the drifter

a blog by mallory strode

my life ·

my five step guide to summer dinner parties

I am a little obsessed with throwing dinner parties… Decorations. Friends. Food. Conversations. Cake. Not to sound cliché but… What’s not to love? Create a little fantasy, it’s fun. All of these photos were taken by one of my best friends, Maddie. Her skills are amazing. Very thankful she was able to capture all of this for me to share.

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

| 1. PICK A THEME |

I’m a little biased. I always go for the bohemian-type theme. Just my style. Whether you want all gold, shiny decor or black and white, it’s important to stick with a constant throughout the details. My theme for this particular party was centered on the idea of sitting on the ground and a lot of candles.

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

| 2. DECORATIONS |

One of THE best parts. The make or break of the aesthetic. The collection of decoration entirely depends on the setting. Most of my dinner parties are set outside, so I typically have a good amount of banners or lanterns hanging. Even with indoor parties, I have found a way to hang different banners or balloons. This really transforms everything. It brings the theme off the table. Also, these are great for backgrounds in photos.

Table decorations are a bit easier to handle. It might be hard to decide on one “type” of centerpiece to keep consistent. There are a million options. Lightening is also something you need to factor into the picture. If you are outside, you have natural light obviously. But if it gets dark, you will want candles or lanterns. These served as my main table decorations. I also used palm tree branches to lay underneath—bringing out the greenery behind the banners.

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

| 3. MAKE IT PERSONAL |

I find it extremely important to make sure everyone knows how valuable their presence is to me, especially here, at my birthday dinner. Having place cards is always nice for photo purposes, but it also is an excuse to take some extra time for your friends. I chose to write a short note for each guest. You can have a photo of the two of you sitting at their seats or come up with another clever way of letting them know just which plate has their name on it. Literally.

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

| 4. THE EATS |

Your food menu is totally up to you. Obviously, make sure you have items for everyone. Whether or not you serve a dessert is totally up to you, but I strongly advocate for CAKE. Or just any dessert really. Put some thought into it. Find a way to bring your theme into the food. That can be hard to do with the main course, but dessert is art. I mean I had a dream of butterflies and gold candles and look, it happened. Go for it.

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

View More: http://maddierobinsonphotography.pass.us/mals-birthday-party

| 5. TAKE PHOTOS + HAVE FUN |

I’m so happy I had Maddie’s photography skills that day. First off, she is an awesome photographer (and her editing skills are insane), but also she made it so much easier for me. Photography is one of the most important things in my opinion. I love having the memories to look back on. This day was so rushed and pulling everything together (including myself, lol) proved to be quite difficult. So, I am extremely thankful that Maddie was able to take one of the biggest, most important tasks off my hands.

Hope you guys have a great Monday!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  11. Rebeccaetc.blogspot.com says

    This is an amazing post! I love throwing parties and I’ve been dreaming of having a nice sit down dinner party for so long. At my age it seems most of my friends would rather have a casual party than a nice sit down “adult” dinner party, but this year I’m going to make it happen! Your whole aesthetic is beautiful. And I can totally relate to the last minute chaos of throwing a party. So lucky that you had your friend there to snap pictures.

    Rebeccaetc.blogspot.com

    Reply

    • mallory says

      Ah yes! I kinda forced all of mine to join in on the “adult” parties and it was so worth it! It really is great for spending time together! Thanks for visiting! Take pics of your future party 🙂

      Reply

  13. MyraMyla says

    This post makes me super excited to attend a summer dinner party – i just need to be invited to one 😛 I love your photos, what a day to remember 🙂 xx

    MM, myramyla.com

    Reply

  15. Stylehue says

    Maddies pictures came out great ! I could not agree more about picking a theme when having a dinner party 🙂 Usually in my house it’s always white, pink and maybe gold or silver. I love the blue theme you made though 🙂

    xo
    http://style-hue.com/

    Reply

  26. May Cho says

    The thought of dinner parties — both atttending or throwing one — make me want to strangle myself, but that’s just because I am a terrible organizer, a terrible socializer and a person who’s terrible at enjoying social events in general, haha. But gosh, Mallory, your aesthetics is making me SWOON. I would attend dinner parties if they looked like these photos regardless of whether I like dinner parties or not, haha.

    MAY | http://WWW.THEMAYDEN.COM

    Reply

  36. Kasie Chelanne says

    What a gorgeous dinner party setup! I love the idea of outdoor bohemian style dinners (no backyard to have one in currently) so I’m absolutely in love with yours! You paid so much attention to detail, it really feels like you are being transported to a secret garden!

    Reply

  46. Beth says

    thank you for the comment on my blog 🙂 Can i be a guest at one of your dinner parties?! this is gorgeous and boho is my complete vibe! I love the idea of making it personal with name cards and things and I can imagine how beautiful it would look with all the candles glowing in the night sky!
    http://www.pagesfrombeth.blogspot.co.uk

    Reply

  48. Jalisa says

    Wow, you should be a party planner, girl, you are extremely gifted! Though it’s something anyone can try to do, it seems to come very natural to you! I love the setup of this party, very relaxed. The cake came out beautifully and I hope you had a very Happy Birthday! Thanks so much for sharing, beauty!

    XO,

    Jalisa
    http://www.thestylecontour.com

    Reply

  49. Janea says

    I LOVE the idea of eating on the ground and with candles. The party photos are really great – thanks for the inspiration Mallory! I will definitely want to do something similar in the near future. 🙂
    XO, Janea
    http://theSTYLetti.com

    Reply

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