It’s no secret that we’re longtime fangirls of everything Antiquaria (remember this sneak peak into their entertaining style?), so when we first heard that Emma was expecting a little girl, we immediately began counting down to the big reveal of what would undoubtably be a gorgeous baby shower. Turns out, the day was every bit as dreamy as we imagined. Hosts Patricia James, Suzanna Mabie and Kelly Lynn James (Emma’s sister-in-law who also took these amazing photos) put together a party that was at once soft, springy and positively feminine. And we couldn’t leave you guys without noting that Sydney Perle James was born last week on June 20th… in Emma’s words, “6 lb 8oz of total perfection.” Major congrats you guys! Click through as Kelly walks us through the details of the day:
It’s a bit daunting to throw a baby shower for the lovely Emma James, with her penchant for vintage, design and color, but we knew we wanted to make it beautiful for mom and the baby girl on her way. We started with a plan for soft and lovely feminine colors and fantastic food and drinks…
This gorgeous invitation, as well as the menus were all beautifully designed by Antiquaria. Isn’t it perfect?
For inspiration, our color palette included pink grapefruit, peach, feather, and a leafy-mint color (with help from Emma, of course!). We set a colorful buffet to serve appetizers and lunch.
The menu featured Organic Apricot Chicken Salad (from Central Market in Austin), Cilantro Lime Chickpea Salad and Mimi’s Cheese Grits (sorry… that one’s a family secret!)
Vintage linens, glassware, and serving dishes were collected from our family stashes and curated together to create a beautiful mix of treasured heirloom pieces.
Who doesn’t love crostinis? We made ours with ricotta and topped them with lemon zest, radish & sea salt, pesto & tomato, cucumber, mint & dill, and blueberry & local honey.
Feminine, simple peony floral arrangements (Emma’s favorite flower) finished off the tables.
We wanted to feature herb accented fruit drinks and decided to go with positively springy tasty green and pink combinations. First up was this electric Cucumber Rosemary Chiller, made virgin by leaving out the gin.
A drinks dispenser filled with citrus, cucumber and mint-infused water provided the perfect cool factor.
We froze baby roses and fruits into large block ice cubes and found adorable paper straws on Etsy for an added fun accent.
Pictured here: The Grapefruit White Wine Sparkler
Using this DIY from Paper Source, handmade paper rosettes were made with some of Antiquaria’s hand-designed paper patterns, and then laid out into a colorful display above the desserts bar. White and pink handmade poms decorated the house inside and out.
The glowing new mom diving into her gifts.
Our thirty or so guests were given a blessing candle in a choice of scents to light for Emma and the baby when she went into labor.
