This honey, lemon & lavender spa party was put together for some of my all time favorite women...
This honey, lemon & lavender spa party was created as a simple and clean getaway for you and your favorite gals.
This If you and your girlfriends need a day off, this honey, lemon & lavender spa party is a great way to enjoy just that. Simple eats and fun spa treatments make for the perfect mini "getaway".
Growing up I remember hearing the excitement in my mom’s voice when she talked about her annual girls weekend. When I was really lucky, I got to see the excitement on her face and the faces of my aunts as they arrived at our home when it was her turn to host.
Their girls weekend was two days of rest, relaxation and friendship. My mom and her sisters looked forward to this special time all year long. Even as a young girl, I could sense how exciting this get together was and I couldn’t wait to join them. The rule was once you are eighteen, you can join in on girls weekend.
Sadly, the tradition was lost for many years and I didn’t get the chance to experience this much anticipated weekend. Recently, we realized it was time to bring girls weekend back. We decided on a casual weekend at my aunts house with no agenda.
I couldn’t resist the opportunity to put something special together for some of the most wonderful women in my life. I decided to go with the casual, relaxing vibe we were hoping to set for the weekend and decided on a styled spa party.
My aunt who was hosting us (along with her husband) own their own honey farm. Their bees make the best local honey around and I couldn't help but play off of this when putting together the party. I decided to add in lemons for freshness and vibrancy as well as lavender for that relaxing note.
The first thing I did was put together a themed gift basket. I went with a lemon meringue candle, lavender soap and a bath scrubber. My aunt was kind enough to also give everyone a jar of their local honey.
The gift baskets turned out so cute and the gals loved them! I personally loved that each lady was able to take home a piece of the party with them.
For the dessert table, I immediately went to my style muse, Jenny Cookies site for inspiration. Next I headed over to my Pinterest boards to get the creative juices flowing even more.
I decided to start with Glutino lemon wafer cookies or "nail files". They looked perfect for the spa party and tasted so fresh and delicious. I had to hide them from my kids the few days prior to the party because they are one of their favorite cookies.
On the vintage yellow scale I did another lemon cookie but this one was soft, chewy and made by WOW Baking Company. You could even do sugar-free lemon bars for those eating less sugar.
Not making everything from scratch with help you keep your head on straight while putting together a party. Find brands you trust and go with them. This entire party was gluten-free and none of the women would have ever known had I not told them.
To keep it dainty and fresh, I served lemon, lavender whipped mousse in single serve china spoons. They were a fresh, sweet dessert shot that kept hands clean.
I decided to also put together a lemon, lavender naked cake. The frosting was scented with lavender oil and the lemon cake recipe is below. For the lavender cake, I used Wholesome Chow brand.
Both were so easy to put together and tasted fantastic! Of course, no spa party would be complete without chocolate. Salted caramel chocolates were the perfect addition.
Desserts are fantastic but we also needed some food. Dainty little chicken salad sandwiches served on white Glutino bread and wrapped in chive couldn't have been more fitting. Along side the sandwiches we also served fresh cucumbers and strawberries.
Fresh organic lemonade provided guests with a refreshing beverage that also fit our theme. 
What is a spa party without treatments? I styled spa stations including a place to do facials and one to do manicures. At the manicure station, I used a vintage tv tray. I displayed nail polish for each gal to choose from to take home as another favor. I used 3 T coconut oil, 1 C sugar, juice from half a lemon and 1-2 drops of lavender oil to make a lovely scrub.
This scrub recipe is very easy to make. I guarantee your guests will love how silky it leaves their hands feeling. At the facial station I provided fresh cucumbers for eyes as well as Redmond clay and a green tea coffee scrub.
My aunt also made honey and baking soda facials for those who wanted them. Since I hate being sticky more than anything, this was a big thing for me to try. I am sure glad I did...my face felt fantastic after it was done! So what exactly would you want at a spa party of your own?
Moist & Easy Lemon Cake {Gluten-Free}
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ C gluten-free all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. Real Salt
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- ⅔ C coconut oil
- 1 ⅓ C sugar
- 2 ½ T real lemon juice
- ½ C whole milk
- 3 large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°.
- Cream together wet ingredients. Slowly add in dry ingredients.
- Mix 1-2 minutes then pour into greased 9x13 pan.
- Bake 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Nutrition
(Adapted from mylifeasrobinswife.com)
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This post may contain affiliate links. Thanks to Glutino for providing product for this event. I use their products all the time and love them. All opinions expressed are my own. Check out this post on www.vegetarianmamma.com
This post was originally published on Mary 23, 2016.
This galentines day cookie decorating party is the perfect gathering to celebrate all your favorite ladies in a fun and festive environment while also learning something new.
First, let's settle on what galentines day means. Lets ask Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler), the founder of galentines day and star of the hit show Parks and Recreation. She says, "Oh, it's only the best day of the year. Every February 13th my lady friends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home and we just come and kick it breakfast style. Ladies celebrating ladies. It's like Lilith Fair, minus the angst. Plus frittatas."
When each gal arrived at our local White Space Studios location, I made sure they had a fabric heart bag waiting on their chair. I figured this would make it easier to take home some of their goodies. Of course, what would a galentines day party be without the perfect card right? These galentines day cards from Lily and Val are my favorite. I also had little bags of Mrs. Call's chocolates for each girl because February is all about the chocolate.
As with any gathering, decor is important. I decided on traditional reds and pinks for this setting. I absolutely love this handmade button heart sign from Whitney over at Generation Farmhouse. She's on instagram as @generationfarmhouse too. She has SO many other cute pieces both for holidays and everyday home decor.
Fresh flowers are a must, even if a stem doesn't make it into the vase. Haha! I also lined our pure white tables with this rose gold glittery tablecloth I found on Amazon (link below). This felt garland and those cute mice have to be my two favorite valentines decorations. I use them for everything!
For dinner, I always love to go with something easy yet delicious. 
This is Shanan from Enchanted Cookie Boutique. She had us practice our cookie decorating skills first on a printable sheet. This was super helpful. I had no idea how difficult a simple circle would be. She gave us the tip to lift the bag off the paper or cookie just a bit and let the icing fall. She said it is easier to guide it where you want it to go that way rather than keeping it close.
If you are looking for a NYE theme, this clean slate new years eve party is fresh and beautiful plus it is delicious and memorable.
I would say that food is always the main focus of any New Years Eve party. Bite size treats and appetizers make it easy to eat on the go while visiting with guests and enjoying the evening. For this party, I wanted the tastes of Brazil to shine. My hubby lived in Rio for two years where he served a mission and I knew he'd love these eats.
My usual cookie gal was out of the country so I gave these Jenny Cookies inspired party hat cookies a shot. While they are nowhere near as amazing as her cookies, they were still fun to serve up.
Gluten-Free Gingerbread Milkshakes (coming this month!)
Gluten-Free Christmas Crack 
Photos by 
Whether you host an annual couples Christmas party or girls night out around the holidays, this flannel and flapjacks party is a great theme.
I made sure to have plenty of sugared cranberries for the girls to munch on and top their gingerbread pancakes with. We had a variety of syrups as well including cinnamon, maple and spiced buttermilk. Waiting at the table were vintage looking holiday bags, again found at HomeGoods for $0.99 each.
Since the breakfast dinner was filling but we were moving to another room for the rest of our flannel and flapjacks holiday party festivities; I made a treat bar. I wanted something close to the family room that the girls could pick and choose goodies from when they wanted. Since I didn't want the girls to have to use utensils to eat, I chose 
After dinner, we headed into the cozy family room around our Christmas tree for a gift exchange. We read a funny story that had each girl passing left and right until they ended up with a gift to open. I also gifted the girls with cozy socks to snuggle their toes up in. They also got a red nail polish for painting their tootsies during the movie.
Don't forget to check out our delicious 
In fact, the first thing I did after creating the menu for this party was to decide on a cohesive style and design. I recommend getting your Italian juices flowing by turning on some Frank Sinata. There is nothing quite as lovely as listening to him serenade while cooking away in the kitchen...
Now let's chat menu. I had SO much fun putting together this Italian feast complete with these gorgeous printed menus from 
You guys, these ciabatta rolls are pillow soft! I love that they are shelf stable for months if they remained in their sealed package. Most gluten-free bread can't be enjoyed on it's own but with Schar brand from Italy, it is good enough that it most definitely can.
Our gluten-free ciabatta rolls were served with creamy tomato soup drizzled with aged balsamic, fresh basil and shaved parmesan. You can find our recipe for that 
What would a proper dinner party be without signature drinks right? While we don't drink alcohol, I still like having memorable drinks for our guests that enhance the evenings menu. For this rustic Italian dinner I knew right away that I wanted to have a mini Italian soda bar. My little guys love special drinks that add flavor and sweetness to their meal so I though this would be fun for the kids and adults.
No matter what you choose to serve at your own rustic Italian dinner party, keep it simple and focus on the enjoyment that comes from gathering friends and family together. It can be a lot of work but I will tell you, these special dinners are some that my kids always remember.
The best part about this ice cream pool party is that it doesn't require much to make it a blast that all will remember.
The next thing you need to make your ice cream pool party extra fun are giant novelty ice cream pool floats. I chose an ice cream cone, an ice cream sandwich and a double red cherry pool float. My friend happen to have a flamingo so I tossed that in the mix too and it looked great. With these pool floats, you don't even need any other entertainment! Just turn on some Bob Marley and let everyone have a blast.
Though I was too smitten with my friends darling baby to play in the pool, I had just as much fun watching and laughing along. Plus, I got to hold a beautiful little 6 week old baby all night which was worth every second of not splashing around in the pool!
*Thank you to Proyo for sponsoring this post. Photos by 
