Last month, we celebrated my mum’s 60th birthday with an entire weekend of festivities. There was dinner out on Friday evening, a lunch party at my parents’ house the following day and finally a big glamorous party with dinner and dancing on Saturday night.
The latter was my responsiblity. The logistics were a nightmare and organising such a big event while I was so unwell was certainly stressful at times, but it was more than worth it in the end.
As a gift for our mum, my sister and I enlisted the help of Helen Lisk Photography and it’s her beautiful images that you can see throughout this post.
Arriving just as we were about to leave, Helen documented our walk to the Electric Palace, capturing some beautiful portraits along the way.
We were so lucky with the weather and the early evening light was incredible. I know we’ll treasure these photos for years to come.
Once we had reached our venue, Helen photographed guests as they arrived, documenting the excitement we all felt as the party begun. The evening started with a drinks reception in the lobby, complete with canapes provided by Hungry Mule Catering.
The Electric Palace was originally built in the 1920s. It’s an amazing space that really didn’t need much in the way of decorations. We simply hired tables and chairs for the auditorium, added some seriously sparkly gold sequin runners from Pudding Bridge and spent a long time inflating confetti balloons from Bubblegum Balloons.
We set up a photo booth in the lobby {another Pudding Bridge gem} and displayed my mum’s birthday cake for all to see. This elaborate iced confection was very much a labour of love, and in hindsight, it’s probably the one aspect of the celebration that I should have had the sense to outsource.
The cake consisted of four lemon sponges sandwiched together with blueberry jam and smothered in a blueberry buttercream icing. I decorated it with edible flowers from Maddocks Farm Organics and a bespoke cake topper from Miss Cake. The end result looked and tasted amazing, although the pretty blooms didn’t hold up too well in the heat.
Mum wanted dinner to have a relaxed, informal feel, so we went with platters of antipasti to start followed by some of the best paella I’ve ever tasted. Sam at Hungry Mule was a complete legend, preparing food for almost 80 people in a kitchen that wasn’t really designed for such feats. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him.
After the meal, we hurriedly cleared the auditorium while guests were served tea, coffee and cake in the lobby. Mr DJ kicked off the dancing and, to be honest, the rest of the night is a bit of a blur! From what I can remember, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and I know my mum had an amazing time, which was all I really cared about.
Love Audrey xxx
Suppliers and Sources:
- Venue – Bridport Electric Palace
- Photography – Helen Lisk Photography
- Catering – Hungry Mule Catering
- Table and Chair Hire – Taddle Farm Tents
- Entertainment – Mr DJ
- Sequin Table Linen and DIY Photo Booth – Pudding Bridge
- Confetti Balloons – Bubblegum Balloons
- Balloon Weights and Helium – Party Pieces
- Bespoke Cake Topper – Miss Cake via NotOnTheHighStreet
- Edible Flowers – Maddocks Farm Organics
These photos are so beautiful Franky! It looks like a wonderful party, well done and that cake is a work of art! xx
Thanks Dani, Helen did an amzing job. I keep sneaking a look at our prints because they make me so happy. xxx
What a lovely event!!