Merry Monday: Pretty Picnic Celebration

Get ready to be delighted by romantic lace, antiques and colorful touches in a very non-traditional wedding celebration. Danni of Hello, Friend celebrated her wedding with a picnic celebration. What made it non-traditional is that they had the reception–picnic–first that led up to the ceremony at sunset. So sweet. These photos taken by Christian Cruz are just a small sample of the loveliness. There is a great photo booth wall, custom sandwich tags and buttons. So many great ideas to use for a garden, vintage or picnic themed party of your own this Spring or Summer. See the full post of this charming picnic wedding.

Doily Detail

I have Spring on my mind! After all it is only a month away. When I think of Spring, I think flowers. As far as home entertaining goes, I think of special brunches. Now, how to put those two thoughts together... (place light bulb visual here!)

I had these small 4" doilies and thought, I bet they'd fit perfectly around my champagne flutes. When I realized they did, I had my girls watercolor a few of them and held them in place with mini glue dots. Don't they look pretty?! I can't wait to dress up a brunch table using this little idea!

Linking to: Tip Me Tuesday

Getting Ready for OSCAR

The fact that there are TEN Best Picture nominations this year can only mean one thing–it's going to be a LOOONG night! Even with the younger hosting duo, James Franco and Ann Hathaway, you're going to need some fun ideas to get you through the evening. There is definitely no shortage of ideas available. Take a look!

FREE DOWNLOADABLE BINGO GAMES:

How About Orange updated their 2010 bingo game providing 12 different cards you can use to play during this year's ceremony (shown above).

Thrillist has a great and funny Bingo card based on random generated happenings, like "An actress hates on Natalie Portman for maintaining her figure during pregnancy." You can print and randomize different versions of their Oscar Bingo card here.

FREE DOWNLOADABLE BALLOTS:

If you're a real movie buff, make your predictions on one of these free downloadable ballots from Twig & Thistle (shown above) or the one from the official Oscar site.

FREE DOWNLOADABLE PARTY DECOR:

The fabulous Hostess with the Mostess has a very generous collection of Oscar themed printables you can download for free. The collection includes the glam glass charms you see above, popcorn bag labels, place cards and napkin wraps.

AWARD-WORTHY PARTY IDEAS:

The Food Network has a slideshow of decorating ideas, like this one, that makes your table napkin look like an Oscar envelope! Then take a look at the rest of their site for some winning recipe ideas, too.

MORE OSCAR PARTY IDEAS AND ROUNDUPS:

If you're really looking to add some star-studded dazzle to your home to celebrate the awards, here are some fabulous ideas to look at. Plus, don't forget the ideas I posted for the Golden Globes--you can certainly add them to your Oscar party.

Everyday Celebrating put together some ideas that includes one using an old Ken doll to make your own Oscar. Brilliant!

Not Just a Mommy has a great roundup of food and tablescape ideas.

One Pretty Thing has not one–by three–Oscar Roundups. See them here , here and here .

Whew! Enjoy!

Truffles Bar

There has definitely been a greater effort to find ways for guests to have fun with food at parties. We've seen a number of cupcake, popcorn and doughnut topping bars... even variations on fondue. Here's a cute idea from Style at Home for a DIY truffles bar that serves two purposes, a fun, self-serve dessert station, but then guests get to put their coated truffles in cute boxes and take them home as a party favor.

Truffles are so easy to make, and you can make large batches at a time. There are so many toppings to choose from: confectioners sugar, sprinkles, nuts, cocoa, cocount, sugar crystals, etc.

Visit Style At Home for the truffles recipe and more details on this cute truffle bar idea.

DIY Gumball Machine

Here's a great DIY if you're having a "sweet shoppe" party. Fill it with actual colorful gumballs for a "rainbow" or "ball-themed" party. With just a few inexpensive items, you can make this fun gumball machine. If you look closely, you may be able to tell it's made with a terra cotta pot and water catcher. It would even make a cute gift for someone's desk. Get the directions for the gumball machine at home to you.

Merry Monday: Camping-Themed Baby Shower

There's a newborn in blogland, On to Baby. Started by The Wedding Chicks, this beautiful blog is dedicated to all things lovely for baby and mommy. This adorable baby shower featured on their site totally jumped out at me. I have to say I've never seen a camping themed baby shower. And I love seeing a theme used in a different way. Plus, being in Colorado where camping is HUGE, I have a lot of love for this theme. There are so many great details. The cake is amazing. I love how they used tortilla wraps that resemble bark, topped with cute props. If you are a camper, this would be an easy one to pull off, because you can use your camping lanterns and gear as props, just like they did here. See more of this camping themed baby shower.

DIY Spring Wreath

We've been getting some pretty nice weather over the last week. It has really lifted my spirits and gotten me excited for spring. Here is a precious wreath to make to welcome spring into your home. Don't you love the little "Bare Feet Welcome" sign? Darling! Perfect for a garden party or Easter. You could even replace the daisies for little shamrocks and temporarily use it for St. Patrick's Day. Capture the Details gives the step by step for this easy wreath.

DIY Lego Pull Pinata

If you have young kids, you've probably gone through the personal struggle of "pinata or no pinata?" for your party. Giving a 3 year old a wiffle bat doesn't always seem like the brightest idea, or even if you do, they can never actually crack the pinata open. (I sometimes can't even get it open--I end up tearing the darn thing!) And unfortunately not all popular themes offer a pull-string version... so why not make your own as Delia of delia creates did! She put together this great Lego pull string pinata. She gives a full tutorial on how she did it. Once you see it, use your hands-on creativity to make one for your own party: a robot, castle, spongebob squarepants, etc. After all--every kid looks forward to seeing that waterfall of candy!

Marble "Castle" Cake

I recently discovered a new sweets blog called Iced Jems. The woman behind Iced Jems, Jem herself, has put together a great resource of tutorials on very creative, different confections. If you follow me on Facebook, I've posted some of Iced Jems' creations, like her no bake raspberry cheesecake. She also has a great how-to on making rose cake pops that made its way around a number of blogs. This one totally captured my attention because not only is it different, but it's just visually stunning. It kind of looks like an ice castle, don't you think?? And it's not that difficult to do. It would make an attention-grabbing centerpiece on any dessert table. Jump over to Iced Jems to find the tutorial on this Marble Cake and have a look at her other creations.

DIY No-Sew Wine Bag

Just because the holidays are over doesn't mean that you should stop thinking about nicely packaging that bottle of wine when you go to a dinner party or other special occasion. Here is a pretty wine bag tutorial that doesn't require sewing from Under the Table and Dreaming. Make a few of them to keep on hand. When Christmas and New Year's do roll around again, instead of the felt flowers, hang a sparkly ornament from the bottle instead. Every thought counts!

Merry Monday: Vintage Red Firetruck Party

Happy Valentine's Day! Bet you were expecting to see hearts and such on today's post?! Well, I figured if you were planning on putting together some Valentine treats, you'd have those done at this point. BUT, in honor of all things red on this Valentine's Day, here is a super adorable Vintage Fire Truck party that was recently featured on Modern Moments Custom Designs, done by one of their clients, using their Fire Truck Collection. I love the youthful red gingham touches and how about those genius matchstick pretzel snacks?! Love it! Jump here to see the original full post.

Valentine Treats (That Are Not Candy or Cakes)

We already received a huge box of sweets from my parents for Renee and Siena. It is filled with everything from heart-shaped Peeps to toy trinkets to chocolate shaped animals. So, the sweets for Valentine's Day are covered! Now, as far as what I'm going to do for Valentine's Day–I'm going to try to throw in a little fun with food for the family, making the day feel a little extra special. Here are a few themed foods that I think will do just that. And hopefully they're ones you'll try, too.

First Column:

• Cupid Clusters from Parents magazine. These would even make a cute little treat for the classroom. Get the recipe here.
• Get lovey dovey with your hot dogs. From Family Fun magazine, find out what the arrow is made with here.

Second Column:

• Luckily, having two girls means they'll pretty much eat or drink anything pink! This strawberry banana smoothie is right up their alley. Get the recipe here at iFood.tv.
• Now, something that you and your significant other can share–champagne fondue! yum! Can't wait to try this one out. A Communal Table serves up the recipe here.

Last Column:

• "Tower of Happiness" is what this should be called! My husband's favorite meal is breakfast and I know this will certainly make him happy! Regular and red velvet pancakes... I'll let you know how they taste! To try them yourself, go to I Am Mommy here.
• Finally... no, those aren't pies... they're heart-shaped calzones! Filled with mozzarella cheese, turkey pepperoni and marinara sauce. I'm sure my family is going to want these way after Valentine's Day! Find the how-to here.

Valentine's Day Gumdrop Tree

I couldn't resist posting this darling little gumdrop tree. So simple and so cute. Just change the colors of the gumdrops to match your table setting, party theme or holiday. Found on The Mother Huddle, get the how-to here.

A Cake With a Surprise in the Middle!

This is one of those ideas that I immediately want to find a reason to use! I'd love to see the look on someone's face when they think they're cutting into a cake to actually find a real surprise inside. So clever! This was originally used as a midnight cake for New Year's Eve, but make a smaller one for a child's birthday with a toy surprise or use it as a "reveal" cake to reveal the gender of an upcoming newborn. So many fun ways to use this idea. Found at Say Yes to Hoboken, get the how-to here.

DIY: Cupcake Liner Carnations

There are quite a few crafts using cupcake liners roaming around blogland, but I thought this one was a bit different and oh, so cute. These were made for Valentine's Day, but use spring colors and this would be cute for an Easter or Mother's Day brunch. Cupcake liners are great to use for party decor because they're so inexpenisve. This craft simply uses pipe cleaners, crepe paper and two different cupcake liners. Get the full tutorial here at Craft, Interrupted.

Merry Monday: A Beatles Birthday

I love this (yea, yea, yea...)! Besides the fact that I was totally impressed by a 5 year old who loves the Beatles, this party is original. Best of all, it's a theme that both adults and kids can enjoy--and they totally did! You have to see the adults and kids jam together. It's so fun! There are also some great details, like the backstage passes, guitar craft, and of course--that cake! I first saw this party here on Sara's Party Perfect. Click here for the full original post at pretty pink tulips.

Weekend Xtra: "You've Captured My Heart"

I wasn't sure if I should post this because I'm not 100% happy with it, but then I thought otherwise since it will provide a tutorial for anyone wanting to make a bird cage for a birdie/tweet/nesting-themed party. And with a few tweaks, it is a cute Valentine's Day idea, so I'm posting it as a "Weekend Xtra." I am planning on attaching two red helium balloons to this and bringing it over to my husband at work (he'll probably be mortified--but that's part of the fun!)

Here's what I used:

Keep in mind the size I made could be used as a centerpiece. A smaller size would be perfect for a bird themed party, and would probably be a little more stable.

• Valentine themed scrapbook paper.
• Styrofoam disk, measures approximately 1 3/4" x 7 7/8" (didn't write down the exact measurement!)
• Scissors
• Two pink pipe cleaners
• Hole punch
• Regular tape
• Glue dots
• Pink copy paper
• Printer

First, cut 3 strips from your chosen paper for the bottom of the cage. My strips measured 12” L x 2 5/8” H simply because I didn’t want to cut off the words. Then print out the words “You’ve Captured My Heart” on pink paper. My final trim size was 7 ¼” L x 1 ¼” H. I used glue dots to position the paper around the Styrofoam disk.

Next: Cut eight strips of paper (I realize there are only 6 in the photo!). Mine are 12" L x 1" W. Then, punch a hole about an inch down from the top on each one. Once that's done, take one of your pipe cleaners and make a heart with the top part of it, as shown.

Hold the strips together, holes aligned, and put the pipe cleaner through them all. Create kind of like a knot to hold the strips in place.

Next: Use a cookie cutter or print a heart from your computer as a template. Use it to cut out two hearts from your chosen paper.

Cut your second pipe cleaner in half, and glue dot them to one of the hearts as shown. Try to get the pipe cleaners as straight as possible. Then, glue the second heart on top. Position the heart in the middle of the styrofoam base and stick the bottom of the pipe cleaner into the styrofoam. Then, fan out the strips to create the bird cage. Hold the strips in place with a glue dot to the inside of the bottom paper. And you've got your bird cage!

Linking to the following parties

Strut Your Stuff Valentines

Saturday Soiree #38

Valentine's Day Link Up Party

Friday Flair

Tip Me Tuesday

Craft Catwalk

Made By You Monday

Show and Tell Saturday

Video Invites

People are getting so creative with their party invitations. I love the surge of video invites lately! I'm not sure if it's because people are trying to save money on paper invites or they just use it as another way to be creative. This one is certainly creative. Here is a great example of a video invite to a knight-themed birthday party for two brothers. (I hope this video works!)



Video originally found on ohdeedoh here.

What U Need: Super Bowl Party

You've got the menu, not here are a few ideas to make it all come together to really make your Super Bowl party SUPER!

From Top Left:

• Give your home a pub feel by noting all the goodies you're serving as a menu on a chalkboard. You can even use smaller chalkboards to label items on your buffet table. Photo source here.
• You know men envy those guys with the white pen scribbling Xs and Os all over the screen to show all the different plays! Give them the power with their own dry erase board! They can scribble what they may have done during the game. Photo found on Amazon.com.
• Look for limited edition products like this Dr. Pepper football bottle that are out now. They're an easy way to play up the football theme. Photo source here.
• You'll get a lot of use from astroturf purchased at your hardware store. Make football cozies as shown here and cut out some easy coasters as done here. Plus, use squares of it underneath serving plates to dress up your buffet table.

Bottom Left:

• Drink tags are a cute way to dress up those bottles of bevvies. You may be able to find scrapbook embellishments to use; if not just make ones like those shown here with some colored paper and markers. Source here.
• Perfect to go with your drink tags and astroturf coasters and cozies are these nice, FREE printables from Green Apple Paper. They offer water bottle labels and tent cards you can download here.
• Finally, these football whoopie pies will score a touchdown at your party! Find the how-to here.

Heart in the Middle Cupcake

Kind of gives new meaning to "take a little piece of my heart"! But these cupcakes are adorable and actually seem pretty do-able. And the fact that it's topped with a strawberry Laffy Taffy frosting is a big plus! So cute for Valentine's Day or just to give a special person some TLC. Get the complete how-to from Bake It In a Cake here.

DIY Tile Magnets

I was looking for a way to display some of my girls artwork on the refrigerator without their projects taking over the whole front door of the fridge. And then I was in Lowe's (of all places!) and saw one of those 12 x 12" mosaic floor tiles--I found my solution! Using the small pieces of the floor tile gave me a great way for my little Picassos to display their artwork. Plus, you get so many small tiles in one piece I decided to make photo tiles to give to the grandparents as Valentine's gifts, too! Best of all, it cost me next to nothing to get about 20 tile magnets!

Here's what you need to make both, the art and photo, tile magnets:

• Mod Podge (I used satin finish)
• Glue gun
• 12 x 12" mosaic floor tile (under $3)
• Magnets (purchased at Michael's with my 40% coupon)
• Started out with porcelain markers, but ended up using Sharpies (do not use washable or regular markers-you won't get solid color and it will smudge easily)
• Color printer

To begin, twist apart the small tiles. Cut off any excess glue with a scissor or exacto knife.

FOR THE ART TILES: Let your little ones draw on each tile. Renee and Siena had a hard time using the porcelain markers (you have to press on the markers to get the ink out) so we ended up using Sharpies, which is a less expensive option, and you still get pretty good color on the tile. After I made sure the ink was dry, I sprayed a very quick coat of Krylon's Clear Glaze over them to "seal" the drawings.

FOR THE PHOTO TILES: Choose a favorite picture. If you have Photoshop, you can play with the image a bit. To get the grainy diffused look I used, open your image in Photoshop. At the top menu, go to FILTER, then DISTORT, then choose DIFFUSE GLOW. Once you've printed the photo, cut it down and with Mod Podge, glue it to the tile. Let it dry. Once dry, turn the tile over and trim the edges with an exacto knife. Then, Mod Podge the front to "seal" the front and edges of the photo. It will dry clear.

Set them all aside to dry. These are just a few of the ones we made. As you can see, we even used the small square tiles to create simple "I (heart) U" tiles.

Finally, using your glue gun, affix the magnets to the backs of the tiles. Once dry, hang them on your fridge, or give them as gifts. The tiles offer a bigger surface than other craft items usually used, like decorative marbles. Have fun!

Participating in these link parties

Take a Look Tuesday

Show & Tell #143

Craft Catwalk