A birthday picnic in yellow & grey

It's been a busy few days in the Inspired Occasion headquarters with two fun events last weekend, styled by us.

We promise to share both of these with you over the coming weeks, but for tonight, we are showcasing a stylish picnic that we styled on Sunday. This one was special, as it was for my birthday and being the client for once, was super fun!

I really wanted something simple, yet stylish. Relaxed, but pretty. Lots of good food, that had to be easy to eat and transport to a local park. We settled on a yellow and grey theme, with lots of fresh flowers thrown in.

We set the scene with a simple invite, encompassing all the details, which I cheated and emailed out to all our guests.

Given we are in Melbourne, we knew we would have to be wary of the weather. It's been a crazy couple of weeks, with sunshine one moment and pouring rain the next. So even though we chose a local park, we decided to purchase a marquee to protect us from the sunshine and/or rain.

As it turned out, it was a beautiful hot day - and we were very grateful for the marquee and the shade it provided. However, some of the photo's do have a slight green tinge to them due to this... please forgive this and enjoy the photo's!

I had a go at making string lanterns... so happy with how they turned out. 

Let me know if you are interested in a tutorial.

My fabulous Camberwell Market find table... with a lick of paint, it was perfect!

Lots and lots of food! Alex put together a fabulous table with; anti-pasto, some wonderful cheeses, smoked salmon, deli meats, chicken wings, mini quiches, lots of dips and some of Alex's famous home made meatloaf. All served with some crisp breads, lots of good champagne and even some of my favourite girly beers! 

We finished up with carrot cake (with extra cream cheese frosting!!), my mum's home made lemon slice and some chocolate dipped wafers...By that point though, we forgot to take any good photo's - so you will have to imagine how good it was!

It was a really lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon, surrounded by friends and family - who could want a nicer way to spend your birthday.

I have to do some special thank you's to my husband, Alex's husband, my mum and my step-dad for carrying all this set up to the park, putting up with my 'fussing' over the table, waiting until I had taken 500 photo's before they were allowed to eat and then helping us to pack it all up again at the end! And also to Kristy for amusing the kids while we set up - what a gem!

Another big thank you to Alex for all her help - she really does a great job, is so patient and is able to pull a clients vision into reality! Trust me - I can vouch for her!

Thanks for sticking with me - I know it's a long post tonight. We will be back tomorrow night with another fabulous Euro style post from Claire.

Cheers,

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas... time to start thinking about food!

With the aisles filling with Christmas goodies and The Inspired Occasion gearing up for The Big Give, I thought it was time to start putting pen to paper for our own Christmas celebrations on Christmas night.

We will be in no shape to be slaving in the kitchen by the end of the day, so I’m putting my mind into gear for some easy, yummy and festive supper delights, that can be prepared in advance. 

Something that will bring us all together, over some bubbles, to reflect on the day. 

For the first time in our family Christmas history; out will be the hours basting turkey breasts and preparing roast vegetables, and in will be a trip to the local market on Christmas Eve to pull together a cold seafood platter. King prawns, smoked salmon, lobster, oysters and dipping sauces - an entree that come straight out of the fridge and onto the table. Add in a few finger bowls and lemon wedges, and our entree will be served. 

Whilst we relax and watch the kids play with their new toys, our main meal will be more rustic or should, I dare say Jamie Oliver style. Wooden boards piled with; freshly sliced ham off the bone, turkey or chicken breast, assorted cheeses and an array of condiments served with lots of fresh bread and good quality olive oil. Side dishes consisting of a pear and parmesan salad, a smashed potato salad and coleslaw, all of which can be prepared quickly and fuss free.

For dessert, we will still be enjoying my traditional plum pudding - it wouldn't feel like Christmas without it! With the fruit already marinating in brandy now - served with double cream and brandy custard, it will be delicious. We will also be enjoying an Australian classic - a pavlova piled high with lashings of cream and fresh berries.

Sounds easy and so yummy - can't wait!

Sunday lunch traditions

A Sunday roast is somewhat of a family tradition for us. Some weeks its a chicken shoved in the oven and veggies thrown together at the last moment, other weeks we put in some effort, get the family together and just stop for a bit.

This week Alex had the whole family around, so took the opportunity to try out some of the new items from our 'grown up food' menu which we use for functions, both private dinner parties, as well as more substantial food options at children's parties.

I am sure when it was this good, they didn't mind being guinea pigs!

The menu consisted of;

Roast Beef - marinated for 24 hours in red wine, garlic and herbs

Roast Chicken stuffed with sage & bacon stuffing

Medley of Roast Carrot and baby potatoes

Sweet potato, pine nuts and spinach salad with 

red wine vinegar and honey vinaigrette dressing

Steamed Snow Peas and Baby Peas

Cauliflour Cheese

Crusty Bread Rolls

Gravy

Chocolate Brownie fresh cream

Berry Pavlova

Enjoy - it's making me hungry just looking at it!