Earlier this year, for my 31st birthday, I decided to have a vintage, girly, Marie Antoinette-inspired coquette birthday party. It wasn’t a big party at all, it was pretty last-minute and I only hosted a few close friends. The real motivation behind the whole thing was me wanting to do a fun photo shoot at a pretty hotel (no surprise there). But, I will say, everything turned out even better than I planned. We went to The Siren Hotel in Detroit, which was the perfect backdrop. It’s decorated in a “lavish Italian Renaissance Revival style” and, although it’s not the same timeframe as the Marie Antoinette film setting, it really complimented the vibe I was going for!
Last year, my theme was “RIP to my 20s” and I’ve really become fond of hosting themed get-togethers. Although I do consider myself decently “girly,” my typical style is not very coquette. But, I think it’s so pretty and fun and unapologetically feminine — so what better way to explore it than with a party and a photo shoot?! That’s the best part about being a creator — you can explore different themes, styles, and worlds for your art. And since fashion and content creation are my forms of art, I had a lot of fun bringing this theme to life.
My Marie Antoinette-Inspired Coquette Outfit
If you’ve never seen the 2006 Marie Antoinette film directed by Sofia Coppola, then you should definitely check it out for the cinematography and fashion alone. It has a lot of extravagant lace-trimmed gowns, feathers, fans, hats, and really big hair. I wanted to take inspo from the film for my coquette party outfit, but also make it my own. I decided not to do a tall wig, but I did want to add some pearl accessories, lace gloves, and other more subtle nods. The focal point of my look was definitely the dress! When you’re plus size, it can be difficult to find certain styles… and this one of those situations. Luckily, after a decent amount of Googling, I found the perfect dress at Dolls Kill. After that, it was really just a matter of accessorizing, which all of that came from Shein and Amazon. My little block heel Mary Jane shoes were a great touch.
Coquette Birthday Party Decor
Because the vintage-style hotel was such a great backdrop and this wasn’t a big party, I didn’t get much decor. But what I did get, turned out SO cute. The cake was the best part. I got it custom made by Little Bake Lady in the Metro Detroit area, and this was my third or fourth time going to her. She kills it every time. Other than that, I got everything else from Amazon:
- Vintage floral paper plates set
- Floral triangle banner
- Rose gold birthday banner
- Rose gold number balloons
- Dusty pink cheesecloth
My “After Party” Outfit
Funny enough, I didn’t even plan on doing a full outfit change for the evening becuase we just stayed at the hotel for dinner and drinks. (They have Ash—Bar Detroit and Candy Bar located inside the building, which were both great.) But, my friend Leah and I, decided we wanted more of a sexy vibe for dinner and drinks — and I just so happened to have a yellow velvet corset in my suitcase, LOL. The corset is from Savage X Fenty (sorry, it’s sold out) and I packed it as a possible option for some extra photos. I paired it with a white lace skirt and white chunky boots (both from Shein) that I wore earlier that day and kept on most of my pearl accessories. It was honestly perfect!
