Monday, December 15, 2008

Recipe for a Girl's Night: definitely my FAVORITE THING!

Thanks to inspiration from the fabulously talented Wendy, I hosted a girl's night out (GNO) on Friday. It was super fab!

Here's my recipe for a killer girly holiday get-together:

1. Send an e-vite.
It's paperless, hassle-free, hip and tracks your RSVPs for you!


2. Pick a theme.
Wendy and I came up with the idea for A Few of My Favorite Things party (a la Sound of Music + Oprah) where guests brought a favorite to share (and I was Oprah?). Some favorites were homemade, store-bought, edible, non-edible, Christmas-y or not -- anything was acceptable. For me, the theme was especially appropriate as my favorites include my girls, parties, Christmas, purple (yes, I wore a purple dress), girl talk and, well, you'll see what else.

The theme became the jumping off point for every other party detail.

3. Invite your favorite friends.
(Aren't they gorgeous?) I tend to forgo worries of whether my guests already know each other. If I like you, I'm pretty sure you'll like her!


4. Prepare a few of your favorite foods.
I opted for a killer Pancetta-roasted Butternut Squash Soup, breadsticks, warm spinach dip and a crudite platter with the best lemon-thyme dip ever. (Recipe
here). I was going for simple, elegant and savory (guessing that someone would pick a sugar-y treat as their favorite). I also served chilled Italian sodas and hot cocoa.

5. Share your favorite treats as favors.
Mine included swedish fish in cute containers (all hail Container Store!), bowls of gourmet candy, reading material (swoon!), and a custom-designed CD of my (current) favorite songs.



6. Make it personal.
I wrote each guest a note listing three of my favorite things about them. I wanted to celebrate each woman's amazingness and importance in my life.



7. Mingle, chat, swoon over celebrities, plan more parties, share misadventures and enjoy!
We indulged in everyone's favorites, including treats and candy, killer hummus, orange-scented craisins, "THE Cookies" from Jessica's family, decoratable train cakes, homemade holiday CDs, Christmas stories and more! It was a blast!


Clearly Kara and I have the same taste in men:

And because these girls are beyond amazing, I got some adorable hostess gifts (you shouldn't have!) including Rudolph Rootbeer! Love it!

You've got the recipe - what are you waiting for?! Time to throw your own GNO Holiday Bash!

Do you need my e-mail address for the e-vite?

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8 comments:

Rachel said...

THANK YOU BECKY! It was TOO much fun--you are TOO much fun--I adore you!

Holly said...

been waiting for the recap, looked super duper crazy fantastic!

Ryan and Cheryl Harris said...

I'm Wendy's sister and the party looks just as fun as Wendy described it! I'm glad she has great friends nearby.

Jessica said...

I am so, so sad that I missed it! It looks like it was way too much fun! I wish I could have been there....did I mention that I was sad that I missed it???

Tammy said...

Such good ideas here...I have my Christmas GNO on Thursday. I love the reindeer root beer!!

Kelsey said...

So sad I don't live closer! Oprah could NEVER throw a party with as much class. Have I ever mentioned you should have your own talk show, magazine, etc.?

Alex said...

Wow Becky!! You are such a great party planner! Who else would have thought of that! Root Beer, Instyle, AND Edward Cullen......awesome!

Stephanie said...

Awesome idea for a holiday party! Looks like it was lots of fun.