Here in New England, it’s peak apple picking season. In fact, this is the year’s busiest day for all of those apple farms that have spent months growing their perfect red beauties. At least according to my friend Kristen. Our family has no less than six big bags of apples sitting on our counter as we speak and aside from making apple butter and pies galore, we thought it might be fun to have an apple picking party. Not in the fields, but in the comfort of our own backyard where we can put all of those shiny new apples to good use. And the result? Well, it was an absurdly adorable day with DIY goodness coming out the wazoo, all photographed to perfection by our talented friend, Rebecca Hansen.

When Jess, our resident creative genius, was mapping out the details for our party, she was really inspired by a New England, country meets equestrian vibe and wanted to make sure to capture the traditional coziness of Fall picnicing but updated with a fresh, modern design. And she wanted to DIY as much as she could because quite frankly, picnic baskets and fixins are pricey little numbers and we didn’t want to fork over a fortune to celebrate the $12 bags of apples that we picked. And here is what that inspiration morphed into!

A blue and green plaid blanket that Jess already had, a DIY picnic baskett that we’re breaking down entirely in our next post, apple delicousness and dipping jars filled with caramel, walnuts and of course, chocolate…all set the tone for the day. The goal was a mini break of adorableness and a way to celebrate our all time favorite season here in New England.

So here’s the secret of the Martha-esque hostesses around the world. The little something that always elicits oooohs and aaaahs from partygoers and that officially sets your celebration apart from the rest. It’s a little word we like to call branding. Not in the traditional sense of the word of course, but rather in a way that simply means cohesion. This apple picking party is adorable because we branded it cute. We branded the style through our choice of gracefully mismatched details, custom printed labels and jar toppers, twine and calligraphy, vintage ruler trays and miniature apple pies. An intentional, but wonderfully mismatched brand that made our little backyard picnic seem like something out of a magazine.

So today, we’re going to break that brand down for you. From the hand-stitched serveware holders that we tucked into our basket, to the labels and gingham prints that we incorporated into our food presentation and are gifting to you today, we’ve got all of the goodness you need to have a party JUST like this one. It’s picnicking done SMP style and we can’t wait to open the curtain for each of you.

Photography: Rebecca Hansen Weddings