After three weeks of planning and prepping for my girl'sTropical Inspired Shower(I shared HERE and HERE)I was so happy how everything came out.
And as with any event there was a lot of back storiesin the making of a successful party.
And one of the best storiesinvolved this beautiful cake.
As a designerI always have long lists of to do'sto achieve my visionsand I have also learned over the yearsto always give myself plenty of time to accomplish what needs to be done.
So when it came to the visual presence of a celebratory cakeI knew it would involve an order from my favorite bakerywhich I made several days earlierwhir checking the cake off my running list.
I am neither baker or chefbut I know where to find what I need.So I ordered a four layered cake with clean frosted sideswith no decorationbecause I had collected the itemsI wanted to decorate and style the cake.
So you can imagine my freak out when my husbandwho had gone to pick up my specially ordered cakesent me this picture of 'my cake'.
After an initial 'loosing my mind'I was able to calm myself down in my own headand realized after allwe were talking abouta cake.AndI really didn't want to be'that person'.
It was still several hours before guesst arrivedand after a full schedule of prepfor the big dayit was only acake to solve.
So once I regained my mindI asked my husband
(in a much more civil voice)
to buy two of these cakesand a can of cream cheese frosting.
It ended up to be a very easy solve.Much easier than flipping the whole downstairsbecause of a possible rain.
We simply scraped off the top frosting decorand layered the two cakes together.
I realized I really loved how the sides looked togetherso it was only a quick new coat of frosting for the top that needed to be done!
After that it was just adding in the styling I had planned.
First it was placing the cake on the white stone standwhich had been layered with faux tropical leaves.I then added the tropical faux flowers I had purchased to tie the cake into the shower theme.
Lastly I added the pair to bronze swansI had found to top the cake.Since swans mate for lifeI just adore the symbolism.
And just like that problem solved.
So after all this cake decorating story what are my top two entertaining tips you ask?
Well to me learning these two over the years has cut down my entertaining stress significantlyand have allowed my for the most partto enjoy my own events.
Entertaining Tip Number One
Remember Something Will Always Go Wrong.
Expect it.
Plan for it.Always give yourself buffers of time to deal with it.
Even learn to embrace things going wrong.
I once was setting up for a lovely luncheon and in the last moments of prepmy entire salt container spilt out all over the table while I was doing a last minute fill.Instead of freaking out to clean it upI simply worked it into the table settingand it came out fantastic!
Now when things like the cake fiasco happenI take a deep breathrefocusand
know I have planned for just such occurrenceswith my savings account of extra time built into my timeline.
I just remind myselfI got thisand that the whole event is all about tip number two.
Entertaining Tip Number TwoMy tip number two is really
my very top tip for entertaining
Because no matter how beautiful and deliciousan event is it really all just boils down to
How We Make Our Guests Feel.Boom.That's it.
I take entertaining seriouslybecause to me it is an honor for people to take the time out of their life to come to my house.We are all so busyand I see time as such a valuable resource.
I have been to beautiful parties with hosts so stressedI just want out as quickly as possible.
So I remind myselfit's just as important to show up as a loving hostessas it isabout how things look.
It took me year of entertaining to really 'get this one'.But I truly must saylike so many other thingsthis one is a gift I got with age.
So when a botched cakehappened to my 57 year old selfI was able to see clearly
It was just a cake.
Fixed cake or notmy guests would be much more influencedby how I made them feel.
And I couldn't be at my best for my guestsif I spiraled into a moodover a cake.
So the next time you entertainremembertrue entertainingisn't about recreating Pinterest images.
True entertainingis welcoming guests into our homeswith respect and an open heart.
True entertaining
is the honor that is exchanged between guest and hostin moments of time shared.And the memories made.
As always my friends
I wish you love and joyas you style your life
