![vintage car- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/vintage-car-.jpg)
If you are looking for an excuse to throw a party especially with a French accent, Bastille Day is right around the corner. Such fun details (which can also parlay into a chick Fourth of July dinner party) and I got to harbor my inspiration from my dream of living in France. I say every year that I’m going to take the summer off and go study at Le Cordon Bleu but in the meantime I’ll just settle for being a stateside Francophile. This shoot (shot by Nickie Cutrona) can also be seen in Lonny Mag.
![children in garden- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/children-in-garden.jpg)
![cheese side board- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/cheese-side-board.jpg)
Think of different ways to display apps or snacks. A sideboard from our clients home was easily transported outside, and fashioned for an upscale “cheese cart”.
![long table shot overview- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/long-table-shot-overview.jpg)
You may have seen our Facebook Live video with Southern Living last week, here is a great idea/trick to steal- I found a great striped rug on sale at Target, which made a perfect table runner!
![overhead of table- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/overhead-of-table.jpg)
![Place setting- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Place-setting.jpg)
I don’t like using bread plates, etc on table because it can seem cluttered… Here, individual baguettes are preset with vellum menus and tied off with butcher twine for a nice detail. Try playing with flavor profiles in your olive oil- herbs, citrus, etc.
![peach salad- Tara Guerard Soiree/NIckie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/peach-salad.jpg)
![french chalk board- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/french-chalk-board.jpg)
![sunflower cake- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/sunflower-cake.jpg)
A single tier coconut cake looks straight from the French countryside with a solo sunflower bloom. For a variation for Fourth of July, try blue hydrangea blooms.
![table with guests- evening- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/table-with-guests-evening.jpg)
![guests with sparklers- Tara Guerard Soiree/Nickie Cutrona Photography](http://taraguerardsoiree.com/archive-blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/guests-with-sparklers.jpg)