A Night with Cru

The ladies of Sweetgrass Social want to give a big shout out to Cru Catering, one of our favorite vendors to work with, for putting on a fantastic event last night for all of us! The small plates were delicious and the specialty drinks were amazing! I was running around taking pictures of everything because it all looked so good, and of course so I could Instagram it and use their hashtag for the evening! Around 8pm the party really got started when The Charleston Groove Factory took the stage and played some of our favorite songs! Over all it was such a fun evening and Cru Catering did a fantastic job.  Check out the photos I took below and y'all will understand why we loved it so much.

Save the Dates!

If y'all are reading this, you survived Monday night football; now, it's time to get back to your wedding planning with Sweetgrass Social! Today's blog is all about Save the Dates and some of our favorite and most creative ideas.

If you're thinking about sending out Save the Dates, Sweetgrass Social recommends that you do it at least six to nine months ahead of your actual wedding date. We love the ideas below and hope to inspire y'all to get creative too!

This Save the Date may be one of my personal favorites as it highlights the couple's "tying of the knot". It is a simple, yet adorable way to let your guests know of your special day.

Handkerchief printing is also a clever, but more expensive way to let your guests know you're getting hitched! This is something they can use over and over again, even after your Sweetgrass Social engagement.

Scratch off Save the Dates?! Who'da thunk it?! What a cute idea!

All you have to do for this creative Save the Date is print these little calendars and buy a heart shaped rubber stamp. So simple and easy but very cute!

This idea tells you and your hubby's story to guests without overwhelming them with information. Guests can read a little info about the happy couple, including details they may not necessarily know otherwise. Details like these excite guests for the upcoming festivities!

Monday Night Football: Sweetgrass Recipes For You and Your Man

Cream Cheese Jalapeño Poppers

Aren't jalapenos just the best?? I know so many people that hear the word 'jalapeno' and immediately think 'hot', 'teary eyes', 'mouth on fire', etc. Yes, I know that jalapenos have some heat, but they're really not as bad as you would expect. Especially when paired with cream cheese. It cools off the spiciness perfectly, which was just the case with these little babies! I have made them before and they are delicious! You and your man and will definitely love these. 

Ingredients:

•                1 (8oz.) block of cream cheese, softened

•                1/4 cup minced jalapenos (or 1/2 can, drained, if that's easier for ya)

•                1 tube of regular crescent rolls

Directions:

1.              Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a cookie sheet.

2.              In a small bowl, combine cream cheese and jalapenos - mix well and set aside.

3.              Open your crescent rolls (do not separate them) and lay them on the counter. (After you've sanitized it of course.)

4.              Separate long ways on the perforation, so you have two long sheets of crescent rolls with 4 rolls each in them.

5.              Pinch the remaining perforations together on each of the two sheets (use a rolling pin if necessary) to make two continuous crescent roll sheets.

6.              Divide the cream cheese mixture and spread evenly over both crescent sheets.

7.              Roll them up hot dog style (or from the short end), to make a long cream cheese/crescent roll - do this for both crescents

8.              Cut each cream cheese/crescent roll into 12-16 pieces, depending on how big you want your resulting poppers to be.

9.              Place each one, standing up, on your cookie sheet and bake in the oven for 11-13 minutes.

10.           Enjoy the creamy goodness.

Cheesy Bacon Oven Chips with Chipotle Ranch Dipping Sauce

Cheesy Bacon Oven Chips 

•                1 large, uniformly-shaped russet potato, scrubbed well and sliced into 1/8" rounds*

•                cooking spray

•                3/4 C. shredded colby jack or cheddar cheese

•                salt & pepper to taste

•                2 T. crumbled bacon (about 2 slices) - I used real bacon bits

•                chopped parsley or chives, for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Bring sliced potatoes to a boil in cold, salted water to cover for 5 minutes.  Carefully drain, and transfer slices to a paper-towel lined countertop or cutting board.  Pat to dry.

Grease a baking sheet with cooking spray, and lay out potato slices so they are overlapping on it.  Spray lightly with additional cooking spray, then sprinkle with salt & pepper to taste.  Sprinkle evenly with shredded cheese & bacon.  Bake 12-14 minutes in preheated oven until cheese is melted & bubbly.  Serve with chipotle ranch sauce (recipe below).  Serves 2.

*You can use 2 medium-sized potatoes rather than 1 large.  Also, I like to leave the skin on but you can peel the potatoes if you prefer.

Chipotle Ranch Dipping Sauce

1.              1 T. ranch dressing

2.              3 T. sour cream

3.              1/4 t. chipotle chili powder

4.              1/8 t. cayenne (adjust more or less depending on how spicy you want).

5.              1/8 t. salt

6.       1/8 t. garlic powder

Place all ingredients in a small bowl, and stir to combine.  Refrigerate any leftovers.

His & Her Wedding Chair Decorations

Good afternoon, y'all! Today's hot topic is His & Her wedding chair decorations! When done right, chair decorations can be quite adorable. They make for easy bridal table spotting, theme reiteration, and of course, great photos!

The best thing about chair decorations is that our Sweetgrass Social couples can literally do anything they want with them. We can help you come up with the perfect idea for your chair backs, such as florals, ribbons, banners, and even extravagant decor that highlights the wedding's theme.

What do y'all think about doing this at your Sweetgrass Social Wedding?!

The How To On Welcome Bags!

Welcome bags are a great way to first impress your guests and give them something to get excited about! You can make them for all of your guests as a replacement for favors or just as a sweet gesture saying thank you for coming! Typically they are for when guests come from out of town and are not sure about the surrounding area, hence the word welcome in the title! Just last weekend the girls of Sweetgrass Social were hard at work in the office putting together some adorable Charleston welcome bags for our bride, Missy. For her gift bags she used a burlap bag with bamboo handles and stuffed it with Charleston favorites, a welcome note, and a timeline of wedding festivities.

Inside these gift bags were these goodies...
1. A Charleston welcome guide, courtesy of our local convention visitors bureau!
2. A welcome note from Missy and Dan saying how happy they are that everyone is joining them for their wedding day.
3. A bag of candied pecan pralines (a Charleston favorite!)
4. Benne wafers
5. A bag of stone ground grits
6. A bottle of Fiji water
7. A little hangover remedy kit for the next morning, including a vitamin supplement from the brides mother's vitamin and wellness store.
8. Of course, there was a mini bottle of Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka, made in Charleston and also a part of Missy's signature cocktail!

Here are some other fun examples of wedding welcome bags or boxes! Make sure you add personal touches and the colors of your wedding if you'd like. Have it represent the two of you and what you love!

Ten Delicious Dishes Your Guests Will Love!

These ten delicious dishes have been labeled by The Knot as ones your guests will truly enjoy on your special day? For some, food is an afterthought at a wedding compared to other aspects, such as family and of course, dancing. Wedding food doesn't have to be anything over-the-top and fancy; those aren't dishes everyone can enjoy. Comfort food is always a "comfortable" option! With dishes like these at your Sweetgrass Social wedding, not only will your special day be memorable by the love and happiness you shared, but by the food you ate! Try not to drool, y'all... these dishes really do look yummy!

For Cocktail Hour

For Dinner

For Dessert 

For Late Night Snacks

Bride Tip of the Week Wednesday: Be Yourself!

Good morning, Sweetgrass Social Brides! Today's blog post is all about you, being you and enjoying being you! Our Bridal Tip for this week is a reminder to all of our beautiful brides that your wedding day is one of the most important days in you and your man's life; therefore, it should be all about you and your man!

Each big and small decision you make leading up to this day can and will affect how you feel about not only your wedding, but your relationship and you. Make sure to make all major decisions together - it's important to include both opinions on the important decisions. We all know that some of the smaller (yet still HUGE) decisions may be left for you to decide. Decisions like these are the ones that will affect how you feel on your special day. It's important to choose the best and most comfortable decision for you - this can apply to your wedding dress, florals, design, guest lists and more!

If you seem to be having trouble with showing enough of you and your relationship in the design of your wedding, let the gals at Sweetgrass Social help! Our number one priority is our couple and making sure they are happy on their wedding day. It is your wedding!