Bridesmaid Kathy describes some of the preparation, much of which included finding creative ways to use thrifted pieces or items they already had on hand. (Kathy is also behind the amazing desserts!)

The bride and I drove around to various thrift stores and bought vintage frames to paint and turn into chalkboards days before the shower. She had the idea to add chalkboard frames to the disposable cups too, so that guests could write their names on them—luckily I even had cups available from a previous party. The cake stands for the dessert table were also thrifted. Another bridesmaid, Grace, provided flowers that were leftover from a friend’s wedding from the night before. I used those to fill my milk and sugar jar (also thrifted). PT had wanted a dog-themed cake and I thought, why not have her own dogs, Belly and BamBam, on it? Shih Tzu’s are not easy to sculpt from fondant! I also added sugar flowers to the cake since the theme of the shower was a backyard/garden style. Her wedding theme color was Tiffany blue, so I added a fondant bow in that color as well as in the trimming for the cake.

Photographer: Esther Huynh | Baked goods: Glenwood Bakehouse