I can hardly contain my excitement right now as I write this, but my best friend is getting married this weekend!! And with her wedding weekend upon us, I thought it would be exciting to share photos from her Anthropology inspired bridal luncheon. When Sarah got engaged, my Mother and I jumped at the opportunity to offer her a bridal luncheon. And I knew exactly what I wanted to do. Sarah has a major LOVE for anything and everything Anthropology. She also loves vintage china, fresh flowers, and greenery. So we got together all of her favorites for her Anthropology shower.
Sarah’s bridal luncheon took place in the most perfect setting for this, The Providence House in Casey Jones Village. My Mother and I knew just how perfect the PH would look for this style of shower. And luckily, my in-laws own the House so we had a blast decorating it the day before her shower.
For flowers, we bought them in bulk from a local floral vendor and arranged them ourselves. We even bought the greenery and styled the greenery ourselves too. It was so much fun to arrange the centerpiece ourselves and have complete control of how they turned out. If you are on a budget and planning a shower or luncheon, this is the way to go to save money and still have beautiful florals and greenery! We also used an oasis in the centerpiece to help hold up the flowers. Just a tip: keep them watered down and in a cooler right before you take them out. Fresh flowers die FAST when you don’t keep them in water.
One of my favorite things about Sarah’s luncheon (besides the flowers) were the china settings we used. My Mother-in-Law collects and keeps a lot of BEAUTIFUL vintage china sets. So I knew we had to use these for Sarah’s luncheon. And we didn’t just use one setting, we did mixed-match settings to create that vintage effect. We made sure to use settings that had a similar color scheme to what we were decorating with. For this luncheon, we were using pastels and brighter pinks.
Our food was catered by Brooks Shaw’s Old Country Store and their wonderful staff! We had a delicious grilled chicken with a balsamic glaze, strawberry & feta cheese spinach salad with a raspberry vinaigrette, sauteed whole green beans, herb-roasted potatoes, and yeast rolls. All of the food was SUPER yummy and everyone enjoyed it! For dessert, I knew we HAD to have macaroons. Sarah has always had a love for macaroons so I knew I wanted to decorate the table with them. So Marlene Neal, from The Village Baker at the Old Country Store, made some delicious, fresh macaroons and petite-fours that we lined up and down the table on vintage, mix-matched cake stands. These were definitely the hit of the party, decor wise and taste wise!
For party favors, my Mom had the idea of getting the bridal party Anthropology coffee mugs. And they were SUPER CUTE! We set them in front of their assigned place settings along with some vintage tissues. The coffee mugs even had a personal touch with their own initial monogram on the front of the mug.
It seems like yesterday Sarah and I were just trying to survive college together and having Lifetime marathon parties on our couch (when we needed to be studying). I met Sarah back in college at a Halloween party and I knew when I first met her that our goofy personalities would work well together. We’ve been best friends since that first meeting and nothing has gotten in between our friendship. And we’ve been through it ALL together. We’ve traveled parts of the world together, gone through college and college graduations together, gone through heartbreaks together, and now she’s getting married to the love of her life this weekend. Sarah has such a fun, free spirited, and caring personality about her that I’ve always loved. Whenever I’ve need someone, Sarah always shows up knocking on my door (even when I haven’t called her). She has always been that friend that I could lean on through the toughest, darkest times. Her friendship has meant more than me than words can describe. And I love how we ALWAYS have fun together. After all these years, I’ve learned that when the two of us get together, something silly or fun is bound to happen (even if it means screaming and singing Taylor Swift’s song “22” at the top of our lungs in the car like 12 year old little girls).
Sarah, you mean the world to me and you know how much I love you! I’ve have truly loved all these years with you and the memories we have made together. I am more than ecstatic to stand by you this weekend as your Matron of Honor to see your biggest dream come true (cue the tears). You finally found THAT special man and you will be his forever (get ready Richard). 🙂
On a serious note though, I pray the Lord blesses not only your special weekend ahead, but I pray he wraps his arms around your marriage and is the center of your marriage. Marriage is the most rewarding, and yet the most challenging thing you will go through. You guys keep the Lord in the center of your marriage and he will bless you guys TREMENDOUSLY for that. I love you, sweet Sarah! You will be the most beautiful and radiant Bride to walk down that aisle tomorrow!!
