Many parties call for serving sandwiches. Then, the question becomes how can you do it in style. A popular plating technique in casual parties in France is the Surprise bread. You can even buy Surprise breads in many stores in France, especially during the Holidays. You can serve a Surprise bread if you are invite your friends to take the apéro at your place (that is, you invite them for a drink), at a picnic or a casual party.

If you use the round Swedish bread, a cooked unrisen dough bread, making your own is quick and easy. The Swedish bread (called “pain polaire” in France) is characterized by its moistness and slightly sweet taste.

What is a Surprise Bread?

Imagine a tower that stands 4 to 5 sandwich tall and cut in 6 to 8 pieces. The thrill is that you take the piece of sandwich on top, without knowing what is inside. The Swedish bread is ideal for that since it is thin, it is easy to grab without being messy. And it does not dry out as ordinary bread would.

Select complementary recipes for the fillings.  Since the tower cannot be too high, keep the fillings fairly thin for each sandwich.

Step by step instructions:

1. Prepare 4 or 5 sandwiches as usual; each one has a different filling.
2. On a serving platter, put the sandwiches one over the other. Try to create a striking color palette when it is assembled.
3. Once, you assembled the column, you cut the bread in 6 or 8 pieces

Typically fillings included cheese cream and salmon, hummus, guacamole, pesto and prosciutto, brie or goat cheese with sun-dried tomatoes, ham and cheese or egg mimosa and chives. For a family event, you can create a second tower with an assortment of children’s favorite recipes.

Make it Stylish

I spoke this afternoon with Sophie Rayes at Gastronomia to know more about the surprise bread. You do not have to stop there. You can decorate further the surprise bread. For example, create a cylinder to wrap all or part of the surprise bread. You could add ribbons or affix decorative elements for a baby shower, a tea party or a big family picnic.

In Montreal, you can buy round Swedish bread at the warehouse store of Gastronomia. For the rest of my Canadian readers, Gastronomia sells online and ships across Canada. To get the free shipping, you could stock on frozen appetizers and get a pack of Gratin Dauphinois.

SOURCING:
+ Swedish breads at Gastronomia $3.35 CAD for a bag of 5 units
+ photos: Pain surprise recipe at Pain Concept

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You probably wonder what is the relationship between a pouch and a party theme. Sometimes, you find inspirations in the usual place. It started with a purchase I did this morning. I bought this yellow and white XL frame pouch with a collapsible handle designed by Oktak. My favorite handbag over the last years was yellow and I missed it. This burst of color complements many of my outfits. Plus, I like the sunny shade.

As I examined further the fabric pattern, I realized that those jungle animal shapes would be wonderful for a baby shower or a first birthday party. The silhouettes are simple yet sophisticated. If you are not a talented artist, you can draw the basic shapes from a coloring book and a kids book. You may have to make a few adjustments to get it right.

As for the color palette, I think that the festive yellow and white combination works every time. It is gender neutral. It is suitable for kids and adults.

One Day Sale

If you interested in buying pouches and fabric handbags, Oktak hosts a 10% sale all day. The rebate does not show up on her etsy store but in her newsletters Aki of Oktaktold us to check out as usual, and she will refund the 10% through PayPal. I bought a few items in the past from Oktak, so I do not worry about the process. In fact, I received a confirmation of my refund during the time it took me to write this post.

+ XL frame pouch with handle – yellow shapes on white by Oktak $45 USD

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If you are looking for inspiration to create a sublime white and aqua blue dessert buffet table, you have to see the Winter Wonderland theme done Maddy from Inspired Bride and Amanda from Bake It Pretty. You will find here the recipe for the marshmallow pops. Apparently it is fairly easy to make and does not too much time. Looking at the wow factor, I suggest that you give it a try.

Their entire buffet table was impressive. The aqua and white theme works is versatile. You can use it for a baby shower, a birthday, a bridal shower or a wedding.

In fact, you could match it with the Dessert Buffet Save the Date and Congratulations! postcards that Maddy designed earlier. Head to her blog if you wish to download the templates.

+ More details about the theme on Hostess with the Mostess

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There is no need for fancy skills in cupcake decorating with the cupcake sets designed by Meri Meri. Those will be perfect for a kids birthday or a baby shower. Their collections are sophisticated and very affordable. Amongst the favorites, you will find:

+ the Circus Cupcake Kit
+ Oh Baby Baby Cupcake Set
+ the Pirate Cupcake Set
+ the Ready Set Go Cupcake Set

Each set costs $11.95 USD and includes 24 cupcake cases and 24 cupcake toppers. Therefore it is really an inexpensive solution that will make a statement at your party. Meri Meri also sells coordinated centerpieces, invites, bunting, napkins and more for each theme. Ideally, I would use the design of their cupcake cases and toppers as my starting point and find by myself the rest of the party decor. This way, I would get a custom look. But if you are in a hurry, you could save time by getting more items from the collection.

+ Meri Meri’s Party Shop

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I missed this well-put together, cheerful real-life baby shower designed by three women. It was featured on Hostess with the Mostess a few days before Christmas. Pinwheels are easy to make. They fit well within a baby shower theme or a kids’ birthday party. Pay attention to how they packaged the pinwheel invitations. When you invite a smaller group, you can take the time to create an invitation that will really stand out.

+ DIY pinwheel tutorial on Style Me Pretty
+ More photos on Hostess with the Mostess

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The extraordinaire Hostess with the Mostess styled this eye-catching Berry Sweet baby shower. There are lots of great details. I want to put your attention on how Jennifer Sbranti decorated the tables by taking advantage of the furniture accessories. It is a good lesson of what to do when you host an event in a venue that comes with the furniture and its own decor.

Go see the album photo. You will not want to miss her series of custom made labels.

+ photography by Jillian Bisinger for Hostess with the Mostess – album on Facebook

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I received a few inquiries about baby showers lately. These party favor boxes would fit nicely with many themes. There were designed by Kathleen of Twig & Thistle. Besides baby showers, they will be great for a girl birthday party or a bridal shower. All you need to make your own are letter sheets of card stock, a color printer, an x-acto knife and a ruler.

+ photo: Style me Pretty with links to the download files

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Cindy of Hungry Girl por vida captured the essence of simple elegance with these shots of gray paper straws. You cannot go wrong with single serving glass milk bottles for a baby shower or a kids birthday party. You can simply remove the commercial labels or go one step further and tailor the bottle with an event tag.

There is another reason why you will feel good. Besides its more sophisticated tones, the Kikkerland gray paper straws are more eco-friendly since they are biodegradable than the traditional plastic straws. Caring for the Earth is a good message to send at a baby shower party.

For a movie night or a circus party, you may prefer to get a box of blue and white  or red and white paper straws. + Paper Straws by Kikkerland $3 for box of 50 + photos: HungryGirl on Flickr + via Parcel Post

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It is no secret that I love giraffe on stationery, plush animals and art prints. It is probably because I always dreamt of being tall. On my quest to find cutely modern giraffe invitations, it seams natural to stop at Minted.

Minted is an online store offering fresh, modern custom stationery and invitations. They opted for the talents of independent brands and designers to bring something new on the marketplace. Without knowing, two design studios are represented twice. I guest I really enjoy the style of pottsdesign and Sweet Tree Studio.

+ Baby Giraffe Baby Shower Invitations by Jennifer Postorino $60 for 25
+ Baby Silhouette Baby Shower Invitations by Emily of pottsdesign $67 for 25
+ Circus Children’s Birthday Party Invitations by Sweet Tree Studio $67 for 25

The next three inspired me for their versatility. Each drawing could lead to a fun party theme while keeping a surprise on how you interpret it until the guests show up. It is ideal if you haven’t decided on your decor when you need to order your invitations.

+ Cupcake Baby Shower Invitations by pottsdesign $67 for 25
+ Cheery Frock Baby Shower Invitations by Kelli Hall$67 for 25
+ Onesie Whimsy Baby Shower Invitations by Sweet Tree Studio $67 for 25

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Modern parents have more stylish and unique choices at reasonable prices. One brand that needs of style-conscious parents is Olli & Lime from England. Do not worry, several retailers in Canada and the United States carry the line.

Olli & Lime’s Fall 2009 collection is spread over 3 patterns: George, Billie and Egg. I prefer George (above) and Billie (below). Each collection proposes the baby gears, baby and toddler bedding and art prints.

If you have a baby shower coming soon, you could find adorable bib and burp sets, changing mats, sleepsacks and hooded towels that the parents will be proud to show off when they have visitors. I know that I will keep them in mind.

On my next collage, I mixed the Little George wall art with bedding and accessories from the Egg collection. Like I told you before, you do not have to stick to a single collection. These collections are less matching than what we used to see and still see at many department stores. Use them as a basis on which you built your own look. Ask your girl friends for advice if you are unsure on how to add your own touch.

A Collection to Grow With

They are adding new items which means that you can extend the decor as your baby becomes a toddler. This Fall, they added a new sheet collection with a fabric that contrasts with the quilt. You can recycle the drawstring bags as a toy bag.

MORE:
+ Store locator for Olli and Lime

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Imagine having a cake with a character that looks like the guest of honor. This is what you get when you hire Anne Heap of Pink Cake Box. She tailored her standard cake creations to fit your event.

The flower baby shower cake includes a pregnant woman modeled after the image on the baby shower’s invitation. The invitation to a first birthday also led to the color palette used for her cake. Each tier of the bachelor pirate cake has port holes with caricatures of the groomsmen looking out. Fall weddings led to leafy pumpkin decorations and a fun Halloween themed cake with bride and groom corpses as cake toppers.

Baby Shower Cakes with Personalized Moms-to-be

Who would not be happy with a pregnant topper like those? Each topper is distinct and tells a story. Details go from the color of the skin, the hair style and fashion accessories up to matching fabric samples provided by the grandmother-to-be. All the pregnant toppers from Pink Cake Box are adorable.

If you recalled, this is the cake shop that replicate the Rachel Ray’s Studio Kitchen as a cake last year.

MORE:
+ Pink Cake Box
+ Get directions to Pink Cake Box p (973) 998-4445
18 E Main St, Morristown, New Jersey, United States, 07960

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It is no secret that I love the vintage items at Three Potato Four.  Here are my three fab from what is online this week. These would feel at home in any family with young children. You could also build a baby shower theme around on item.

+ If you are planning a baby shower on your backyard, go for the Vintage Ice Bucket with a Sandpiper motif. It is playful and sophisticated. I want it. $40 USD
+ I am fond of vintage wood toys. It adds charms to a nursery and a kid playroom. This set of antique Scandinavian building blocks inspires me. $24 USD
+ For your young kids to have a place to put their keys and hang a membership card, I like the Little Red Riding Key Hook $12

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