So for those of you who know me, you might know how much I love entertaining! Yes, I run around like a chicken with my head cut off leading up to the party/dinner/event – but I love every single second of it! I love figuring out the theme, the menu, the decor and it makes me so happy to see everything come together and have all of the guests enjoying themselves!

This past weekend, I headed down to Destin, Florida to play hostess for one of my best friend’s bachelorette parties. The theme – pink and sparkles, the bride-to-be’s favorite things in the world! Seriously, she opens her suitcase everything inside is pink and/or glittery!

For weeks, I scoured my cooking magazines, my recipe box and Pinterest to come up with the perfect items to make. I searched for fun things for her to wear and for some fun things for the rest of the crew (like pink glow in the dark cups for going out!). I decorated the condo with some fun pink, black and sparkly stuff – but a lot of stuff was concealed until the surprise shower!

So after lunch on Friday the plan was to get some sun at the beach and then head in around 4 for the shower. Well, mother nature had other plans and decided to literally rain on our parade – so we pushed things up a bit – so I made Jen hide in a bedroom so we could set up!

A pink satin piece of fabric covered the refreshment table and was scattered with black, pink and clear rhinestones. I made butter cake cupcakes with pink cream cheese frosting (with silver sparkles of course) and just cut some watermelon to  put on a platter with blackberries and raspberries for more of the black and pink theme. I also made a delicious Watermelon Honeysuckle Spritzer to drink (and, well, it was pink!).

I also found a cute shop on Etsy that does handmade soaps! I got lingerie shaped ones that were wedding cake scented – and had them individually wrapped and labeled as favors for the girls.

I was horrible about taking photos of the cooking process (I woke up at 5:30am, drove 4 hours and was on the go until the guests arrived!) but my darling friends did manage to capture some of the set-up – including the yummy recipe I will share with you today!

Pink Vanilla Popcorn (serves 8-10)

3 bags light microwave popcorn

8 oz. good-quality vanilla melting wafers (I purchase mine at a local baking supply store)

Red food coloring (or color of choice)

Silver sprinkles

Heat water in a double boiler to medium heat and reduce to medium low. You do not want the water to boil.

Add 8 oz. of the wafers to the double boiler. Let sit for a few minutes until the wafers start to soften. Using a rubber spatula, stir wafers around until melting.

In the meantime, cook your popcorn in the microwave. If you are like me – it is very difficult not to eat half of it right away! Remove any kernels that were not popped.

Add popcorn to a large bowl or a cookie sheet.

When your wafers have melted, reduce heat to low and be careful not to stir too much or it will thicken. Add a few drops of food coloring and stir until blended. You can always add more – but you can’t take away, so  just add small amounts until you get to your desired color!

Remove melted wafers from heat and add a few dollops at a time to popcorn, stirring to coat the popcorn with your hands (I know it’s messy, but trust me – it’s easier!) and repeat until all of the popcorn has been coated.

Spread into a thin layer on wax paper and dust with sprinkles. Let cool at least 1 hour. Break apart and store in air-tight container until ready to serve!

It’s the perfect blend of salty and sweet and it’s super easy to customize for a party since you can make it in whatever colors you want! Perfect for the rapidly approaching football season, or just for a weekend with your best girl friends…