TWINK + SIS HALLOWEEN DINNER PARTY

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It's spooky season! We were so thrilled to have our Halloween dinner party featured on ELLE Decor. Today, I'm so excited to share even more images and details from our Halloween celebration with you.

THE DESIGN: We wanted to create a stylish and dramatic Halloween dinner party for the adult set. Something fun and festive, without losing the beauty of a sophisticated dinner party. 

The first two key elements of our table were the black flatware and the Jarrahdale (light grey/green) pumpkins. Those two elements were actually the jumping off point for the whole design. 

We purchased the pumpkins from a local pumpkin patch and they really made the table. We knew from the start that we wanted to forgo orange and do something a little more unusual. We were completely in love with these pumpkins and just wanted to cover every inch of the table in them. 

Once we had settled on black and the pumpkins being key aspects, that dictated everything else as we moved forward. We added light grey plates, flowers in deep red/purples as another contrast to the lighter colors, and smokey brown (goblets) to finish it off. We also thought that using classic silver for candlesticks, vases and goblets, added a perfect moody touch. 

We have a rule to always use fresh elements, wherever possible — even at our kids' parties. Whether it be pumpkins, flowers or evergreens, having an abundance of fresh, seasonal items really creates the most beautiful effect.

The plate decorations are actually chestnuts! We really wanted to have the flowers be a bit spooky and unusual. So when we came across these little brown monsters, we knew they would be the perfect unexpected addition to the table.

We loved the glass cloches. We placed some of the black birds, branches and the chestnuts under them. They created a great eerie vibe.

Make the most of your investment: Load up on heirloom pumpkins. Not only do they make great party decor, but they will keep your home festive all the way through Thanksgiving!

THE COCKTAIL: Our signature drink for the evening was “The Darkest Night.” It consisted of fresh muddled blackberries, bourbon, lemon juice and simple syrup, topped off with sparking water. It was like a Halloween soda for grown-ups.

THE DESSERT: The cake was created by Whisk & Whittle. It was a two-tierd (gluten-free) chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. She created the spiders from marzipan and the web from spun sugar.

CREDITS:

Party Concept, Design, Cocktail & Florals: Twink + Sis

Photography: Sarina Cass of Red Anchor Photo

Cake: Whisk and Whittle

Tabletop sourced from: Borrowed Blu

Flatware: Classic Party Rentals

Candles: Yummi Candles

Skull & Blackbirds: Pottery Barn

Pumpkins: Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch

 

HALLOWEEN FLOWERS

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Flowers, flowers, everywhere and all the time, that's my dream in life. Even though you may not normally think of flowers when it comes to Halloween, they really add a great "organic" touch. I've gathered some of my favorite uses of flowers for the holiday (including a couple of our own).

Could this dark floral skull from The House That Lars Built be any more stunning?

Such a pretty floral moon on this pumpkin by The Merrythought.

Flowers in a pumpkin? Yes! Love what Chatelaine did with this.

And... More flowers in pumpkins. By the flower queen Kiana Underwood of Tulipina. 

We used protea and chestnuts as two key elements for our sophisticated dinner party.

The simplicity of the white anemones with these bug (and bird) vases just works so well. Via Country Living. 

White tulips lent a perfectly clean touch to our neon and silver table.

OLLI ELLA

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Sisters! [We may be partial to sisters.] Genius sisters Chloe and Olivia started Olli Ella as a happy accident. After not being able to find a nursing chair to fit the eclectic feel of her first child’s nursery, Chloe Brookman, and her sister Olivia, designed a chair themselves. Since then they've turned the endeavor into a beautiful, modern home decor line, with a focus on the nursery. We especially love their baskets and wanted to share a few of them here with you. 

So cute for home or a trip to the farmers' market! 

A CHAT WITH KRISTY WITHERS OF INCY INTERIORS

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Power to the mamas! Today, we're sitting down to chat with Kristy Withers, mother of two and founder of Incy Interiors. This Australian powerhouse started her company after a long and exhausting search to find her son Oscar ‘s first 'big boy bed.'  An extensive international search left Kristy frustrated and little Oscar stuck in his cot. Kristy recognized an opportunity for quality designer furniture and so Incy was born!

Read on to see what Kristy has to say about fun summer traditions, as well as some of her best interior design tips for fall!

Can you share one of your family’s summer traditions?  

Our summer tradition is lots of friends and family around for endless BBQs.

 

What’s in your beach bag?  

Now that my children are older I try to keep it as simple as possible so limit it to a beach towel, a book, sunscreen, bucket and spade.

 

Is there a favorite summer recipe you can share with us?  

My go-to summer salad is watermelon, feta and mint.  It takes 2 minutes to pull together and is always a crowd favourite.

 

Your summer beauty routine? 

Now that I am getting older my beauty routine has certainly increased.  I am a huge fan of Dermalogica and use at least 5 or 6 of their products in the morning and the same again at night.  

We’re in love with your Incy Interiors four-poster bed. What tips do you have for styling a kid’s room? 

Thank you, I’m in love with the four poster too!  My two main tips for styling a kid’s room, or any room in the home is to spend as much money as you can afford on furniture that will last and then inject personality into the room with smaller items such as cushions and throws.  By spending less money on the accessories you won’t feel guilty when you want to change them over in a year or two.  My second tip is to make sure the room represents the person who lives there.  For example, I have a 4 year old daughter who is obsessed with Disney princesses.  This doesn’t mean we have Disney everywhere but we have turned a four poster bed into a ‘Princess bed’ by hanging tulle from all sides and securing with a beautiful big ribbon.

What [interior design] trend should we be looking out for this fall? 

The two main trends I see emerging at the moment: a darker and moodier colour palette. And moving away from having lots, and going toward more curated interiors.

PARTY TIME! EXCELLENT BALLOONS

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We love parties! So I thought we'd dedicate today to party supplies, specifically balloons. There are so many incredible balloons now -- just one gets me in the party spirit. It makes sense that the queen of party crafting, Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy Day, now has an online party decor shop. I mean, dream come true, right? So lets start with some our favorites from OHD and move onto more great picks!