Happy {Camping} Weekend!

This weekend we are headed somewhere near here: 

With only what I can carry on my back.

Wish me luck!

These two guys?

They can't wait!

Hope everyone has a fabulous holiday weekend! 

I am Loving: Red & White Country Table

How do I love this red & white table from Project Wedding?

Let me count the ways...

1. The strawberry trail is genius.  So simple and fun.  This is for a wedding, but this would be great for any number of parties: kids birthday (let the little ones gobble them up!), a Memorial Day (or any summer weekend!) barbeque, or a country-style wedding.

2. The napkin, silverware, and name card on the ball jar atop the plate.  Oh so cute!

3.  Multiple shapes of sizes of jars holding white blooms. I. Love. That.

Doesn't this sweet table just make you happy?

I am Loving: French Fry Cones

A perfect addition to any Memorial Day Barbeque:

Wire french fry and burger baskets from Crate & Barrel.  They are selling the cute red, white & blue liner papers too!

Wouldn't a few of these down the center of your backyard table be perfect this weekend?

Of course, you don't have to shell out a lot of dough to display your fries:

Even paper cups can be cute & add color to your table-- like these that Martha used. 

(the ones in this picture are carrot fries...I'm skeptical of this. One should not mess with french fries in my opinion.)

Image via Intimate Weddings Blog
This is another easy way to serve fries, for a slightly classier affair.  Pre-dipped in ketchup.  Or ranch, or barbeque saurce, or whatever you desire. :) 

Remember my friend Katie's Superbowl french fry cones? These would be easy to recreate in red, white, and blue for this weekend. 

Sunday Brunch & Yummy Breakfast Muffins

My friend Johanna came to visit this weekend & we got together this morning for brunch. 

My friend Lindsay's cute little brunch set-up.  (You may recognize the napkins from here. Yep, we bought them together!)

We had lots of yummy food: Mimosas, a potato frittata, fresh berries, yogurt, Lindsay's homemade granola, bacon, and these delicious breakfast muffins:   

These were so easy to make! Based on the recipe I found here. 

Cheddar Chive Muffins
Boil 1 1/4 cup milk in a sauce pan.  Stir in 3/4 cup mashed potato flakes. Remove from heat.
In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 egg, 1/3 cup vegetable oil, and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Add cooled potatoes and mix.
In a smaller bowl, combine 1 2/3 cup flour, 3 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp minced chives, 1 tbsp minced parsley, 2 tsp baking powder, and 1 tsp salt.
Add mixture to the large mixing bowl and stir until just moistened. (The batter is very thick.)
Fill 12 greased muffins tins.
Bake 20 minutes at 400 degrees. 

I'd like to introduce...

...my  new favorite toy! 

I am so happy with my new Kitchenaid Mixer. With all the baking I do around here, its about time!

For its inagural mix, I made some yummy cupcakes: 

And how cute is this little stand? It's my latest Home Goods purchase.  They had a bright red one too, which was adorable. I thought I'd get more use out of this guy though.  

This stand is crying out for a sunny barbeque...Bring on the sun! 

Real Party: Pat the Bunny Baby Shower

I have the cutest real party the share today!  You may remember this adorable school shower that I shared earlier. 

Well, she's at it again. The hostess behind this beauty, Whitney Smith, was kind enough to let me share some pictures of her party. 

Pat the Bunny was one of my favorite books as a child.  Do you remember it?  This whole shower was based on that classic children's book. You've got to click on this collage to see the amazing detail up close.  And then hop on over (cheesy pun completely intended) to read up on the details at Whitney's. 

Browsing around Whitney's blog, I also found this: 

These are just some of her collection. And then I died of jealousy. 

Definitely check out her blog...some great photography and party inspiration!
Thanks again Whitney! 

Inspiration Board: Angel Baby Shower

One of my readers, Makeba, contacted me recently and asked for some inspiration for a baby shower. She was considering the theme "Heaven Sent an Angel".  So sweet!

 I agreed with Makeba in that mostly-white event would be perfect for this theme. Hints of silver would be nice also. I think there should be just a hint of angels to keep the decor classy. 

Here's some fun items I've found. 

The angel wing invitation was for Kourtney Kardashian's baby shower, and it is definitely classy.  Something similar could be made in pink for a baby girl, or in white or silver for if the gender is not known.  

If you've been reading this blog, you know how I love a children's book for a guest book.  The Littlest Angel would be perfect for this shower! 

I am completely in love with this idea for a party favor! Heaven body lotion.  It's a Gap lotion, but I couldn't find it on their website. Luckily I found it on Amazon.  There is also a entire line by Victoria's Secret of lotions and perfumes named Dream Angels. It would be worth checking the store for sample sizes to use as favors.  Lotions would be cute wrapped in white tulle and tied with a ribbon. 

I love these cupcakes with angel wings. Or serve angel food cake, just be sure to label it!

White party poms are a must for this party! This one is from Pom Love on Etsy. Or a DIY tutorial is here.

Amy Atlas's famous white dessert table...simply beautiful.

Sweet onsie with angel wings from Etsy.

White candies and desserts, by Martha and Sugarcoated Events, can serve as decorations, food, and party favors. 

Inspiration Board: Sunshine Baby Shower

It's common to look to the nursery for inspiration for a baby shower theme. 

I think the nursery serves as a starting point, but a hostesses doesn't have to take the nursery decor too literally.  

For example, for a nursery decorated with yellow accessories, I've put together some inspiration for a Sunshine-themed shower.

Sunshine yellow baby blanket from Etsy. A nice gift, or use it to wrap your gift to the mom-to-be!

A table with yellow accessories, including the obligatory party poms!

Sunflowers and sunflower cupcakes are perfect for this theme.

I love using a childrens book to double as a guest book & gift to the mom-to-be (have guests sign the inside cover).

Bake it Pretty has many choices for fun yellow baking cups.

This cute little sunshine outfit gift set, the mom-to-be is sure to love!

Adorable boxed invite, in the color of the day!

Yellow star fruit adorned drink cups are a must! The recipe for this fruit punch is here. Hostesses should make a virgin batch also for any expecting guests...and the guest of honor. 

I love these sunshine prints from Etsy.  A great decoration, which could double as a gift. 

Who doesn't love lemon bars (especially these by Bakerella)?

Perfect napkins! 

Yellow flips flops would make a perfect party favor...and these from Old Navy are perfectly affordable.  Wouldn't they be cute in cellophane bags, tied with a yellow ribbon?

These elements definitely add up to a happy baby shower!

American Cupcake: Cuteness Overload!

I checked out a brand-new cupcake shop in my area today: American Cupcake.

image via

It was ADORABLE. 

Some of the cutest scenery I've seen in awhile: 

There was an area behind the counter lined with colorful, sugary toppings and sleek Kitchenaid mixers, where they whipped up frosting right before our eyes. 

Employees were swirling frosting on little cakes from giant piping bags. 

The lighting was gorgeous. 

Even the retro glass bottles of water were adorable.
They serve other food too. Including an entire menu page dedicated to different peanut butter sandwiches (you can request to have your crust cut off!) 

There was a funky photo booth & a cotton candy machine! 

I thought I was in heaven!

Oh, and most importantly: the cupcake was delicious. :)
We are talking to them about the possibility of renting the space out for a party. Eek! I can't wait! 
Happy {Cupcake} Friday!

My First Blog Conference!

I'm so excited!! 

I think you all should come too! San Francisco is a great city to visit. ;)

I've been reading about blogger's experiences at Bloggy Boot Camp in other cities, and I think its going to be a fabulous day!

Shower Kit: Spring Bridal Shower

I was recently asked to adapt one of my shower decor kits for a bridal shower, rather than my usual baby shower kits.

My client had a few requests, but the primary one was that the decor items match these napkins that she and her fellow hostess had fallen in love with: 

Great colors for spring, don't you think?

Here is what I made for the party:

A custom party banner: Congratulations Jillian & Aviad

Party favors: chocolate bars with custom labels

Custom confetti: spring flowers

The last item the hostess requested were advice cards for guests to write marriage advice for the bride-to-be. 

And I found the cutest little photo album for the bride-to-be to keep all her advice cards in after the shower! Isn't it perfect?

Congratulations Jillian!
I can't wait to see how the party turns out!

Creative Centerpiece Ideas

I found some very creative ideas for centerpieces on Rachael Ray's magazine site: Everyday.  

These are made from Jello! 

There are so many possibilities for this: So many colors, so many fillers. 

Perfect for a kids party.  The DIY instructions are here.  

Costume (or any brightly colored) jewelry clustered in cocktail glasses. 

Perfect for a bachelorette party, girl's dinner, little girl's birthday party, etc. So fun!

The DIY instructions are here. 

Topiaries made with shredded paper.  Put all the scraps from that paper shredder to work!

These all-white beauties are perfect for winter.  A bright, multicolored version would be perfect for kid's party. 

The DIY instructions are here. 

Topiaries made with colored pencils! Too cute!

Perfect for a kid's party. Especially one of the rainbow parties I've seen around lately. 

The DIY instructions are here. 

Potted asparagus bundles.  

Nice for a rustic, earthy meal. 

The DIY instructions are here. 

Thanks to Rachael for all the ideas! :)

Happy Mother's Day!

I saw this link on Entertain Exchange, and thought I'd re-post it it in honor of Mother's Day.

Such a cool site! Check it out!

Looks like its going to be made into a book.  Wouldn't this be a great baby shower gift? Or use it as a guest book for a shower, like I suggested here. 

Happy Mother's Day!

Guest Post: Baby Shower Inspiration Board

I've got a guest post up at My Insanity!

It has a cute inspiration board for a baby shower...here's a hint: 

image via

Come check out all the details!
Thanks again to Kendra for having me. :)

Operation Shower

Obviously I love me a baby shower.

And I love love a baby shower for a good cause. Operation Shower is just that. This organization throws a baby shower for moms-to-be whose partner is deployed with the military. Isn't that fabulous?

I first learned about this great organization last year, as I read this blog and this blog. (Two of my favorites!)  I remember drooling over the stylish details in this post about last year's A is for Apple theme. 

Well, this year's theme was: 

Brilliant, right?
The shower took place last weekend, and I am dying to see the professional pictures of the day! 
Amy, of Stem Parties, posted this video today.  She asked that others post it too to help spread the word!

You can donate to Operation Shower here. 

I am Loving: Personalized Wine Bottles

I am seriously in love with this website I recently discovered: Personal Wine.

It allows you to personalize the label on a bottle of wine. 

They have several cute label choices for different occasions where you can personalize the text. 

Here's my favorite Mother's Day choices: 

Or, you can use the site to design your own unique label.
I made a few quick ones to see how it worked.   So easy!

I made this one with the site's tools. 
(And yikes! it is coming up soon -- maybe I really will order this one!)

I made this one with a design program, and then uploaded it to the site. (Oh how badly I wish I was still poolside like in this photo...) 

The best thing is that the minimum order is just one bottle.  Bottles start as low as $20! 

I think this is such a fun and creative gift idea.  

Think of all the possibilities: hostess gifts, bridesmaid gifts, housewarming gifts, welcome baskets for a wedding, OR customize a bottle to match and event you are throwing! A picture of the couple on the champagne bottle at an engagement party? So cute! (Yes, they have champagne too!)

PS I am not being compensated to write about this website, I just think its great!

BBQ Season!

It is officially barbeque season in our area and I could not be happier about it! 

We kicked it off with 2 barbeques in our backyard this weekend...Saturday and Sunday. 

image via

I wanted to share some of my favorite items to make a barbeque in my backyard run more smoothly. 

My white melamine dinner plates.
They are perfect for outdoor dining: sturdy & dishwasher safe.  If someone drops one, it will survive.  Mine are from Crate & Barrel Outlet, but I've seen them many different places.  There are lots of fun patterned versions, but my white ones go well with any table linens I decide to use.  More "green" than paper plates too! 

My silverware basket. 

I picked this up at Home Goods.  For a casual barbeque, I put silverware in the basket and let people grab what they need. I think the basket looks cute on the table or food buffet, and its so much easier to carry everything to the backyard in a basket.  It has a slot for napkins too.

Trays. 
I have a few trays, one is similar to this wicker one from Target.  They are great for carrying food or dishes to the backyard.  More stylish to carry buns out on a tray, then in their plastic bag, don't you agree? 

Here's to many more barbeques this season! :)