All of Her Things

The summer is winding down and it’s been a while since I’ve written. I’ve been so busy and had no time to myself, but I’m so happy to be sharing this post with you today. One of my best friends, Monique, and I hosted a wonderful brunch for our closest friends. We wanted to get our girlfriends together, cook for them, sip mimosas, and just be girly for an afternoon. I admit, I ended up having a little too much fun, and did not get as many pictures as I should of, I had to ask our guests, but please keep scrolling to get a look into our first “Summer and Champagne” brunch.

Meet The Hosts!

Monique is a working mom who enjoys entertaining and event planning for small groups. She puts a focus on simplistic, personal touches with delicious, homemade food.

“I’ve always wanted to cater to smaller groups, but also wanted to focus on creating community. What better way than to have a girls’ brunch! I’m looking forward to hosting more brunches centered around couples, entrepreneurs, black girl magic, and more!” – Monique

I have always wanted to do something like this, but I needed a partner who is creative and would care as much as I do. Thank goodness, I have a friend who loves doing this kind of thing. I learned so much from her; cooking, hosting, and event decor tips.

The Set Up!

This was so much work. Monique works full-time and has a child, while I was working on show just before the event. Time management was so important here, and we needed to make sure we made time to communicate with each other about our ideas. There were points I know we felt overwhelmed, but we did it. First, we needed to decide what we would be feeding our guests to go along with the mimosas! We decided on sweet potato waffles, vegan blueberry waffles, quiche, roasted potatoes, and salmon croquettes. I also purchased cupcakes from a local vegan bakery, Papa Ganache (Crème Brûlée and Strawberry Shortcake). Monique, being the better cook, took the bulk of this, while I tried my hand at salmon croquettes (which tasted delicious, but I’m not good at making food look pretty lol). After we decided what to eat, we had to think of a theme or color scheme. We went green, rose gold, and peach. Monique sent out invitations within our color scheme and we were off!

The event took place at my one bedroom apartment. It is spacious, but since I only live with my partner, we don’t have seating for 10 people. I had to rent a few tables and chairs which was surprisingly inexpensive.

For decoration, I put together a few faux floral arrangements and created a floral backdrop for pictures. It was a little small, but if we do this again, I hope to make this bigger.

Event Day!

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Our biggest challenge had to be the day of the event. Monique and I were able to start prepping the food the night before, but that morning was crazy.

That morning, I picked up the tables and chairs, and set them up before she arrived at my apartment where we cooked most of the food. We set the tables and prepared the mimosa bar. Before we knew it, we had reached show time and we rushed to get dressed and do makeup. People started to arrive a bit earlier than expected and even so, the food wasn’t done for about an hour.

“You think you have a timeline and totally blow it. Always plan to the minute and then give yourself an extra hour. Thankfully, the drinks were plenty and the guests were patient.” -Monique

What’s Next?

I think we decided to TRY and do something like this every six months. If I could change anything, it would be to do a bit more on the prepping side and cook one or two more dishes. I’m still learning how to cook, so I’m happy people enjoyed what I did make. Another, is to be a bit stricter with our timeline. I would have preferred to be done with set up before everyone arrived simply to take pictures and take in all the work we did. Once guests arrive, it’s hard to do that.

“I would definitely like a more challenging menu. I love foods from different cultures, so maybe a theme each time. And I will most certainly add more time to prep!” – Monique

I was so happy to “work” with one of my closest friends, for this event, especially since she has quite a bit more experience hosting parties. I’m looking forward to our next event early next year, so keep an eye out for that (and more pictures)!