Canadian Hostess Blog: 2011

Sweet Table Contest: Submission # 7

7. Candy -inspired sweet table
I am delighted to feature the last submission to the Sweet Table Contest from Woodbridge, Ontario. Milenna created this adorable sweet table for her daughter's second birthday. From the little waffle ice cream house and custom backdrop to the lovely candy bar and party favours, this party is sure to please the sweetest little girl. Thanks for sharing your work with us, Milenna. Good luck in the contest. Click here for more pictures from this party.

Candy theme sweet table submitted by Milenna, Woodbridge, Ontario.

Sweet Table Contest - Round 2 of Canadian Submissions

I am delighted to share the second round of Canadian submissions to the Sweet Table Contest, sponsored by A Little Treasure. The deadline for all contest submissions in December 11. If you are interested in participating, please send us an email to vasenova@hotmail.com.

4. Halloween-inspired Sweet Table

Any excuse for a party is reason enough for Madeline to design a sweet table. Inspired by the spooky Holiday, Madeline created this incredible feast for her family and friends. From the ghoulish characters to the frightfully delightful decor and sweets, this sweet table sets the perfect scene for the Halloween Festivities. Madeline baked everything on the dessert table. The spookylicious menu included:

Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Vanilla cupcakes with red slime topped with orange coloured vanilla buttercream
Mummy Oreos dipped in white chocolate on a stick
Rice Krispie Zombies on a stick
Melting Witch Cupcakes
Strawberry shortbread severed finger cookies
Brownie gravestones topped with white chocolate skeleton


Submitted by Madeline Mazzone, Stouffville, Ontario		.

5. Race-car Themed Sweet Table

With its creative flair and boyish charm, this incredibly inspiring race car-themed sweet table puts you on the fast track to FUN. Wendy from Desire to Decorate designed this wonderful table to celebrate her son's 2 birthday. The dessert table featured sugar cookies, chocolate covered rice crispy pops, chocolate marshmallows, chocolate cake and vanilla cupcakes with buttercream frosting. What a great way to celebrate your little boy, Wendy. Good Luck!

Submitted by Wendy Hicken, Toronto, Ontario

6. Rainbow-themed Sweet Table

Rainbow theme parties are always so much fun. This sweet table is full with colour and joy and it is the perfect way to celebrate a child's birthday in the summer months. Alysabeth created a festive and colourful atmosphere in the park with balloons and party flags. Everything from the invitations and the favour boxes to the divine sweets matched the rainbow theme. Thanks for submitting this fabulous and super cute party, Alysabeth. Good luck!

Submitted by Alysabeth Johnston, Vancouver, British Columbia

Featuring more Sweet Tables from Canada (not part of the Sweet Table Contest)

A few of the contestants wanted to submit more than one entry to the Sweet Table Contest. According to the contest rules, contestants are allowed only ONE entry per year. Rules are rules and I respect them, but I do know how much work goes into the concept design and the execution of sweet tables, so I decided to feature and showcase these gorgeous tables that didn't make it this year. Please note that the sweet tables below are not part of the contest.

Sparkle and Snow Themed Sweet Table

To celebrate the Holiday season, Candace created this elegant and glamorous sweet table featuring s'mores cupcakes with toasted marshmallow frosting, coconut cupcakes with marshmallow coconut frosting, an egg nog cake filled with rum flavored frosting, edible image cookies, macarons, and brownie pops. What a great way to launch the Holiday Season. So inspired! Thanks for sharing, Candace.

Sweet table by Candace McMaster

Floral Bliss Sweet Table

The story behind this table is quite emotional and sad but with a very happy ending. Madeline's girlfriend had sadly lost her father just weeks before her daughter's first birthday. As a result of these unforeseen circumstances, her daughter's birthday party plans were canceled. Because a child's first birthday is such a special occasion, Madeline decided to surprise her friend's little girl with this adorable sweet table. You can just imagine her friend's reaction after she saw the spread. From the caramel filled samoa cupcakes to the pink chocolate dipped marshmallows and the peanut butter balls, this table deserves the description of "Sweet Heaven".

What an amazing friend you are, Madeline. Thanks for sharing this inspiring story with us.

Floral Bliss Sweet Table by Madeline Mazzone, Toronto

Unicorn-themed tea party
I love everything about this table - the composition, the colours, the textures, the shabby chic look and feel. Candace designed this absolutely gorgeous table for her daughter's 7th birthday. From the fabulous fabric banner to the framed textiles, this sweet table is a DREAM. If you are interested in seeing more pictures from this party, check out Candace's blog.

Unicorn Themed Tea Party by Candace McMaster, Saskatoon

Sweet Table Contest: First Submissions from Canada

I am very excited to share the first three submissions from Canada to the International Sweet Table Contest, sponsored by A Little Treasure. Way to go, Saskatoon and Halifax! We love your sweet spirit and creativity.

1. Pinkalicious Sweet Table
This dessert table was inspired by the adorable children's book Pinkalicious by Elizabeth Kann - a story about a little girl who eats so many pink cupcakes that she wakes up the next morning with pink skin and hair. Victoria designed this whimsical dessert table for her 4 year old daughter who loves the story. The custom backdrop was inspired by the floral gardens depicted in the book. The sweet delights included sugar cookies, cupcakes, marshmallow pops, lollipops, pink lemonade, candy coated pretzels and strawberries. We love your "girly, frilly and bright" design, Victoria. Good luck!

Pinkalicious sweet table by Victoria L. from Saskatoon. Click here for more photos

2. Pixie Hollow Sweet Table
If I have to describe the next sweet table with one word, that would be "Magical". For her daughter's 6th birthday, Candace recreated Pixie Hollow - the magical land of secrets and visual splendor where Fairies live. From the sweet merengue mushrooms and the enchanted cookies to the honey sticks and fairy wands, this lovely sweet table is everything a fairy party should be - magical, elegant and playful . One crafty and creative mama you are, Candace! Good luck in the contest!

"Pixie Hollow" Sweet Table by Candace M. from Saskatoon Click here for more photos

3. Parisian Sweet Table
What comes to mind when you think of art, sweets, poodles and jewellery. Paris of course. This elegant sweet table was designed by Ceilidh S. from Halifax, who loves everything French. Her mother hosted a Stella & Dot party and Ceilidh thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to enjoy some French delights. The sweets included mini rosette cupcakes, Eiffel Tower sugar cookies and a cake. With this fabulous spread, I bet her mom sold a lot of jewellery. Good luck!

Parisian Sweet Table by Ceilidh S from Halifax, Nova Scotia
Click here for more photos

I hope this post inspires you to submit your sweet creations. I am looking forward to showcasing your talents. It is easy pizy. Take one picture of your dessert table and send it to vasenova@hotmail.com by December 9 with a link to the rest of your pictures.

Sweetly,

Vania

BOO! It's Halloween!

I hope you all have a wonderful, safe, and fabulous Halloween this year! It is a great time to spend time with friends and family, enjoy spooky sweet delights, and dress up of course! Here are some photos from the Halloween festivities. The super cute Black Swan is my daughter Julia. Have a frightfully spooky Halloween!

We Have A Sweet Sponsor!!!

We are absolutely delighted to announce our sponsor for the Sweet Table Contest.
A Little Treasure E-store will reward our Canadian finalist with a gift certificate for $200. I had an opportunity to work with Kristy recently and I was very impressed with her creativity and professionalism. Do you remember my Love and Lavender Dessert Table? A Little Treasure designed the tent cards, the favour cards and the banner. We are so excited to have on board someone with such talent and passion for art and design. A Little Treasure is an exciting shopping destination for stylish birth announcements, special occasion stationery and keepsake art. Weather you need a stylish baby shower invitation or a Holiday card, A Little Treasure is the place to go.

If you join her Facebook page, you can get a discount from your next purchase. Sweet Deal!

If you are interested in participating in the Sweet Table Contest, go here to read the rules.

Contest closes on December 9, so make sure you submit your sweet entries on time.

Love and Lavender Baby Shower - Sweet Teaser

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of creating a sweet table for a dear friend, who is expecting her baby in November. I wanted to create a memorable experience for her and her family. Because we didn't know the baby's gender, we decided to go with colours that complement her feminine and romantic side, so we chose different shades of grey and purple. I am so eager to share this wonderful event with you, so here is a snapshot of the dessert table. Big kudos go to Joyful Emotion Photography who took these incredible photos. More photos to come in the next few weeks. Stay tuned.

Vendors Credits:
Photography: Joyful Emotion Photography
Event Planner/Stylist: Vania Asenova
Cake/Sweets: Bluebird Cakes
Printables: A Little Treasure (Etsy)

International Sweet Table Contest: Call for your fabulous entries, Canada!

I am very pleased to announce that I will be representing Canada in the 2011 International Edition of the Sweet Table Contest. The contest launched in 2010 when Laure, the founder from Paris, France, came up with the idea of creating a place on the internet where non professional party designers and creative moms across Europe can share their pretty and gorgeous dessert tables. The contest generated a lot of buzz in the community and it was such a success that she decided to launch the 2011 Edition but this time it will reward the most beautiful tables in the WORLD!

Dessert table by Belle Amour (last year's contest winner from UK)

The fantastic team at Sweet Table Contest approached me and asked me to oversee the submission process for Canada. I am absolutely privileged and super excited to take part of this amazing event.
So, it is up to you, Canada. Let's show the world your creativity, originality and talents. ( I do know you have plenty of them!)
This contest is open to everyone who creates sweet tables as a hobby and is free to enter. The Process is very simple and include the following steps:

How to Enter?
1. Submit ONE high res colour photo of your dessert table
If you live in Canada and you are not in the dessert tables design business and you are interested in entering the contest, simply take ONE high res photo of your dessert table and email it to vasenova@hotmail.com by Friday, December 9 at 2pm Mountain Time. See some examples here. Please indicate your email subject as a: STC Submission.
2. Include your contact info in the email
Include the following information in your email:

Your Name
Your Email
City, Province
Event Theme
Quick overview of the concept behind the design

3. Include a link to the rest of the images from your desert table ( this could be your blog, your picasa web album, flickr, facebook page, etc.) Please do not email more than ONE picture of your dessert table.

What happens after you enter?

1. Processing Submissions

I collect all of the submissions and submit them to the Sweet Table Contest Team. A very impressive International Jury Board from 16 countries around the world has been gathered to assess each of the entries based on the following criteria:

Creativity
Colours harmony
Presentation
Accordance with the chosen theme
Overall Look and Feel

2. Reveal of contestants

Once contest submissions are closed, the National Contestants will be revealed on the STC Website: http://sweettablecontest.com

3. Local Round

Each National Judge will vote for their 3 favourite Sweets Tables, in all countries except their own. The National Sweet Table winner will be the table with the most points.

4. The Finals

National Judges will vote for their 3 favorite National Sweet Table winners. The President of the Jury’s vote will count double. The 2011 Sweet Table Edition winner will be the table with the most points.

What's in it for me?

This contest is a great way of showcasing your talents and sharing your beautiful creations with the world. Your work will be displayed on my blog and the Sweet Table Contest website.

We are working on getting a Canadian sponsor on board who will provide the prize for our Canadian finalist. If you are interested in sponsoring and you would like to learn about the sponsorships benefits, please email me at vasenova@hotmail.com The prize for the contest finalist will be provided by the Sweet Table Contest team from France.

Do you have any tips?

Last year's winner of the contest, Debs from Belle Amour wrote a fantastic blog post on how to put together a "winning entry". There are some great ideas and tips that can help you with the planning and the design of your dessert table. Check it out here.
More Information?
For more information about the contest or to view last year's finalists from Europe, please go to the Sweet Tables Website: http://sweettablecontest.com, become a fan on Facebook or follow the contest on Twitter.

Looking forward to your SWEET submissions, Canada! The countdown begins...

Vania @ Canadian Hostess Blog

Coco Chanel-inspired Events

When I think of Coco Chanel’s designs, it always comes to mind Chanel N5, white pearls, little black dress and a classic cloche hat .

Chanel once said that “Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”

Fashion is all around us – fashion influences trends in architecture, interior design..even event design.

Looking at The Chanel’s Spring 2011 Collection, which was inspired from an early sixties French film called “Last Year at Marienbad”, I was thinking about the influence of Chanel’s monochromatic designs in the event world and I came across these absolutely stunning Chanel-inspired events. From the giant perfume bottle to the classic back dress and pearls, these events capture the classic and elegant flair of Coco Chanel. This is a fabulous theme for a bridal shower or a birthday party.

Photo Credits: Top to bottom: Style Me Pretty, Style Unveiled, Scheme Events, Swanky Chic Fete

Creative Sweet Displays

As a passionate chocophile and an interior design junkie, I wanted to start this post by showcasing the unique interior of this amazing chocolate shoppe in Paris - Patrice Chapon's Chocolaterie. There is no doubt that the textured metal walls and the huge copper kettle lights create so much drama and pizazz and add to the overall visual impact. This place definitely goes on my bucket list. I have to admit that regular tables and cake stands are no longer the coolest way of serving or displaying desserts. Thinking outside the box when it comes to presentation is really important and so much fun. I came across a couple of untraditional and creative presentation ideas that I wanted to share. I love the idea of replacing the traditional dining tables with antique chests and buffets and distressed bookcases. Wagons and retro trucks could also be a great and creative food display especially for those who plan rustic theme weddings. Taking it outdoors and using various objects like books, suitcases and old cutlery boxes create layers and add interest. I also love the idea of using picture frames as part of the display design.