How to Throw a Bubbly Brunch That No One Wants to Leave

Here’s the thing—I love celebrating my birthday, but I fully acknowledge that others might not love celebrating my birthday. And, I mean, they shouldn’t have too. But who can disapprove of a bubbly brunch featuring cake that tastes as good as it looks? I’d say no one, and that’s what I did for my birthday last September (yes, like Beyoncé I am a Virgo, tyvm). Here’s what I did and how you can recreate it—honestly, after this your friends will be counting down until your next birthday.

I wanted a rustic vibe for this party, so I went with wooden materials and subtle pops of greenery. It helped entirely that where I hosted the brunch (Grand Vin in Hoboken, New Jersey) is a turn-key venue that’s charming with a cozy atmosphere.

With wooden tables, florals hanging from the ceiling, and fresh flowers already in the space it wasn’t as much of a decor challenge—nonetheless, extra details didn’t hurt. Here’s the deal:

GET PERSONAL

If someone is invited to your party, they must be pretty special, so make them feel it. My main priority when I’m planning any party is to get personal — sometimes it’s with custom glasses, other times it’s a straw. Here, I went with wooden nameplates so everyone knew where they were seated. It was functional, but also created a moment (yes, lots of Instagram’s were taken) and left my guests with a little something to take home with them and leave on their desks.

I also can’t resist a drink in the air moment, so I wanted something special that could sit in the champagne flutes for an added touch. I went with gold stir sticks that said “danielles25th.”

ADD GREENERY

I’ve never met a floral-filled tablescape that I didn’t love, have you? I was fortunate in that the restaurant provided both the menus and the eucalyptus, but it made a dreamy additional touch.

HAVE A NAKED CAKE

With the rustic, cozy charm I was going for, I knew I didn’t want an over-the-top cake. Instead, I went to a local baker (Baking Mama in Hoboken, New Jersey) and had her do this “naked cake” for me. For an added touch I had her add a macaron to the side of the cake, then topped it off with eucalyptus and a custom cake topper.