Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013 Issue 4

Thanksgiving Celebrations Giving back during the holidays: A special event for Milk + Bookies

Holiday Parties New Year’s Celebrations Chinese New Year Celebrations 1Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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Contents:

October 2013 Issue 4

Features: Happy Thanksgiving from a LITTLE TURKEY Thanksgiving table and activities for the young and young at heart guests.

Styled by Lauren McKinsey Pg: 23

Black Friday Pre-Shopping Party A beautiful party for Black Friday Shoppers with a giving spirit.

Styled by Let’s Get This Party Started!

Pg: 40

Hanukkah Celebration A tradittional Hanukkah celebration with untradtional style.

Styled by Something Events Pg:33

Chinese New Year A gorgeous Chinese New Year’s celebration for everyone!

Styled by The Happy Hour Hostess Pg: 129

Christmas Candyland Party A Winter wonderland party full of FUN bright colors!

Styled by Cupcake Wishes and Birthday Dreams Pg: 64

On the Cover: Snow Princess Baby Shower Styled by Let’s Get This Party Started!

Pg. 50

In Every Issue: Operation Shower Land of Wonder at Ft. Hood Pg: 77 In This Issue: Giving back to your local community with Milk +Bookies Pg: 40 An interview with Wedding and Corporate Event Magician, Rory Wheeler Pg: 84

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Contents: *pg. 7 ~ Smokey Mountain Bridal Shower In Flight Ideas

*pg. 55 ~ Trimmings and Tapas Parties for Pennies

*pg. 13 ~ Real Mom Super Hero Party

*pg. 89 ~ Pink Pancake Party Styled by Melissa & The Pink Orange

*pg. 16 ~ Bee Thankful D & P Celebrations *pg. 20 ~ Gobble, Wobble PreSchool Thanksgiving Playdate e9Wdesigns *pg. 23 ~ Happy Thanksgiving from a LITTLE TURKEY Lauren McKinsey *pg. 28 ~ Les Petitie Artistes Three Little Monkeys Studio

*pg. 87 ~ Holiday Banana Bread Recipe Angie Morrissey Author of Piece of Cake Party Planning Guides

*pg. 59 ~ Manly 40th Birthday The Homespun Hostess *pg. 64 ~ Christmas Candyland Party Cupcake Wishes and Birthday Dreams

*pg. 93 ~ Joyeux Noel LAURA’S little PARTY *pg. 97 ~ H2snOw La Belle Party Planning *pg. 100 ~ Vintage Carnival Peckled

*pg. 69 ~ Naughty vs Nice Elves Football Party Hai Bailes Photography *pg. 73 ~ Holiday Cappuccino and Cookie Swap S is for Sweet

*pg. 33 ~ Hanukkah Celebration Something Events *pg. 36 ~ Real Mom Hollywood Dress Up Party *pg. 40 ~ Black Friday Let’s Get This Party Started!

*pg. 77 ~ Operation Shower Land of Wonder Ft. Hood, TX *pg. 80 ~ Winter Wedding Elegant Affairs *pg. 84 ~ Interview with Rory Wheeler, Wedding and Corporate Event Magician

*pg. 46 ~ Sesame Street Chakoda Design *pg. 50 ~ Snow Princess Baby Shower Let’s Get This Party Started!

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*pg. 106 ~ Cheers to a New Year J. at Your Service *pg. 111 ~ New Year’s Eve Sparkle BellaGrey Designs *pg. 115 ~ Shine into the New Year From Me, With Love Designs *pg. 118 ~ Parisian Art Party Two Sugar Babies *pg. 125 ~ Year of the Horse Space Ships and Laserbeams *pg. 129 ~ Chinese New Year The Happy Hour Hostess

Letter from the editor I can hardly believe this is the fourth issue of EPM. This little venture that started as an accepted challenge is now one of the most fulfilling and rewarding jobs I have ever had.

I have been blessed to make many new friends and connections and I am so thrilled about the path EPM is on!

I cannot wait to be able to share more information about exciting new partnerships and growth for EPM! I am very excited to share this issue with you! It is full of wonderful party inspiration. Please follow EPM’s webpage and social media pages for many more inspiring parties, DIY’s, budget friendly projects, recipes, and free printables.

I love being able to help make your party the party of your dreams. I wish you all the best and party success this holiday season!

I would be remiss if I didn’t take the time to thank a few people as well. They are “behind the scenes” but very much a part of what it takes to keep EPM going. My husband is one of my biggest supporters and fans, always. My kids are constantly celebrating wrong holidays. My friends listen to me stress about how I will get it done, and cheer me on. But, in addition to all of those wonderful people in my life, I have a friend I have never met in real life, that spends endless hours and countless dollars on EPM. She is such an amazing supporter and I am blessed and proud to call Stefani my friend and EPM Intern. :) Thank you all for your support and encouragement.

And, CHEERS to another wonderful year of Everyday Parties!

~Jess 5Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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Smoky Mountain Bridal Shower By: In Flight

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his black bear woodland theme is so perfectly for a bridal shower for mountain lovers. I named it Smoky Woods inspired on The Great Smoky Mountains and a purple palette of colors was chosen to create a bold yet romantic and sweet look. It is about LOVE, after all!

This simple set up can be made using bed sheets as tablecovers and a mix of platters and props from ornaments to a simple picnic basket or an old cooler. Fresh flowers add a real romantic feel to this table. Notice the simple twine decor and the logs piled in front of the table... rustic meets chic!

Desserts included on our bridal set up compliment the color and the theme with black bears and chocolate and purple treats. You can see the sweet details on this shoot perfectly fitted for any bride to be with the lovely hanger and beautiful lace clutch. End the festivities by sending everyone home with an already packed treat or bags ready to be filled. They include chocolate inside for the guests and they have a really beautiful tag created to coordinate with the invitation and sign.

Credits: Styling - In Flight Celebrations Photography - Expressive Moments Invitation and Tags Collection - Blush Printables Chocolate Tree Cakepops - Sweet Whimsy Shop Black Bear Heart Cookies - KJ Cookies Ombre Chocolate Covered Oreos - Sweet Temptations Woodgrain Straws - Garnish Bride to Be Custom Wooden Hanger - Delovely Details Bridal Clutch - Paperflora

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Your ad could be here! email:

everydaypartymagazine@gmail.com

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Real Mom Super Hero Party By: Christina Harvey

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or my son’s 5th birthday party he wanted a superhero party. I quickly began gleaning the internet and Pinterest. My son loves to dress up and role play so I knew I wanted to create capes and masks for all of his guests. I purchased felt by the yard, red for the boys and purple for the girls. I used the template from the “Jolly Mom” blog.

Once I cut out the cape I bonded a no sew bond to yellow felt and used a Cricut machine to cut out large stars and guests first initial. I then bonded these to the capes. Next I made felt, elastic masks for each guest.

My husband helped create the backdrop for the cake table. He used photoshop and made the “Happy Birthday Banner” with yellow stars and stars that depicted many superhero emblems. He also used photoshop to create my son his very own superhero poster that we had printed at our local Walmart.

We used large boxes to create a city backdrop for the cake table and for playing with in the backyard.

The homemade decorations were finished off with a homemade cake. I got the idea for the cake from Cake Central. I love making my kids cakes that fit their personality.

The children enjoyed “flying” through the yard like superheroes, spraying each other with spider webs (silly string) and just having an old fashioned good time playing outside.

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McKnight Photography * Sugar Republic * Gemini Celebrations

Susan Noble 239-233-2205 Susan@partywiththewarriors.org Owner P.O. Box 7286 Fort Meyers, FL 33919

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Bee Thankful

by D & P Celebrations

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f you are lucky and the weather cooperates why not host Thanksgiving outdoors. We did and instead of decorating with pumpkins and turkeys, we brought nature into our Thanksgiving decor with honey bees. “Bee Thankful” with honeycomb, stripes, and mini bee patterns all in brighter shades of traditional fall colors made for a fun and inviting place for our kids to hang out while waiting on Thanksgiving dinner.

Each place setting was adorned with a custom place card, crayons and activity cards. The kids and their older siblings or parents could help play tic tac toe or look for Thanksgiving themed words in a word search. A special card to write down what you are thankful for could be a keepsake. Fill out one each year to read along with years past. These simple activities help keep the little ones occupied while the adults are preparing dinner.

With the amazing aroma of dinner brings hungry little tummies. Since this is a celebration, it’s alright to treat yourself to a mini sugar cookie. Our kids thought this was great and since our little hexagon shaped cookies decorated with “bees” were bite size they were a great pre-dinner treat.

While the adults decorate their table with a centerpiece of flowers the kids table needed something special too. A bouquet of “bee-u-tiful” cake pops arranged in a honeycomb patterned vase made for a sweet decoration and after dinner treat. These cake pops were made with spiced cake, white chocolate and peanut butter melts.

With a whimsical table like this everyone will want to be sitting at the kids table!

Credits: Photography- Sarah and Brad Photography Styling and Decor- D & P Celebrations Cake Pops and Cookies- Astonishing Cakes

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Gobble, Wobble, PreSchool Thanksgiving Play Date by:e9wdesigns

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he thought process behind the Thanksgiving playdate was to unite the fall themes and colors. Be THANKFUL! As a military wife, the way that I stay on budget is to start early and plan ahead. I am horrible at staying on budget because there is always more that I want to add, but by doing most of the prep and cooking it really helped save money.

I spent under a $100 for the entire spread.

The wreath was the start of the Halloween and Thanksgiving color scheme. I wanted to make it simple and just do one for fall and one for Christmas. Which led me to thinking about combining the colors of FALL, HALLOWEEN, and THANKSGIVING which all incorporate pumpkin orange.

For the table spread we had a sandwich table with assorted meat, chips, pumpkin shaped croissants and turkey bread cut outs. The desserts were fall snack cakes, white chocolate covered pears, double chocolate brownies, and orange creamsicle cupcakes. The chocolate candy turkey sampler in the far back were Whoppers, Reese’s Pieces and candy corn. For drinks we had green apple sodas and orange sherbet punch. The orange sherbet punch was a combination of orange shertbet and orange soda mixed together.

For the kids table I decided to take the cups from Dollar Tree and create a cup for each child with their name on the inside. At the head of the table we had a “What are you thankful for” placemat, where each guest could write one word describing what they were thankful for.

Finally we had Be THANKFUL hopscotch. All you need is a sidewalk or walk way and some dried beans in a small sandwich bag to make the bags that you throw.

Styling and photography by: e9wdesigns

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Happy Thanksgiving from a LITTLE TURKEY by: Lauren McKinsey

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ith Thanksgiving just around the corner and the desire to create a special Thanksgiving “experience” for the little ones, I was excited to design the LITTLE TURKEY printable collection. What little person wouldn’t be delighted to sit down for Thanksgiving lunch or dinner at a table set just for them? Believing that the extra touches make a big impact, I love the idea of making the meal extra special. Cute drink wraps on glasses filled with milk and silverware tied with a cute turkey printable is sure to bring a smile to a little one’s face. Personalized place cards and placemats will help direct them to their seat along with giving them a wonderful memento from the day.

The LITTLE TURKEY collection is filled with fun and creative printables. Iron-on transfers come in two sizes which are perfect for making shirts to match the day. Armed with several craft projects included in the collection, you will have plenty of supplies on hand to entertain the little ones. You will find craft projects such as a coloring sheet, create your own turkey cut out kit, a turkey headband and the printables to create a turkey candy jar.

Each project is fun and interactive. I always love sitting back and watching imaginations run wild as creativity shines through.

A fun backyard activity is the game we called “turkey toss.” I wrapped cans in colorful scrapbook paper {or you can use the patterned paper from the collection} and painted the top of each

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can a bright orange. Stacked high and with a plush turkey in hand there is tons of laughter to be had as you attempt to knock down as many cans as you can with the turkey.

Wanting to provide kid friendly food, I made turkey pot pie pops using lollipop sticks and simple ingredients. You will need a premade pie crust {I used a Pillsbury pie crust}, a circle cookie cutter {or a circular lid} and the ingredients for your pot pie filling. Cut out two circles from the pie crust and press the lollipop stick into the bottom circle. Fill with the turkey pot pie filling and place the second pie crust circle on top. Seal together using a fork. I also served macaroni and cheese along with mashed potatoes in cute little candy cups from Shop Sweet Lulu. I decided to bake a kid-friendly, non-traditional Thanksgiving dessert. Chocolate cupcakes are always a hit. Mini cupcakes in brown and white polka candy cups stole the show. The best part – the little spoons they had to eat them with. You can turn your cupcakes into little turkeys by using the food toppers from the collection.

The “I am thankful cards” are a great way to help your little ones record what they are thankful for. I suggest asking the big ones to fill them out too. What a 25Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

wonderful time of year to reflect on all of our blessings while creating fun and lasting memories together!

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

Vendors: Candy cups, polka dot bags, paper serving trays, straws & mini spoons – Sweet Shop Lulu Plush turkey – Amazon Iron-on transfer paper – Amazon Printables & Photography – Lauren McKinsey

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Fondant Cupcake Toppers for All Occasions Custom Cake, Cupcake, Brownie, and Cake Pop Decorations

http://TwoSugarBabies.com TwoSugarBabies@hotmail.com http://facebook.com/TwoSugarBabies

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Les Petite Artistes By: Three Little Monkeys Studio

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his past summer my daughter attended an art camp where she studied the works of Matisse. Inspired by her love of painting, I decided to set up an art party play date with a french twist to honor her art idol.

The kids were given cute berets from US Toy, and printables with a French twist and 5x7 quote from Henri Matisse helped set the tone for their petite artiste play date Instead of painting on paper and canvas, Stacey of Treats 4 Ta-tas designed large cookie canvases with a beautiful frame to showcase their artwork.

For “paint,” I made a big batch of medium-consistency frosting and tinted it red, yellow, orange, green and blue. The kids took their pallettes and filled them up with the paint (icing) and used paint brushes (fondant, food safe brushes from the bakery section of Hobby Lobby) to “paint” their edible canvases.

The kids had a blast and it was so fun to see them create little masterpieces. And then, they got to eat them when they were finished!

Printables and party styling : Three Little Monkeys Studio Artist’s Canvas Cookies : Treats 4 Ta-tas (100% of money earned goes to breast cancer research) Berets : US Toy Eiffel Tower, food-safe paint brushes, palettes and easels : Hobby Lobby

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Hanukkah Celebration By: Something Events

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he holidays are a time filled with Joy, family, friends, love and tradition. Traditions not only religious and ancestral, but family traditions as well. Tradition defines many families and the holidays we celebrate. However, during the holidays there are so many items on your to do list, your stress levels rise. Not only are there gifts and bake sales to prepare for, but you really would like to continue your family traditions and celebrate Hanukkah with loved ones. There’s enough going on during the holidays, so don’t stress, its possible to throw an amazing gathering without much fuss.

The Something Events team loves details and pulling together a flawless event. Not everyone has a huge budget, tons of free time, or is a handy crafter, but we designed an easy low budget Hanukkah cocktail and dessert party. We mixed Tradition with current trends and composed a festive occasion full of tradition and modern style, in an everyday atmosphere.

With a $75 crafting budget we crafted diy projects; pinwheels, sequin garlands, drink stir sticks, Menorah bottles, ombre candles, and an amazing diy sequin embellished invitation. Most of our crafting supplies were purchased at Hobby Lobby, however, if you have glitter, scrapbooking paper, and glue or Modge Podge sitting at home, then you are already set!

The cocktail party can take place using any furniture you already have, we used a family hutch and a dining room table. We added pinwheels as decor above the table, and upcycled bottles were Modge Podged and glittered for a modern take on the menorah. Some of us may be away at college or starting our own homes for the first time, and this menorah is a perfect alternative.

For finishing touches we bought baked goods from Katella Deli, a local Jewish deli, and provided two signature drinks, the Liz Taylor and the Blue Ritz Fizz. Both drinks are festive and compliment the party’s fun vibe.

In an everyday life it’s not always easy to find a baby sitter, so for the younger guests, a kids table was set up for coloring, crafts, and favor fun & games.

We don’t always have time to put together an elaborate holiday party, but with a few hours of diy crafts and a run to the store and local bakery, you can throw an amazing Hanukkah celebration to carry on tradition with your friends and family.

Styling and photography by: Something Events

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Real Mom Hollywood Dress Up Party By: Joey Tambone

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or my daughter’s birthday she wanted a party where she could dress up like a princess, but half her friends were boys. You know, she was at that age where boys don’t yet have cooties and they actually still ADD to the party fun. How could she have her friends dress up like princesses and still have the boys want to be there? Well, they could all be superstars!

We put together invitations inviting them all to a party where they could be treated like the superstars they are! They were invited to dress up as their favorite superstar, rockstar, superhero, or yes, princess! They were invited star in their best role ever in Olivia’s Birthday!

We put together gift bags that treated them like the superstars they were!

We had an area where we took pictures of the kids dressed up. The pictures were printed up and then put together in a frame they decorated themselves.

We put magnets on the back and they got to take them home in their gift bags. They could then put them of their fridge at home to forever remember their starring role!

The house was decorated in a party theme with stars, streamers, and balloons hung everywhere!

We had crafts where they made masks because every star needs to disguise themselves. And, we ended the event with a dance party. A large sturdy coffee table was covered in confetti and the kids were allowed to get up top and show off their stuff for the cameras!

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Black Friday By: Let’s Get This Party Started!

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am one of those people. I stay out all night long looking for the most fabulous deal on Christmas gifts for my loved ones on Black Friday. Truthfully, I started the tradition with my mom when I was in high school, we would get up super early and go to Target. Sometimes we bought stuff, other times we just went for fun. Now, my husband and I go out after Thanksgiving dinner and wait in a crazy line to buy one item. It’s really less about the deal, and more about the time we have together. Every year, we choose to buy gifts for a less fortunate family. Some years we are financially blessed and we are able to really give back, other years, we are only able to give a few items.

We buy items through out the year to donate, but on Black Friday, we find one large gift to donate and buy it. (Bikes are our go to item on Black Friday) This year, however, we have decided to give back to an amazing charity, Milk + Bookies. My husband and I have four boys, and daily reading is so important in our home. My kids love to read, and I cannot imagine them not having access to books. Milk + Bookies is dedicated to providing children with books to love.

This party shoot was a joint effort with several amazing vendors, and I could not have even thought about putting it together without their help. Sugar and Type skillfully created the most beautiful printables for the event. Hand lettered SALE tags, straw flags, and shopping signs were the perfect starting point for the party. Made by a Princess graciously sent black Sparkle Sticks to add drama to the dessert table. Candy Crush Shop sent black striped straws and the most gorgeous sequined table cloth I have ever seen. I am seriously in love with a table cloth. It truly added so much flair to the table. My friend sent me Little and Big Brown Bags from Bloomingdales to collect books in as well as to use for favor bags.

DRY Soda shared their product for the event. The Marshmallow Studio and Kraft Jet Puffed sent several varieties of Holiday marshmallows, and I used the peppermint ones to create a peppermint cream dessert, as well as to place in the coffee or hot cocoa mugs.

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travel cups with SALE tags from Sugar and Type attached to the inner layer. I also served champagne and DRY Soda in faux mercury glass champagne glasses I made. To change up the flavors some, I placed small bottles of Monin syrup flavors on the table. I also provided mini marshmallows, toffee bits, chocolate chips, chocolate syrup and cream for the hot drinks.

I chose to serve several mini desserts, and small cups of energy trail mix. I made mini chocolate pudding pies and adorned the mini forks with straw flags. I served them in my mercury glass domed cake stand. I also served chocolate truffles with Sparkle Sticks, and peppermint cream marshmallow sandwiches. I chose to keep the food selection smaller because everyone typically comes straight from Thanksgiving meals to shop.

I gave each guest a Small Brown Bag with a carved turkey sandwich and small containers of cranberries and stuffing. I also included a granola bar, some gum, and a few bottles of water to help everyone make it through a long night of shopping!

This event was intimate, with just a few guests, but we remembered the true meaning of the Holiday Season, giving to those less fortunate. If you are able, I encourage you to give back to your community. Milk + Bookies has complete book party packages they can send if you are interested in hosting a book donation party. My boys and I plan on hosting a book party very soon with our friends!

I was able to keep costs down by making my own faux mercury glass jars,and making most of the desserts myself. I will share the mercury glass instructions online soon.

Several products were sent to me at no charge by The Marshmallow Studio, Kraft Jet Puffed DRY Soda, Candy Crush Shop, Sugar and Type, and Made By a Princess. The views and opinions expressed in this post are purely my own. I look forward to future opportunites to work with all of these amazing vendors soon!

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Vendors: Styling and Photography: Let’s Get This Party Started!

Table Cloth: Candy Crush Shop Sprakle Sticks: Made By a Princess Printables: Sugar and Type Marshmallows: The Marshamllow Studio Kraft Jet Puffed DRY Soda: DRY Soda Beneficiary Charity: Milk + Bookies

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Sesame Street By: Chakoda Design

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"Can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street?"

son's Mr. Potato Heads. They gave the fruit a really fun look! I also had a lot of fun creating Mr. Hooper's store, I used a lot of his play grocery items and vegetables that we already had. Anything to help with lanning this really funky & fun 4th birthday par- costs and saving is wonderful! I created a little area, for the kids to buy their groceries and also eat their ty - was one of my most fun projects yet!

I started about 11 months in planning and collecting food just like in the show. They certainly had a lot of fun, playing with all the items set out. It was great fun & colorful props & decor!

I originally planned and had my heart set on a pi- for entertaining the kids, gives them something fun rate theme, however my son had another plan for me to do. in mind... He wanted a Fefame Street Party! (no, I didnt' mispell Sesame, this is how he pronounces it, I planned an earlier birthday party, (a couple of for some reason) I really wanted to try to put a new months early) to avoid the heat in August, however and different spin on this theme, trying to make it as for some strange reason, I can't avoid the heat for his realistic as possible, I tried looking for the larger size parties! (I'm pretty sure I'm cursed) no matter the plush to give it more of a real character look! (I think weather all the little guests and adults had a great this part was probably the hardest, there are a lot of time, with a special guest appearance by the one and the smaller plush out there, however the larger size only Elmo! He did a little dance, shaked a little move plush are almost hard to find, and if you happen to and rocked the birthday party! Guests had so much find one, the price is pretty expensive. I really want- fun with the photobooth we had with all the fun ed to also make sure that I included the "Old school props that were set up! I had a lot of really talented original characters, in his party, this is what I grew up vendors who made his party that much more fun! with and wanted to try to include everyone in this.

Sesame Street is a learning show, which of course Unique themed Rentals & Event Design: Chakoda includes learning colors, fruits, vegetables numbers, Design letters etc. So this part was fun, I pretty much incor- Cakes by: Pop Culture Desserts porated all these things as part of the centerpieces, I Character Balloons & Picture Booth: www.Partywatched the Sesame Street intro and caught a lot of 4beauty.com fun ideas. One of my most favorite DIY projects of Balloon Columns: DNA Party Services this party was making the eyes to the fruit and veg- Face Painting: www.Miajoya.com etables, this was always one of my favorite things to Photography: Charlene Freelance Photography (909)559-0989 see growing up on the show, the talking fruit lol.

I made some eyes out of Spoons and velvet, which I Cake Pops & Treats: Chakoda Sweets saw online, "how to make puppet eyes", the simplest (909) 559 -0989 thing ever, all you need is, plastic spoon/velvet/ribbon and black marker. I got the other eyes from my

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Snow Princess Baby Shower

By: Let’s Get This Party Started!

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hen we learned my sister was expecting a little girl, we KNEW her baby shower would be all things girly! My niece is the youngest child, with an older brother, and four boy cousins (my sons) locally, and a boy and girl cousin that live in TN. Since I have four little boys, I jumped at the chance to host a frilly, pink, and girly celebration.

To help keep costs down, my mom and I split the costs. I was in charge of drinks and desserts, and my mom took care of all of the appatizers. I asked Maria from Love and Sugar Kisses to make pink and silver snowflake fondant toppers and had them put on her white choolate covered Oreos. As usual, her attention to detail blew me away! The cookies SHIMMERED! I purchased a buttercream ribbon cake from my local Publix grocery store. One of my friends made pink macarons, and another friend made stunning cupcakes with chocolate snowflakes on top! I made handmade pink marshmallows and served them on a silver tray from the Dollar Tree. I put each marshmallow on a toothpick adorned with paper punched pink and silver snowflakes hot glued to the tops. The other sweets were simple store bought candies and white chocolate covered goodies.

Tia from Luv Handles sent me a gorgeous pink crystal wine bottle topper, so, of course, we served wine and champagne. I dresssed up my crystal champagne glasses by dipping them in light corn syrup and then in pink sugar.

I knew the decor needed to be varying shades of pink and silver, and it also needed to be on a budget. I found the perfect silver sheet set at Macy’s on sale for just $5. I used the flat sheets as a backdrop framing a hot pink sheet. I hung them on a large PVC frame against a wall. To add depth to the backdrop, I glued hundreds of pink, white, and silver snowflakes from the Dollar Tree, JP Alexander Events. I covered my air hockey table with a wooden top and and a crisp white table cloth, I added a fluffy tulle table skirt to the bottom to hide the legs.. Above the table I hung a tulle chandelier. (Look for the DIY for that online soon) I truly loved the way the dessert table turned out, and my niece has the chandelier in her nursery now. I wanted my house to truly feel like a winter wonderland when you walked in, so my husband and I hung five strands of icicle lights in the entryway. Several boxes of pink and silver Christmas ornaments were also hung from the entryway ceiling.

I filled apothecary jars with a borax and epsom salt mixture to mimic snow, and had candles lit all over the house. I spray painted and glittered branches and placed them in white painted wine bottles, and I made a coffe filter wreath with pink glitter to hang above my mantle with more snowflakes.

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Each guest was sent home with a handmade pink glittered ornament with “2012” in silver vinyl.

There were so many little details for this party, but it was absolutely one of my very favorite parties to style and host!

Vendors: Styling and photography: Let’s Get This Party Started!

Oreos: Love and Sugar Kisses Snowflakes: JP Alexander Events Additional Photography: Blue Gator Nature and Crafts

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Trimmings and Tapas By: Parties for Pennies 55Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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rimming the tree is a phrase you may hear around the holidays. A “trimming” is defined as anything that is used to decorate, garnish or complete.

Using that as inspiration for my theme, I created a Trimmings & Tapas party.

I invited my guests to come wearing some kind of bow - it could be bow earrings, a bow in their hair, or even just a bow tied around their wrist. They were also asked to bring a piece of jewelry that they don’t wear anymore (must be in good condition) for a jewelry exchange.

The idea to serve tapas was because 1. It gave a nice alliteration to the party theme and 2. I was inviting my girlfriends and we all love tapas.

The invitations were DIYed using cardstock, glitter paper & ribbon. These were able to fit nicely in a 5 x 7 envelope.

The color scheme included jewel tones since jewelry was part of the fun. One of the most budget-friend-

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ly decorating ideas (around the holidays) is using wrapped presents to accessorize.

Tapas can be extremely hard to juggle when you’re throwing a party by yourself because you have to make many different dishes. I saved myself a little trouble and stress by using a lot of pre-made tapas.

For all the tapas, I spent $60 and that covered 10 guests bringing the price per guest to $6 which is not bad at all.

For each tapa, I created a label from cardstock but I also added a few jewels to each label.

After everyone enjoyed their meal, we exchanged our old jewelry. I got a beautiful hot pink necklace that I love! There are several reasons old jewelry exchange is an awesome party activity: 1. Guests get to get rid of some of their jewelry they haven’t worn in a long time, 2. You get a new piece of jewelry to add to your collection & 3. It’s a fun way to get to know one another (every piece of jewelry has a story).

Styling and photography by : Parties for Pennies

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Manly 40th Birthday By: The Homespun Hostess

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or my husband Brian’s 40th birthday I had no real theme in mind, I just wanted it to be masculine.

He is not into huge parties or a lot of attention so I kept it small and manly. We invited 5 couples (our close friends) over for a casual dinner and bonfire at our house. For dinner we had chili because it seemed natural to eat chili around a bonfire. I served chili with all the fixin’s, brats, onion rings and pretzel and beer bread with pub cheese dip. For dessert we had s’mores and a simple cake with a chocolate 40 on it.

The chalkboard style poster menu gave it a casual, yet pulled together look.

I set up a masculine “bar” on the porch since the party was mostly around the fire. I chose 2 signature drinks and then had an assortment of fall beer. The first drink was black and tan, which is just a dark ale and a light ale layered in a pilsner glass. The second was rum and coke. I found small glass bottles of coke and had those on ice so that guests could make their own drinks throughout the evening. I printed a simple BAR banner to hang on the front of the table using full sheets of kraft paper. I used leather, metal and wood to keep it masculine looking. For a mod59Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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ern look I lined up the rum glasses in a clear tray made from an inexpensive box picture frame. Cigar boxes added height and a manly element as well. To personalize the table I added the “B” initial.

An assortment of cigars were displayed on the bar in different antique gold and mercury candle holders. I thought having a bowl of matches next to them would encourage guests to enjoy them. Of course personalized matches would be even better……so I bought a 10 pack of match boxes from Dollar tree and simply covered the top and bottom with card-stock that I printed on to match the party. It added to the table décor as well. One side said, “THIS IS 40” and the other said, “Light up the Night. Brian’s 40th Birthday.”

Styling, printables, and photography by: The Homespun Hostess 61Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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Blue Gator Nature Photography and Crafts All photos are property of and the exclusive copyright of Michelle McCracken and Blue Gator Nature Photography and Crafts

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Christmas Candyland Party By: Cupcake Wishes and birthday Dreams

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ho says that everything Christmas HAS to be red and green? Not I.....Not I. Last year, after creating another holiday fete with the tried and true color scheme, I thought to myself, next holiday season I planned going to liven things up. I mean, Christmas is the most festive time of the year, after all and far be it from me to get sucked into another year of red and green monotony – I was plain sick of it. So, it was quite kismet when I came across an adorable little elf (I call her Mabel) whilst shopping for cold medicine at my neighborhood CVS. She was sitting in front of the store, just smiling there in her acetate cylindrical home waiting for someone, anyone…..ME to pick her up! I mean, how could I not….. she was carrying a cute little pink purse and wore a fancy hat rocked some serious striped socks…I had to take her home.

Well…..I picked Mabel up off the floor and took one look at her price tag and saw that Mabel was $25. Pump the brakes….no way was I spending that much money on something that was going to sit in my closet until next Christmas. Back onto her little space on the sales floor. I was about to finish my shopping when I heard one of the store clerks say, “Miss, all of our holiday items are 50% off……and that item you were just holding is on clearance too.” Well, sweet serendipity! It was just a few weeks after the Christmas holiday….of course she’s gonna be on sale! So, I scooped Mabel up and after all was said and done, paid just $3.99 for her! For that price, I sure didn’t mind her sitting in my closet for the better part of the year. I tell that story because Mabel was the inspiration behind my Christmas Candyland sweets table! I figured if Mabel was real, she’d love giggling, being silly and eating LOTS of candy. So, I created a deliciously sweet spread that would bring loads of delight and joy to all!

This was the first party since I’ve been styling where I did not use any printables. I have to say, I love how everything turned out. I went with a bright and cheerful color scheme perfect for winter, Bright Green, Pink, Fuchsia and Purple set the tone. I bought about a dozen and a half glass ornaments on closeout after the holiday that helped with my color choice. I also found a HUGE bulb garland on clearance as well that tied in nicely with everything and I had in mind to use for my backdrop.

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Buying everything after the Christmas holiday definitely kept my pockets happy and allowed me enough time to plan my tablescape.

For the overall décor, I choose to keep everything glittery, sparkly and cheery. I bought glitter ribbon and tape and used it to decorate the sticks of rock candy that I’d placed in a round glass vase. I also used the glitter tape to create a border around white platters. Another way I embellished some of the plating was to add a mini ornament garland around a glass cake stand. I created a hanging beaded look by draping it in intervals and then securing it to the stand with hot glue. There was a small gap where the two ends of the strand met and I attached a wooden snowflake blinged out with a glitter dot to finish the look! All of the color matched candy was served in class containers which added to the decor. I found all occasion bright colored gift wrap in my stash and used it to wrap up post office boxes. If you know me, you know I love my pom poms! An easy and affordable gift wrapping option is to wrap lengths of yarn around a box and attach a fluffy yarn pom-pom in place of a bow! I’m not sure the table needed such a HUGE tree….but I wanted to up the ante and try something new. I purchased an all-white pre-lit Christmas tree online just days before this shoot. Using ribbon I already had, along with the glass ornaments from last year’s closeouts, I decorated the tree and included real candy canes – because what proper Christmas does not have candy canes? Another smaller tree that I already had on hand was placed on top of the gift boxes….I’m not sure it was needed, but I love that tree and I don’t think it takes anything away from the rest of the display. You can see that Mabel also found her rightful place amongst everything sweet and delicious! I used a small gingerbread style wooden curio to hold wrapped candies. I found the display at the craft store and painted it to match my color scheme and added glitter glue to the roof top to look like freshly fallen ‘snow’. Taffy is also my go to candy for goodie bags. I used sheets of glitter paper to make fancy treat bag and topped each one off with purple glitter ribbon. For candy stations, I also love adding chocolate bars. Using wrapping paper and glitter ribbon with a touch of bling, I upgraded plain Hershey Bars to a decorative element for the table.

This sweet & festive table is a great way to celebrate the season by using basic craft items and a little creativity!

Vendor Credits: Photography and styling: Cupcake Wishes and Birthday Dreams Decorated Cookies and macarons: Fresh Bakes

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Naughty

Nice Elves Football Fun VS By: Hai Baies Photography

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ince my son and his friends werel getting ready to play their last football game of the season, I wanted to design a play date that these little football players would enjoy over the holidays. Going on my 9 year old son’s favorite team and sport, I decided to do an Elves Naughty VS. Nice party hosted in San Francisco. Some of my concerns with bringing a football team into my living room during colder months was how was I going to keep them busy and would they entertain my “theme”? I divided the boys into Naughty or Nice (I based this off if they were an even or odd Jersey #). I then began dividing up time spots for the Wii, Teeny mate playoffs, playbook writing and coaches drills (did I mention my husband is a coach?). I now needed to decide how I was going to keep then atmosphere light and festive with a time limit on activities. ::LIGHTBULB MOMENT:: Every high school football game I’ve ever been too, gave “ADMIT ONE” tickets, so I would give the boys tickets to buy into each activity.

I made football cupcakes for the boys, and elaborate white ones for the Ref(s), ya, know... THE BIG MAN. I added green food dye to the batter, to give the cupcakes a field look. I used standard cupcake liners for the football cupcakes, but wanted to beef up the look of the Refs cupcakes. I used tissue paper and hot glued it around a 2oz plastic cup. I used that as a little stand for the cupcakes. I also baked a San Francisco cake with the logo. I used to round cake pans and dyed the batter red and gold. I layered them with a cream cheese whipped center.

For the admit one tickets, I took little drawstring sacks and painted their team assignment and jersey # on them and stuffed the tickets inside. Each ticket was good for 5 minutes of an activity and you could use 2 in a row if there was a line. I also made little pennants for the sisters who came, they cheered for the Elves as they played football on the wii.

I used a green poster board and painted football lines on it, this made the perfect size field for the teeny mates playoffs. We used a white board and the boys wrote plays and bantered back and forth as to if they would work and with whom it what position. Coaches drills included conditioning, count offs and passing the ball (this part was sent

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outdoors). I also put out all our boys football games, cards and books to keep the players busy.

Simple little touches transformed the party into the perfect blend of holidays & youth football.

Credits: Photogra[hy and styling by Hai Bales Photography

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recently hosted a ladies Holiday Cappuccino and Cookie Swap. Everyone from the boutique baked cookies and exchanged them with recipes. Keeping with a simple budget we were able to pull off a fun and festive get together that wasn’t too over the top. I decorated the table with a lot of Christmas items that I use to decorate my home so that was a plus! On the menu were several different cookie flavors which included chocolate devil food and white chocolate chip, red velvet, caramel bacon pecan and semi sweet chocolate chip(my favorite). All the cookies were brought in old fashion metal tins like grandma had when I was growing up. They had the option of indulging in them now or wrapping them up in cute little individual envelopes to take with them. For those that wanted to try them all we supplied red glitter take out boxes with clothes line decorated clips that can actually be made yourself by using spray adhesive and glitter. Also there were reusable red pales decorated with postcard size stickers to add to the Holiday theme.For drinks traveling coffee mugs and little mason jars were available to fill with cappuccino eggnog or hot chocolate. Little cups with spoons provided individual servings of hot chocolate. Marshmallows were provided as well. The old fashion rustic sleigh and our friend

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Mr.Reindeer were the centerpieces. I made a jingle bell collar with twine and bells and added a big red bow to him. Even though we are in the south we couldn’t forget the snow that was sprinkled throughout. Plain brown paper bags adorned with stickers were used to house all the delicious goodies to take home. During the cookie swap the ladies were shown how to make Holiday t shirt scarfs..made from bottoms of t shirts. A simple no sew project for less than $5. The ladies exchanged cookies, recipes and laughs.

Event Credit Event design, and decor: S is for Sweet Event Photography: Divian Conner Photography

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Operation Shower Land Of Wonder Fort Hood, TX

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s winter and the holiday season grew near, expectant military wives from Ft. Hood, Texas were treated to a “Land of Wonder”-themed celebration, highlighting the festive time of year. Jennifer Borget, featured reporter and weekend anchor of YNN-TV in Austin, joined the attendees as host of the event. In addition to her reporting duties, Jennifer is a mom and contributing author on BabyCenter.com and Parenting.com.

You, too, can join Babies“R”Us in support of Operation Shower. Babies“R”Us is providing a unique opportunity for moms who register online at Babiesrus.com. Whether you are creating a new registry or if you have an existing one, simply add an Operation Shower donation of $1 or more.

Then, encourage friends and family to donate when purchasing items from your registry.

You can also donate products to military moms-to-be by purchasing items directly from the official Operation Shower baby registry, which can be accessed through Babiesrus. com/OperationShower. All items purchased off of the official Babies“R”Us Registry will be shipped to Operation Shower and used as gifts for expectant moms at upcoming showers!

We are planning more exciting events to benefit military moms-to-be with Babies“R”Us this spring. We look forward to sharing all of the highlights!

To learn more about our partnership with Babies“R”Us, please visit Babiesrus.com/OperationShower. photographs courtesy of Jackie Culmer Photography, Elayne Dunn Photography and Forever Bliss Photography.

Operation Shower 2012, Ft. Hood TX

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Winter Wedding By: Elegant Affairs

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rin and Andy were high school sweethearts and knew they were destined for each other. They wanted a winter wedding partly to the season and because ofAndy’s military career as he was stationed overseas.

The theme for their December wedding was gray and green and white and that was represented in their flowers, bridesmaid dress and dĂŠcor.

Their wedding was a bittersweet day, as a week after the wedding, the couple left for Germany where the groom was stationed.

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Wedding Planner: Elegant Affairs Venue: Port Gamble Photographer: Fred Calma Photography Catering: Essence of the Thymes DJ: E-Rock Entertainment Rentals: AA Party Rentals and A Tailored Affair Flowers: Rainbow Floral Wedding Dress: The Wedding Bell Hair & Make-up: Bella by Amber (Amber Hyatt) Cake: One Last Bite

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aul Newman once exclaimed, “He’s incredible!” Christopher Reeve boasted, “He’s amazing!” Rap mogul Russell Simmons almost fell off his couch witnessing the magic of Rory Wheeler. His unique brand of magic blends humor, misdirection, and world-class sleight of hand and has garnered him rave reviews from numerous Fortune 500 companies, CEO’s, and heads of state. In addition to performing in the corporate environment, Rory consults for TV shows on major networks, teaches magic workshops, and performs live oneon-one shows for countless A-list celebrities including Jay-Z, Kristin Davis, Michael Douglas, and Regis Philbin.

Whether you’re looking to gather potential clients at a trade show, leave a lasting impact at your corporate conference, or spice up your annual awards banquet, Rory’s magic is the perfect choice.

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ory and I grew up together in central Florida , we spent many hours torturing his older sisters, and hanging out together. He showed me how to do my first magic trick when I was about 8 or 9, I wasn’t as enthused as he was, but, I thought it was cool.

As time wore on, and we grew older, we hung out less, and eventually lost touch until recently when Facebook helped put us back in touch. Rory stayed true to his passion, and is an accomplished magician in NYC. When we caught up with each other, he told me how he truly loves performing magic at weddings. Seriously, how great would it be to have a magician entertaining your guests while your photographer takes one thousand and five photos of your wedding party? I asked Rory several questions, and he graciously answered them below: Tell me a little about yourself, what got you started, who is/was your biggest inspiration...?

I got started by watching an episode of the Brady Bunch. Peter Brady had a talent contest at his school and I was hooked. From there I was amazed by David Copperfield.

How long have you been a performer?

I started performing professioinally when I was 19. Although, I’ve done magic since I was six.

I saw online that you have performed for several high profile people. What was your favorite and least favorite part about those shows? (You don’t have to be specific) The shows were amazing. Magic is the ultimate backstage pass because most people love it. (Not just A-List celebrities) Do you change your shows every time? Do you have certain tricks that you perform in every show?

The shows can be custom tailored to specific occasions whether it’s a wedding, fundraiser, bar/bat mitzvah, or birthday party. The effects are individually selected to fit the occasion.

You have two young sons and nieces & nephews. Are they excited by what you do?

My sons are t0o young to understand what’s going on yet. They are only two years old and eleven months old.

My nieces and nephews in Florida and the UK are both wild about it. It ties into the whole world of make believe that kids love to be a part of.

What could I expect if I hired you for a wedding?

The unexpected! It’s the perferct ice breaker to bring families and guests together. Especially during the down time between the ceremony and when the reception starts. The effects themselves range from levitating wedding bands, to making the wedding cake disappear.

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Rory Wheeler has been mesmerizing audiences for the past 15 years. His unique brand of magic blends humor, misdirection, and world class sleight of hand into an interactive and captivating encounter. His experience includes performances for numerous Fortune 500 companies, CEO’s, and heads of state. In addition to performing in the corporate environment, Rory has consulted for TV shows on NBC and HBO. He has taught magic workshops, and performed live on shows for countless A-list celebrities including Christopher Reeve, Paul Newman, Jay-Z and Nora Ephron.

Rory became fascinated with magic at the age of six while watching an episode of the Brady Bunch. He discovered a small magic shop in his hometown of Clearwater, Florida, and within weeks coins vanished, playing cards appeared in spectators’ pockets, and hundred dollar bills levitated and found their way into his piggy bank.

By the age of 19, Rory transformed his love for magic into a full time job. Having relocated to New York City to pursue a degree in interpersonal communications at NYU, he was asked to perform his magic at rap mogul Russell Simmons’ home in the Hamptons. News of his performance spread and by the following week, Rory was booked to perform at Regis Philbin’s birthday.

His career took off from there and he has been wowing audiences ever since.

Presently, Mr. Wheeler continues to entertain and work his magic for audiences of all kinds. From intimate cocktail parties with CBS executives to banquet halls filled with hundreds of bedazzled clients. Rory custom tailors each performance to enhance audience participation. His magic is diverse, dynamic, and interactive. A performer at heart, he loves being in the spotlight, but welcomes his viewers to share in the thrill of the moment with him. Rory’s engaging and absorbing personality transforms routine corporate meetings into unforgettable events.

Find out more about Rory at rorywheelermagic.com

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Holiday Banana Bread Recipe By: Angie Morrissey, Author of “Piece of Cake: Party Planning Guides” Available in book stores Fall 2014

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his banana bread offers a nice change from traditional fruit bread and will add a festive flair to your table during the holidays. Serve as a holiday dessert or bake in mini loaf pans and hand them out as tasty gifts. The cinnamon, chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and cherries make this unique take on banana bread super moist and flavorful.

Ingredients: ½ cup of butter or margarine 1 cup white sugar 2 eggs 2 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon salt 1 ¼ cups (about 3 large) smashed super-ripe bananas ½ peanut butter chips ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips ¼ cup chopped maraschino cherries

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Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In medium mixing bowl combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Beat in bananas until just combined. Gently stir in the peanut butter chips, chocolate chips, and cherries.

Grease a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with butter. Pour batter into the loaf pan and bake for 70-80 minutes or until tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

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Pink Pancake Party By: Styled by Melissa & The Pink Orange

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o you have a little one with a birthday party, in the cold winter months. What to do? Melissa of Styled

by Melissa and Rebecca of The Pink Orange have put together two sweet parties simple enough for any busy mom (or not so busy mom ) to recreate! Have fun with it and indoor parties can be just as much fun as taking things outside!

It’s cold outside so let the littles have a super fun pancake and pajama party!We started with the idea of a little girls brunch, and added pink pancakes with a dash of food coloring and donuts holes to dunk in hot cocoa.

We also set up a doughnut decorating station where they get to dunk the doughnuts in icing and sprinkle with their favorite toppings. Can’t forget strawberry milk to wash it all down.

For fun indoor, winter activities, we created an area for each little girl to make her own fleece scarf and hair accessories. What girly-girl wouldn’t love that?

To make cut 1 yard of super soft fleece into strips, thickness depending on age of the child and preferred size. We were able to get 4 scarfs from 1 yard. Cut small strips on each end and tie a knot for fringe. Let the children decorate with fabric glue and a variety of embellishments! They will just love wearing their own creations!

Vendor Credits: Styling: Styled by Melissa Printables and styling assistance: The Pink Orange Photography: Anastasia Sperry

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Joyeux Noel By: LAURA’S little PARTY

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he holiday season, and fun parties, pretty much go hand in hand. Every year I find myself bustling with excitement, and anticipation, to celebrate with loved ones! Not only is it a season for fun, it’s a time where we seem to be our busiest.

I love planning a Holiday party for my daughter, and her friends, every year. One thing I wanted to accomplish for her Christmas party, was a budget-friendly celebration. This year I opted for store bought treats, and decor that I already had around the house. Fun Christmas printables were created

by Blanca from Creativities Galore. I added them to cupcakes purchased from my local grocery store. I was able to change the look of a few party items by adding a fresh coat of paint, glitter, and other embellishments. I was able to create a simple party that was full of pink girlish charm, but easy on my bank account. Here are some of the things I did: Repainted an old chandelier, repainted a buffet table, and several other items. I was able to change the look of an artificial Christmas tree, simply by spray painting it! I hope you will be inspired to throw your own budget-friendly party. Happy Holidays!

Credits: Styling and photography: LAURA’S little PARTY Printables: Creativities Galore

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H2snOw By: LaBelle Party Planning 97Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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y good friend had this brilliant idea that I should have a winter science party. I LOVED IT!!! What a fun variation of a science party and a great option for a winter birthday. Thus, H2Snow was born.

I wanted the dessert table to look cold and snowy so I used snow fluff and glass blocks to achieve the look. Because it was all about the snow I wanted to have treats that reflected the forms of water. Blue Jello served in measuring cups was the liquid form.

Powdered donut holes were the solid form and cotton candy created the water vapor. I used blue Gatorade in fun shaped bottles with crazy straws and York mints in little tubes to add to the science look.

I also made snowflake shaped chocolates and what winter party would be complete without cupcakes topped with snowflakes. Finally I hung some white lanterns and stacked a few around the bottom of the table to complete the wintery snow look.

Now for the fun part of the party, the science experiments! My kids love doing science experiments and there are so many fun experiments to do with ice and snow. But before we could start our experiments we had to become scientists. What is the best part about being a scientist? The cool lab coats of course! I am very fortunate that several years ago I had a grandparent of one of my students that was a seamstress and she made the amazing lab coats for me. I added a pair of rubber gloves and protective eyewear to complete the lab attire. Of course, each of the boys was also given a name badge that allowed them access to the Snow Lab. Now we were ready to start experimenting. We started with the fastest way to melt ice. I gave each of the boys a block of ice in a tin and a dish with either salt, pepper or sugar in it. Like all great scientists they applied their melting agent to their ice then quickly proceeded to start sharing their materials and contaminating their results. So if you want to know what works the fastest you will have to conduct the experiment yourself because our results were just good old-fashioned fun! We also had a little fun testing how blubber keeps you warm in the snow. I filled two containers with ice water. The boys stuck their unprotected hands in the first con-

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tainer to feel how cold it was. Then they stuck their hands into a ziplock bag filled with Crisco and placed it into the second container. They could feel how the blubber insulated their hand and kept it warm in the water.

The boys had a great time being little scientists and enjoying their wintery treats.

Sources: Cupcakes: Batter Up! Sweetery Styling and Photography: La Belle Parties

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Vintage Carnival By: Peckled

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ur annual family reunion is always loads of fun.

We are a large, loud, and crazy group (my dad comes from a family of ten children!) so this year’s carnival theme provided the perfect platform for festivities.

The event planning is always collaborative between aunts and cousins, making it even more fun when we come together and get to see each other’s ideas. This year, I put myself in charge of the dessert table because I couldn’t resist working with this ever-popular theme and putting my own twist on the modern classic “Vintage Carnival.”

Invitation / Setting the Tone: Invitations, to me, are always a jumping off point for event planning. That initial statement sets the tone for the entire event and allows guests to know what to expect come party time. In this case, my ever-talented Mom created red and teal cardstock invitations with handwritten notes and hand-cut details. She also created an adorable framed art piece for the party that will serve as a sweet keepsake in her home.

With this color scheme and “handcrafted yet casual” intention in mind, I set to work on the dessert tablescape, with heavy use of red and teal cardstock with pops of gold.

Backdrop / Oversized Balloons: One of my favorite projects for this party was the pinwheel backdrop. This stunner is a new product in my shop and I used this party as extended “product research.” It definitely creates a statement, as intended, without stealing the show. Desserts and tabletop props receive deserved attention when set against this backdrop, and I love how it hones in the color scheme without being too overpowering.

Flanking the pinwheel backdrop is one of my favorite party accessories on the market: oversized balloons! I am mildly obsessed (okay, completely) with this fantastic product from One Stylish Party, and use them every chance I get. Even adults get excited about these jumbo props. My dad and uncles thought they were the coolest thing ever and the kiddos couldn’t resist touching and playing with these giants. Tara perfectly 101Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

matched the color scheme with her handmade tissue tassels and I couldn’t have been happier with the result!

Tara, owner of One Stylish Party, is not only a talented resource in the party industry she is also my cousin!

With her as a party guest I had the unique opportunity to request her in-person assistance with styling and execution and I am ever grateful for her invaluable assistance.

Printables: I’ll confess, this is the first time I’ve ever used printables in a party and what a difference it makes! I love the crisp cohesiveness it brings to the table design and I couldn’t get over the perfection delivered by Three Little Monkeys Studio. Gretchen has such an eye for vintage design and I love the humor in her graphics.

Check out the muscle man! He was my favorite addition to the printables suite and I was indeed “mystified and amazed” by her work.

I love the versatility of printable party circles and used them at every chance, including cupcake toppers, buttons for the treat cones, and a pair of oversized circles on the golden buckets. Gretchen also created custom cotton candy stickers, which worked perfectly and offered an authentic carnival feel for these sweet treats.

DIY / Repurposed Details: There are plenty of excuses to splurge on a party, so a great way to keep your budget in check is maximizing the Do-It-Yourself opportunities. The cake “stand” is a pair of old boxes covered with scrapbooking paper, the golden buckets are spray painted clearance finds, and the “Step Right Up” floating banner are spray painted and glittered chipboard letters held up by magnets!

Another great way to save money is by embellishing inexpensive partyware and repurposing resources found around your home. The carnival cupcake towers from Oriental Trading are already a fantastic, affordable product and are sold in an adorable red and white color scheme. But to really integrate them into this set-up, I trimmed the edges with teal scrapbook paper and added my own glitter pinwheel topper.

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Repurposing items you already own is the simplest way to save in party set-ups. A large metal mug tree served as the cotton candy display and a cupcake holder, painted and tweaked, repurposed as a popcorn server. The popcorn and treat “cones” are just rolled scrapbook paper embellished with party circles!

Vintage Props: What’s a vintage carnival without vintage props? I absolutely adore including antiqued items in modern partyscapes. Straight from Peckled’s vintage rental inventory, the dessert table included a pair of gold painted vintage frames with an adorable paper bunting spanning the edges. An old, refurbished cart eclectically served popcorn and peanuts – just like they would “back then”.

Desserts: Incredible desserts are always the star of the show so I enlisted some major talent for this set-up. To me, the measure of a memorable dessert is taste and style – not only do I like my treats to look “good enough to eat” they better actually taste good too!

The unmatched talent of my go-to cake baker, Sweet Creations by Suzi and Kelli, is one to be revered. This sweet team of baker and designer delivers perfection every time and I couldn’t have been happier with this two-tiered treasure. The cake was so beautiful I could barely bring myself to cut into it, but when I did I couldn’t stop devouring it and neither could anyone else!

Local baker, Sweet Bella Bakery, offers beautifully designed cookies and I’ve been aching for the chance to work with Amanda. I was slightly nervous since designed cookies don’t have a great reputation for tasting as good as they look – but, let me tell you, not only were these treats gorgeous they tasted incredible! My jaw literally dropped when I picked up these cookies and my mouth continued the happy dance when I tasted them. Just incredible.

My dear friend Kelsey, aka The Baking Shrink, rounded out the dessert talent with her delicious homemadefrom-scratch cupcakes and perfectly executed dipped marshmallow “dumbbells.” Kelsey works with me on 104Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

nearly every party I throw and her baking talents are unsurpassed. Our favorite part is taste testing the treats in my kitchen and Kelsey never disappoints! I am so lucky to have such a talented and helpful friend.

Styling this party, with the help of incredible vendors, was such fun and I love how everyone’s details came together for a beautifully executed dessert table. Stylish and functional, this eclectic “Vintage Carnival” was one of my favorite set-ups I’ve ever done and I’m so pleased with the collaborative result. Being able to treat our large family with delicious desserts on a pretty table was such a pleasure, and I’m thrilled to share the result and ideas with you!

Vendor Credits: Concept, Styling, & Vintage Rentals | Peckled Vintage Carnival Printables | Three Little Monkeys Studio 36” Balloons and Tassels | One Stylish Party Custom Carnival Cake | Sweet Creations by Suzi and Kelli Custom Carnival Cookies | Sweet Bella Bakery Cupcakes / Dipped “Dumbbells” | The Baking Shrink Carnival Cupcake Towers | Oriental Trading 105Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

Cheers to a New Year By: J. at Your Service

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wanted this set up to be simple, clean, still festive for the occasion and most of all, budget friendly. New Years Eve is typically an adult occasion, so I wanted to make this attractive to children, while keeping a chic look appealing to the adults as well.

I believe color selection is the key to accomplishing that. Using navy and gold colors are trendy and modern (perfect for the adults) but throw in lollipops, fun glittery glasses, adorable cookies and your kids are excited for the celebration as well.

The dessert table: Most of the treats are from the 99 Cent Store, including fortune cookies that I dipped in edible glitter for the glam feel. I displayed them in front of my printable “Grab your fortune for the New Year” sign. I set out blue Blow Pops, blue licorice and jazzied them up with glitter and washi tape.

The glass used to hold the lollipops is also from the 99 Cent store. I used gumballs that I had left over from a previous party but they also sell them at the Dollar Tree. Mini sparkling cider bottles are also from the 99 Cent store. I used my mini bottle label printables to decorate them. The store bought cupcakes are also decorated with my cupcake topper printable flags. The adorable cookies we made by the extremely talented, Arlene from She Wears the Crown. Printable banner are from my collection as well.

A simple tablescape: Keeping the clean chic look, I used another white linen and added color with my plate setting and centerpiece. I used gold 99 cent chargers and clear plastic plates. For a touch of sparkle and fun, I added blue star confetti to put underneath each clear plate. Which you can find for 99 cents at Walmart. I placed mini favor boxes and fun gold sunglasses from the Dollar Tree, on each plate setting. The mini boxes came in a pack of 3 for a $1 at Target. You can fill them with any little treat you’d like. To make the kiddos feel like part of the “grown up” occasion, I placed plastic champagne glasses by each plate. I added glitter to the stems, navy striped paper straws with glitter tape flags and presto... the kids feel “fancy”! Printable favor tags on the favors are also from my collections. Side note: the gold twine was also from Target for a $1!

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I used painted Ikea frames (only 99cents each) to display my printable table signs on the dessert and guest table. I paired one of the signs with my centerpiece cluster. Dollar Tree tray (painted navy blue) and party blowers, along with homemade party hats, created my centerpiece, as well as making it a party favors display.

Activities: You guessed it! Dollar Tree activities for the kiddos! You can find foam balls and disks, along with glitter glue, sequins, glitter and foam glitter numbers here. All easy and fun for your little ones to keep busy until the ball drops. You can have them make their own ball to drop at midnight, by using glitter glue or even Mod Podge and sequins or glitter dust. The foam disks are also perfect for them to create their own clocks. Older kids can use the glitter pens from Dollar Tree and the younger children will love using glitter number stickers for theirs. Fun and definitely gives them something to do until midnight!

New Years Eve Printables: J. At Your Service Cookies: She Wears the Crown Photograph & Styling: J. At Your Service

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he silver and gold combination is one of my holiday faves along with glitter, they add the feminine details that are so my style. We found the story of eating Black Eyed Peas on New Year’s Eve and knew we had to incorporate it. Since marrying my hubby here in Texas, this has become a tradition. New Year’s Eve to me is supposed to be sparkly, shiny and new. We tried to tie in all those elements with this photo shoot. The gold glitter mason jars were created by us to add a bit more sparkle to the event. Can’t have a party without some cupcakes, which we placed on one of our beautiful cupcake holders. Champagne is a must, whether it is real or just sparkling cider. My kiddos feel special when they get to drink the cider on New Year’s Eve! The mini bottles are the perfect size. Added with some fun confetti, it’s a party all on it’s own. We designed a simple new party design collection {available now in our shop}, using the chevron design and the traditional countdown clock {which were embellished with a small rhinestone} and New Year’s Eve sayings.

The easy to make cupcakes were topped high with whipped, fluffy white frosting and placed in silver foil liners for a finished look. The champagne flutes were dressed up with shiny snowflake ribbon and set on glitter topped coasters, which added a festive touch.

For the traditional champagne glasses we added some

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thin silver ribbon and a tag that simply says ‘Cheers’, placed on a silver platter and they are ready to be served before the countdown begins! We used silver and white striped popcorn boxes as our favor bags and added a ‘thanks for dropping by’ tag. You could fill these with caramel corn, festive candy, cookies or other small treats for your guests to enjoy after the party. We also added the fun horns to gold glitter mason jars, these could be an additional party favor. White shimmer gum balls rested nicely in glass jars wrapped in thin silver tinsel. Keeping with the color scheme, gold and silver bells were added to the table. We set out a sign that says ‘What are your wishes for the New Year?’ Along with some blank tags for our guests to write their wishes on.

Happy New Year! We hope the coming year brings you many blessings and success!

Vendors: Concept/Design/Styling/Custom Party Decor :: BellaGrey Designs Photography :: BellaGrey Designs

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Shine into the New Year By: From Me, With Love With Design 115Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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here is a wonderful feeling about starting fresh and new. Celebrating a new year gives us another chance to make goals and better ourselves. I kept that in mind when designing these New Year’s Eve party printables. My parents love New Year’s Eve and go all out celebrating and making goals and wishes for the year.

One of their traditions involve at the stroke of midnight eating 12 grapes- one for each month- and making a “wish” for each month.

That was my favorite part of the night! There were so many things I wanted to accomplish and narrowing them down to just 12 made it more achievable.

Stars, shine and wish were my mantras throughout the initial design work. I know it sounds corny, but I wanted everyone to feel like the star of his or her own life and learn to shine within it. We all have the ability to change and be who we want to be and be the star of our own show- life. To go along with being stars, all things gold and glitzy make this a more elegant party but adding fun little hats and poppers can make it still suitable for children. We do pretty much everything with our kids so I wanted to make it child friendly. My kids loved the poppers and only my oldest kept the crown on- you win some you lose some, right?

I found a beautiful gold dotted fabric that I used as a tablecloth at Joann’s. I love that I could use it for both Halloween and New Year’s. The backdrop is part of a printable from Caravan Shoppe, which I just had printed at Staples as an “architecture print.” I like buying things that are easily reusable. That backdrop can be used for another party or even as wrapping paper.

The gold tipped champagne glasses I found at a yard sale- I just wish I could have found more.

I kept the food simple and there is always an option to add more desserts. Yum! The decorations like the poppers, the crowns, the toppers on the sparkling cider and the Christmas light garland, I made. They were pretty simple but added that shiny and glitzy

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touch. As a graphic designer, I know that it is all about the little details. Even the little banners on the grapes add to the coordinating aspect of the party.

I decided to add inspirational quotes instead of the perhaps obvious choice of buffet labels as to remind everyone a new year is another chance to be better.

Cheers to a New Year!

Styling, Printables and Photography: From Me, With Love Design Stars Backdrop: Caravan Shoppe

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Parisian Art Party By: Two Sugar Babies

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’est une fete! (It’s a party!) Charynn from Two Sugar Babies here with my daughter Madelyn’s latest birthday party--a Paris-themed art party. This year, I focused on producing a party that fit my daughter’s taste perfectly, but was also budget-friendly. Anyone who loves to throw parties always has a collection of items from past soirees, and I am no exception. I have “bins” dedicated to each of my parties and I decided to find items in each box that I could use. I also made everything that I could--it took some planning and time management, but paid off in the end!

Madelyn loves anything French, and spends most of her time drawing, painting, and doing anything creative. For her 7th birthday, she wanted to combine 119Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

those favorites, which proved to be an easy task.

We chose fall-friendly hues of pink, green, and purple instead of the traditional rainbow theme, and accented with blue and chalkboard designs. I designed all of the paper goods and printed them at a local office supply store that prints on good quality paper.

For the dessert table, I used glassware from my collection of milk glass and searched over the last few weeks at thrift stores for particular pieces of hobnail glass that I will add to my collection. The backdrop was a simple piece of plywood that I painted with leftover chalkboard paint and drew on with chalk. All of the desserts I made at home, and included several kinds of macarons, eclairs, chocolate truffles, cream puffs, cookies, and mini cupcakes. I found a local candy store that sold bulk candy for around $2 a pound to add some color. I also made “paint puddle” lollipops from Sprinkle Bakes. They were so easy and the kids loved them!

I purchased a roll of chalkboard contact paper on Amazon and cut in to size for signs that I drew on with chalk and secured them with the sticky side down on our door and above the crepe bar to provide a Menu for crepe offerings. Speaking of the crepe bar, crepes are so easy to make, and store easily. Combine them with some Nutella, Fresh fruit and cream, and you are good!

For the food buffet, I decorated with curtains from Maddie’s room, a wire Eiffel Tower from her room as well. Add a $4 poster from amazon and some fresh flowers, and you get a simple but elegant look. For a banner to display on the fireplace mantle, my dad and I made a simple paper banner but alternated with $1 paintbrushes dipped in colors to match the party. I also used the paint to color thrifted frames, one of which I attached some of the contact paper and a wooden letter “M.” For table coverings, I used plain white tablecloths and used brown craft paper as runners. It was inexpensive (check the office supplies at the dollar store for the brown paper), was easy to clean up, and with the addition of mason jars filled with crayons, was basically a huge sketch pad!

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I also made Madelyn’s cake, which saved a huge bakery bill. I made the fondant decorations and placed them on a tiered white cake that I covered with buttercream in ruffle-like patterns.

The kids all painted their own canvases which I bought in bulk on sale at Michaels, and supplied them with paints and brushes I found for a couple of dollars there as well.

The last project I completed for the party was the thank you bags for the kids and adults. The kid’s took home themed cups that have interchangeable designs, personalized aprons (you can buy cheap ones on Amazon and use a paint marker to write the kids names), homemade watercolor paints (recipes are on Pinterest), and art supplies found at the dollar store and Michaels. Adults took home white paper lunch bags that I designed and printed on my own printer, and they filled them with treats from the dessert table. Since I made a ton of macarons, the guests were able to take home a couple of cookies for each person.

Overall, the party turned out great, and was budget-friendly. I discovered the best tips to recreate a party like this is to shop for dollar store items and make everything you can yourself!

Party styling, printables, photography, baked goods, and fondant work by: Two Sugar Babies

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Year of the Horse By: Spaceships and Laserbeams

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love the premise of Everyday Party Magazine and the idea that you can create a celebration that is stylish and pretty with no money. For my Year of the Horse children’s tablescape I wanted to be true to these principles. I incorporated simple dollar store items including lanterns and toy horses. A bag of oranges help bring hits of color. The centerpiece is a checkers board game where the pieces are many of the animals from the Chinese zodiac.

Vendor Credits Styling and Photography: Spaceships and Laserbeams

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Pick out a book.

1

Milk + Bookies is a nationwide non-profit that exposes young kids to how great it feels to give back while celebrating the love of a good book

Inscribe a book plate & stick it on the inside cover of the book.

2

BRING a new or gently used book to donate to a local child with no access to books of their own.

PERSONALIZE it by inscribing a bookplate with a special message to adhere inside.

3 Drop the book into the donation box.

4

Get an I DONATED sticker and wear it with pride!

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DROP the book in a donation box and WEAR your badge of honor (the I DONATED sticker).

Milk + Bookies is a great addition to any party or gathering. This programs molds to the needs of all those interested, helps them find a local recipient and gets them the whimsical and hopeful materials needed to "host their own".

Some popular parties include; M+B Birthday Parties, M+B Class Project (for teens in need of community service hours) and the M+B in- school Book Fair.

For more information, please visit www.milkandbookies.org

Chinese New Year By: The Happy Hour Hostess

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he Chinese New Year can be a terrific holiday to celebrate with friends and family even if you are not of Chinese descent. Spanning the course of fifteen days, it marks the start of the Chinese lunar calendar which typically falls at the end of January or first half of February. The festivities are full of ancient traditions and customs, bright colors, and tasty foods that are fun to implement and interesting for guests to discover throughout the evening.

2014 marks the year of the horse and the celebrations will begin on January 31st. Legend tells of Nian, a mythical beast who would arrive on the first of the year and terrorize the villages, eager to eat everything from the crops to the children. When it was discovered that Nian was afraid of the color red, people began hanging red paper cutouts on doors and windows, stringing lanterns and even using firecrackers to keep him at bay. For our party, we created a door hanger using traditional red and gold colors and added Chinese characters with English translations. We also placed descriptions among all of the decorations to explain time-honored customs.

Inside, guests found a table of traditional foods that displayed the meaning behind dishes served during New Year’s celebrations. The shape of dumplings, for example, mimics that of ancient gold or silver ingots and are used as a symbol of wealth. The large grapefruit-like pomelo fruit is used to symbolize prosperity. A separate dessert table included cupcakes topped with a fringed pick to resemble fireworks and traditional Chinese New Year treats such as sesame puffs, hard candies, oranges and a sweet candy called winter melon. These authentic items were sourced inexpensively at a local Asian grocery store and made for a fun adventure to try.

In the backyard, guests found a specialized Ginger-Pom Shanghai Martini awaiting them on the bar, as well as a bucket of Tsingtao beer from Qingdao, China. Bright red paper lanterns with gold fringe hung over the pool, overlooking handmade floating lanterns consisting of foam, battery operated tea lights and a pearl colored paper wrapped with a red ribbon. The setting sun brought out amazing colors, adding to a fantastic atmosphere. Accentuating the bar was a bright 20x20 canvas oil painting of a dragon (Made by my sister made for the party).

Other party decorations included silk fans wrapped in a delicate gold ribbon, red envelopes used for

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gifting money and homemade poppers to mimic firecrackers. In Virginia, sparklers are illegal, but if they are allowed in your area, I would definitely use them too! Red string bracelets for good luck were displayed on a gold dish for guests to take. All signs and paper products were personally designed using my Silhouette Cameo. For one design, I attached Chinese symbols to mini 4x4 canvas’ and then sprayed multiple layers of Modge Podge sealer to give them a sleek and finished look. We used the same sealer on the front door display to the same effect. The dessert table was accentuated with a 36’ white balloon tied simply with red and gold ribbons, a timeline depicting which years indicate a birth in the year of the horse, flowers hung with luck gold coin hangers (also from the Asian grocery). Takeout boxes wrapped in ornate gold ribbon and a stickers indicating the Year of the Horse (from Zazzle. com) contained treats such as chocolate gold coins, fortune cookies, and a chart for guests to learn about what their own Chinese Zodiac sign is and what that means about them! We were excited to find out that many of these guests already knew exactly what their own zodiac animal was!

One tradition to definitely try involves the wishing tree. In Hong Kong stands a large Banyan Tree where for many, many years, people have tossed their wishes up into it’s branches. An orange attached by string is thrown high into the tree. The higher the limb, the more likely it is to come true! We pre-tied and stapled ribbon to mandarin oranges and paper and after documenting our wishes (which were genuine overall but also included a couple of not-so-traditional things like “skinny thighs” and “I wish I was a little bit taller”) we lined up for the toss. 100% of the oranges landed on the ground!! It was hysterical and after 10 minutes of tossing, still not one of us had a wish in the tree. My advice is to make the ribbon much longer than you think and to attach to the orange in the most secure way you can find (our staples broke quickly after a few attempts at the tree).

A few other interesting traditions …..before the new year, homes are thoroughly cleaned in order to “sweep out the old year” but once the festivities begin, floors remain decidedly unswept for fear of pushing out the good luck. Additionally, avoid using knives when eating because it is considered another way you can sever your own good fortune. So, 131Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013

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once your own Chinese New Year party has ended, use only a fork to eat all of your yummy leftover take-out and feel free to leave the mess on the floor for the next couple of weeks!

Themes of family, friendship, fortune and food all come together to make this a terrific party to try out in 2014.

Do not underestimate your local Asian grocery stores, the clerks and owners I met were a wonderful resource of information and all told me that in January they will have many decorations and a greater variety of foods available. Check my blog for more DIY advice to keep the cost low and add your own personal touch to your celebration!

Finally, this Chinese New Year party would not look as stunning and festive without the brilliant talent of Jeff Byrd at Byrd’s Eye Photography. Thank you Jeff, for always showing our parties in the most celebratory light!

Happy New Year, everyone!!

Sources: Photography: Jeff Byrd, Byrd’s Eye Photography Event Design, Graphic design, Paper décor and signage: The Happy Hour Hostess Red Money Envelopes: Arte Crafts via Etsy Additional Red Money Origami Envelopes (not pictured but amazing): HuiBs from Singapore via Etsy Horse Lolipops: Designer Lolipop via Etsy Props- Black Horse, Red Metal Lantern, Red Vase: Garden Ridge Red Lanterns: Party City Fabric, Ribbon, Canvases, Paint, Silk Fans, Take-out Boxes, Etc.: Michaels and A.C. Moore Horse Stickers: Zazzle.com Custom Dragon Oil Painting: Jessica Desmond Chinese foods, red fringe and coin decorations: Four Seasons Oriental Grocery

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Ironwood Capital Management

Isn’t about time for your money to start working for you?

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Spring Issue Available January 30, 2014 136Everyday Party Magazine Winter 2013