Margaritaville Fiesta 2019

I chose this photo first since it represents the theme.  The total theme was "San Antonio Fiesta."  I made two panels of 36" x 72" each to show the Alamo.  I used an old postcard clipart for the main building.  I found a lot of cartoon mariachi bands.  After an extensive search, I found a sketch of this band and dancer.  I spent hours turning them into clipart that could be enlarged to this extent.  The centerpiece on the high top, is a fish bowl with a smaller square container inside of it.  The straw paper confetti was inserted between the two bowls.  Soaked oasis went into the middle container and fresh flowers were inserted.  I made six of these.  Each high top had a different colored tablecloth.

The live band was on a patio area right by this poster.

Because San Antonio has their famous RIVER WALK, I wanted to include this idea into the theme.  I used my two water rugs end to end.  I had four low top 36" rounds in blue along side of the rugs.

 Here are the two large panels of my version of the River Walk. These were on two of the door panels leading out to the tent.  I have not used balloon poles previously at office parties.  But I found a FIESTA theme lends itself to them.  Take note of the different colored umbrellas in the left panel.  I used four different colors of umbrellas at the party to simulate this.

Since it is TEXAS, I felt the need to include a couple of long-horned steers.  If you follow my blog, you will recognize them as my cows.  I bought two child-sized costume horns for them.

Does this photo scream FIESTA?  I used medium sized (plastic) Mexican lace flags I bought on Amazon. I also put up my tiki bar in the middle of the buffet.  I used my four manzanita trees with battery operated candle lanterns.  I bought four strands of mini lanterns on a string of lights.  I did not use the lights, but inserted the candles in each one instead.  I made wire handles for each one. On the far right you can see tissue papers.  See next photo.

I used two old window screens to make these flower "flags."  I attached ribbon strips in fiesta colors to the bottom of screen.  I actually bought groups of ribbon wands on Amazon and cut the sticks off of them.  I tied the ends in a knot with wire wrapped inside the knot.  I tied the wire onto the bottom of the screen.  I bought large paper flowers on Amazon and tied wire on them before opening them.  Then I just wired them to the screen.

Here is a close up of the tiki bar I made with teak towel racks years ago.  It is actually a TEAK-y bar.  It has a teak shelf that spans the middle rack of the stands.  I put a rustic box on the shelf with 6 glass jars.  Each jar had a different color fork in it, and matching napkins in the middle.  There was a pinata on either side of it.  We ordered mini burritos from a local catering restaurant.  But we also catered a full barbecue meal. 

Here are four of the high tops, pre-centerpieces.  I have a collection of large cacti that we store in the office shed, along with my other props.  In the back you can see two of the balloon poles.

I made two more poster panels of historic buildings in San Antonio.  This is the famous Pearl Street Brewery.  I put them up on the glass panels next to the check-in.

This panel was in the same area, but no one had time to take a photo of it in place.  Here is my hubby on the left and his brother in front of the famous Margarita Restaurant and Oyster Bar.

 The dessert bar started with a runner of blue plastic petals I use regularly for water. It was built around the theme of the River Walk.

    

   I wanted to use boats for serving the goodies, but I also wanted to build my version of one of the tourist boats.  I already owned the large teal bucket.  I made styrofoam benches for the inside of it.  I bought a dozen BARBIES that looked like tourists.  The clients and staff thought this was hysterical.  Please note the extensive work I put into the graphics on the monitors.  These are LARGE screens, so they show every detail.  I had to build the boat graphic from scratch.

The staff had fun playing with the Barbies in the days leading up to the party.

Here you can see one of the boats filled with colorful sugar cookies.  Behind it are 3 dozen cake donuts that I hand-dipped in white chocolate.  I then added confetti sprinkles.  The chocolate dried hard, so they were easy to stack.  I bought the donut holder on Etsy.  I also bought the nice wooden cupcake stand behind it on Etsy.  I used 

nine ounce drinking cups to make key lime pies in a cup.

I used my sailboat to hold slices of pound cake.  The smaller metal boat had diced strawberries in real whipped cream.  Over the years, I have found this the best way to serve strawberry shortcake.  The blue boat to the left of the Barbies held homemade s'more brownies I made in cookie sheets. I converted a rustic box into a dock to which I tied the boats.  I used my grown son's building blocks for the legs.  I added two end posts to tie the ropes to. I served mousse cake on top of the dock.

I tried something new this year.  I had a taco bar.  I found this two-tiered rack this spring at Home Goods.  I purchased the six round jars for another party. The six jars fit perfectly in the rack.  I used sour cream, onions, lettuce, olives, cilantro, and guacamole in them.

I used the large punch bowl I bought for a baby shower to hold the chips.  I made a Velvetta cheese,Rotel tomatoes, and salsa recipe from Pinterest for the cheese sauce.  I cooked it on low all day in my crockpot, then transferred it to a chafing dish for the party. 

 If you are new to my blog, you will notice that I always use aluminum pans under any container using a STERNO.  It makes cleanup so much easier as there is very little mess on the tablecloths.

Because I learned how to wrap 260 balloons by watching a YouTube video, I do these at home.  Then I wrap the poles in plastic bags to protect them until they arrive at the party site.  I bring my air compressor at the party site to add the round balloon clusters.  

 What was the most commented item (after the Barbies)?  The yellow tablecloths.  So, do people really notice the color of tablecloths at a party?  You bet they do.