Host a Garden Party using an Herb Garden

When Alley with Life of Alley reached out to Stacy (The Hurried Hostess) and myself (should I put my blog name here too?) with the idea of collaborating on a garden party, I knew this would be so fun and perfect for the season! I will be honest and say I was a bit stubborn in going the "plain" route of a garden party and wanted the event to tell a story. I mean what is the difference between you going to Pinterest and seeing the same ole garden looks and recreating it - don't you want something new? I know I do! In the hopes of trying to come up with something outside the box and creative, (and a bit last minute honestly) I figured I want my portion of the collaboration to go with the actual use of a garden. Incorporating everything "garden" into the party. From the food, drinks, decor to the color palette, party craftivities...everything! (I'll chill on the exclamation points)

Let's first take a moment and appreciate the vibe. Imagine a nice 72 degree weather day, cirrus clouds all whispy in the sky, no humidity...perfect right? Now Houston has these days on rare occasion, and you can't plan for it...she'll surprise you when she's ready to give you a near perfect weather day. This happened to be not be one of those days (shocking). The weather had a forecast of thunderstorms so our party was moved indoors at the dining/kitchen area which worked out perfectly.

I know not everyone has the time, space or patience to start a fabulous garden from the ground up so I created a cheat sheet way on making an affordable herb/patio garden all for under $50 and items from the dollar store! (I did say I was going to chill out on those exclamation points right?...whoops) The key is to snag the tools early because I can guarantee you the cute pots, colorful containers, ground picks will be gone in no time. I'll be posting a link soon to show you how I started an Herb/Container Garden so you can incorporate in your garden party In the meantime, here is a link for EVERYTHING you'll need to recreate this super cute spring set up. Back to the party....

Using potted plants of all sizes/colors and shape (some even faux) we built a nice atmosphere on the foldable bar cart by layering the plants in front of each other. I highly encourage investing in a metal and outdoor friendly bar cart not only to be a station to keep all your gardening tools, it can also be revamped to be your display. Be careful that they vary in height to provide a more aesthetically pleasing overall look AND to make you feel like your are surrounded and sitting in a garden. Alley styled the table with a beautiful color palette of shades of green, peach, coral, cream and grey. She even incorporated fresh fruit to the tablescape which is the perfect way to bring in the garden theme to every element. Check out her tips HERE on how to add fruit to your tablescape.

Again, back to the herb garden - an important step is to select herbs that compliment each other and can grow together. They should all thrive in either full sun or partial sun, drier soil or moist soil. Do some research on which herbs you want to incorporate in your daily lifestyle and that work together in a shared container. Should you decide not to plant all in the same container, you can separate them by using individual pots. I chose to use individual pots for the party but my personal garden they are all sharing the same space.

I was able to find mock concrete containers for .99 cents - yes! Don't count out your local dollar store. In addition I also picked up some iridescent mini pots that would be perfect as a party parting gift also .99 cents!

I added in mini label stakes to differentiate each herb. Can't go wrong with extra cute labels.

Another fun addition, were wire baskets to the bottom of the bar cart filled with more greenery to keep with the theme. Adding fresh apples and lime juice to your prepared dishes along with using the herbs kept the element of farm to table in the forefront. DID YOU KNOW?! (Biology nerd coming out of me) that carbonated water can actually HELP your plants. The minerals and CO2 that are already dispersed within the water gives your plants an extra boost of nutrients resulting in larger, healthier and faster growing plants. Although this may not work for ALL plants, studies have shown the positive effects of incorporating this tip. This is my little secret to you....(not really).

I love also adding these gorgeous plant shirts by Callie Danielle Shop. Talk about another beautiful party gift. With the encouraging notes on the individual pots and mini seedlings your guests get to take home, they can't help but feel encouraged to GROW.

You can always add your own finishing herbs but the items I selected were all incorporated in the fresh party dishes, cocktails and even decor. More about using your herb garden in more ways than one coming soon. For now, enjoy more photos of this herb garden set up and be on the lookout for more fun ways to use your garden for your meals, cocktails and more!