This month's Creative Collaborative with West Elm Birmingham is one to satisfy your taste buds. We teamed up with Oli.O and Birmingham Breadworks to bring you a taste of what our city has to offer as far as specialty food goes.
Nestled in Mountainbrook Village, Oli.O is family owned and operated. They specialize in selling premium olive oils and balsamic vinegars imported fresh from around the world. They opened their doors in November 2013 to offer a novel way to bring healthy eating to your table without sacrificing taste. Importing their Extra Virgin Olive Oils from both hemispheres provides their customers with the freshest product available and their Aged Balsamic Vinegars come directly from Moderna, Italy. Stop by and take advantage of the free tastings & meet this adorable family!
Birmingham Breadworks is a partnership between renowned baker Corey Hinkel & engineer Brooks Taylor. Their bread is best known by the regulars of Pepper Place farmer's market and is fast on it's way to becoming the talk of the town. Most of their breads are simply flour, water & salt which means you known what you are getting. No preservatives & all natural. That's the way it should be. Compound that with their support for the local community and you have a solid business model. We loved spending an afternoon in their simplistic space for this month's shoot. The worn plaster walls were the perfect backdrop to our Tuscan-esque inspired dipping party.
As we gathered products from West Elm for this shoot we wanted to keep things simple & let the food be the star. We choose a palette of whites, grays & blacks with wooden accents. A simple, yet refined look for any style. Foraged greenery added a nice touch against the plaster walls. Wine served in a glass carafe from West Elm ensures you are getting the best sip of you favorite red.
Working with the Oli.O staff we selected four options for dipping. Two were olive oils, Organic Garlic and Herbs de Provence. The other two were Picual olive oil paired with Fig balsamic & Lavender balsamic. To give guests an easy way to distinguish between the varieties we asked artist Amy Stone to create custom labels. Coffee stained paper and her beautiful writing were the perfect combination. Sprinkles of lavender & herbs de provence also added a nice touch as well as a clove of organic garlic.
Breadworks paired fresh loaves of a French Baguette, Sourdough Batard & Farm Boule to compliment the tastings. Not only beautiful but these loaves also smelled divine. Cut into pieces or served whole with the option of tearing, they are delicious any way you decide to display them!
Amy Stone not only made beautiful labels for the oils but she also went above & beyond and created a custom art piece for us! Her watercolor drawings are organic & fresh just the way we like it!
We hope you swing by both of these fabulous Birmingham stores when you get a chance & after grabbing some treats from them West Elm Birmingham can help you find the perfect pieces for your next gathering of friends like we used here. To shop this look, simply click on the links below for product information!
7. Acacia Plates 8. Textured Dip Bowls 9. Long Wooden Tray (Contact store.)
