death to my youth: how I celebrated my 30th birthday
To celebrate the death of my 20s, I wanted to throw a funeral for my youth. Think moody and boujee. Like all black everything but with pops of blush, brass and neutral too because ya know… fine line between funeral vibes and it going full blown Halloween goth. All in all, I loved how everything came together. There’s no way I could have done any of this without Sam or my mama both of which SHOWED UP in bringing my vision to life. So if you’re reading this—thank you.
And in case you have any desire of throwing your own funeral (or one for your BFF), here’s the deets and some party tips along the way.
the Venue: my house, obviously
the Food: we wanted to do all black food as much as possible while still making sure everything tasted yummy so Sam did as Sam does and killed it. Here’s what we served for some inspiration:
+ turkey burgers | Sam made black brioche buns (using activated charcoal so no one’s teeth turned black lol)
+ chicken skewers with purple potatoes and chimichurri sauce
+ chicken quesadillas
+ blackberry salsa… with blue corn chips
+ charcuterie board… think black and red grapes, cheese with a merlot rind, blackberries, etc. Basically anything you can find that’s dark.
For grazing tables, I always lay down heavy duty kraft paper. Specifically the painters kind you can buy at Lowe’s but this way you don’t f*ck up your table!
the Dessert: we did dirt cake! Sam also found some gummy roses to put on top and stuck some [basically] dead flowers in the middle. Then we did chocolate chip cookie sandwiches with black sprinkles.
the Drinks: if you know me at all, then you know how much I LOVE Evergrain and their sorbettos. When I realized Sorbetto no. 30 would ironically be coming out around the same time as the party, I recruited every one I knew to go get some (because their 2 pack carry out limit really made this more difficult). It’s like Evergrain KNEW about my funeral theme though because the cans were even dark and moody looking too! I also did blackberry margaritas and wine with gothic looking labels. I also bought these smoked glasses from Dollar Tree and just considered them an $18 decoration lol. I also filled syringes of “Botox shots” so we can all stay young looking lol,
the Coffin: shout out to Jesse for making this masterpiece!!! When I saw this pic on pinterest, it was game over. I volun-told Jesse to make it for me and he came through.
the Invites: there’s something about mailing out an invitation that I just love. Maybe it’s the nostalgia of snail mail idk. I always make any party invitation on Canva, which if you aren’t familiar, is like Photoshop for dummies lol. It’s a great free resource for designing stuff.
the Decor: I thrifted, picked some off the side of the road and [affordably] bought everything else!
+ balloon arch off Amazon, then sprinkled some dried flowers into it
+ pampas grass was free alongside the road, the rest was from Afloral.
+ small flower vases, tea light holders… both from At Home. Super random I went into At Home because I haven’t been in one in a long time but OKKK! They had so much cute little tabletop décor and vases all on clearance, which is where I found everything for my table.
+ taper candles were from Hobby Lobby. I highly recommend using 15’’ taper candles sizes to achieve this kind of look. Also, tread carefully with taper candles because we legit had a fire at mine! One minute I’m taking a pic, the next, my pampas grass is in flames lol.
+ brass candlesticks are vintage from Facebook Marketplace but I’ve seen similar at Salvation Army before too
+ black fabric for table runner from Joanne’s
Be sure to do as much decorating the day before at least. That way on the day of, you can concentrate on food + drinks and not be rushing to get ready.
the Outfit: my expensive dress from Shein
the Eulogy: Sara wrote this for me and delivered the speech as eloquently as Moira Rose herself. I put it in here because it’s actually hilarious and she’s witty AF.
“ Hello everyone. Thank you for joining us today to mourn the loss of Natalie’s youth.
As the clock struck midnight on may 11th 2021, Natalie’s 20s passed away. The final hours of her 20s were spent at the beach in the presence of some of her family.
In 2011, Natalie’s 20s began.
Her 20s were dedicated to finding her passion as a medical esthetician, meeting and marrying the man of her dreams and having a beautiful baby girl.
But don’t let her 20s fool you. They were also a decade of mistakes, growth and self discovery.
Let’s all remember her 20s and the time she passed out at the Bedford Springs, which one of the finest resorts, after drinking too much champagne and had to be asked to leave.
We remember her 20s and the time she got lost in the woods at a concert and ended up with severe poison ivy.
This decade was full of clumsiness, always falling up and down her steps, one time with an açaí bowl which splattered all over the carpet and walls. We cherish all these memories dearly.
Her 20s are survived by her 30s.
No, 30 isn’t the new 20. It means a slower metabolism, breast that don’t sit where you want them to and hangovers that are twice as bad.
But it doesn’t mean she can’t still have all night drinking benders, or that she has to stop shopping at forever 21. Fun can still be had. New passions can still be found!
She now fabulously enters her 30s as we lay her 20s to rest.
HERE LIES NATALIES YOUTH! Sweet heavenly Jesus forgive her for she is now old!”
Such a fun celebration of turning 30! Despite the theme, I’ll have you know I’m actually very excited to be 30! So many great things to come in this next decade, I know it!
xx, Natalie