This Must Be the Place - The P&C 5th Anniversary Party

"Home is where I want to be
But I guess I'm already there
I come home, she lifted up her wings
I guess that this must be the place
I can't tell one from another
Did I find you, or you find me?
There was a time before we were born
If someone asks this is where I'll be, where I'll be..."

-The Talking Heads

Here's (roughly) how it happened:

I started a blog on July 16th, 2006. I wrote about everything: luxury, design, film, old postcards, art, humor, shoes, The Marchesa Casati, the French New Wave, Hitchcock's women, and chicks with bangs...

About five years in, I attend the Rue Magazine party at the San Francisco Design Center, where I mention to Kim of J'Adore Couture and Amber of Amber's Notebook, that... "hmmm, my blog is going to be five years old next month..." This casual remark sparks excited banter and much discussion which then carries over to Twitter the next day. It seems everyone is in agreement: there must be a party. And so...

I email Julie Michelle, who knows everyone, to see what she thought about a venue. She instantly suggests La Boutique - Carole Harari's gorgeous shop near the Financial District. Carole is happy to help.

I talk with PR maven Lindsay Stevens and one of my oldest & dearest friends, Genevieve Roja of Lily Spruce, to see if they can help me figure it all out. They both jump in feet first.

Kim is not only a great blogger, but also a great art director, so she offers to create an invitation which looked like this:

I ask my friend Matt (whom I know through Genevieve) if he'd lend his lighting-designer skills to the event, and sprinkle some stardust over the walls of La Boutique. He agrees.

For more decor, I sew together hundreds of vintage postcards to make garlands, and hang them all over the railings and window of La Boutique. I also explode a few dozen brightly-colored tissue paper poms everywhere. Carole doesn't seem to mind one bit.

I ask my friend Karen (whom I also know through Genevieve) if she and her company, Anju SF, would help out with some retro-inspired nibbles. She searches through a vintage Betty Crocker cookbook and comes up with a menu that's to die for: salame-wrapped pickles with cream cheese, prosciutto-wrapped dates, deviled eggs, and the piece de resistance: miniature tuna & noodle casseroles.

My friend Lee suggests that I create large-format prints of some of my favorite blog posts so that people can read them, gallery-style. I ask her if she thinks our friend Emi will mix up a signature cocktail...thus, Poetic Punch is born: 2 parts Grey Goose Pear Vodka, 1 part St. Germain, & a splash of sweet & sour.

My friend Jamie offers to create some florals, while my sister and brother-in-law in New York City send cupcakes from Mission Minis. I had no idea that each one would be piped with "P&C", which was a lovely surprise.

From the beginning, I knew I had to get Silvi Alcivar and The Poetry Store involved - it's only fitting that a Poetic & Chic party have some poetry, n'est-ce pas? Although Silvi and her typewriter were away, we still collaborated on something special. I gave her a stack of vintage postcards from my collection and she wrote individual poems on them. The resulting mini art/poetry pieces (all completely funny, heartbreaking, quirky, profound, and wonderful) were then clipped to a tree made of wood and streamers - Carole's idea, so that everyone could read them before selecting one to take home.

Julie Michelle suggested I get Erin Dudley to do my hair and makeup, and offered to document the whole event with her pictures. I am convinced that even the most beautiful things are made more beautiful through her lens.

Carole Harari & Lindsay Stevens

Catie Nienaber of Cuffington in vintage Ceil Chapman.

Anna Yu

with Gina Yrrizarry and Jill Lynch of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

Kim Mitchell Stokes of J'Adore Couture in Lanvin, and Elisabeth Carr of Mission Closet, equally chic!

Kim (again!) with Adelle of Fashionista Lab

I'm still all a-glow from this event, not for myself but for the many people who enthusiastically and whole-heartedly gave of themselves to make it happen. Friends new & old gave their time, effort, talents and expertise to help me celebrate, and that is a gift beyond measure. The fact that they all seemed to be having fun while doing it makes my heart feel light.

I've been in a reflective mood with this 5th Anniversary, and thinking about the gifts we're given in life and how we share them with others. I hope that this space and my writing allows me to share my own talents, while it provides my audience with an outlet of sorts - a beautiful distraction during the hum-drum day. I never once thought I'd get to five years, and I certainly never thought so many of my friends would come together and give me so much in return. From the many Fives I received for the blog, to all of the people collaborating on the party. I always knew I had been given many things, but it is my friends who have shown me how blessed I am. I have nothing but gratitude...

All photos by Julie Michelle. For additional photos, please visit the album on the Poetic & Chic page on Facebook.

Comments

[Genevieve]

What a fun and amazing collaboration. Your parties are the reason I do what I do, and it was nice to be reminded that we should always take the time to celebrate our milestones. It was fun getting creative, chalking out the thank you column and trotting out the Lily Spruce inventory. Thanks for being born, Poetic & Chic! Happiest of anniversaries to you my dear.

[kim]

it's so great to read about all the other people who helped you put together this fabulous party, and i am happy to be among that group. i look forward to what the next five years will bring!