Last week my boyfriend and I decided to have a Fourth of July get-together at our apartment in Downtown Los Angeles. The idea was to invite our friends over for an evening gathering with food, drinks, music, and of course fireworks!
Setting the Summer Vibe
I wanted to set up a pretty holiday display so I considered my centerpiece options. I decided on a white ceramic pineapple cookie jar that goes great with my kitchen table and a silver placement that resembled nautical rope, but with an elegant twist. I added seashells around the centerpiece to carry out the summer vibe.
Food and Decor
The idea to have this get-together was last minute, so there wasn’t a lot of time to plan. I kept the shopping to a minimal and stopped at a few stores (Target, Whole Foods, Daiso Japan, and Nordstrom Rack) to pick up the party essentials. I put out a few trays with a variety of cookies and whoopie pies, popcorn, truffled almonds, chips, and salsa. Our guests also brought drinks and mouthwatering dishes. My friend Audrey made the most delicious red velvet cupcakes, and a feta cheese, tomato, and barley salad.
Red, white and boozed paper plates, and popsicle napkins: Nordstrom Rack | Flag paper plates and flag umbrellas: Daiso Japan | Cookies and whoopie pies: Whole Foods | Popcorn and chips: Target | Red velvet cupcakes: The Gilded Kitchen
Silver serving bowl: Target | Flag tree, paper cups, and straws: Daiso Japan | Ice cream bottle opener: NOD Products | “Pop, Fizz, Clink” corkscrew: Walgreens | Ice Bucket: Target | Fruit Garland: Terrain
Homemade red velvet cupcakes: The Gilded Kitchen
Homemade salad: The Gilded Kitchen
Time to Celebrate!
Our guests arrived around 6pm and we started the evening by listening to A Girl in LA’s 4th of July curated playlist–The Beach Boys, Creedence Clearwater, Jimi Hendrix, Lana Del Rey, and Tom Petty. We poured plenty of drinks and filled up on the tasty treats. We had a variety of hard alcohol, and mixers like pineapple juice (my favorite mixed with Tequila), orange juice, and soda water. We also served beer, wine, wine coolers, and for those that didn’t want alcohol, Red Bull and soda. Later on in the evening we took our drinks downstairs to the 10th floor pool deck and joined the celebration with other residents and their guests.
View from our balcony overlooking the 10th floor
Fireworks with a View
My boyfriend and I have lived in the same building for a few years now so instead of watching the fireworks at the pool like most of the other residents, we knew that were was an even better spot on the helipad. The helipad is on the 17th floor of the building, so as you can imagine the panoramic views are absolutely stunning. We all headed up there around 8:45 pm to prepare for the show that would start at 9 pm. At that height of it you could see fireworks going off all around you–legal and illegal, and it was amazing! If you’ve never celebrated the Fourth at a high rise, I suggest next year you head to The InterContinental, the US Bank Tower, or the Bona Vista Lounge and prepared to be amazed. I’m not over exaggerating when I say it’s something that everyone should do once in their lifetime.
Downtown Los Angeles
Fireworks facing south
What We’re Wearing:
Me: AK 47/LA snapback: Palm Trees DTLA | White t-shirt dress: H&M | Oversized distressed denim jacket: BLVD | White purse: Rebecca Minkoff | Sneakers: Converse
Audrey is wearing mostly Forever 21
Once the fireworks were over we went down to the the pool deck, enjoyed some more beverages and hopped into the jacuzzi. It was the perfect ending to a low-key Fourth of July get-together, spent with great friends.
How was your 4th of July and where did you celebrate?
Wow you did well for throwing it together last minute. Looks like an amazing view from your roof as well, how lucky!
-Jackie (OrganisedMumLife)
Thank you! Yeah, I didn’t want a lot of stress with cooking and what not so I decided to keep it pretty simple. 🙂