again I began by covering a card table with a TableVogue fitted cover and used a large canvas board as a simple backdrop.  To give it a glam look to coordinate with our Holiday Dining Table and Dessert Table, I used black accessories and silver serving pieces.  This is the time to pull out any of those precious silver trays or crystal decanters and put them to use.  Don't forget you can mix silver, silver plated, stainless, and pewter finishes together as I've done above, because they all have a similar look. 

For this display I used a single framed sign to display the juice selection and spicy nuts, instead of individual tags.  I also topped one of the decanters with a holiday stopper, and added a 'crystal' droplet to the side of the oversize glass holding the pecans.  These are the unexpected details that help make your party special and memorable.

Hope this inspires you to create your own stylish bar! 

New Years Eve Printables

I wanted to share a quick link with you to help you get ready for this year's New Years Eve festivities.  Operation Give Thanks is still in effect and Lindi of Love the Day has designed a new set of party printables for New Years Eve.  The idea is to use this free printable set as part of your party decor, and in return gather donations to be sent to Operation Shower to help provide group showers for wives of military men who are deployed.  In case you're unable to take up donations, any small contribution is appreciated in return for the use of the printables.

There's nothing better than partying for a good cause!

Black & White & Glamorous Sweets Table

I designed this mini dessert table to coordinate with my Holiday-Glam Tablescape.  It's great for an intimate dinner party, and serves up small bites so guests can sample a little bit of everything.  

For the dessert area I used the acrylic beaded curtain as a backdrop - a great way to tie two areas together is to use the same elements but in a different way.  The food and decor are all done in black and white and silver, and most items were found locally.

On the menu are chocolate whoopie pies, brownie bites topped with whipped icing and silver edible glitter from Sweet Baking Supply, and shimmering bonbons from Bedazzle My Bonbons.  I like the idea of choosing one or two designer desserts to shine, and then dressing up purchased items or homemade items to round out the table.

To wash down the sweets, milk shots are served with cookie "straws."  You could also serve eggnog in these as well.  For this table I did serve spiked eggnog and irish cream shots in chocolate cups - a fun festive addition!  So that guests would know the difference between the two, I sprinked nutmeg on the eggnog shots.

In sharing this with you, I hope to show that you can have a beautiful, stylish dessert table without spending a fortune.  It just takes a little thoughtful detail and creative display!  Bon Apetite!

Black & White & Silver Holiday Table

I designed this Holiday-Glam table for The Party Dress' Holiday Table Challenge.  I wanted it to be glamorous and neutral enough to translate into other celebrations throughout the year (anniversary, special birthday, small wedding).  What could be more glamorous than black & white & silver & shimmer?  With elements such as fluffy marabou boas, white hydrangeas, and shiny mirrors, there is a winter wonderland effect, while shimmery ornaments add a Christmas-y touch. 

The table is topped with an acrylic beaded curtain which acts as a runner.  A mirrored centerpiece is filled with silver pillar candle holders, ornaments, and fluffy hydrangeas.  Each plate is topped by a mini martini glass full of shimmering bonbons by Bedazzle My Bonbons (which taste AMAZING!).   The edge of each glass is rimmed with edible glitter by Sweet! Baking Supply, and another acrylic droplet hangs off the side.

One of my favorite parts of this design are the balloons floating above.  Each napkin is tied with ribbon and attached to a black balloon to raise the eye and create a party atmosphere.  Visit this post for a must-see coordinating dessert table with more shimmer and glamour!