Tuesday, March 31, 2009

April Fools!

Phyllis Hoffman is the editor-in-chief of a magazine called Celebrate, a specialty magazine loaded with entertaining ideas and recipes. Celebrate only releases four issues a year, one every season. I recently purchased Celebrate Spring 2009 (how could I resist?) I found some great ideas for an April Fools Day party.
Some of the fantastic ideas in the article were:
- Place a whoopee cushion in everyone's seat.
-Set a classic groucho Marx disquise on top of each guests plate
Offer guests nostalgic candies like cracker jacks, bazooka gum, and laffy taffy.
Use ribbon to tie rubber chickens on the backs of each guests chair.
Last but not least bake up some Gotcha! Trick cupcakes
These are cupcakes that look like sweet treats but are really meat loaf pies with food-coloring-tinted mashed potatoes. Gotcha! ( recipe below )

Gotcha! Trick Cupcakes
ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 cup shredded colby jack cheese blend
1/4 cup toasted bread crumbs
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dried italian seasoning
2 large eggs, beaten
2 2/3 cups frozen mashed potatoes
1 1/3 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon bbutter
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 or 4 drops food coloring

directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place foil liners into 15 muffin cups.
In a medium bowl, combine ground beef, garlic, cheese blend, bread crumbs, worchtershire sauce, Italian seasoning, and eggs, mixing well.
Spoon mixture evenly into prepared muffin cups. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until done. Prepare frozen mashed potatoes according to package directions using 1 1/3 cups milk. Stir in butter, salt, and food coloring.
Spoon potatoes evenly over meat mixture , spreading gently to resemble frosting.
Serve immediatley and enjoy the trickery!


Seven Things I Love

I was recently tagged by Chris at Celebrations at Home to list 7 of my favorite things so that those in the blog universe might know me better. Well, here goes nothing!

1. I love my husband Matt, my family and my friends!(Oh and my miniature dachshund Daisy) They are the reason I that I celebrate everyday! Thannk you all for being my REAL inspiration!

2.I love party planning! In fact I have been called party obsessed a time or two (and now you know where my blog title came from) The idea that you can help someone celebrate the good things that happen in their lives, that you can help bring people together...it's wonderful! There are so many ways to express your self through a party..or help someone else express themselves. I love creating a celebration for someone that I have never even met before and then hearing that it is " so them". I would love to have a party every day.

3.Starbucks!
.....and my top five drink choices are:
1. iced toffee nut latte
2. strawberries and cream frappucino with java chips
3. passion tea lemonade
4. soy chai tea latte
5. caramel macciato

4. The fourth thing I love is watching The Office! Steve Carrell is a genius! He keeps me laughing so hard, and all the other characters on that show are so developed and histerical. I can't get enough of Dwight's shinanigans and I am so glad that Jim and Pam are getting married (finally!) and then Angela and Phyllis always keep me guessing. Great show. NBC Thursday at 9:00pm.

5.I have two music loves:
She and Him and Ace of Base

6. Tiramisu........enough said.

7.AND chap stick....is my best friend.

I am a simple girl with simple loves. I want to say thankyou to everyone that takes an interest in my blog and my creativity!

Monday, March 30, 2009

Retro Bridal Shower Favors : Flower pens and notepads

As I have been planning this bridal shower I have realized that I needed to incorporate flowers somewhere since all the colors are so bright and happy and it is the start of spring after all! I always want party favors to be practical so I thought some cute pens and notepads would be good. I got the silk flowers at the $1 store, pens and notepads at staples, and everything else for this project at Michaels craft store. The pens were very simple to make, I just cute the stems of the silk flowers about 1 inch short attached it to the top of the pen and secured it the rest of the way with green floral tape. I decorated the notepads with patterned paper made for scrapbooking ( I used several bright mis-matched patterns ) and felt ribbon. I cut the paper to fit across the top of the pads perfectly, attached with glue, and then attached the ribbon on top of the paper. The guests will get their first use of their favors during the bridal shower for a couple of the games! These were so fun to make and I hope that everyone likes them!

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Sweet Bargain!



I just got the sweetest deal on a beverage tub that I have been eye-balling at Target! I picked up this adorable tub for only $9.95! Oh Target.....I love you. I am definitley going to use it this weekend for the retro-modern bridal shower!

What's Not To Love About Rashida Jones?

Oh how I love Rashida Jones...let me count the ways! I didn't really know who she was before I saw her portray Karen Filippelli on The Office (which I also love) but now that I know about her....I am very excited! I was thrilled when I saw that she made a movie with Paul Rudd and Jason Segal, I haven't seen it yet but I Love you Man looks quite promising.I am also intrigued to see the comical combination of her and Amy Poehler in the new NBC comedy Parks and Recreation with premieres Thursday, April 10th.The girl has chops! What's Not to Love??

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

"You Can Wear it Again" ....but please don't

I have found the best darn book to include with bridesmaid's gifts! It's a book by Meg Mateo Ilasco called "You Can Wear it Again". It's a celebration of bridesmaid's dresses (and the loyal friends who have worn them). Page after page of embarassing fashion trends from over the decades. Your bridesmaids will be singing your praises when they look through this book for not making them wear some of the glitter drenched, poofy, seafoam, or gold lamay dresses spread out before them.Anyone else getting glimpses from the movie 27 dresses? Anyhow.....cute book!!

Friday, March 20, 2009

Adorable Monsters Inc. Party Invitations!

Big thankyou to Stampin' Andy for allowing me to post these adorable party invitations that she helped a friend make for her son's 4th birthday party! They really do look like Mike and Sully! I especially love the googly eyes! Check out her fun blog at stampinandy.blogspot.com!

Happy First Day of Spring!

These are my favorite movies to watch that get me in the spring-y mood! They are all full of flowers and colors, and happy endings!(except for Marie Antoinette....things didn't really work out for her so well....but it's a visually stunning movie!) Enjoy these quality renters, I hope they help to jump start your spring -y -ness!
Waitress
Wedding Crashers
Roman Holiday
13 Going on 30
Marie Antoinette
You've Got Mail
Win  a Date With Tad Hamilton





Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Invitations for retro-modern bridal shower!

These are the invitations for the retro-modern bridal shower that I am currently planning. I ordered them from myexpression.com and then printed the information myself. It was these invitations that inspired the whole theme of this shower for me (along with the spring collection at target with damask print and flowers)I love how the colors give you the retro feeling yet the shapes and lines are very modern. Hance the RETRO-MODERN bridal shower! Will Post party pics when I have them!!

Ideas for a Little Mermaid Soiree!

The pictures below are of a party that Natalie Robles (Little Shindigs) did for a little girls 6th birthday!The tiny under the sea princess's started off with Mermaid makeovers, they applied body glitter, lip gloss , and adorned themselves in mermaid tails and Little Mermaid tank tops. They also went swimming in the pool, and dined around an adorable mermaid table-scape fit for a mermaid queen! Ariel sat in the center of the table amidst a sea of turquoise fabric , blowing bubbles to supply that under the sea atmosphere. Gorgeous party! Big thanks to Natalie at Little Shindigs! Check out her other fanciful parties at littleshindigs.blogspot.com!

Monday, March 16, 2009

Andy Warhol Plates

I fell in love with these Andy Warhol appetizer plates from CB2 when I first saw them! Especially the "I think everybody should like everybody" quote. After all isn't that the whole reason to have a party? To introduce friends and family with similar interests, and great stories. A party is kind of a way to show off your friends, as well as celebrate with them! Celebrate your friends with a pop-art design inspired by Mr. Warhol himself!

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Retro bridal shower Mood Board

The retro bridal shower is getting closer and closer, so I of course have a to-do list and a checklist that is about a mile long. First on the list was to create a mood board to keep myself of track and to confirm the feeling of the party with the hostess. I wanted to keep things young and fresh with retro touches for the 21 year old bride-to-be. She is not as much into pink so I have tried to focus my attention on bringing out more of the green elements of the color pallet I am working with. Enjoy the mood board! 






Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Love is in Bloom : A Springtime Bridal Shower

These are some pictures from a bridal shower that my cousin Ashley threw for me a couple years ago. She wanted to create a "garden" atmosphere with the food and decoration selections she made. I enjoyed an afternoon with friends and family sipping tea and celebrating the marriage soon to take place. Thank you for this beautiful shower Ashley!....Enjoy the pictures everyone!
The words in the picture (below) read:
Roses are red, violets are blue
Matt popped the question, and Sara said "I do!"
Please take a "Love is in bloom" favor
Picture (below) of the "Love is in bloom" favors