4 - oh celebration [a birthday brunch]

i hardly ever celebrate my birthday in a big way but i guess turning 40 warrants a small party with a few close friends. i thought of having a fun casual brunch and since i'm still in big denial, i made it informal and laid back. like i was only turning 28. ha!

i first saw Kelly's (of WH Hostess and the party dress) missoni-inspired collection while browsing on her site last year and that set the tone of the party. this past november, i enlisted her to create our holiday card and she came up with an incredible semi-custom Thanksgiving card which i was really happy about since i was disappointed with our son's Christmas portraits then. we finally decided to go with the Thanksgiving photo cards instead and i was glad it worked out great! but i digress....

 i LOVE all of Kelly's modern patterns incorporated in all her party packages and papergoods collections. this missoni-inspired pattern is perfect for the Mexican brunch venue and i was inspired by it. i even created a mood board for the occasion, seen here. i love the vibrant colors of orange, yellows and lime green mixed with cobalt blue which are mainly the restaurant's colors as well. she printed invites, wraparound address labels, menu cards and tin can labels with this pattern. it all came together beautifully and i decorated the long tables with flowers i arranged in matching custom paperwrapped vases, also created by Kelly. i think they came out lovely!

  

 

 

we feasted on assorted huevos and other breakfast delicacies served the mexican way. my favorite was the their version of french toast called caballeros pobres served with fruits. the french toast's edges were crunchy and the rest of the bread were sweet and creamy and melts in your mouth. dessert selection were churros with dulce de leche filling served with chocolate ice cream, mango sorbet and the birthday cake.

a birthday gift from my dear friend Rae (whose wedding i featured here), the gorgeous cake flavors were buttercream with raspberry filling and chocolate with dulce de leche filling (cake was baked by Rae's talented friend Irma). note that it had the same missoni-pattern fondant on it and they were so yummy!

guests party favors were boxed dulce de leche flavored french macarons and tin cans each filled with my favorite nail polish, Lollia mini soap and shea butter hand creme. those tin cans are so versatile ~ they can be filled with bubble bottles for kids parties or girly accessories/stuff for a grown-up soiree!

last saturday was such a perfect day with the sun out and mild temperatures.
 it was a pretty day to celebrate with my best gal pals and i was happy they spent it with me.

turning 40 is not bad at all. if this is what 40 feels like, then i'll take it. 

{party sources}

venue : HUGO's
party paper accessories and tin can party favors : WH Hostess 
french macarons : Greeneyed Susan
plastic clear boxes : Garnish
"happy birthday" stickers on clear boxes : Paper Source
flowers : Krogers
cakestand : Homegoods
doilies macaron liners and rock candy : Michaels
photography : my bestfriend's hubby and dear friend Loven. thank you!