Sheila is a dear friend.  She had a (as one would say) milestone birthday, and that called for a party.  Now, Sheila loves the beach.  She grew up going to the beach, and she has a wonderful collection of seashells.  So… we had a beach party.  This was so much fun to plan.

Welcome to the party.  The beach theme began on the front porch with a beach towel and a beach ball.  The chalkboard is made from a reasonably priced mirror that we painted with chalkboard paint.    It is always fun to begin setting the mood as the guest arrive.

A shell wreath from HomeGoods adorned the front door.  I liked it.  I loved it.  Mrs. Ralph added the bow for me.

The Scrabble tiles also brought birthday wishes.

The Wisdom from the Beach sign was also in the entry.  I copied this from a poster that I saw on Pinterest (thestencilsmith.com).

Since Sheila loves shells, I wanted to use shells for decoration as much as possible.  I also wanted the day to have a calm relaxing feel.  This galvanized metal tray was filled with gravel and seashells.  I love the basket wrapped candleholders.

Filling various glass containers with shells was easy and beautiful.

It was fun to think that the shell arrangements could be found in various places around the house.

More shells were in the large glass jar on the coffee table.

This is the dining room before the table was set.  Lanterns (Loaned to me from Mrs. Ralph) and seashells were on the table.  Tropical plants were used to give the room a tropical feel.

This was the table after it was set.  

Just because we were at the beach did not mean we could not use crystal and silver.  White starched napkins were tied with  rope and a nautical knot.  The lacy white shells belonged to my parents.  The aim was to have a minimal relaxing feel, and the table was left bare for that reason.  I wanted to have everyone at one table, so in the end, the table was a little crowded.

Favor bags held sunglasses, tropical print tissues, and bags of Goldfish crackers.

After this party, I am ready to go to the beach.

Happy Birthday dear friend, Sheila.  You are an amazing woman.

Blessings to you and yours,

FYI:  Bags of shells were found at Hobby Lobby (used my 40% off coupon) and Ross Dress for Less.  I also saw shells at HomeGoods.  They do not know me – just sharing.

I will share about the menu and the food in another post.