Posted in Entertaining at Home, Flowers, Home and Garden, tagged flowers, gardens, Shanna Hatfield, spring tulips, Tulips on May 7, 2014| Leave a Comment »
During the long, dreary months of winter, I somehow always forget how much joy I find in my tulips each spring.
I love their cheery little heads that burst forth in brilliant colors.
Along with the softer pastel hues.
Although I think these fiery beauties…
Might just be my favorites this year.
She Who Loves Tulips
Posted in Holidays, Party Theme, Recipes, tagged Cinco De Mayo, Cinco de Mayo recipes, Savvy Entertaining, Shanna Hatfield on May 2, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Since Cinco De Mayo is fast approaching, I thought I’d share a few of my favorite recipes with you today.
Devour in bliss.
The combination of cinnamon-y chips with the fresh fruit is amazing.
Taco Bites are always a crowd pleaser.
These are so yummy and easy to make and disappear almost as fast as you can make them.
Cheesy, filling and delicious!
The perfect finish to any meal!
She Who Needs to Do some Baking
Posted in Flowers, Home and Garden, tagged Flower designs, Flower trends, ProFlowers, Shanna Hatfield on April 29, 2014| Leave a Comment »
ProFlowers floral designers Mallory Littleton and Kate Law put together some amazing ideas for using flowers as part of the latest trends.
A few of my favorite of their ideas are below:
Blue Blooms
1. Proflowers | 2. Proflowers | 3. Project Wedding | 4. EbiEmporium | 5. Pinterest | 6. Oh Lovely Day | 7. Pinterest | 8. Terra Flowers Miami
” Blue hydrangeas, delphiniums and irises pair with shades of lavender, purple orchids and blue-green succulents to form displays as cool and relaxing as a dip in the bay.”
This color scheme is calming, subtle, and so pretty. It makes me want to take a trip to the beach!
Single-Serving Bouquets
1. Proflowers|2. ProFlowers| 3. Pinterest | 4. Julie Blanner | 5. Centsational Girl | 6. Small Shop Studio| 7. Lonny
ProFlowers floral designers said they expect more people to use bouquets that feature only a single variety of flower, such as a large grouping of purple tulips or pink peonies rather than a combination of colors and blooms in the same vase.
I love the idea behind this trend and can think of many ways to make it work.
Bold Rainbow
1. Proflowers| 2. Proflowers| 3. Honestly Yum | 4. The Knot | 5. Pinterest | 6. Pinterest | 7. Wed Luxe
The brilliant, bold merging of vibrant colors such as hot pink, orange, lime green, yellow and scarlet definitely catches the eye.
Colorful rainbows of blooms are perfect for celebrations like birthdays (it really makes me think Cinco De Mayo) but can also be used to bring pops of color to a neutral space. Just think how many smiles a bouquet in these bright hues would bring to you at your office!
Country Garden
1. Proflower | 2. Proflowers | 3. Proflowers | 4. Apryl Ann | 5. Snippet and Ink | 6. Hot Cocoa Design | 7. Plectrumbanjo | 8.Jose Villa
This is my favorite – the combination of soft pastels, flowing textures, earthy elements like the burlap (absolutely love the lace on the edge).
The subtle combinations make me think of a spa day or maybe a quiet afternoon in a peaceful garden, curled up in the sunshine with a good book.
For more creative floral ideas and trends, go to ProFlowers.com blog.
What are your favorite floral trends for 2014?
Posted in Recipes, Salads, tagged Compressed Salad, Salad Recipes, Savvy Entertaining, Shanna Hatfield on April 25, 2014| 2 Comments »
If you want to impress your guests with a fancy little salad, this is super easy to do and makes for a fun start to your meal.
Ingredients – you can use whatever combo you want of lettuce, veggies and dressing. I tried to choose things with varied color.
You need a mold to put the salad in. You can use a small mold and make individual salads (which would probably be easier than the gigantic mold I made).
After you toss the lettuce with dressing, start layering it with the veggies. I think my layers went something like lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, beets, olives, then repeat. Pack it tightly or it won’t hold the shape.
Let chill for about twenty minutes. This isn’t something you’d want to let linger for a long time because the dressing makes the lettuce limp in a hurry. Remove from the mold and you have an amazing tower of salad!
Then serve! I garnished with some grated Parmesan and a tomato.
Compressed Salad
4 cups of lettuce (your choice)
1/2 cup sliced or diced tomatoes
1/2 cup thinly sliced cucumbers
1/4 cup sliced black olives
1/4 cup sliced pickled beets
1/4 cup salad dressing (I used a Caesar Vinaigrette)
2 tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese for garnish
Mix the lettuce with the dressing. Using a mold or form, start layer lettuce with tomatoes, cucumbers, olives and beets, pressing down tightly until form is filled. Chill for fifteen to twenty minutes then remove from form. If you have an individual form you can use (like a silicone cupcake form) you can easily unmold on your individual serving plates. If you are making the salad in one big form, you may need an extra set of hands to get it out of the mold then divided into individual servings.
She Who Likes Things That Taste Like Spring
Savvy Entertaining 