Christine's Feminine Farm-to-Table Birthday

A good friend of mine turned 30 this September so she wanted to throw a beautiful, farm-to-table party with all her closest friends and family to celebrate the milestone. She asked if I would help her plan, design, and execute the bash and of course I said yes knowing she has impeccable taste and the food would be to die for!

September is prime apple picking season and so she chose her favorite apple orchard, Fishkill Farms, to be the venue for the party. We chose a rustic and elegant design to blend with the farm and a color palette of whites, grays, and light peachy pink for the relaxed summery, feminine celebration. The design elements that helped tie everything together were the antique wooden crates, water hyacinth chargers, mason jar glasses, chalkboard and calligraphy signage, flowing linens, cozy throw blankets and pillows, hundreds of colorful blooms picked from the farm’s gardens, and lots of personalized details. Even the escort cards were carefully crafted by the birthday girl for each guest - a miniature frame filled with a picture of her with the guest and a special note to them on the back.

The party kicked off with all the guests going apple picking in the orchards and then after time in the late summer sun and heat, everyone came down to the al fresco setup for refreshments and relaxing. The outdoor lounge setup invited guests to kick back until dinner and sip on the light and refreshing drinks of classic lemonade garnished with grapefruits and blood oranges, watermelon aqua fresca, and an apple cider and peach sangria made with fresh cider from the farm. Each guest had a mason jar glass with calligraphy on chalkboard stickers to sip their drinks from!

The evening finished with an amazing family-style feast of all locally sourced foods, farm-fresh seasonal pies and apple cider donuts, and roasting s’mores over a roaring campfire. Each guest was sent home with their escort card frame and individual apple cider donuts in kraft paper bags sweetly tied up with pink ribbon.

• What People Ate

  Locally sourced farm-to-table foods including: beet & burrata cheese & citrus salad, rustic bread & rolls, braised short ribs, pan seared halibut, grilled eggplant rollatini, duck fat fingerlings, roasted fall vegetable medley

• What People Drank

  Classic lemonade garnished with grapefruits and blood oranges, watermelon aqua fresca, apple cider and peach sangria made with fresh cider from the farm

• Desserts

  Seasonal freshly baked homemade pies and apple cider donuts from the farm

• Party Favors

  Individual apple cider donuts in kraft paper bags sweetly tied up with pink ribbon

• Activities / Games

  Apple picking, campfire, s'mores

• Kate & Co. Events

  Party Planner

  www.katecoevents.com

• Cassady K Photography

  Photographer

  www.cassadykphotography.com

• Fishkill Farms

  Venue

  www.fishkillfarms.com

• Forks & Fingers

  Caterer

  www.forksandfingersct.com

• Cartwright & Daughters

  Rentals

  www.rentaparty.com