Hosting and party planning are two of my passions, and this year I was able to use both. We (with the help of Todd’s boss) hosted Todd’s co-workers for their Christmas party. His division is spread throughout the southeast, and Charlotte was the most central location for us all to get together and celebrate. If you follow me on Instagram, you are probably sick of hearing about this party. But, we had a great time, and loved hosting.
I wanted to share all of the details, especially since I have given so many teasers on my insta stories. I also shared what I wore at the bottom of the post!
skinny Christmas tree
wooden boxes
A sprig of greenery and hypericum berries as accents to the menu
We had to move our living room furniture out, and rented a large farm table and chairs for extra seating. We used that, plus our existing dining table to seat everyone for dinner. We also moved our TV out, and set up two bars in the living room. We rented china and some glassware, and my friend, Kelly catered dinner. I made the cakes for dessert.
Todd’s boss and his wife covered most of the cost of the party, and also made some lovely toasts to the members of the team. They also gave out some gag gifts, and the team gave him a hilarious gift in return. It was fun to celebrate the end of a crazy year!
Kelly put all the food onto large platters, and we set it up family-style on each table. I wish I had gotten pictures of all of the food. It was insanely delicious and beautiful!
She also made a cheese and charcuterie tray that was beyond impressive.
We had a cake bar for dessert. Some people tried all three cakes, and others just had one slice! I made red velvet with sugared cranberries; carrot cake with salted caramel and pecans; and chocolate chip cookie chocolate cake.
My mom helped us a ton with the decor for this party, especially the flowers and greenery. For the wreaths, we used inexpensive craft store (fake) wreaths, and added fresh greenery.
The party lasted until way past my bed time, and ended with two disco balls, flip cup, and light-up necklaces and Santa hats. I’ll spare you those videos, though. 😉
Also, here’s what I wore! I linked to the shop on my instagram post. They have 30% off everything today!
Looks Lovely and a fun time for all. I see you had menus on each plate. Can you share what your menu was? Not clear on line.
Yes! I should add that to the post. We had a green salad with roasted butternut squash, goat cheese, candied pecans, dried cranberries; dauphinoise potatoes (like au gratin, but in individual portions); roasted broccolini; roasted beef tenderloin over a bed of sautéed kale; shrimp and grits with bacon and a barbecue sauce.
Yum, sounds delicious! I previously printed your beef tenderloin recipe from the party you posted earlier where the meat was grilled. I assume this is the same recipe. You list 2 whole tenderloins but you didn’t list the approx. size of the meat. It was mentioned that this could be done in the oven as well. Could you please provide oven degree and min per lb? Sure would appreciate it.
Thanks again.
Hi Vicki, I apologize for the misunderstanding. I did not cook the food for our recent dinner party. A friend of mine catered that party, and I am not exactly sure how long she cooked the meat. I believe she roasted it at 375 degrees, but I’m not sure of the time. I’m sorry that I don’t have a better answer for you.
I sent you an e mail in regards to the party you had for your dad but never got a response. Can you supply an email address so that I can forward it? Thank you,
Vicki Kennedy
vicki.kennedy7@att.net
Hi Vicki, I’m so sorry. My youngest has been sick and I have been distracted from the blog. I haven’t seen an email from you, but you can certainly forward it. Another email to try is my main one: lindsay.kingdon@gmail.com. Thank you!
Looks great! Can you share your cake recipes? Maybe a tutorial on getting them to look so professional?
I have one cake recipe here: http://sevenlayercharlotte.com/2016/07/27/chocolate-chip-cookie-chocolate-birthday-cake/
And I do need to share other recipes! I will work on that. For these, I made the cake layers ahead of time and froze them. Then I let them thaw on the counter for about 40 minutes before icing them. I always do a “crumb coat” first, which is when you put the icing between the layers, then do a VERY thin layer of icing on the outside. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, then finish the icing. This helps keep it more smooth, and keeps crumbs out of the icing. I hope that helps some!
Looks amazing! I love all the details!
Oh, and do you have the choice chip cookie recipe on your blog?
Thank you so much! I do! It’s actually not my recipe, but I linked to my go-to chocolate chip recipe in this post: http://sevenlayercharlotte.com/2016/07/27/chocolate-chip-cookie-chocolate-birthday-cake/
This party is magazine worthy! You rocked it and holy cow you look gorgeous!
Gosh, you’re sweet! I loved planning and throwing this party! Kinda wish I could do it every weekend 😉
This is stunning!! You are so talented!