Surprise! (Redux)

As I mentioned in a previous blog, while planning SP's surprise party, my mother asked me to plan another surprise party...this time for my sister. When my sister turned 40 (um, I mean 20...sorry, sis) she was expecting my second nephew and we were limited to ice cream and cake on her big day. Now, don't get me wrong. There isn't a scoop of ice cream or a slice of cake that she's met and hasn't liked. I didn't get my cake habit out of thin air. However, being the devoted younger sister that I am, I try to listen to my slightly older sister diligently (read: by force). When I listened to her talk to her friends about turning 40 and the nice small family dinner we had to celebrate it, I knew that she still wanted to have a slightly more raucous affair.

Now, to set the stage you may need a little background. To know my sister is to love her. You need someone to pack up some boxes because you're moving? She is your gal. Need a tow because your car has broken down? Look no further. Need to keep things on the down low because you are hoping for the element of surprise? Lose her number. Keeping a secret is not her forte.

Her: I know what you are getting for your birthday.
Me: I don't want to know. I want to be surprised.
Her: Well okay, if you don't want to know that you're getting a bike...I won't say anything.
Me: Ah, man! I wanted it to be a surprise!
Her: Well, I didn't tell you it was red. Oh, shoot. Sorry. Don't tell Mom.

Even more, all of the days prior to any holiday or birthday, my sister would quiz me on what her present that year was. Her favorite tactic was to offer two or three outlandish gifts and then hone in on the more realistic one.

Her: Am I getting a plane?
Me: No.
Her: Am I getting a house?
Me: No.
Her: Am I getting a planet?
Me. No. Don't try I am not going to tell you this time.
Her: Am I getting the new Barbie Dream House?
Me: How did you know? Who told you?
Her: You just told me.
Me: (Sigh). Please don't tell Mom that I told you. Again.

As I write this I realize that this line of questioning doesn't seem sophisticated enough to trick anyone. But in my defense, my sister has the interrogation skills of an INTERPOL officer when it comes to finding out about gifts, secrets, rumors. And at five years old, the promise of ice cream for full cooperation was worth the defection. Heck, let's face it...at thirty-six years old that same promise still works.

Given all of this information, I couldn't help but to accept my mom's proposal to plan a birthday party for my sister and to make it a surprise party. She wouldn't get me this time. Under the threat of certain peril, I informed the family what my plan was and we were set.

First, of course, were the invitations. While my sister can hold her own when working on our family's walnut and prune orchard, at heart she is a girl's girl. I wanted the invitation to be feminine with a pop of color. Ultimately, I chose Fabriano Medioevalis paper. The luxe feeling and the deckle-edge of this fine paper make it simply yummy. For the ink color, it had to be peacock blue - my sister's favorite. I designed the invite with my new favorite font from myfonts.com and a sassy chandelier motif from Envelopments.

Second on the list of things-to-do was to find a location. My parents wanted to have a sit down dinner and I wanted my sister to have the opportunity to kick up her heels and dance the night away. We settled on dinner at Mason's (now known as Cafeteria 15L) and dancing at Mix. I also called my friend Chantel Elder from Eleakis & Elder Photography to see if she was available to take pictures for the party. She fit in so well at SP's party, I knew that she would do an equally great job for this surprise party.

The next thing to do was to pull together the decor. Because we were hosting the party at Mason's, I wanted to mimic the sleek and modern decor on our tables. I also wanted to bring a in some feminine touches since this was a party for my sister.

The first thing I did was to source some beautiful dupioni silk in the same peacock blue color as the invitations for the tables. I cleaned/sewed up the edges to create beautiful tablecloths for each of our two tables. The second thing I did was to find mercury glass votives and vases for the tables and the bars. I filled the votives with white candles and the vases with white hydrangeas. The last step was to put a menu, place card and favor box at each place setting. For the favors I decided to do white boxes with the same peacock blue double-faced satin ribbon from Midori filled with peanut M&M's, my sisters favorite candy.

The last thing to do was wait for the big day to arrive. Luckily, no one spilled the beans. I knew we were in the clear when she called me that night and asked if SP and I wanted to join her and her husband for dinner that night. Not being the greatest liar, I think I feigned bad cell service and hung up on her. As the guests started to arrive and that familiar buzz filled the air I couldn't wait for my sister to arrive. When she walked into the room and heard the "Surprise!" she was floored. As she looked across the room and registered all of the faces that filled the room I knew it was going to be a great celebration. After dinner while dancing at Mix, I stepped out onto the balcony and looked at the dance floor. My sister was there with all of her friends...singing, dancing, laughing and celebrating life. Success...I won this round. I love that.