I love Galentine’s Day. Maybe it’s the pink decor or the heart-shaped food and bubbly cocktails, but mostly it’s getting my favorite women in one room together to celebrate our friendship. Arranging for my friends to be at the same place at the same time has become increasingly difficult the older we get. “Let’s pick a night for dinner soon” texts never really mean soon enough, with different schedules flying around the group chat. That’s where my true obsession with Galentine’s Day stems from. Kind of like a birthday, it’s the one day of the year where my friends know to save the date. Every February, they have plans to eat heart-shaped pizza and drink Champagne in their pajamas at my apartment (likely while standing on my couch singing Taylor Swift).

If you’re new here, Galentine’s Day is a fictional holiday created by Leslie Knope in a 2010 episode of Parks and Recreation. The holiday is celebrated on February 13 (Valentine’s Day Eve), and is a time for celebrating the women in your life with a boozy brunch.

This year’s celebration was even more important to me because it was the last year in my very pink apartment. I knew in the following months I’d be moving in with my fiancé, and our life together would involve a little less pink and fuzzy everything. And so, I wanted my third-annual Galentine’s Day celebration to be the best one yet. And, I don’t mean to brag, but, I think I did it.

Decor

A balloon heart wall

If you have even the tiniest bare wall in your home, you can do this. I took down a piece of art that I typically had hanging here to create a dreamy wall filled with balloon hearts. I worked with an amazing vendor in Hoboken, Popseri Events, who really helped transform my apartment into a Galentine’s Day wonderland.

Balloon garland

Because you can never have too many balloons, we created a balloon garland in my living room that hung from my curtain rod. This made for an amazing focal point where people gathered throughout the party, leading to an amazing (and dare I say candid) photo moment.

Whimsical flowers

I’ll take any excuse to buy myself pretty flowers. While I typically head to my local bodega and DIY arrangements, I decided to splurge and put $175 into bouquets from my go-to Hoboken florist, Bloomie Flower Studio (their work is stunning and they deliver to NYC). I asked for something pink and whimsical, and they certainly delivered.

On-theme food and drinks

Heart-shaped savory goodness

At this point I won’t settle for anything less than heart-shaped pizza every Galentine’s Day for the rest of my life. While McDonald’s fries and burgers have become a staple at my annual celebration (obviously), I wanted to do something over-the-top with the rest of the menu this year. Thanks to my friend Krista, who runs the foodie Instagram account @hashtagfoodpic, I was able to work with Tony Boloney’s to serve Pink Magic — a heart-shaped pie made with pink homemade mozzarella, and rosé infused crust (no, really). There was also a box of heart-shaped assorted garlic knots, which put every box of chocolate out there to shame.

Pink sweets

For everyone at the party with a sweet tooth, I had a ton of chocolate, pink macarons, and heart-shaped cookies from Baking Mama in Hoboken.

Cotton candy prosecco and boozy juice packs

I can’t throw a party without a signature cocktail (or two). I’ve been obsessed with the adult juice pack trend and really wanted to lean into that as a fun detail for the party, so I served Galentine’s Juice in boozy pouches with a “babe” crazy straw. I got them on Etsy from The Dirty Bar Cart and everyone loved them. The cocktail itself was really nothing fancy, just equal parts pink lemonade and vodka, plus a splash of 7UP.

And since I clearly cannot do the most, I also served these pink coupe glasses (four for $4 on Amazon) filled with a pouf of cotton candy and prosecco. Once my guests arrived, I’d pour in the bubbly for a fun and fancy feel.

Party favors and little details

A gum ball machine filled with bath bombs

Anyone that knows me knows that I love taking baths, and that I especially love bath bombs. I woke up in the middle of the night leading up to Galentine’s Day (I know, I know) with this for a gum ball machine that dishes out mini bath bombs and I had to make it happen. So, I ordered a gumball machine off of Amazon, and spray painted it pink. Then, I found someone on Etsy who would make me bath bombs the size of a gum ball to fill it up. If I have any type of legacy, please let it be for this.

Tie-dye totes filled with proseccco

Although I’d love for Galentine’s Day to last forever, it can’t and so I wanted to be sure to send my friends home with a little treat to help the party live on. I ordered tie dye wine totes from one of my favorite Etsy shops, BFFS & BABES (which you can shop here) and filled them with mini bottles of La Marca Prosecco.