June 17, 2016

MILA & BRIXTON'S BIRTHDAY PARTY: TODDLERS GET TROPICAL

June 17, 2016/ MARLAN

PHOTO BY: JENNA ELLIOTT OF ONE ELEVEN PHOTOGRAPHY

In celebration of birthday season around here, we're taking you back to last year's co-birthday bash for Mila and Brixton, better known as #toddlersgettropical. It was originally featured on Domino, and here are even more photos. Hope you enjoy!

When we started to plan the theme, we were inspired by a dream Mexican destination wedding. I loved the idea of having the table filled with living things (rather than a runner) so we had an abundance of coconuts, pineapples, mangos, papayas and baby bananas.

In a nod to Mexican lanterns, I turned to Prospect Goods for seven of their gorgeous crystal pinatas in copper metallic, which we turned into a garland overhang.

We believe that kids’ parties should be brought up to an adult level of beauty and comfort. Adults should enjoy it just as much as the kids. So that starts with serving high-quality food, drinks and cake. If you can sit down and enjoy a beautifully prepared lunch with your family, chances are that’s going to make for a nice afternoon.

Flowers are usually my number one priority, but for this we decided to just do a single monstera leaf in a glass water bottle, several of them scattered along the table.

Whisk and Whittle made the pièce de résistance with a three-tier cake that served as our centerpiece. They also made us copper cake stands to round out our vintage brass stands from Borrowed Blu.

Meri Meri provided the perfectly colored “Happy Birthday” plates, cups and napkins.

Brixton and Laurén (Twink) enjoying the Yeah! Rentals blankets and pillows.

Comida served their South American street eats. We love their arepas (gluten-free flatbread made of ground corn meal) — they grill them fresh and then fill them with your choice of meat. They top them with incredible homemade sauces like chimichurri and piconesa (Peruvian spicy mayo).

Mila, post-Beat Buds concert, eating cake.

We thought the photo booth was a really fun addition this year. We had a local artisan take inspiration from the Beverly Hills Hotel wallpaper in painting the tropical leaf backdrop. We then made several paper bird masks to give it a fun, kid-friendly feel with pops of color. Above: Juliette Lewis and her niece. Below: Laurén (Twink), Gina Ribisi, Ellen Bennett and Beth Riesgraf.

Happy Birthday, Mila and Brixton!!!

Design, decor, photo booth backdrop, bird masks: Twink + Sis

Photos: Jenna Elliott of One Eleven Photography

Party supplies: Meri Meri

Pinatas: Prospect Goods

Cake and copper cake stands: Whisk and Whittle

Brass cake stands: Borrowed BLU

Tables, benches, blankets, pillows: Yeah! Rentals

Food: Comida

Entertainment: The Beat Buds

Mila's dress: Nellystella via Poppy's Closet

Brixton's outfit: Bobo Choses tank, Zara Kids jeans, Freshly Picked mocassins

Laurén's outfit: Love Sam top via Shopbop, Raga shorts via Fred Segal

August 27, 2015

STYLING YOUR SUMMER TABLE WITH FORAGED FLOWERS

August 27, 2015/ MARLAN

When it comes to styling a table, I love foraged flowers and leaves. They really give an "organic" feel that commercially-grown flowers don't quite have. Don't get me wrong, I NEED those flower mart flowers, but adding that foraged element just does something special!

Bougainvillea is wildly abundant in Southern California (it's drought tolerant!) and its stunning color was the perfect fit for the kids' birthday party earlier this summer. [Even though bougainvillea isn't tropical, it went with our Mexican destination celebration-inspired theme.]

The fun part of styling with these beauties is you just pluck and stick, pluck and stick until you love the look. They fill in gaps beautifully and create a lush landscape.

They look equally great on the table itself or placed strategically on a serving tray.

Design: Twink + Sis

Photos: Jenna Elliott of One Eleven Photography

Party supplies: Meri Meri

Pinatas: Prospect Goods

Cake and copper cake stands: Whisk and Whittle

Brass cake stands: Borrowed BLU

Tables, benches, blankets, pillows: Yeah! Rentals

July 31, 2015

TODDLERS GET TROPICAL ON DOMINO

July 31, 2015/ MARLAN

PHOTO BY: JENNA ELLIOTT, ONE ELEVEN PHOTOGRAPHY — PHOTO BY: JENNA ELLIOTT, ONE ELEVEN PHOTOGRAPHY

We had so much fun doing this tropical birthday party for Mila and Brixton. And we're thrilled to have it shared on Domino today!

June 08, 2015

FAVORITE TROPICAL PARTIES

June 08, 2015/ MARLAN

Yesterday, we threw a tropical birthday party for Mila and Brixrton. So today, I thought we'd take a look at some of our favorite tropical parties. You'll notice a few come from wedding/showers, which lets face it, is where we get a lot of inspiration from.

Pineapple vase from Sugar & Cloth.

Aloha Bridal Shower Inspiration from Beijos Events via 100 Layer Cake.

Tropical shower via Style Me Pretty Living.

Hibiscus wedding cake via Ruffled.

Vintage surf-themed 40th birthday party via 100 Layer Cake.

Brazilian wedding via Junebug Weddings.

April 22, 2015

EARTH DAY GUIDE

April 22, 2015/ MARLAN

Happy Earth Day! We're celebrating with 10 of our favorite earth-friendly products. Break out your green thumb and infuse some oxygen into your home with easy-to-care-for succulents potted in a brass planter. Ditch the paper towels in favor of some tropical tea towels. No need for lights or heat when you're cuddled up under a gorgeous blanket.