A Night to Remember

Similar Dress | Pumps | Earrings

Mirror | Console Table

Flowers: Flowerly | Charcuterie Board: Boffo’s

Photography: Sok Duong

Whether it’s a weekend get together, brunch or a special occasion, we love entertaining. Truth be told, the bungalow we just moved out of had no entertaining area besides the backyard and it was such a bummer! We feel like it really hindered having guests over bur being able to spruce up our new dining room is giving me all the feels again!

For a more upscale evening with friends or family, I love to go all out. From fresh florals to my favourite cutlery and a trip to our local butcher, we love to show our guests a great time. And to top it off – that includes serving our go-to drink of choice, Stella Artois. The charcuterie board displayed was made from our favourite local shop, Boffo’s, and they always do such a great job at pairing the cured meats, cheeses and accent items with the beer. I also love the attention to detail they always delivery like ribbon tied notes or salami folded like flowers.

I called up Ashley from Flowerly, my go-to floral gal, for some inspo tips on what she’s loving for tablescapes this season. Playing off the gold rimmed chalice from Stella Artois, she suggested gold flatware, linen napkins, handwritten name tags with a eucalyptus strand attached, scattered greenery as well as mini arrangements that can be given away to guests were also a great idea. And don’t get me started on the fireplace. I loved the floral wreaths she hung over the fireplace – it made for the perfect conversation spot in our small abode to have a conversation with someone while warming up.

From florals to fresh ideas for food and of course, Stella Artois, pulling together your swanky soiree for guests – whether it’s for 4 or for 40 – is always easy when you start with some elevated building blocks.

This post was sponsored by Stella Artois. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

NYC for a Cause

Once you’ve hit the snooze button about three times, come to grips with reality that it’s Monday and you have to get out of bed, what’s the first thing you do? Go to the bathroom and flush the toilet? Turn on the shower? Power on your coffee machine? Brush your teeth? Regardless of your routine, there’s one common denominator in all of these tasks: they all require water.

I am 100% guilty of taking this modern day luxury for granted. I’ve always had it, I’ve never been without and the thought of having to survive 24 hours with no access to water is something I’ve never even had to wrap my head around. So to learn that 663 MILLION people live without access to clean water on a daily basis, was mind-blowing to me. Calling it a crisis even seems like an understatement. It was learning facts similar to this years ago which motivated me to partner with Stella Artois and Water.org on bringing awareness to this cause and encouraging others to do the same.

To hear that women – particularly young girls – often sacrifice up to 6 hours a day to travel to/from wells to bring clean water to their families is mind boggling. That’s 6 hours away from your family, 6 hours of traveling solo and 6 hours that could have been spent in school. Now in its 4th year, the partnership campaign has provided an opportunity for consumers to contribute to he cause. Each year, the program features Limited Edition Chalices representing countries where Water.org provides support. This year’s Chalice’s feature designs from Mexico, India and the Philippines.

A few weeks back, I had the privilege of travelling to New York City with the Stella Artois brand to see first hand the accomplishments we’ve all been a part of in raising awareness about this cause. Being in the presence of Gary White and Matt Damon, founding partners of the organization, was inspirational to hear tales of families and young women they’ve interacted with from such developing communities. They were also thrilled to announce that to date, the program has helped more than 1 million people in the developing world through the sales of more than 500,000 Chalices and direct donations of more than 8 million to Water.org.

But why stop there? They’ve mandated themselves to offer sustained access to water to more than 3.5 million people within the next four years. So ask yourself, if you had to choose between having a job or an education, or clean drinking water, which would you decide? I doubt you’d have to think long about the answer to that question and I only ask you keep that in mind the next time you visit a grocery store, are choosing a beverage to entertain with or want to make a difference.

Photography by Darby Mitchell

Entertaining Done Right

If you’re anything like me, you love the
idea of entertaining and dream up great ideas in your head. But then it comes
time to actually invite friends, or dream up a menu and overwhelming feelings
of panic all too quickly come to mind. Too often, I’ll either nix the idea or
chicken out (no pun intended!) by doing a takeout night in at our place with
friends. Sure, the company is enjoyable, but I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to
tuning up my hosting 101 skills.

Stella Artois recently invited me to Montreal for a 101 on hosting and the opportunity to view their Le Savoir event. A coveted event that happens globally, it was put on in coordination with the crew from 45 DEGREES, the Global events company from Cirque du Soleil – and it did not disappoint. Over a hundred guests were invited to explore an incredible multi-sensorial space with edible elements, layers of scents, textures and a theatrical display to boot. Our challenge? How could we take this inspiration home with us and recreate it in our own way? We were up for the challenge!

My mother – ever the perfect hostess – is always throwing dinner parties at her house (that woman whips up a turkey meal fit for a King for 20 with her eyes closed) and it was the perfect opportunity to repay the favour. So we had a party of 8 including our immediate family.

One of my favourite elements of the Le Savoir dinner was the greenhouse setting. With finicky weather, we decided to organize our dinner party in doors but enlisted the help of my girlfriend Ashley from Flowerly to create an enchanting atmosphere. With florals hanging from the chandelier and garland runner for the table, we really did bring the outside, inside. We also incorporated the Stella Artois Chalice into our décor by adding tea lights for some mood lighting come dusk. In an effort to personalize place settings for guests, we hand-stamped custom name cards affixed to a rose and attached them to linen napkins. Lastly, the family style set up at the Le Savoir dinner was a favourite, so we wrapped 8 guests around our harvest table for a more intimate setting.

Adding to the mood, we played one our
favourites – Frank Sinatra – on the record player as guests mixed and mingled
from the patio to the dinner table.

Now I would be completely fibbing if I said I casually pulled off a 3 course dinner for 8 without breaking a sweat so when it came time to dream up a menu for this experience, I went to a local favourite: Noel from Buffo’s to help with the occasion.

Knowing that we were interested in pairing Stella Artois with the meal from start to finish (even dessert), we had to be sure the meals were balanced and perfect for pairing. At the same time, we wanted the food to be approachable and not super complicated.

The finished result? Grandiose charcuterie boards to start with figs, Ontario cheese, crisps, olives and cured meats and more. This was used to lure guests to the table and boy oh boy did it ever. Our first passed appetizer was ‘Mini’ Chicken and Waffles served over an arugula salad with crème fraiche topping. Dead.

For mains, we dreamed up a sixteen-spice chicken with sweet potato mash and root vegetable medley. And to finish, panna cotta served in mason jars with a nutmeg brittle crisp and fresh blueberries.

What shocked me the most is that even with some self-professed wine drinkers, our guests were blown away at how well Stella Artois paired with the meals. From start to finish the notes of the beer worked alongside the arugula salad, spiced chicken and brittle in the dessert.

As a takeaway, guests left with their personal nametag, fresh flowers and their own Stella Artois Chalice to inspire their next dinner party. These were some of the tips from the Hosting 101 session I personally took away. I loved discussions around mood music and considering setting the tone pre and post event, considering the guests you’ve invited and how to create memorable takeaway experience for all – be it a leftovers packed up to go or a sweet treat for guests before they head out. I must say, we set the bar quite high for our next night in but thanks to the assistance of the Hosting 101class and enlisting great help (Boffo’s and Flowerly), my anxiety has certainly subsided.