As I was flipping through the Novemeber issue of Food & Wine magazine several weeks back, I was immediately inspired by the feature on The FourCoursemen, an underground supper club in Athens, Georgia. Long story short, a couple of talented guys who love to cook started getting together to test their culinary prowess. One thing led to another and now they, along with other food and wine aficionados, regularly gather together other foodies to cook up experimental menus of fresh, rustic and sometimes off the wall ingredients. For a more in-depth look into the magic that is The FourCoursemen and a few of their recipes, be sure to check out all the details on Food & Wine’s website.

One of the things I loved most about this feature was the easy and simple styling. A table runner made from a long strip of kraft paper, hand painted with an abstract pattern with india ink by Susan Hable of Hable Construction, friend of the gents behind The FourCoursemen.  Simple white dinnerware, colorful food, clusters of gourds and chinaberry branches down the middle of the long farmhouse-style table. Perfect casual touches that allow the food to shine, the atmosphere of camaraderie to take center stage and avoid ever feeling stuffy or pretentious.

How wonderful would it be to get an invitation to a gathering this warm and friendly? To me this is the perfect look and feel for a truly special Thanksgiving dinner so if you’re still considering how to pull everything together tomorrow if you’re hosting dinner, remember to keep it simple with a few sweet touches and let the food do the talking.

{Photos from Food & Wine.}

If Heart of Light is not already on your list of daily reads, I encourage you to make this week the week you make Rachel’s lovely blog one of your new obsessions. Yesterday she kicked off a little series of posts all geared toward managing the inevitable stress that comes with the merriment of the holiday season. I love how she’s making even me, the holiday-obsessed party-loving event-planning barefoot-dancing person that I am, take a step back to consider how I can keep my holiday season simple and as stress-free as possible. I suggest you journey over for a read, too. You won’t be disappointed.

{Photo from Heart of Light.}

As a general rule, I don’t tend to fall in love with anything that is too strictly tied to one theme, with the exception of kids parties and baby showers, where I think it’s really fun and perfectly appropriate. With that said, I wasn’t expecting to love this playful Thanksgiving-themed dessert buffet by Amy Atlas nearly as much as I do. From the sugared pears to the hot apple cider to the corn husk cookies, I think this is basically as cute as it gets. Make sure to check out Amy Atlas’s blog for all of the fun details from this cute little display of festive Thanksgiving treats for all of your last minute holiday inspiration.

{Photos from Amy Atlas.}

In honor of Thanksgiving this week, I thought I’d share some of my favorite thank you cards perfect for sending a message of gratitude. Working in the stationery world as I do, I’ve had the great fortune to amass an incredible list of favorite stationers and this week seems like the perfect opportunity to share some of them with you. Bring one along with a bottle of wine to show your thanks to your host or hostess this Thursday or bookmark your favorites to send out after receiving holiday gifts. A long list of favorite thank you cards is always a good thing to have.

I love essentially everything the fabulous ladies of Dutch Door Press design. The colors of this thank you card alone are enough to make me smile.

I really love the soft muted colors of this letterpress thank you card from Delphine. I may be a little biased, but I swear nothing says “thank you” in quite the same way as letterpress.
Keep reading…

Generally speaking, posting will be a little light this week as I prepare for the holiday, travel home to see family, and spend time with my father who is having minor surgery later this week. With that said, I wanted to take a quick moment this afternoon to share a few photos from the  Clark + Walker launch party last Thursday evening. I had an amazing time getting to meet some incredible upstate New York wedding vendors, not the least amazing of which is the talented crew of Clark + Walker. Their storefront space is seriously so beautiful that I was completely blown away. (Not that I expected anything less from these guys.)

The fine folks of Clark + Walker – Dawn, Alisha, Luke and John.

The lovely Rebecca of The Pink Orange, who is not only a doll, but also designed the invitations and stationery for the event. I loved getting to meet her.

Krista from WellWed magazine with Clark + Walker masterminds, Alisha Clark and husband Luke Walker.

Alisha with the ladies of Katie O Weddings & Events.

There was a fix-your-own burrito station that completely rocked my world. We were so hungry after our long drive to Albany and these little guys were just what the doctor ordered. There were also lots and lots of cookies and brownies that Alisha and Dawn baked up and they were delicious.

And, of course, no event is complete without a little parting gift. This one featured great goodies from Clark + Walker, WellWed, The Pink Orange and tiny little banana muffins. For more photos, check out Clark + Walker’s blog for all the details. I am constantly in awe of everything these guys do and I can’t wait for the next big thing.

Congratulations again, Luke and Alisha – thanks for having me!

{Photos by Clark + Walker.}