Inspiration Board: Jillian's College Party Housewarming

When you think "college" you can't help but think of red cups, keg stands and needing quarters to do laundry-- at least that was our experience! For Jillian's housewarming we've come up with a fun, festive college-feel for food, decor, and even games.

Here are a few thoughts to inspire and get you in the mood to party: kegs, chips, Animal House, beer pong, Jell-o shooters, quarters, Top Ramen and Tylenol. Lots and lots of Tylenol.

Image credits clockwise from left: Jell-o shots, Animal House, bunting, Doritos, quarters, beer pong, Top Ramen, chalkboard, keg

Lindsey's Red Hot 30th

Saturday night was Lindsey's Red Hot 30th birthday party in San Francisco. The evening began in one of the suites at the Clift Hotel, located just minutes from Union Square.
Below is the view from the room on the 14th floor. It was gorgeous at dusk!
Rooms at the Clift have a sleek, modern style and we didn't need to do much to dress up the suite. Add a few red feather boas and some candles and voila!
A champagne toast kicked off the festivities.
Guests met at the room and the birthday girl opened gifts before heading downstairs for drinks.
A twist on the traditional candy buffet, we chose to do a candy cocktail bar.
Guests could mingle, enjoy champagne, and make their own favors.
Red Hots (of course), sour cherries, Boston Baked Beans, various hard candies and rock candy served in cocktail and bar glasses.
A few cinnamon candles for a flickering accent.
Perfectly placed in front of the mirror to maximize the red impact.
The Clift Hotel is home to the Redwood Room lounge where the ladies stopped for the first round of drinks. The sultry and sexy red decor of the Redwood Room helped continue the "Red Hot" theme throughout the evening.
When you think "San Francisco" you can't help but think cable cars-- we rented one for the evening to take the ladies around town.
The trolley picked up the group from the hotel and took a tour of downtown San Francisco.
Next came dinner at Boboquivaris, continuing with "Red Hot" locations. In addition to the party being seated on the top level of the restaurant (pictured below) the waiter was French-- does it get any hotter? We can't take credit for that one.
After dinner the trolley drove the ladies to Johnny Foley's to dance the night away. The birthday girl was treated to the entire bar singing happy birthday while she was seated on one of the pianos.

Happy Birthday Lindsey!

We were honored to get to be a part of your celebration.

Inspiration Board: Lindsey's 30th Birthday

Red Hot by Pear Tree Events featuring Donna Karan dresses

Coming in November!

Red.
Party.
Dinner.
Dancing.
Glamour.
Clift Hotel.
San Francisco.
Redwood Room.
Girls Night Out!

Hunter's 18th Birthday

This past weekend Pear Tree Events helped celebrate Hunter's 18th birthday in Bodega Bay, California. There isn't much preparation needed with a location like Bodega Bay! Above is the view from the golf course overlooking the ocean.

We couldn't help but take pictures of the stunning scenery.Aren't the green grass, blue sky, and purple flowers absolutely inspiring? That color palette would make a gorgeous wedding or baby shower.
Even the street signs were stylish. And "Gull Drive"? Too cute.

To help set the mood, decor included these fabric flags (which we'll feature as a DIY project in the coming weeks) and sand-filled votives on the tables.

These origami votives are a Martha Stewart DIY. Origami paper is thin and can be adhered to the glass votives with just a little bit of double-sided tape. This is a great way to get a lot of mileage out of your typical glass votives and dress up an ordinarily plain tablescape!Mini fabric flags were secured in vases filled with sand and flanked the entrances and jazzed up the outside deck.

The weather cooperated wonderfully as the warm, breezy Bodega afternoon turned into a cool, crisp coastal evening. The light breeze was just enough to get some movement into the fabric flags.

Guests were invited to "Have a Ball" in the large grassy area off the rear deck of the home. The basket below was filled to the brim with volleyballs, frisbees and several different sized footballs-- all in the party's red/light blue/navy color scheme of course.We think it's fun for parties to have a "signature drink" so for Hunter's birthday we chose a Bodega Bay Brew, which (since he is 18 and not 21) was a non-alcoholic sun tea with lots of fresh lemons and limes.

The beach house where the event took place had a stash of commemorative glasses from the local Sandpiper Restaurant and annual Bodega Seafood, Art and Wine festival which were a perfect addition to the decor.
Hunter is a "meat and potatoes" guy but given that we were in such close proximity to the freshest seafood you can get, the menu included grilled tuna steaks and marinated yellow-tail sashimi as well as grilled tri-tip, bruschetta and a summer salad.

By the end of the night everyone was sprawled out on the living room floor watching movies from the 80's (interjecting their own commentary) and chatting well into the morning.

Happy Birthday Hunter! We are honored to have participated in this milestone in your life.

Inspiration Board: Hunter's 18th Birthday

Maybe you'll forgive us for skipping this weeks' Feature Friday if we bribe you with the inspiration board for Hunter's 18th Birthday?

Think: Bodega Bay, fresh fish, a red, light blue and navy color palette, and a fun, relaxing weekend by the sea...

Invitation by Rosebud Cards, fabric image found here, all other photographs courtesy of Martha Stewart Online.