- We're having a nice, casual brunch for seven.
And I'm gonna show you how I put it all together.
Anytime I'm having a smaller group,
I always like to do it out here,
because it's so beautiful, especially in the springtime,
to be at this table.
So if you've been following me for some time,
you know that my dad is flower arranger extraordinaire.
I really did not inherit his talent for that.
So anytime I'm having a party,
I love to have him come over and do the centerpieces,
'cause he's just so good at it.
And he does this thing at Easter time
where he creates an Easter basket
out of plants and branches.
And I wanted him to show us how to do it,
because I think it'd be really great
for your table tomorrow.
So I'm headed to my grocery store, I'm gonna meet Dad.
Nothing starts early in the morning with Dad,
unless there's coffee and pastries,
so off we go.
(upbeat music)
After the coffee and pastries, it was time to get to work.
So we saw these pussy willows here,
and dad said that these would make great branches
for the basket handles.
Then, we saw these beautiful wild flowers.
We debated between the little daisies,
but then, we also saw these little pink ones,
and thought those would be even prettier,
so we got a bouquet of those.
Then, we had to go down the street to Trader Joe's.
Look at these butterfly ranunculas.
We got some of those.
And then, we also had to find some of the plants.
So we got some of these beautiful double nasturtiums.
The fragrance is incredible.
And then, for the longest time,
I've been hearing about these potted gardens
that Trader Joe's sells.
Look at this.
It has a little hyacinth in it, a tulip,
and then, the whole thing is wrapped
in this beautiful, natural material.
So we bought two of those.
We loaded up the cart,
And then, while I was there,
I actually did all my grocery shopping.
(chuckling)
It was too hard to resist.
So I loaded everything in the car,
groceries and all, and headed back to the house.
(upbeat music)
I'm so excited that we found these, these are so cute.
- Well, you had said you wanted to have
like an exotic garden.
- Yes, springtime garden..
- Like a beautiful spring garden.
- Yeah.
- So I found these in Trader Joe's,
which I think are so great,
because they have the burlap, or raffia,
or whatever this is around it.
I've never seen anything like this.
- I know.
And what's so cool about it is
it's already a little garden.
Do you think they're gonna come out in time?
- Yes.
Otherwise I'm gonna just have some green stalks.
- No, they will, but I wouldn't leave them in the sun.
- Yeah.
- I would put them in the shade somewhere.
- Okay.
If you do not have a Trader Joe's near you,
and you don't have something already covered like that,
we're gonna actually show you how to do it
with this plastic pot, right,
with some moss.
- Real easy.
- Yeah, real easy.
So not to worry, stick with us.
Okay, so step one.
- So this morning I picked these little branches
from our birch trees.
And it's going to be rather dramatic,
but it's a big table.
So always cut on the diagonal.
- And why do you do that?
- So it can accept the moisture that's in the pot.
- So that these won't die.
- Right.
- Because we're two days ahead,
so we wanna make sure our branch stays.
- So I'm going to stick one in there.
- Mm-hmm.
- And then.
- And would it be safe to say
you want like a young branch that can bend?
- Yes.
- Because you're gonna bend this as the handle, right?
- That's right, that's right.
- Easter basket handle.
- And then I'm gonna do one with the birch trees,
and one with the pussy willows.
- Yes, I love the pussy willows, that's so great.
- So it'll be two different.
- And you think the willows will bend?
- Yeah, mm-hmm
- All right.
- Can put the other on that side.
- That's so cute.
It already looks like a little basket.
- Now what I love to do is, I love to use this paddle wire.
- Okay.
- Because you don't want this flopping all over the place.
- Yeah, right.
- Is start to contain.
- Oh, I see, yeah.
- Add the wire to connect the branches,
and give them shape,
and then fasten it together at the top.
- It's kind of nice to have a little flourish at the top.
- Yeah, I think you do.
- And you may wanna put a butterfly or something like that.
- Or a little bird.
My daughter doesn't like the bird.
She doesn't think they're realistic or enough.
(laughing)
But I wouldn't suggest shooting one.
- No, but we went to Michael's,
and these are all the birds they had,
and I don't know, they just looked a little too garish.
I was thinking of something less tropical?
(laughing)
Don't know.
We'll see if we can work them in somewhere.
I just like the natural bird feather,
that I actually found in the yard.
- Birdie.
- They all feel like tropical birds.
- This is okay.
- Or the yellow, like a little finch?
I actually could go in the Christmas decorations,
and see if I have some of those red cardinals.
- But look at this.
- Yeah, that's, see how that's mixed in?
- Yeah.
- If you just see the little tails of it.
- Yeah.
- Yeah, that is cute.
- That's fun.
- So folks, if you wanna do this last minute,
head to Michael's,
and see if they have some more natural looking birds.
Share it with us on Instagram.
I wanna see what you found.
I do like the moss, because then you don't see the dirt.
- That's right.
- Now in fact, could we add some of this?
- Yeah, sure.
- Thanks.
- That's what's fun for doing projects with my daughter,
because she fills in the blanks,
and you know, we're getting older, so.
(laughing)
- Hey, we're a good team.
You know what could be fun, is even just a little,
I don't know.
- Yeah.
- Just a little blue, just to, yeah.
And I actually, I found these on Amazon.
but I think they have 'em at Michael's too,
if you're headed that way.
- And I, you may just wanna tuck a little bit of the moss,
and spray it a little bit.
- Yeah.
I like the moss,
because I feel like it kind of makes it less commercial
than if you didn't have the moss.
Like it almost looks more natural,
like it just happened that way in nature.
Now let's see, where to put the pussy willows.
- Actually, we could do something
which I think would be kind of fun, is do a four.
- Mm.
All right.
I like the pussy willows.
Those are cute.
- Yeah.
- And do you need like some raffia at the top,
like a little bow or something?
- I could do that.
- Yeah, I think that could be cute.
- So these celebrations are so important,
because it's what you grew up with,
and what your mother and I grew up with too.
We were families that loved celebrating,
and having parties, and entertaining.
And you kids always got involved.
And it was always a big event.
- I had to laugh when I saw that photo
of one of my college friends in a suit and tie.
I don't know how we got him into one of those.
- Well in those days you dressed.
- I think you did.
I think we got a lot more dressed up.
I'm getting like a sort of "Lord of the Rings,"
vibe with this.
- Okay.
But this is pretty with the pussy willows.
- It really is.
I like the mix and match.
I think having both is quite pretty.
- And then.
- Yeah, oh wait, now we need some eggs for this one.
Let's see, what else do I have?
- And a bird, or no?
- No, I'm trying to be sparing with those birds.
There, I think it's a little egg, which is nice.
- Yeah, that's cute.
- And maybe, I don't know, what other, here.
Some of these, I mean look at these.
- Pinky lee.
- These are so white.
But I think the little pastel one, maybe.
- The white?
- Or the pink, I don't know.
They're just bad when you look at 'em all together.
But I think when you isolate them, you know,
a little goes a long way with these little, yeah.
But see, I think that is cute.
- Very.
- Okay, so now if you don't have one of these pots,
this is how you can do it with just a plastic pot.
- This is when the paddle wire really comes in handy.
- It really earns its keep, yeah.
- Because what you do.
- And now this moss, it's the Super Moss Preserved Moss,
because this is the kind that looks the most natural.
They have a ton of different moss.
But I have found that this stuff works the best.
Sometimes they'll try to convince you
this is the same thing.
- Yeah, no.
- This is good for like your school art projects,
but I think if you're doing something
that you want to look most natural,
you gotta go like this.
And then you just spray it down with all the water.
- Right, that helps.
- Yeah.
- Make it mold better.
- More pliable?
So you've put it up, and then you've taken the wire,
and you're basically just going to fix it with the wire.
- Wrapping, yeah.
- Okay.
But look how much better that looks.
Isn't that great?
- Oh yeah.
- It's so charming.
And then you can reinforce the moss,
with a little bit of raffia, just to hold it together,
and that kind of finishes it off.
- I think that's so pretty.
- That's beautiful.
Now does this need an egg?
Let's see, what do we have have left?
- Yeah.
And then.
- Then dad added some of those really cute
little pink flowers on top.
And the combination of the pink and the green,
is just so pretty.
- We don't want to overdo it.
- Yeah, but you know what's pretty though,
that looks like it's growing in the hillside.
- Yeah.
- Some magical place.
(laughing)
Okay.
Then we also found these,
which I think are pretty cool.
And they're just like, what do you thin this is?
All daffodils maybe?
- They're miniature daffodils.
They come in these wood containers,
which I think are super charming.
In fact, you could just save the wooden container,
and repot it as needed, for parties.
I love that.
But to hide the plastic,
and just to make it look like it belongs in this world,
we're going to add some more moss to the top.
I just love using this moss,
especially around Easter time,
because it makes everything just look so festive,
and beautiful, and springy.
And it's such a simple thing to do.
And it's not expensive,
and it just gives you so much look for hardly any effort.
I also think these ideas would be really cute
for Mother's Day as well,
or if you were doing a baby shower, a bridal shower.
They're just so fun.
Oh nice.
So what did you do?
So this is like some weird.
- There's a hole in the bottom.
- There's hole in the bottom.
Oh yeah.
So you just put a piece of wire.
- Yeah.
- Stuck it in here.
Oh, that's so cute.
Okay, then we still had this beautiful
butterfly ranuncula.
Isn't it amazing?
And I just thought it'd be so pretty in little bud vases.
So I went inside to see what I had.
- Now, I do have little vases, that I think would be great.
Cause these are my new prop cabinets.
I finally had to get organized,
and these chest are working out so well.
I think to intermingle the baskets,
with just some little cut poses, would be really pretty.
And then maybe two of these.
I got these at Target.
The label's still on them.
Target, as well as these I got a target.
Yeah, these are cute too.
These I got on Amazon.
They came in a set.
You guys may have remembered,
I used it for my Valentine's Day menu, a couple years ago.
So that's good.
And then maybe this one right here would be good.
I think that's probably enough, right?
All right.
We'll see if dad likes this assortment.
It's always such a treat to see my dad's creativity at work.
When we were kids, we used to think of him as somewhere
between an artist, and a magician,
just to see the fun things you would come up with.
- It's sort of a miniature ikebana.
- Yeah, I know, right?
- So I'll do the others.
- Those are so great.
The color is so dusty and gorgeous.
That is really a sweet little flower.
Okay, our table decorations are looking great.
Dad is just finishing up a few more of those oblong ones.
And I am going to start
to get all of the decor items for the table ready.
But these really did come out cute.
Aren't they adorable?
They're just so sweet and springy.
(laughing)
I love them.
Okay, so now the other chest,
to find the plates that I wanna use.
I think in here is where I put them.
Oh yes.
See, these are them.
This is this China that came from my parents' house.
I have to ask my dad what the history is.
But I just think they're so sweet for spring.
They're called Adams Calyx.
I don't know if that's a brand, a style.
These are the plates.
Aren't they cute?
They're so Eastery.
So apparently the story with these plates,
my dad was telling me,
is that when my sister and I were little,
my dad bought these plates,
but he could only afford four of them.
So they only had four, for the longest time.
And then two of the cups and saucers.
And then when I got married, and had a house of my own,
I fell in love with them.
And then my parents gave them to me,
and then started to add to the collection,
from pieces that we found on Etsy.
So they're just sentimental to me.
And I just also just think they're so beautiful
for something like Easter.
(upbeat music)
Then a few days before the party,
I always like to do a trial run of the table setting,
because the day of the party,
and the day before, is really dedicated to the food.
So it's about 11:30 in the morning right now.
And that's about the time
that we will be gathering out here.
So as you can see, it's pretty sunny.
So I think we're gonna have to use the awning,
just because we're gonna need some shade.
Now here comes the production snafu.
I bought some new mics for my iPhone,
just so that when I get to France,
I'll be able to have better sounding vlogs.
Well, it turns out those mics run outta batteries.
So here I am just chattering away.
And none of this was recorded.
(laughing)
So we're gonna have to voice over this part.
So I wanted to see what these arrangements
would all look like on the table.
So I just think it's a good idea to get this done
ahead of time.
So I put them all down,
and then I put the rectangular arrangements
in between the two baskets,
and then put some of those bud vases
on either side of each basket,
and did the same thing on the other side.
And then it was sort of coming together.
This was what I had envisioned,
kind of this table long garden,
that just felt really organic,
and fun and earthy.
And I just love the idea
of the bud vases with those pretty ranunculas,
and of course those little eggs.
And then I wanted to try out one place setting,
just to see how that was all working.
So I used these seagrass chargers.
I put the plate down,
and then I had these wonderful hem-stitched
pink linen napkins, which I thought were pretty.
Dragged out some more flea market finds.
These are these beautiful knives
that I got at a flea market, along with some vintage forks.
I love to just mix and match the cutlery,
especially if you have ones that don't all match.
That's okay.
And then I like to put the dessert fork and spoon
on the table as well,
even though I'm gonna be serving cannolis.
Sometimes people like to not eat those with their hands.
And then I have the cup and saucer, because it's a brunch.
People will have coffee.
A little champagne flute for the mimosas.
And then I also had a little water glass.
I dragged those champagne flutes back from France,
because they were such a bargain.
I got them for one Euro each at a flea market.
And then I found the water glasses at Crate & Barrel
years later, online.
They share a similar stem, which is kind of interesting.
So even though they're probably about a hundred years apart,
they look perfectly at home together on the table.
I think the mixing and matching
just gives your table scapes
a lot more personality and warmth,
and makes it more interesting.
And I also love how the table setting really does coordinate
with all the plants.
It feels like it's all part of the same garden party.
And then I also had these beautiful old lattice baskets
that my parents gave me.
And I thought maybe I could fill vases with water,
and then fill the in between space,
with this natural Easter grass.
I just had some more of those cut flowers,
and I just didn't wanna put them to waste.
But dad had to be on his way, so I was on my own with these.
We'll see how I do.
Dad help.
These look like derangement instead of arrangements.
Oh, well maybe you can come help me with these.
Here's the cliffhanger.
Well, we did record our nice little close for you guys,
with a happy Easter message.
But again, so there's nothing there, (laughing) sadly.
But anyway, happy Easter everybody.
Part two, with all the food prep and the day of reveal,
we'll be next weekend.
Okay, until then, bye.