...a HOLIDAY DINNER to celebrate friendship and a birthday....!

Two years ago a few of my girlfriends got together and threw a surprise dinner party for one of our favorite guys - Christopher. I blogged about all the deets here and I'll probably repeat myself on this dinner blog so I apologize ahead of time! This year the same friends got together to celebrate Christopher's birthday once again and the holiday season.

Since we are right around Christmas I wanted my table setting to reflect all that I love about Christmas...warmth, coziness, twinkling lights, festive cheer. I began with my table party favors for people to take home with them. I took plain, terracotta small planters and painted them gold and red and planted tiny succulents in them - kicking off my red, gold, green and white color scheme. From there I built around it and did the same thing as I suggested last time: setting the table the night before, signature greeting drink(s), personalized menus and as much food prep as possible....the more time I find that I can give myself for last minute details the more relaxed I am as a hostess....!

me + the birthday boy....love you SO very much, Christopher!! xx

all photos by janel holiday interior design.....please credit as such if used - thank you!

...PORCH PARTY!

Sometimes you don't know what you're missing until it is right there in front of you....last weekend I was in the DCD for the second time in the past few months visiting friends and found myself once again drawn to the "porch party" sundowns and late nights. How amazing to have warm evenings filled with friends, champers, tunes and laughs on a porch....watching the neighborhood activity, huge Denver clouds roll and disperse....it's kind of one of the best Summer activities if you ask me and I am missing those warm, fuzzy evenings....especially when we had a day yesterday where the sun didn't break through Karl and it was literally cold enough to turn on the heater. BUMMER.

So I fantasize about what my own Summer porch would look like....with people stopping by, funny conversations hanging in the warm air, notes floating across the horizon and maybe a game of bones or somethin'....here are a few porches I liked and what I would definitely have for my own "porch party"....!

1. vintage style globe string lights

2. one for you + one for me! rattan egg chairs are a must-have!

3. interlocked brass puzzle mirror

4. mid-century coolade set by Esque

5. iconic petal side table by Richard Schultz

6. vintage fiberglass sofa by Brian Kane

7. for mood alone - how cute is this little number?! ventless fireplace by EcoSmart.

8. green lacquer domino set

9. lots and lots of champers...this one is a fav!

10. so not *really* for outdoors....but I would have an outdoor version of this burl table!

11. nothing says "sit on me with a cocktail" like an Acapulco Chair...cheers!

12. swanky potted plants

13. outdoor rug by Dash and Albert

Hope you're having a fantastic Summer! xoxo, janel

....stepping BACK and stepping FORWARD...

Sometimes I feel this strong urge to ditch my city digs and rid of the noise, smells, city craziness and familiar sites and visit one of our surrounding smaller and quaint towns. Often we find ourselves making the short trek to Sausalito, CA.  Maybe because it is typically warmer than SF, or maybe because it reminds me so very much of my hometown of Santa Barbara, CA....or maybe because one of my husband and I's most FAV restaurants is there.....idaknow......but the eve before my birthday I was feelin' the need to leave.....SF.  We decided to let public transportation do the work and then rely on our own four feet to get us to dinner.  We had such a fun night.  Phones inside purses/pockets.  I took my camera to reconnect with it - it had been awhile - and we stepped back from our city....loved it, admired it, appreciated it........ventured into another city and walked a few miles to dinner.....taking in it's charms and character....the people, the changing light, the schedules of the working....the buildings and the push and pull of the ocean tide.....sometimes you have to take a step back from it all to find gratitude and inspiration.  Agree?

Here are a few photos from our dinner journey....

I love zooming in on the homes on Tiburon.....they always look back on SF.

Sausalito still retains this artsy, whacky, harbor living community - something that is being pushed out more and more in Santa Barbara.

a Volvo 122 and the side door of The Plant recording studios

these guys wanted some of our dinner

Walking back after dinner we winded through the bordering ship yards and caught the setting sun light at all different levels....the coastal Fall light is the perfect color of apricot....unmistakable in it's tone and carries a crisp cast.  It is my favorite time of the year.

waiting for the ferry to return back to our city

this sea lion playing in the last of the evening light

coming home to this site wasn't too shabby....