I have always loved watching the Kentucky Derby and this year, I wanted to bring the traditions and festivities of the Derby to the West Coast.
I got together 30 of my girlfriends and had a beautiful ladies luncheon.
We had a Southern Brunch filled with Fried Chicken, Collard Greens and Peach Cobbler.
We sipped Mint Juleps and made custom Derby hats courtesy of Michael’s Arts & Crafts.
We even had a How2Girl Pink Carpet!
Entertainment Tonight covered the luncheon and I was interviewed by the always beautiful and sweet Southern Bell Brooke Anderson.
Click here to watch the interview.
We had fabulous gift bags featuring: Zing Vodka, Stack Wine, Mane n’ Tail Hair Products, Starlooks Makeup, Jouer Makeup, Nail Art Stickers, Geek Eyewear, Yvette Yodeem Jewelry, Michaels Art’s & Crafts Stationary, Icelandic Glacial Water, Naluda Magazine Cups and Nutri Hair Supplements!
Click here to enter The Entertainment Tonight How2Girl Gift Bag Giveaway Contest!
One of my favorite aspects of the Derby is all of the gorgeous Red Roses.
I wanted to stay true to the Derby traditions so I made all of my own flower arrangements out of Red Roses as well as a 8 ft tall arbor draped in roses.
For my centerpieces I placed my roses in floral foam, added a little bit of Lemon Grass stems for texture and pops of green.
To hide the floral foam I placed rose petals around the inside of the vase.
The arbor was a huge hit!
I wanted to share how I made it with you because I saved about $500 making it on my own and it was surprisingly simple!
Step 1.
I bought three pieces of 8ft tall wood trim. About 2 inches wide by 1 inch deep. I knew my arbor needed to be 8 ft tall by 5 ft wide.
I purchased 3 pieces of 8ft trim at The Home Depot and had them cut the third piece to 5 ft long.
I also bought a piece of plywood that was a foot deep to make my stands.
Step 2.
When I got home using a Nail Gun Compressor I put together the three pieces of trim making my sides and top of the arbor.
To secure them I used two small pieces of trim going across the corners.
Step 3.
I measured my plywood to 12 in x 10 in for my stand and using a Circular Saw for under $40 I made my cuts.
Next using the Nail Gun Compressor I attached the stands onto the bottom of my arbor.
Step 4.
Using Rust-Oleum Green Spray Paint I painted the entire arbor green so that it will blend into the leafs and flowers I will be attaching.
Step 5.
After my arbor had dried it was time to start covering it in greenery and roses. I fanned out my greenery one layer at a time on the floor adding my roses in last then using green floral wire tied them up together. Then I secured my piece onto the arbor using wire and repeated until the sides of my arbor were covered all the way from the bottom to the top.
Step 6.
For the top of my arbor I doubled my fans making one giant piece with greenery and roses going in two different direction and secured with wire. You will need a helper to hold this piece up while you secure it to the top with wire.
Step 7.
Once you have all of your pieces up eyeball it and add or take away roses to make it even and give it the look you want.
This arbor was a great project because it cost me less than $75 to make including the flowers which I purchased at my local flower mart. 2 dozen roses for $8! Crazy I know! An arbor can be used for numerous occasions like weddings, birthday parties, bridal showers, baby showers… the list goes on and on! I had so much fun making it and saved so much money doing it myself it was crazy! Plus it was a huge hit at my luncheon. Hope this project inspires you to roll up your sleeves this Summer. xo
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