Arsenic Lace

home entertaining

Holiday Hot Cocoa Bar

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I’m not a huge fan of the weather getting colder but there are a few perks. Enjoying warm drinks at this time of year is definitely one them! I put together this cute, colorful, and festive Holiday Hot Cocoa Bar for us to enjoy while Ethan and I decorated our Christmas tree. It did the trick for putting us in the holiday spirit.

This year I’m more excited than ever for the holidays. It’s the first time in my adult life that I have space for a regular sized Christmas tree and to do holiday decorating at all. I bought the pink Christmas tree of my dreams and I can’t wait to reveal it in all its glory! Perhaps I can even throw a little holiday party since I’m so proud of how everything came out. I don’t know about you but I love a “build your own anything station” at a holiday gathering. Today I’m sharing how to build a simple Holiday Hot Cocoa Bar for your own winter or holiday gathering.

You can make your own hot chocolate like the recipe I made here or put a Keurig out if you own one. I did both that way people could choose what they wanted. The Keurig route is definitely easier but I love making fresh hot chocolate from scratch. I put my fresh hot chocolate in an enamel serving pot and left out a jar of hot chocolate pods for the Keurig.

You can use little glass jars to house all your hot chocolate toppings. My favorite hot chocolate toppings include:

  • mini chocolate chips
  • mini marshmallows (I bought regular and peppermint)
  • sprinkles
  • crushed peppermint
  • flavored stirring spoons or straws
  • marshmallow snowflakes and snowmen

I don’t like to add booze to the hot chocolate mix. Since it’s hot it can burn the alcohol off. It’s nice to put out a few bottles that go best with hot chocolate. Guests can pick their favorite spirit and mix it to their own taste. It also allows the hot chocolate to be non-alcoholic. Hello children, non-drinkers, and pregnant ladies! They all need a holiday treat too! My favorite spirits to leave out on my Holiday Hot Cocoa Bar are:

This is an easy and delicious treat when you’re having holiday guests over. It takes the pressure off of you while you’re entertaining and guests get to make their own delicious wintery treat! I hope you consider putting a Holiday Hot Cocoa Bar together for your festivities. Don’t forget to include some fun holiday decor as well!

Be Merry Balloon Banner / Hot Cocoa Pot / Pink Marble Mugs / Bottle Brush Trees from Target and Homegoods / My Cinema Lightbox / Pink Tree

Rosemary Gin and Tonics with Infused Ice

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Hey there everyone! I’ve been working my little behind off and I’m getting ready to host my first Thanksgiving. Let’s talk about STRESSED. Luckily I’ve teamed up with Zevia to bring you some cocktail recipes with their non-alcoholic mixers. First up are these Rosemary Gin and Tonics with Infused Ice.

Zevia is a line of zero calorie, refreshing and delicious beverages. Zevia is sweetened with the plant-based sweetener stevia, which means no artificial sweeteners, and no sugar. It is also Non-GMO Project Verified, gluten-free, Kosher, vegan and free of caramel color. Zevias mixers are simple, delicious, and the perfect compliment to any cocktail. I wanted to make something that was no fuss because that equals no stress! These Rosemary Gin & Tonics with infused ice are the perfect answer to easy entertaining this Thanksgiving.

Rosemary Gin and Tonic

2 oz. rosemary infused gin

1 can of Zevia tonic water

rosemary and cranberry infused ice cubes

Infusing the gin is easy. Simply add your desired amount of gin to a container with a few sprigs of rosemary. Infuse for 1 hour or until the desired level of taste is achieved.

To make your ice cubes add cranberries and rosemary to a large ice cube tray and fill with filtered water. Freeze for 5-6 hours but overnight is always best.

To make your cocktail place your infused ice in a glass, pour the gin and then add Zevia tonic water.

I love using infused ice in drinks. It’s a really simple detail that will certainly wow your guests. The great part about infusing ice is that you can make a bunch ahead and simply pop them out of the freezer when needed. Same thing goes for infusing the gin. Infuse as much as you need in advance and you have a delicious 2 ingredient cocktail with the most beautiful garnish. Easy peasy. There’s so much to do when you’re entertaining so I hope these Rosemary Gin and Tonics with Infused Ice will take a little work out of making cocktails. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Thanksgiving Fall Tablescape Ideas

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Every year it always surprises me how quickly it goes from Halloween to Christmas. Even in retail stores, they seem to totally skip over Thanksgiving all together. It makes the time move too fast and I wish it would slow down so we could enjoy each holiday just a little bit longer. Thanks to Kate Aspen I’m showing you some Thanksgiving Fall Tablescape Ideas that are easy, beautiful and sure to impress your holiday guests.

Beautiful doesn’t even do this tablescape justice. I have thoroughly impressed myself! This is the first holiday that I live in a space big enough to entertain in so I’m super excited. For the table, I wanted it to have lots of colors but still be seasonally appropriate. I picked up some bundles of small pumpkins at my local grocery store and painted them with acrylic paint I already had. I wanted to do somewhat of an ombé look for the pumpkins so I did hot pink, light pink, coral, orange, and yellow. Then I accented them with these Kate Aspen gold glitter pumpkin votive holders. They’re so cute and sparkly and look perfect next to the painted pumpkins.

Since a lot of my table accessories were gold I wanted a pop of color for the place settings. I used white and gold-rimmed dinner plates with vintage green and gold-rimmed appetizer plates and white and gold bread plates. The green plates accent the greenery in the centerpiece as well very nicely. I picked up the foliage from a local flower shop and the bundle was only $5. Super affordable and really worthwhile to make a memorable tablescape. Underneath I layered two different table runners to add more color and texture. You can use a tablecloth and runner or even placemats.

I used white napkins with gold polka dots and these really cute Kate Aspen pumpkin napkin rings. Are you sensing a theme here? I also used these super cute gold pumpkin place card holders. Here is where I wish I excelled in cute penmanship. My handwriting has been epically bad my whole life. In college, my drafting professor used to give me special assignments where all I had to do was practice my block lettering inside these elaborate shapes. All that did was train me to only know how to write in architecture handwriting. Years later it’s just morphed into me writing messy in all caps. We can’t be good at everything, can we?

No holiday dinner is complete without some wine. Using something as simple as decorative bottle stoppers like these pumpkin ones make them fit in with your table decor. I always like to have a variety of wine available because everyone has different taste. I’m usually a white wine drinker but having another bottle of red on hand is always good. I absolutely adore these cheers stemless wine glasses. They’re perfect for any occasion.

I’m so happy that I got to share my Thanksgiving Fall Tablescape Ideas with you. It was really easy to put together and styling your table makes a huge impact for entertaining. All of the things included in my Thanksgiving Fall Tablescape Ideas are super affordable as well which is a huge plus! Decorating and hosting can get pricey during the holidays so it’s great to find ways to still get festive on a budget. If you’re still planning your Thanksgiving table make sure you head over to the Kate Aspen website and check out all their party favors and tabletop decor.

I had so much fun styling this table and I can’t wait to host my first Thanksgiving. I’d love to hear whats on your Thanksgiving table. Let me know is the comments below! If you need more inspiration I’ve pinned all of these items plus more inspiration on my Tablescape Board and Thanksgiving Ideas Board on Pinterest. Cheers everyone!

Entertaining Notes with Chopin Vodka

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Hello everyone! Recently I was an interviewed about entertaining notes with Chopin Vodka. I’m putting my Halloween decorations aside and decking out my bar cart in all pink (that’s not hard) and featuring their limited edition pink bottle to raise awareness for breast cancer. Every October since 2011 Chopin has released the pink bottle and part of the proceeds are donated to breast cancer research. To date, Chopin has donated $70,000 in support of this important cause.

The only thing I love more than drinking is drinking with a cause. I was really happy to team up with Chopin to raise awareness about this matter. Both Chopin and I are committed to realizing a world without breast cancer and we hope you are too. Did you know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month? It’s an annual campaign to increase awareness of the disease. Here are just a few of the ways you can help women in need from the National Breast Cancer Website:

  1. Sign up for this free breast health care guide here
  2. Share your story of how you or a loved one have been affected by breast cancer
  3. Host an in-person or virtual fundraiser
  4. Make a one-time or ongoing donation
  5. Share educational content on social media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest

Please spread the word and help in any way you can. Head here to read my entertaining notes with Chopin Vodka and to see more photos of my pink bar cart for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. If you or anyone you know has been affected by breast cancer I would love to hear about it in the comments below. The only way we can help each other is by sharing our stories, educating one another, early detection and supporting one another. I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend. Cheers to stopping breast cancer! xo

 

The Art of the Bar Cart + Giveaway

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I’ve read many blogs over the years, some of which inspired me to start my own blog. One of those blogs is Ashley Rose Conway’s Craft + Cocktails. Ashley has come out with a new book The Art of the Bar Cart and it is just as inspiring! She collaborated with design director and party planning expert Vanessa Dina to share some really fantastic tips for styling your home bar cart.

The Art of the Bar Cart features 20 different styled bar setups themed around spirits, personal style, and seasonal occasions. The book includes easy tips to re-create each look as well as recipes for the perfect drinks to pair with each bar cart. It is a gorgeously photographed guide for inspiring any reader to make a décor statement, and a drink to serve alongside. Sounds perfect for me, right? So perfect, I want to give you a copy!

I love this book so much because it’s such a good reference for styling tips and recipes. There really is a bar cart for everyone. That rum cart is practically my exact bar cart already! The Art of the Bar Cart shows you how to curate the perfect bar cart, essentials, and the ideal recipe to whip up alongside it. This is the perfect book for home entertaining and it couldn’t come at a more perfect time of the year. Holiday season!

I will definitely be using this book as a resource whenever I’m looking to spruce up my bar cart. I’ve even been using my credenza as a second bar station in my living room too. Do you have a designated bar area in your home? If you don’t its time to get one! Good luck and enter below.

From Art of the Bar Cart by Vanessa Dina, photographs by Antonis Achilleos, Text + Recipes by Ashley Rose Conway (Chronicle Books, 2017)

Styling Your Home Bar | Bloomia Giveaway

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For years I’ve had a rule that once a week, I buy myself flowers. Very rarely did anyone else purchase flowers for me and it was an exercise in self-love. I realized quickly that having fresh flowers in the house added a pop of color and life to my living space and the sight of them also made me smile. This was the beginning of a plant lady in the making! I’m so happy to have teamed up with my friends over at Bloomia for this post to spread a little happiness and talk about why flowers are important to me at home and in my work.

Bloomia is a global floral company with offices and production companies is the U.S, Chile, South Africa and the Netherlands. In the U.S their flowers are grown in King George, Virginia (about 40 minutes away from D.C) and are available in main supermarkets like Wholefoods, Wegmans, and Trader Joe’s. Their mission is to spread happiness through their sustainably grown, pesticide free, thoughtfully designed and consciously delivered floral products.

I’m running a giveaway over on Instagram, so after reading this post make sure you visit my account over here this afternoon to enter. All you have to do to be qualified to win is make sure you’re following me and Bloomia and leave a comment tagging a friend to whom you’d want to send flowers. Two lucky winners will get flowers shipped directly to their door courtesy of Bloomia. The giveaway will run until Sunday, so you have all week to enter.

I’m going to go over styling your home bar but first wanted to share some tips about styling your own floral arrangement. I thought my vintage Lilly Pulitzer dress with cocktails and flowers on it was perfect for this occassion!

  • Cut an inch off the stems using a sharp knife, especially if the flowers will sit a while before being arranged. The fresh cut will help the stems absorb water better.
  • Remove any leaves that fall below the water line.
  • Add large, heavy flowers first, turning the arrangement as you work to ensure even placement on all sides. Fill in with smaller, airier blooms, and leave enough space between the stems so individual flowers have room to shine. Include flowers with various shapes and stem lengths.
  • Make your bouquet taller than its container by about one and a half times. Also, make the width balance the height.
  • Use different textures that are interesting to look at it. I pick a color pallette and try to stay within three colors.
  • Arranging flowers in odd numbers is a great way to have some nice variety. Sometimes I will pick a base color of five flowers and then add in different colors in three’s.
  • Change the water every day and recut stems.

Having a bar cart or a bar station in your home is fun because you get to change it up seasonally and it’s also a great landing spot when entertaining guests. I love to have fresh flowers on the bar cart because it adds a pop of color and some really nice texture.

Your booze is important! I love seeing pretty styled bar carts all over the world wide web BUT I would never trust someone who didn’t have some bottles on their home bar. It’s a bar, right? I love to keep a variety of spirits here, that way there is something for everyone. Keeping your higher end spirits here is also a great idea so you can showcase the best of your selection. Have a bottle each of Vodka, Gin, Light Rum, Dark Rum, Bourbon, Rye, Scotch, and Tequila. Having some Amaro available is great too for sipping after dinner. You can keep some bitters here as well but you should never have your vermouth on the cart unless you’re mixing with it. Vermouth should always be kept refrigerated because it is a delicate fortified wine that will go bad if left out at room temperature.

I love to keep a bowl of fresh fruit on my bar cart for the same reason I love to keep fresh flowers; it adds natural texture and a pop of color!

If you have pretty bar tools this is a great way to display them. I keep all of my gold and copper barspoons and strainers in my crystal mixing glass. I’ve also displayed my collection of colored cocktail shakers. Having a jigger is necessary for making sure your pouring is consistent when making drinks, and so I keep those available for use here.

Having a few peices of glassware available is also neccessary …and some straws too! I keep it organized by using trays to seperate certain things. I also try to style by color, just like with the flower arrangments. Picking a base color is key to having something that looks finished and cohesive. Obviously, my base color was pink. 😉

I hope you enjoyed my tips and tricks for making a flower arrangment and styling your bar cart. Check the slideshow above to see how many different arrangments I made with my Bloomia flowers.

What’s your favorite thing on your home bar?

Do you love keeping flowers in your home as much as I do?

What’s your favorite flower?

I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. I hope this post brought a pop of color to your Monday. Good luck to everyone who enters the Bloomia giveaway, and I can’t wait to see what you do with your flowers!