Mother Hen Brunch

Mother's Day is in a couple of weeks and what a fun way to celebrate with a brunch honoring the Mother Hen that lovingly watches over her chicks in the chicken coop?! I originally styled this shoot for the Spring/Summer issue of Bird's Party Magazine utilizing the adorable and coordinating printables from Bird's Party. 

The overall feel was that of a rustic farmhouse, coupled with strong and vibrant pops of red and yellow and polka dots. I infused natural elements, such as hay and wood crates throughout the table and utilized them to display the different food and offerings. The use of burlap added to the vibe in the tablecloth, as well as the food labels, which were backed with the fabric and glued to wooden sticks. To aid in standing them up, I decided to make mini burlap bags to resemble chicken feed and filled them with rice so that I could easily insert the sticks. I also wanted to use chicken wire in different elements on the table, which is especially prominent in the frame holding the banner letters with clothespins. The chicken wire was spray painted black and stapled to the back of the frame.

It was definitely a departure for me to style a table that wasn't extremely symmetrical! I found this great post from Chris Nease at Celebrations at Home outlining some basics to creating dessert tables and was inspired by Chris' advice for putting together "eclectic and asymmetrical" displays, which really lent itself to the country decor. I implemented several tips and really enjoyed utilizing my creative skills to put it all together!

I wanted the food to essentially be a bite-sized brunch buffet with a country menu. The cereal bar included fruit and granola toppings inside plastic containers purchased at Michaels to resemble chicken coops.The individual cereal cups were embellished with burlap and ribbon and filled with plain cereal so that toppings and milk could be easily added.

I filled push pop containers from Cupkate's Event Design with yogurt strawberry parfaits and topped them off with fondant hatching chicks!

The ham deviled eggs were displayed in ceramic egg crates from both Home Goods and Target. I re-used the white crate from the Easter Egg Hunt party and purchased the additional red one to add color to the presentation.

The mini egg and bacon paninis sat upon a red, rustic cake stand I had picked up at Hobby Lobby on clearance months earlier thinking it would be perfect for a barnyard party in the future! Mini biscuits and sausage skewers sat upon ramekins filled with gravy to make it easy to dip and eat without the need for silverware.

Hard-boiled eggs were found in a tall, embellished hurricane vase, which also served as coordinating decor. The strawberry muffins were topped with butterscotch nests and fondant hens and eggs. And lastly, strawberry pie pops and chocolate flowers and eggs added more sweetness and completed the table.

Fresh milk and orange juice were offered on a separate table in glass jars to be poured into embellished mason jars.

The favors were all found at Michaels and included teapot egg timers, whisks and color-coordinating buttons in small wooden baskets for the mothers and the rest of the guests would be able to go home with chocolate eggs, displayed separately in recipe boxes.

This shoot was really fun and whimsical that not only allowed me to play around and step outside the box with my styling skills, but also provided a great opportunity to bond with the Mother Hens in my coop! How fortunate am I to have FOUR generations of chicks in the family?! Wishing all you Mama Hens a Happy Mother's Day! ♥