When Jose Ibarra considered decorating his home for a St. Patrick’s Day dinner party, he first wandered through Michael’s craft store for inspiration. But everything was so glittery. So the San Jose floral designer went to Safeway, of all places, and that’s where he hit pay dirt. Well, wheatgrass, anyway.
“We don’t need the clovers. We don’t need the tchotchkes,” Ibarra said. “It’s about cutting costs and making it work.”
His idea for a festive holiday evening? Friends stopping by for a casual supper before heading off to O’Flaherty’s Irish Pub in San Pedro Square. He calls his tablescape “rustic chic”.
Here is Ibarra’s way of “going green” on a budget for St. Patrick’s Day:
1. Look to your own garden: Bring in a few succulents from the garden as centerpieces. You can even cut some off-shoots and put them in a vase of water. Add kale for texture and color to the centerpiece. Cut some trailing “angel” vines of delicate, tangled branches, and drape over your mantel. Place succulent “rosettes” among the vines.
2. Mix up the seating: Got some strong men around? Bring in tree stumps for seating. (Ibarra found his on the side of the road in Woodside.)
3. Angle a trio of centerpieces. Instead of one central centerpiece, Ibarra used a series of black, rectangular vases and angled them down the center of the table.
4. Head to the grocery store: Pick up containers of wheatgrass for $1.59 each and place them in vases. Grab a bag of green apples and place here-and-there on the table. Buy a dozen store-made shamrock cookies for $2.99 (the kind with the green sugar) and place them on the sideboard on a stack of stair-stepped books.
5. Use flea market finds: Rustic pewter dishes from friends and flea markets add a rich texture and keep the palette simple.
When the evening if finished, replant the succulents in the garden, make a pie with the apples and with the wheatgrass, make yourself a healthy shake. Now that’s green!
Related stories:
Valentine’s Day Decorating Tips: How to Make Paper Roses
Los Gatos: Bianco – A Home and Garden Shop All in White
Update: 
This post is featured in the San Jose Mercury News Home and Garden section here.
Here’s the complete slideshow:
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Hello,
I stumbled upon your site when doing a google search for Bianco in Los Gatos – a store that I adore. Your site is fabulous! Do you have contact information for Jose Ibarra, the florist you speak of? His work is gorgeous and I would love to be able to use him in the future.
Also, is there a way to have your posts emailed to me?!?!
Thanks tons!
Now and then I’ll stumble across a post like this and I’ll recall that there really are still interesting pages on the web. ^_^. Thanks.