Some how “gorgeous” hardly even seems an adequate enough word to describe this amazing Wonderlandia table design by Carolyn of The Special Day!

Tasked with creating a tablescape {for our Glue Dots Tablescape Exhibit} that would appeal to the “big” kids (occasion: Adult Birthday Party), Carolyn truly brought the spirit of wonderland to life with this moss-covered table adorned with “flowering” tea pots, whimsical cake centerpieces, fabulous giant fabric flower chair backs, and more! The place settings were even elevated with wide upside down glass vases… because as she notes in the creative details below… anything goes in Wonderlandia!

There’s so much inspiration to be found here for all sorts of “wonderland” themed celebrations…I especially love how one of the tea pots is displayed atop moss inside a glass cake dome – this would make for a great stand-alone centerpiece for a bridal/baby shower…. and the “Drink Me” tags adorning the wine glasses makes the sparkling mango drinks look even more tempting!

Read on for LOTS more gorgeous images + all the creative details…

CREATIVE DETAILS, as told by Carolyn…

“I was completely giddy with excitement when a personal invitation from Jenn came in asking me to be one of the 5 tablescape designers for her Wonderlandia themed launch party for the brand new Hostess with the Mostess site! The specific occasion I was assigned would be for an Adult Birthday, but had the freedom to give our personal touches & unique vision as to how we would translate the specific occasion with the theme. I was even more excited when I found out who the other lovely, talented & creative ladies taking part in the exhibit were!

The invitation design by Jenn was a very large part of the inspiration for my table. It was “Wonderland” sort of meets Andy Warhol – very pop & modern with the bright vivid colors in orange, red, fuschia pink, with accents of yellow, green, and even gray! I had to consider the options… do I go with “old school” Alice in Wonderland or go for a more modern look, with inspiration from the latest Disney rendition. After a pow wow with the brain child of the entire event (Jenn), I decided to go with a very whimsical & modern look.

The entire table was covered in moss, inspired by when Alice first enters Wonderland. I thought, why can’t guests dine on a table full of moss? It seems unrealistic, except for in this case – anything goes in Wonderlandia! The place settings were raised with glass vases turned upside down – as you wouldn’t really want to have moss in your food! Then I thought, why yes, the cakes should be the centerpiece of the table… after all, it’s a birthday party! So Stephanie & Sara of Cupcakes Couture took the design & inspiration, and made 3 amazing Wonderlandia cakes! The cake of course said “Eat Me”.

After scouring the aisles of Cost Plus and Marshall’s, I found the modern style tea pots I wanted. I even found tea cups that said “It’s good to be queen”. (So no poker cards in this design, but just had to incorporate the Queen somehow!) I asked Nisie of Enchanted Florist to fill the tea pots & tea cups with very large blooms of flowers, as overgrown as possible – including GORGEOUS Dahlias, Roses, the cutest Teddy Bear Sunflowers! Continuing with the very large blooms of flowers, Wildflower Linen designed the table linen to include rosettes of giant fabric flowers, and chair back covers with a flower bloom that was 18” wide! I loved these chair covers!

Each place setting had the cutest modern, die cut menu cards designed by Adrienne of Cherish Paperie. The lovely Jennifer Sbranti and Amber Lay of Hostess with the Mostess and Leila Khalil of Be Inspired PR were all invited to this Wonderlandia birthday party – as their place card indicated!

No adult birthday party would be complete without some festive adult drinks. Displayed on an acrylic stand as a side table, I had Pop Champagne (which the bottle if fuschia pink) with champagne glasses, and “Drink Me” tags, also designed by Cherish Paperie.
In keeping with the color scheme, we incorporated sparking mango beverages for beverages.

Thank you to Hostess with the Mostess for this amazing experience… I hope that my design will be a source of inspiration to the “big kids” wanting to enter Wonderlandia!”

MEET CAROLYN CHEN:

Carolyn’s passion for celebrations led her to transition from an established management career with a Global Fortune 500 corporation and launch The Special Day, a full service event planning and design company. Since 2001, Carolyn has been recognized for her planning and event management expertise, conceiving inimitable design concepts, and placing priority on providing clients with the most personalized experience. Carolyn’s events are showcased internationally and repeatedly featured in leading weddings & lifestyle media including: Hostess with the Mostess, Style Me Pretty, The Bride’s Café, Green Wedding Shoes, Grace Ormonde Wedding Style Magazine, The Bride & Bloom Magazine, Inside Weddings Magazine, and The Knot Magazine.