Welcome to the second installment of JMS HEARTS! With Easter this weekend and Spring around the corner, I am getting so excited for the entertaining season to start up again. I always feel there is a lull between Christmas and Easter (I mean sometimes we do need a break!) but the warmer weather has me excited for patio season, summer brunches and all things entertaining!
If you are new here – JMS HEARTS is a monthly feature that I have created which showcases all my entertaining favourite finds from the month….aka everything that I heart ♥!
One of my favourite things about Easter (aside from the delicious food!) is getting our family Easter basket ready. Easter is all about gathering with friends and family and traditions like these get me excited for the holiday every year.
Coming from a Polish background, the Easter basket is enriched with old traditions that have been passed down for centuries. The basket is filled with the typical goodies (chocolate, decorated eggs etc.) but additional items are added in which each represent a specific meaning (described more below). As a child, I always loved the trip to the European grocery store to help pick out all the items we were adding in. Obviously I would always sneak some additional chocolate in – for good measure of course. Once the basket was put together, it was taken to be blessed before being used for Easter morning. Another favourite memory for me was the drive home after blessing. That Easter basket never stood a chance! My brother would go straight for the meat, my sister and I would split up some chocolate, someone got the bread and that was usually how it went down every year. We all had good intentions – but it never made it home in one piece!
I’m pretty sure everyone is thinking the same thing….how in the world is Easter next weekend already!? Although Easter is technically earlier this year – I do feel like March just started! As much as I love working in events it really speeds up the year and makes time fly way too fast! In my head I am already working on August and September stuff. Just crazy!
Anyways, back to the present! Spring time is here and Easter is around the corner! These items have inspired me to put together this Spring Themed Easter Tablescape. I hope it gives you some ideas for your own setup next week or for another spring day!
I love planning all aspects of a party (hello food!) but one area I truly enjoy is decor. Now decor can add up super fast (HOW much for those cake stands?!) therefore I try to throw in some homemade options when possible to keep the cost down. One of my fav items to make for a party are tissue flowers!
You may have started to catch on that I like entertaining…particularly entertaining with ways that add pizzazz and are easy to do! I’m not sure if it’s just me but I tend to put in so much effort into the appetizers and main dish that I prefer to have a quick easy dessert to serve – usually a pie my husband picks up from our local bakery or some yummy ice cream. Although it totally works and is delicious, I always feel like I want to add on my personal touch (while still keeping it simple – entertaining can be a lot of work!).
Introducing……CHOCOLATE DESIGN SHAPES! They are so simple to do, can be made ahead of time (my favourite phrase I think) and add that extra touch to a simple dessert. You can personalize the desserts with everyone’s initials (how fun!) or theme it (hearts for Valentine’s Day, shamrocks for St. Patrick’s Day etc) – the possibilities are endless!
