home decor | The Everyday Hostess

Home August 27, 2018

How to Select a Paint Color

Huge thank you to Sherwin-Williams for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.

Life is full of complex decisions. Like when my hubs and I are at the neighborhood frozen yogurt shop and I’m staring at the levers for both strawberry and swiss chocolate – the struggle is real. Landon is stuck between the cake batter and the cookies and cream. Oh, the suspense… Or when I’m deciding between a salted or sugar rim for my favorite strawberry jalapeno margarita…do I really want sweet or salty?

Now imagine our trouble when faced with an actual difficult decision like what color to paint our new home. Believe me when I say it’s intimidating. There are thousands of different combinations between all of the types, sheens, colors, and shades that can make the process feel extremely overwhelming.

But luckily for you, we’re here to boil down that crazy process. For the frozen yogurt dilemma, just get both flavors and your problem is solved. For the paint decision, follow these simple steps!

Step 1 – Determine Your Color Palette

Selecting your color palette is the most important step in determining the perfect Sherwin-Williams colors to complement your home and decor. It sets the entire tone for your home and helps determine the mood and ambience that you want to create. Lighter colors can make a smaller room look bigger, while darker colors can make a room feel smaller but cozier. Do you want to create a peaceful and sophisticated tone? Consider blues, greens, or neutrals. Looking for a cozy and welcoming vibe? Consider warmer colors like red or yellows.

Landon and I wanted to create a spa-like oasis in our home, so I knew we wanted a combination of light grays and seafoam greens or spa blues. Okay, so that narrows it down to only about 458 shades. Great. Help hone in on a color family by gathering any fabrics you know you want incorporated in your home and using them as a guideline for matching wall color and furniture! I also created this handy inspo board, which really helped me direct my color choices!

Step 2 – Get Familiar with the Colors with the ColorSnap Visualizer

Y’all, if you’re not familiar with the ColorSnap Visualizer tool, drop everything and get over to their site ASAP. Seriously. It’ll change your life.

Home June 6, 2018

Outdoor Entertaining Inspiration

Summer is here and Landon and I are in full force furnishing mode with our new home. And thanks to the Dallas sun and our weekly BBQ’s, our priorities of completing the dining room and study have completely shifted and we are now fully focused on creating an outdoor backyard oasis for all our friends to enjoy!

Since the interior of our home is more neutral and spa like in style, I wanted something bold and bright that really popped! I’ve opted for a pink, green, black and white color palette with touches of gold and, luckily, thanks to this natural palm leaf print, my husband is fully on board!

I’ve done a round up of some of our favorite pieces that we are using as inspo. Most of these items are accent pieces, so you can easily incorporate them into your seasonal decor as well! Stay tuned for the full reveal shortly!

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4th of July April 30, 2018

Nautical Summer Brunch

We’d love to thank Laurie Louis Design for sponsoring this post. While products were supplied for this post, all opinions are my own.

Searching for the perfect baby shower idea to celebrate the mother-to-be in your life? Drop anchor and settle in for our nautical baby shower brunch co-captained by our friends at Laurie Louis Design!

I’m thrilled that this brunch was our maiden voyage at our new house (that finally has a real dining table!) and am absolutely swooning over the nautical theme with a southern, beachy and classic flair.

Jump on in, the water’s great!

This baby shower screamed summer prep with our red, white and blue party decor from Laurie Louis Design, which we paired with some of our favorite nautical lanterns, ship wheels, fishing net, and, of course, life ring buoys! Laurie specializes in custom and southern-inspired stationery and gifts, so I knew that there was no better way to bring our vision to life for this nautical brunch than with some of her custom decor – especially her crab themed line, which helped pull this entire party together!

The invitation sets the style and mood for every party, so it had to be a stand out! We loved creating this adorable “Ahoy It’s a Boy” invitation using Laurie’s designs.

Easter March 19, 2018

Easter Basket For Him

Move over kiddos! Easter baskets aren’t just for your favorite little ones! This Easter, surprise that special guy in your life with his own manly edition of an Easter basket!

Of course, we love seeing the kid’s running around, wide-eyed with excitement as they look through what fun goodies the Easter bunny brought them, but it’s also important to keep it special for your honey! Easter baskets for him are always extra fun to put together because you can be as unique and creative as you want and bring in a fun theme based on his interests.

We’ve rounded up some of our favorite manly Easter baskets to help inspire you this season and hopefully bring a little extra magic to the season! Enjoy!

A Helicopter Mom

Annual Recap January 10, 2018

2017 Highlights -The Everyday Hostess

Y’all. I have been MIA and for that I am sorry! 2018 has been filled with blog planning and rebranding (yay! Stay tuned for some fun changes!) plus Landon and I are deep in the house buying process, and my goodness is that a feat! We have some exciting changes for The Everyday Hostess this year, but we’ve needed some time to just take a breath and focus all our planning efforts.

During this exciting time, we have been very reflective of 2017. What an incredible year and one that will be hard to ever beat! Landon and I got married in June, both started new roles at work, started our new little Etsy shop and continued to grow The Everyday Hostess.

We are so grateful for each and every one of you following our journey and, of course, our favorite parties, so here’s a little recap of all the greatness 2017 had to offer!

Wedding Wednesdays

As we prepared for our wedding, we launched a new series called Wedding Wednesdays where we shared all our wedding planning tips and tricks we learned along the way. We covered a host of categories including:

Entertaining July 24, 2017

Luxury Guest Bathroom

If you read our post about how to prepare your home for guests, you know how important it is to make sure your guests feel right at home by welcoming them with some of their favorite treats and creating a warm and comfortable space for them.

Of course, one of the most important aspects of hosting overnight guests is the guest bedroom and preparing their own little oasis, but not to be overlooked, is the guest bathroom!

When I stay at a hotel, one of the main aspects that I judge the entire hotel on is the style and feel of the bathroom. If it’s not clean and crisp, I assume the entire hotel is not. But if it has a luxurious and custom feel, my reviews of the hotel are glowing. Same goes for the home. Obviously, no one thinks your home is a hotel, but why not class it up and give it a luxurious and custom feel?!

I’ve gathered some of my favorite stylish bathroom decor and products to give your guest bathroom that extra oomph that will have your guests seeing hearts (without the large price tag of a remodel)! Enjoy and happy hosting!

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Dinner Party Tablescape July 17, 2017

End of Summer Soiree! Let’s Flamingle!

As seen in IBB at Home Summer 2017

Summer is winding down, so it’s time to throw your final end-of-summer shin dig with the perfect themed dinner party! The rooftop or patio is calling for a stylish celebration, but no matter where you choose to host your party, you’ll be able to create the perfect summer setting with this year’s hottest trends! I’m in love with the flamingos, palm leaves and pineapples that are popular this season, and coupling them with a bold and chic color palette of hot pink, bright green and gold just screams summer. We’ve put together some tips and tricks to pull off this summer’s hottest party theme that will make a lasting impression on your guests!

Hosting 101 February 24, 2017

How to Host an Oscars Party!

It’s Hollywood’s biggest night, but it doesn’t have to put a big dent in your wallet. I mean let’s be real, it’s easy to spend oodles of dollars on a glitz Oscars watching party — but we’re here to show you that you don’t have to!

Here are some tips and tricks on how to throw a party worthy of a trophy!

First, what goes better with the year’s biggest films than popcorn?! It’s the quintessential movie snack… and it’s also easy on your bank account and on your party planning anxiety. I chose a popcorn bar with a variety of seasonings — aptly named after some of this year’s Best Picture nominees — and displayed them in glass jars of varying heights. Frequent visitors of my blog know I love me some clear, light and airy party spaces!

Now, no party is complete without desserts, and I just happened to get the most ADORABLE Oscar-themed cookies from my good friend Briana with Just Call Me Cookie! Our “cookie wardrobe” was complete with dresses, tuxes and even the envelopes for award announcements.

But the big winner? These Oscar statue cookies that STAND ON THEIR OWN! I’m in love with these cookies, and the reasons are endless. They are a delicious treat, but also double as cute decor or party favors for your film-loving friends.

Okay, so you’ve got your treats taken care of… But how do you pull your party together?? I’ve written it once, I’ll write it a thousand times: It’s all about the details! The printables made especially for this event by the lovely Linda from Sprinkled Designs were the perfect touch to tie everything into the Oscars theme.

From the invitations, to the labels for our different popcorn flavors, to the Bingo cards for the guests, Sprinkled designs was the ticket! The little things at a party like this are what your attendees will remember, and it’s an inexpensive way to go the extra mile.

This party is all about the stars of the big screen, but it was special for me because I got to make an appearance on the small screen! My good friends at WFAA-TV were so kind and had me talk about hosting an Oscars watching party on News 8 at 4!

It was a blast being at the studio and meeting some of the WFAA on-air crew!

Holidays January 1, 2017

2016 Highlights

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a fabulous New Year’s Eve with your friends and family!

New Year’s Eve is my favorite party of the year, as Landon and I host our annual NYE Fondue Dinner Party! This year was a bit trickier now that we are in a smaller apartment, but if you checked out our Instagram story, you saw how we transformed our 700sf apartment and hosted a formal sit down dinner party for 20. (Yes, that did involve removing all furniture from our house and either cramming it in our closet or storing it in the hallway- sorry neighbors!) Logistical issues aside, this was absolutely our most successful fondue party yet, filled with delicious food, wonderful company, and lots of love and laughter.

Now, I could not be more thrilled that 2017 is here because this is the year that we get married!!! We are officially on the 5 month countdown, and I have no doubt that this will be the best year of our life!

But of course, we can’t forget to thank 2016 for all the incredible memories and times we had! Starting with our engagement (YAYAY!) and of course all the success with the blog and the fabulous parties that we were able to throw.

Though it’s super hard to narrow down, I wanted to highlight some of the top moments and posts from 2016 (in chronological order)!

Kate Spade Valentine’s Day Party and Alice in Wonderland Tea Party

We started off the year with two incredible styled shoots. Our Valentine’s Day brunch with Kate Spade that I got to enjoy with fiance and future in-laws and our Alice in Wonderland Tea Party with Holiday Warehouse. Both shoots helped start the year off with a bang and allowed us to work with a team of incredible people.

2. IBB Design Collaboration

One of my favorite teams to collaborate with this year was IBB Design. If you haven’t checked out their store or their magazine, definitely do so! I had the great honor of being published in both their summer edition about How to Host a Summer Soiree and winter edition about How to Host a NYE Dinner Party this year.

The Everyday Hostess and IBB at Home Summer Soiree

3. We Got engaged!

The absolute highlight of this past year, and my entire life, was our trip to Nashville in June where Landon proposed! It was the most incredible day of my life and I am so beyond honored to get to spend the rest of my life with him. Check out the full proposal story here!

4. Wedding Wednesday Series

With the start of our wedding planning journey, we started a Wedding Wednesday Series to document the process and everything that we are learning along the way!

5. Geode Styled Shoot in BONT

In September, we collaborated with a showstopping team on a Geode Styled Wedding Shoot at the Dallas Quarry, which was featured in Brides of North Texas Magazine (BONT)! This was my first time being featured in BONT, and needless to say I am still in shock!

6. Fall Inspired Brunch

One of my best “friendors” Lindsay of Lindsay Davenport Photography asked me to collaborate with her and style a Fall Inspired Brunch before the birth of her new baby boy! We had so much fun designing and planning this brunch for her 2016 wedding couples and the end result still has me seeing hearts!

7. LikeToKnowIt!

At the end of November, we got accepted to LikeToKnowIt! Blog wise (that does not include getting engaged!), this is 100% the highlight of my year! Being accepted into this program has been one of my main goals since starting our blog in 2015. We can now share easily shoppable links to all of our favorite products and party decor with you on the blog, and if you sign up for LikeToKnowIt, you will receive your favorite products directly to your inbox when you like our posts on Instagram!

8. Christmas Winter Wonderland

To cap the year off, and for the second year in a row, I partnered with Holiday Warehouse to share our tips and tricks for Decorating the Perfect Christmas Tree. This is always one of my favorite shoots and posts of the year because we get to spend hours at Holiday Warehouse dreaming and looking at all of their gorgeous Christmas decor and then styling our own tree at home! Plus the post was also featured on WFAA!

Most importantly, we are so grateful for each and every one of you. Thank you for following us and helping us to make our dream a reality. We absolutely love what we do and cannot wait for another spectacular year!

Happy New Year!

Entertaining December 20, 2016

How to Host a NYE Dinner Party

As featured in IBB At Home Winter 2016 Edition

Just because you’re done with turkey dinners and gift wrapping, the holiday season isn’t over! The fanciest of them all is circled on my calendar for December 31st! New Year’s Eve is often one of the most lavish nights of the year filled with glamorous parties, glitzy dresses, and festive dinners. Revelers have high expectations for the evening, so I’ve put together these tips and tricks to help ensure your NYE dinner party goes off with a bang!

1. Guest List and Invitations – A well-designed invitation gives your guests a glimpse of just how glamorous your NYE party will be. It’s the first chance to sweep them off their feet, so make sure your invitations help portray the elegance and experience you want to create.

2. Location – New Year’s Eve calls for opulence and grandeur. The best way to set your NYE party apart is through a swanky location. I love the idea of a rooftop dinner party with a show-stopping skyline view to really wow your guests, but if that’s not in the cards for you, think of these non-negotiables: extra space for mingling, a TV screen for the NYE broadcast, and a visible clock for the countdown!

3. Decor – Decorations set the ambience and formality for the entire evening, and it’s impossible to go over the top on New Year’s Eve. It’s a night that calls for all things glittered, sparkly and metallic. The most popular color palettes seen in NYE decor is black, gold, silver and white. If you want to go somewhere in between, I love champagne and pewter tones, or if you want a pop of color, emerald is the perfect hue to pull in!

4. Menu – By the time NYE rolls around, many of us have already been cooking and hosting so many holiday dinners, that it’s nice to keep the menu simple! For this reason, I love serving a variety of cheese, meat, and chocolate fondues. It’s a great, interactive way to involve your guests and minimize the prep work on your end, plus it also provides hours of entertainment for your guests! If you want to add an extra special touch, create personal menus for each guest that correlates with the invitation you sent out!

5. Champagne Bar – NYE is not complete without some bubbly, so be sure to stock up on extra champagne for your soirée! Design a “Pop Fizz Clink” bar to display a signature cocktail as well as a selection of champagnes for your guests!

6. Countdown Plan – The countdown to midnight is often what guests look forward to the most! What is better than ringing in the new year with your special someone and enjoying a midnight kiss? Create something memorable for the moment and make sure to announce the countdown with a microphone. Pass out party hats, horns, confetti, sparklers, or even arrange or a big balloon drop!

Finally, relax and celebrate with your guests! This is your last big gathering of 2016. Grab yourself a glass of champagne, enjoy that extra strawberry dipped in chocolate fondue, and reminisce about all that 2016 had to offer.

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Photography by Lindsay Davenport Photography

Styling and Planning: The Everyday Hostess

Straws/Straw Flags/Napkins: Sequins and Lipstick

Invitations and Menus: Amazing Design Studio

Calligraphy Bar Sign: Slinging Inks of Bella Grafia, Inc.