As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I’ll be hosting a little backyard dinner party this summer in collaboration with Pier 1 (yay!) and documenting it here on the blog. How cool it is that this project comes with a built-in excuse to hang out with friends?! ;) I also want to use this opportunity to really get playful with the decor and try some brand new things in the food & drink department. You know… have a little fun with it!

Treasure Hunting (Decisions, Decisions)

Whenever there’s lots of creative freedom on a project, I usually feel myself morphing into Miss Indecisive at some point, and that definitely applies here. It’s often a good sign as far as the big picture goes – indicative of not being able to decide which direction/idea/thing to commit to amidst all the great options – but at some point you just have to pick a path already and move forward. The good news: that officially happened yesterday on my 4th and final “treasure hunting” trip; I’m going with a colorful, bohemian-inspired look that incorporates some unexpected elements and exudes good vibes only – which should always be a goal, right? :)

Wandering around the store dreaming up possibilities for different products was actually very fun (except for the one time when my energetic 4 year old tagged along and I basically just panicked about the potential consequences of my little “bull in a china shop” the entire time.) Since I didn’t make decisions right off the bat, I used my phone to snap pics of favorite items in the store that I could revisit/ponder at home. Some of what’s pictured in this post will be at the party, but there are other surprises too…. I don’t want to give everything away before the recap! Here’s one element that definitely did make the cut, though:

Remember the Yoga Frog Birdfeeder from post #1 that I was considering buying and then dressing up for the party? Well… I bought him! So this idea is also officially on its way to happening now, assuming he survives my kids long enough to actually make it to the dinner party in tact. For some reason they assume he’s their new giant toy. I did make sure he at least had a very safe ride home from the store, though and only counted a couple of strange looks on the way home. ;)

Here’s another item I was instantly drawn to every time I set foot in the store:

It didn’t pan out for me to buy this life size Swingasan^® this time around, BUT – I did swing for the tiny phone holder version! (It’s pretty adorable.)

These old fashioned telephone booth wine bottle holders are equally cute & clever too:

And last but not least, these sparkly, jewel-encrusted Moroccan lanterns just made me so happy every time I saw them. Imagine how pretty they’d be all lit up at night!

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And that’s a wrap for Post #2 of this mini blog series. Stay tuned to see how it all comes together later this month in the party recap!

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Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Pier 1 via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Pier 1. Thank you for supporting the companies that make it possible for us to keep the creative content coming!