Happy Valentine's Day week, friends! A couple of weeks ago we threw ourselves a fun and festive Valentine's Day party, and we want to show you how easy it is for you to do the same! You can easily adapt this to suit your Valentine's Day needs- whether you're planning a fun night in with the whole family, a quiet night with just you and your spouse, or a night with your girl gang! We've made it easy for you by breaking it down step-by-step. Read on!
1. Place settings
For our place settings, we wanted to keep it simple and festive. We grabbed pink paper plates and then layered them with these adorable heart-shaped palm leaf bowls that we found on on Amazon. Disposable, because who wants to do dishes after a party?! Not me. We used these simple red and white cloth napkins, some bamboo flatware, and mason jars with festive paper straws to finish the setting. Adding some chocolate roses or a cupcake liner with sweet treats in it helps to add that special touch to each setting!
2. Centerpiece
We wanted our centerpiece to be simple, quick, and inexpensive. And friends, we accomplished just that! We started out with roll of white butcher paper. Then, we painted some X's and O's on it with black craft paint (so easy!).
For the flowers, we grabbed this set of rose gold vases from Amazon, but a can of rose gold spray paint and a mason jar would work just as well! Then, we purchased some flowers from our local grocery store and arranged them ourselves in the vase. (Pro tip: use clear gift tape to make a grid across the opening of the vase before starting to arrange your flowers! It helps keep them in place and achieve a well-balanced look.) What really completed the look of this tablescape was that beautiful charcuterie board... that's up next!
3. Food
We think that nothing quite says "it's a party" like a charcuterie board! So that's what we chose to do here. A platter like this is similar to the one that we used. First, let's start with picking out the elements that will make up your board. We aren't charcuterie professionals, but we really tried to stick to foods that were either red, pink, or chocolate (does anything better capture the essence of the holiday?!). Here's an outline of what we included on our board:
- 3 types of cheese (goat, bellavitano, and brie)
- 3 types of meat (salami, prosciutto, and soppressata)
- 4 different fruits (apples, raspberries, strawberries, and pomegranate)
- 2 sweet treats (chocolate stroopwaffles and chocolate-covered wafers)
- Trail mix
- 2 kinds of crackers (Club and a crunchy pistachio cranberry cracker)
Other items that would be great to add would be olives, pickles, and a jam or spread. Now, let's get to assembling! Don't let the empty board intimidate you. Start at one end, and then cluster items as you go. I started with some strawberries in the corner, then added some cheese, meat, and crackers. Then a little bowl of trail mix, a different kind of cheese, a sweet treat, and a fruit. I really tried to make sure that each element made it on to the board in a couple of different spots so that each person at the table could reach each item. It was so fun to see it come together!
4. An Activity
The last element to our party was a really fun activity that we call the "Affirmation Jar." Each person got an empty jar (we decided to decorate ours) with blank slips of paper inside.
Then, each person chose an empty slip out of the other's jars and wrote down something that they appreciate about that person. At the end, each person had a jar filled with kind words and affirmations! Again, such a perfect activity to do with your family, your spouse, or your gal pals.
And friends, that wraps up our easy DIY Valentine's Party! You can use these tips to go as simple or as all-out as you're feeling. Whatever kind of Valentine's Day celebration you choose to have, we hope you choose to see it for what it is: a day to remember how much you love your people, and why. And then remember that you can do that any day you want! You don't need a holiday to tell those around you how much you love and appreciate them. But it doesn't hurt either ;) So grab those you love and throw yourself a party! Happy Valentine's Day, friends!
With love,
Chelsea
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