A "Mommy and Me" Easter Brunch Complete with Fun-Filled Egg Decorating

On Easter, Sunday morning comes with a promise of surprises: indoor hunts with hidden finds, eggs dyed in every color of the rainbow, and baskets brimming with toys, trinkets, and treats galore.

It's the kind of joy that is remembered for generations, by anyone of any age. With that in mind, the idea was hatched for hosting an Easter brunch that adults and children could enjoy together. "Easter egg hunts are big in our house," says Royale Ziegler of But First, Party! "Mama also likes an Easter basket truth be told, you can never be too old for Easter candy." She reached out to her friend and fellow hostess Rachel Huntington of Bonjour Fête to help plan the party's details. The two of them have much in common: living in Los Angeles, collaborating with other creatives, and having hosted a score of memorable events together. But the common bond that mattered the most for this party? Being a mom. "The inspiration for this Easter brunch came from the modern Easter partyware collection that Rachel and I designed for Oui Party and the Daydream Society," Royale explains. "We knew we wanted to create a party inspired by the plate design, featuring a giant balloon egg in the plate's likeness, as well as nods to the color palette in the treats and the florals."

They designed two tablescapes: one for moms and one for kids, but set together in a collective space including pretty pastel décor, crafts and egg decorating ideas for family fun, sweet and savory recipes, and baskets for guests of all ages.

Royale and Rachel worked with Made by Alyx to print an invitation that evokes spring: painterly pastels, modern minimalist art, and handlettered writing. The finishing touch was a silk pink ribbon trimmed in glittery gold. 

Flowers were in seasonal abundance. Felisa Funes from Of the Flowers used pink 'Secret Garden' roses, which is a common variety that will "open up beautifully if you let them sit out a few days before your event," as she describes. Her styling technique is called "reflexing," in which you roll out the outer petals of the rose on your thumb to peel them back. The effect is a more bloomed rose, which is a beautiful sight.

For the centerpiece, Jennifer Foster of Black Mountain Ceramics crafted a collection of whimsical pastel vases—each entirely unique, having been shaped on the potter's wheel and individually hand-painted. "I loved the fun lines she created in the color palette," Royale gushes, "and when you stacked some of the smaller vases, they mirrored the other's design to create an egg!" On the tabletop, Year and Day provided blush-colored ceramic plates in a semi-matte finish, and Wolf and Irving provided the mint linen napkins.

At each place setting, more hidden eggs made for a hunt: Illustrator Made by Alyx designed the sophisticated place cards that stood in geometric wooden holders courtesy of Esselle SF.

For a cocktail inspired by cottontails, guests were treated to this signature sip by Bottles and Blooms: the Bunnyside Up. It's a frothy, fresh cocktail shaken with vodka, guava juice, fresh lemon juice, triple sec, muddled strawberry, and egg whites. A halved strawberry topped with teeny-tiny paper rabbit ears garnishes the rim.

And for a more earthy mix-your-own drink, the Carrot Patch: Also by Bottles and Blooms, it's made with fresh carrot juice, gin, tarragon, simple syrup, vanilla greek yogurt, a squeeze of lemon wedge, and prosecco floater.

No Easter celebration would be complete without an adult's favorite treat: deviled eggs. Catered by Olive and Thyme, these halved hardboiled ones were naturally colored with beets, a savory egg filling, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, then garnished with fleur de sel and sprinkled with chamomile flowers.

Guests love creamy avocado and absolutely adore spring flowers, so why not combine them on sliced bread? These toasts were cut from freshly baked seven grain bread, slathered in beet hummus and sliced avocado, garnished with Bulgarian feta cheese and chiffonade of basil, then topped with fleur de sel and chamomile flowers.

To keep little ones from hopping out of their seats, a smaller table was set with fun details. The most eye-catching element was displayed on the wall: a balloon mosaic. Made together by Rachel and Lilly Jimenez of The Creative Heart Studio, it was shaped as an Easter egg and fashioned with a big pretty-in-pink bow.

Meant for crafting and eating (cupcakes made delicious hors d'oeuvres for this special occasion), the table setting featured the paper party goods by Oui Party and Daydream Society in mint green and coral pink, a wipe-clean table, and for the centerpiece: a vase of color-popping picks akin to globe thistle.

While adults could mix and mingle, kids were seated at their own table—making the little ones feel special and giving the moms space to chat freely. To keep the kids fed and having fun, Royale recommends serving kid-friendly food like pink deviled eggs and a few select sweets like frosted cupcakes.

As smaller bites for smaller guests, baker Amanda Faber made a batch of these vanilla buttercream cupcakes piped with frosting and clustered with candy eggs to look like a bird's nest—placed just so—when perched atop each plate.

After the table was picked clean, the children settled down at a floor mat for arts and crafts. They opened a charming basket filled with inexpensive supplies that kept the kids engaged and happy.

As Royale says, mess-free crafts are a mom's best secret: "It would not be an Easter brunch without egg decorating. We employed the help of a Kid Made Modern Egg Painting Party kit for our party, which is a less-mess solution." Wooden eggs, washable paint, stickers, and lots of glitter made it easy for even the youngest to create eggs that last beyond Easter.

Once all of the wooden eggs were given the artistic treatment, it was time to clean up. Kids could take home their own set of colorful eggs in a carton: bright tangerine, lovely lilac, sky blue, and, in a few rare and thrilling instances, shiny gold.

As a sweet finish to the day, baker Amanda Faber made this blush-pink cake, which was met with many "oohs" and "ahhs" from the guests. Vanilla almond butter cake was coated in vanilla buttercream, using a French star tip to pipe swirls and spirals, then decorated with candy Easter eggs on top. (Even the Easter Bunny himself would've wanted a slice.)

Each guests was gifted their own Easter basket of goodies. Moms gushed over the luxury spa items, spring flowers, fine chocolates, and even finer wine. Little ones loved unpacking their treats and sweets, topped with a big bow.

Who's to say that adults can't wake up to Easter baskets of their own? This generous gift is curated with a Neuhaus box of Belgian chocolates, vanilla hand cream from Library of Flowers, pretty floral pencils by Rifle Paper Co., and a bottle of rosé.

For a basket that comes in a sky-blue hue, little boys received a whimsical carrot ornament from Glitterville, a fluffy toy chick, and two Sugarfina sweets: a bunny rabbit chocolate bar and a small box of bunny tails (fluffy strawberry marshmallow gummies).

For a pretty-in-pink basket that's as colorful as she is, little girls received a whimsical carrot ornament from Glitterville, a fluffy toy chick, and a Sugarfina bunny rabbit chocolate bar topped with sugar and colorful sprinkles.

Event planning, Royale Ziegler of But First, Party! 

Photography, Billye Donya Photography

Styling, Rachel Huntington of Bonjour Fête

Balloon mosaic, Rachel Huntington of Bonjour Fête and Lilly Jimenez of The Creative Heart Studio

Flowers, Of the Flowers

Ceramic vases, Black Mountain Ceramics

Tabletop props, Year and Day

Partyware, Oui Party and Daydream Society

Linen napkins, Wolf and Irving

Catering, Olive and Thyme

Cocktails, Bottles and Blooms

Sweets, Amanda E. Faber

Cake stands and place card holders, Esselle SF

​Stationery, Made by Alyx