The Hostess With the (Almost) Mostest

Did you know that I'm a distant relation to Perle Mesta?  She was born in 1889, died in 1975 and was known as the "hostess with the mostest".  She was an American socialite known for throwing lavish parties in Washington, D.C. involving artists and politicians and top entertainers.  I have ideas...tons of them, in fact, just swimming around in my head.  I have ideas for parties, for dinners, for play dates.  I might have the ideas, but sometimes I have trouble bringing those to fruition.  That's where friends come in.  Social networking at it's best.


Today, my friend Kristen, and I threw a huge "Welcome Baby" party for our friend, Nicole.  She and her husband wanted to wait to find out the gender of the baby and since it was their second, we had a "welcome" instead of a shower.  Great idea, since we all got to hold little Lucy Claire.  Kristen and I had a fabulous time collaborating and decorating for a sophisticated party with a hint of flair.  Our theme was "Oh What a Beautiful Morning" to coordinate with the baby bedding Nicole was to receive.  Beautiful yellows and greens and we added a touch of pink for Lucy.  Flowers, balloons, streamers and huge sunbursts, miniature chocolates, a photo collage of the baby, a mixed CD, delicious brunch, mimosas and lots of girl talk.  (Did I mention that this was a "No Kids" party?  A big "Thank You" to Doug for taking the kids out to the the park.  It was great having adult conversations with my girlfriends without being interrupted by little munchkins.)

I found a blog about a special cake and the moment I saw it, I just had to make it.  One problem, I'm not a baker.  I would love to bake, but I don't have the patience...I also don't have the supplies.  The recipe used a standing mixer, a scale, um, baking pans.  So I turned to my good friend, Nicole G., who makes wonderful cakes (she made Kristen and my shower cake).  Here's a reenactment of our conversation. Me:  So, I really want to make this cake I saw on the Internet.  Do you happen to have a standing mixer I could borrow?  If the recipe calls for a standing mixer, can I use a hand held instead?  How do you use a standing mixer?  Do you have 9 in. cake pans?  Can I borrow a cake stand?  What's a crumb layer?  Nicole:  Do you want me to make it for you?  Me:  Yes, Please!!!!!!!!  Now, let me tell you how I have envisioned it...  

Simple, elegant.  3 yellow roses on top and a row of icing beading along the bottom.

And this is the awesome "Wow!" experience I was hoping for!

And this...

Yes, it's a rainbow cake.  Beautifully simple and deceptive on the outside, 6 amazing, vibrant colorful layers on the inside.  It was spectacular.  And yummy!

So that was the party, in a nutshell.  10 women celebrating the birth of a beautiful new baby girl.  Welcome Lucy Claire!