Asiago-Wrapped Spinach & Raspberry Salad

Make a big first impression on guests when they sit down to this salad at a shower or dinner party. Perfect for summer, this salad is easy to make and elegant. Take advantage of summer's fruits and berries to add color to your salad. To find the how-to, specifically for the asiago cheese wrap, visit Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

Free Oprah Party Printables

We all know the power Oprah Winfrey owns, but it was definitely confirmed when the Chicago Bulls had to delay a game because the stadium was being used to tape Oprah's final shows! If you caught some of the previews, the last two shows look like they are going to play out like major red carpet events. Spotted on stage with Oprah were Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise and the now much talked about appearance from Maria Shriver. After 25 years of counseling, influencing and helping a number of people build their careers (Hello, Dr. Phil, Nate Berkus and Dr. Oz!) she certainly deserves a huge send-off.

You can bid your own farewell, and have fun with it, by having some girlfriends over to watch the final episode. If you're a die-hard Oprah fan, I bet you know what she likes. Decorate a table with some of "Oprah's Favorite Things." Use these free printables from Design Editor to dress up the table. There's even a BINGO game for your group to play during the show.

It'll be the last time you'll get to say "Did you watch Oprah today?"

DIY Mad Hatter Table Decor

After being away for 2 1/2 weeks visiting family, the sudden realization that my girls' birthday party is only a few weeks away has hit me like a brick! I feel so far behind in getting everything ready!! We're doing an Alice in Wonderland themed party... however I am trying to steer away from the blue and pink pastel versions you've seen, so I'm still defining the whole look. My other challenge is I'm trying to stay under a certain budget. I don't want to give away too much, but one thing I do know I want to do, is "represent" the different characters on the food table. here's the first one I've finished–the Mad Hatter's hat I made for ONLY $4! It's all smoke and mirrors when you're on a budget. Here's what I used and did.

Materials:
- Party hat purchased at the Dollar Tree ($1)
- 3 foam sheets in light green (.99 each)
- 1 foam sheet in dark green, approx 18" x 3 1/2" (I had this but otherwise it would be $.99)
- stapler, glue dots, tape, black marker (no cost--all on hand)
- Manilla envelope (no cost, had on hand, but otherwise probably not more than $.50)

1) You're probably thinking "that hat doesn't look like the Mad Hatter's hat." Rip out the small insert from the top of the hat, and rip off the bottom rim of the hat. Then, flip the body of the hat over... look better? This will become the foundation for your hat.
2) Here is where the smoke and mirrors come in. Take one light green foam sheet and wrap it around the hat. Secure it in place with a stapler at the bottom. It will come into a V shape, helping to give you the shape of the Mad Hatter's hat in the front as shown below.

3) Cut a 12" x 12" square from another piece of light green foam sheet. Using the small insert you pulled out from the top of the hat, use that as a template to cut a hole in the middle. Make sure to cute off the "teeth" or little tabs around the circle, if they came out with it. Then use scissors to round out the corners of the green square.

4) Secure in place with strong scotch tape as shown below. Scotch tape is not the ideal adhesion to use on foam, but in this one small case it should hold up. Turn it right side up and add your dark green band around the bottom of the hat. Secure it to the back with a stapler.

5) Here is the tricky part. Flip the hat over on top of your third light green foam sheet. Trace the top of the hat, estimating the rest of the top. Then, draw a second circle around that. You are going to cut out little "teeth" or tabs, as shown below.

6) Then tuck the tabs into the hat. What you do next is up to you. Since this will be set on the food table, once I attached the top of the hat, it looked pretty good, even on the sides, so I cut off the unused tabs and just left the back open. You can use your remaining scraps to cover the rest of the back if you want.

Don't forget the final touch. Cut a rectangle from the manilla envelope and write the 10/6 on it with a black marker. Tuck it into the band. I'll be using this to display food in cups so I may leave the hat rim flat. But you might want to play around with the rim, bending it, so it's not so flat. Stay tuned for more DIY projects for the party!

Linking up to

Hookin' Up with HOH

Strut Your Stuff Link Party

Show Off Your Stuff Party

Under $100 Linky Party

Frugal Friday

Feature Yourself Friday

Tickled Pink 504 Main

Superhero Father's Day Printables

I've been loving watching my girls, Renee and Siena, develop their relationship with their daddy. Siena especially is very much the daddy's girl. I guess you could say Daddy is her hero! So when I came across these Father's Day Superhero-themed printables, I was thrilled! We'll definitely have to find a way to use these. Maybe with breakfast in bed, using the Hero Juice label around a glass of his favorite smoothie?? Or just wrap up a bunch of goodies, as done above, and deliver them in a new laptop case?! So many possibilities with these.

Designed by Oh Happy Day for Alphamom, find the original post here with link to templates.

Merry Monday: Fruit Stand Party

I've seen plenty of lemonade stand-themed parties, but this take on a fruit stand theme, not only offers some originality, it has to be one of the cutest parties I've seen! Designed by Buggie and Jellybean, this citrus-inspired party features "fresh picked" fruit and baked goods... and how about that great basket weave cake and handmade fruit stand?! To find out how they made the fruit stand and to see more photos, visit the original post on Buggie and Jellybean!