I am so excited to share these photos from a gorgeous Bunko night I was invited to.  The lovely hostess, Ellen, loves all things Lilly Pulitzer.  In fact, Ellen could literally be the FACE of the Lilly brand….she exudes warmth, kindness, happiness and, of course, preppiness in the way she acts, dresses and decorates her home.  So when she hosted a Girl’s Night at her home, she took the normal informal gathering and kicked it up a few notches!

Using pink and green (with an occasional splash of lemony yellow), Ellen created a lovely dinner and dessert table.  Using blankets and sheets as table coverings, pretty flowers scattered around the house and touches of pastel paisley here and there, everything went together so beautifully!

Even pink dice!!  So cute!

In the back corner of the sun porch, an outdoor umbrella was perched, complete with lighting underneath…it was so unexpected and a very creative idea, don’t you think?

Gifts for the winners of various categories were labeled in little white boxes.  She even framed the cute printed napkins… another adorable (and clever) touch on the tables!

My favorite part of all was that our fabulous hostess asked all her guests to wear white for the evening.  (So very P Diddy of her!)  It was absolutely gorgeous and everyone had a wonderful time.

When hosting an “informal” gathering at your house, remember to:

—> Use what you already have (and what you LOVE!) and then fill in the gaps with small touches.

—> Carry your theme out to the very last detail.  There is rarely such a thing as too much (it takes a lot of decor for guests to “get it”).

—> Don’t be afraid to ask guests to wear a certain color or style to add to the overall theme

—> Wow your guests with something completely unexpected for a sure-fire conversation starter