Hello, friends! Kate here.
There's no time during the year like the holidays! There seems to be tangible joy and magic in the air. As we planned Dinner No. 3, it was a no-brainer that we'd be incorporating Christmas cheer into our menu and decor.
This was our first dinner at a new location! Alli Gugliemino, a crafter, mom and digital marketing guru, was our gracious host, and she could not have provided a space more perfectly suited for our night. Lush orange trees hung over us as we crafted, and we had a completely separate area to dine and entertain in, which made everything spacious and easy to work with.
We added a really fun element to this dinner that we'd never done before - live music and storytelling! It welcomed all Christmas feels and added a nice change of pace to our usual routine. Of course, The Happy Hunters led us through a festive craft. We made winter green hangings for everyone to take and display around their homes.
Another new "offering" came from Kimberly Bozeman, who made Wassail Rosemary Buck cocktails for everyone. GOODNESS were they delicious.
Per usual, we had a fantastic meal provided by Kylie Mazon, the woman behind Cooking With Cocktail Rings. She kept things traditional, but added her modern twist to things, serving up a Herb Brined Roast Chicken, Balsamic Sriracha Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Butternut Squash, Quinoa and Kale Salad with Warm Goat Cheese & Apple Cider Vinaigrette, Smoked Gouda Mashed Potatoes, and for dessert, Apple Cider Donuts. New Year's Eve dinner, anyone?
We welcomed back some familiar faces, but we also welcomed many new ones - several of whom heard about Create Dinners through Instagram! *Oh the magic of social media*
Below is a full run down of our guest lineup.
THE LINE UP
Alli Gugliemino – We're SO thankful for Alli, who came through in the clutch and loaned us her home with just a week's notice. It was truly perfect. We also provided us with silverware, which, as you know, is super important when eating a meal :)
Kylie Mazon - I mentioned her above, and you know her from all our previous dinners. She's our fantastic chef, who feeds us all and leaves our tummies feeling VERY happy. Kylie's written up a (as always) beautiful recap of the night that you can read HERE.
Kirsten Robinson – Kirsten was Kylie's wonderful sous chef for the second time in Create Dinners history. She's such a glorious, funny human, who I love dearly. You can stalk her alter ego, @DarthdoesLA.
Elise Cahill – These dinners wouldn't happen without Elise, who has become my right hand woman. She always brings the right spirit, various necessities from her home, and the makings for a perfect craft. You can follow she and Katie, who sadly couldn't join us this time around, who blog as The Happy Hunters.
Jenn Sanchez – Jenn, Jenn, Jenn. If you're not following Jenn yet on Instagram, do yourself a favor and start right now. It's never too late! Her floral arrangements cannot be touched. The ones at Dinner No. 3 were particularly beautiful, as they incorporated winter whites and pomegranates.
Kimberly Bozeman – I mentioned Kimberly above, but she's worth mentioning a million times. She's a writer, comedian, musician, and dear friend, who provided us with cocktails for the evening.
Mallory Cummins – Mallory is a fellow photographer, who has truly captivating work. She snapped pictures throughout the evening too! You can stalk her HERE.
Emily Elbert – Emily is such a gentle spirit. She was our musical entertainment for the evening, serenading us with a handful of Christmas songs. Her voice is angelic and brings such a cool vibe to any room she enters. I HIGHLY recommend purchasing her music HERE.
Katie Brown – I'm so thankful for Katie Brown! Above, I said there was a gal who found us through Instagram... that gal is Katie. She eagerly messaged me as soon as I mentioned that applications were open for Dinner No. 3, and I'm so glad it worked out for her to come. She supplied us with chairs and various decor and runs her own amazing blog that you can check out HERE.
Natalie Seward – We had a last minute cancellation, and I'm so thankful that we were able to welcome Natalie to the table! She learned about Create Dinners through Kylie. We're all hoping to have her back for another Create Dinner sooner than later.
Christina Scamporino – Christiana is a very talented designer at McBeard Media, an agency. She created our menus and amazing hand-painted name place holders for the evening. I'm pretty sure everyone gasped upon seeing the detailed holly cutout.
Jordan Raines – Jordan is one of my good friends from high school who now lives in Los Angeles (yay!) and works as an actor and model. Along with her beauty, she brought pinecones and wreaths as her contribution for the evening.
Heather Sundell – As I mentioned, we switched up the pace of the evening with live music and storytelling. Heather does Improv in LA, and blogs / writes for various publications around town. You may know her from Refinery29 or Buzzfeed!
Laney West – Laney recently moved to Los Angeles, and is a good friend of Kirsten. On a very short notice, she was able to join us at Dinner No. 3! We hope to welcome her back again in the future.
Linsey Metcalf – You know her, you love her. Linsey is one of the talented women behind The Wild Standard. Lins flew out FOR Dinner No. 3, but got sick just a few days before and wasn't able to attend. It still makes me sad to talk about it. Fortunately, her flag didn't attain the same virus as she, and we were able to hang a custom-made Merry and Bright flag in her honor. The best news of all is that you can buy one of the flags you see in the photos, so be sure to hop over to her site and check 'em out.
Kate Edwards - You guys know me! It was so much fun taking pictures at another Create Dinner. These nights are ones I look back so fondly on. I love watching new friends become real friends, everyone take a moment to savor upon taking their first bite of the meal, and swoon throughout the night over crafting and tunes. Feel free to browse our previous dinners and other things on my personal blog HERE.
Per usual, we took MANY photos. Below is a recap of our holiday-spirited evening together.
