Placecard Love

I subscribe to Martha Stewart Weddings daily e-mail inspiration, and yesterday's idea had to do with place cards - the cute little butterfly one below to be exact. I peaked through the ideas and picked out the ones I loved. Gosh, Martha, why are you so creative?!

I love the look of this wreath with the place cards attached. How great would this be for a holiday party or a winter party? However, this would great anytime of year!

Oh, I absolutely love this idea. It's seriously so simple, but SOOOO cute. Perfect for a Garden Party, Baby or Bridal Shower, Easter or a Mother's Day get together. You can spice it up a bit by choosing daisies that fit with your color scheme, too.

I had to post this one! Perfect for an informal wedding or for big summer get-together. Oh, so cute!

I think these are adorable! You could use the whole theme as for a bachelorette Party that's taking place in Vegas!

Another adorable summer idea! Beach themed wedding anyone?

These are the butterfly place cards that initially caught my eye! I love how cute they are! Perfect for Easter, Mother's Day, Garden Party, or a kid's Butterfly-themed party.

Perfect for fall, these leaf cut-outs are great for your Thanksgiving dinner or a fall wedding.

I thought this was gorgeous for the place cards to be set on a bed of flowers. I think this would be great for a wine party or night-in with your girlfriends!

Hello - can we say A-DOR-A-BLE! I love these cute little handbag place cards? These are awesome for a bridal shower, bachelorette party or girls night! I'm in love! :)

For more of Martha Stewart's cute and creative place card ideas - click here.

Happy Sunday to me!

Well, I'm happy to say that I didn't wake up feeling icky today from last night's pink and orange birthday party celebration (post and pics on that to follow....)! I'm also happy to say that I FINALLY got myself a Cricut! I've had my eye on one for a long time, but could never get myself to spend the money. So while I was doing my weekly sales ad check, I came across the BIG sale at Joann Fabrics - a brand new Cricut for $84.99! Wow! They also have cartridges on sale for $34.99... Wow again!

So, if you don't have a Cricut yet, and have been eyeing one up, head over to your nearest Joann Fabrics and pick one up - it's quite a deal! Joann Fabrics also lets you purchase them on their web site, so if you don't have a store near you, buy one off their web sites.

Cricut-owners, do you have some tips and ideas for my new Cricut?! I'd love hear them!

A new secret weapon?? ...

Well, not really... but it's got you intrigued, doesn't it! Anyway, I went to Shopko this weekend with my mom and aunt, and while I was perusing the aisles, I found this little gem on sale for $25. (thanks, Mom!)

So I tested it out on Sunday morning with making my family some mini-muffins. I've come to the conclusion that it's a great instrument to use - it's not as time-efficient as it may seem. You get to make 7 mini-cupcakes (or mini-muffins or mini-brownies) at a time; each taking around 5-7 minutes to bake. Now, if you do the math, you can make around 2-dozen of these little cuties in your oven in like 16-20 minutes. However, I think this will make a great addition to my kitchen during those hot summer months, primarily because I won't have to turn on my oven!

What little finds have you purchased lately that you enjoy? I'm always looking to go shopping! :)

Is it SPRING yet?!?!

I saw this amazing centerpiece on Martha Stewart's web site and just had to share it with you all!

How delicious and pretty does this look! This would be a great addition to feature at any spring party... especially a garden party! This would also be a great thing to bring to a party as your gift to the host/hostess. You can check out all the things you need to make this great centerpiece here.

Oh man, do I love Martha!

Giveaway on Jaclyn Elizabeth Events blog!

You may have read about this stationery line from one of my previous posts, and now is your chance to win it! Jaclyn Elizabeth Events is offering one lucky reader a set of 10 greeting cards! Better yet, there are FOUR different ways to enter - winner will be chosen at random!

1. Become a follower of Jaclyn Elizabeth Events Designing Unforgettable Experiences blog and leave a comment about what types of posts you'd like to see featured.

2. Become a fan of Jaclyn Elizabeth Events on Facebook and leave a comment on the blog about what type of posts you'd like to featured.

3. Post this giveaway on your blog with the link to the post included in the comment.

4. Post this giveaway on your Facebook page with a link included in the comment.

**Remember to leave a comment for each entry!**

Best of luck!

Easter and Spring place card holder ideas

Hi all - Happy Saturday! I came across this super cute (and super easy) DIY place card. You can use it for you Easter dinner or even for a spring-themed party. My favorite part - it's completely edible (well besides the tree branch).

Below are some other cute place card ideas - thanks to Martha Stewart:

{above} After you've chosen the colors for your flower arrangement, find a pretty corresponding color and create beautiful place card that you can place in the petals of the tulips.

{above} Create an egg-shaped name card on a bright pastel piece of paper, glue onto a lollipop stick and place in this bowl. Why not have your eggs and eat them, too?!

{above} I love the idea of these little flower arrangements in a small pot and creating a fold-out name tag. What a pretty thing to sit down to! How cute would these be for a baby shower!?

For more ideas on table settings and decor for your Easter and spring-themed parties, go here and here.

Another Sneak-Peek into the Pink and Orange birthday party

I perused the Internet a little harder and came up with the dimensions for the cupcake toppers. I went out and bought myself a circle punch that's 1.5" round and a scalloped-circle punch that's 2" round. The circles that I made in Illustrator are 1.5" around, and then I plan on punching out some patterned and plain colored paper with my 2" scalloped punch and pasting them together to make the cupcake toppers. Pretty nifty (and standard, huh!). Well I hope you enjoy the latest sneak-peek into my upcoming party. I find myself writing down all my ideas for this party in my notebook that I carry around me with every where. I've got party on the brain... and let me tell you - it's preventing me from sleeping at night!

Blogger friends - please help!

As many of you may know from previous posts, I'm planning my cousin's upcoming 25th PJ Party birthday - which is a week from Saturday. I really want to make some cute cupcake toppers, water bottle wrappers, stickers, etc. (you know... what most of you sell in your Etsy shops!), but I have NO idea what the dimensions of them are! Could someone please help me out by letting me know the dimensions you use - pre-printed? I'd really, really appreciate it! Thanks! :)

PJ Party Sneak-Peek!

I thought I would give you all a sneak-peek into the party I'm putting together for my cousin's 25th birthday PJ Party. Here is the invite I created for the party. These colors aren't showing up how they really appear on the invite - not sure why! "Chelsie's" and "Slumber Party" are both in the same pink color as the "you're invited!". Because we're cutting it so close to the party date, we decided to just put this as an event on Facebook. I'll continue with the bright pink, bright orange and white color scheme throughout the party, along with the use of martini glasses - I think they're so cute to use in decorating!

I'll keep adding more sneak-peeks as they are ready! Enjoy!

Adult PJ Party Inspiration Board - Bring your party slippers!

orange and pink lanterns: ebay, Orange rose centerpiece: the knot, Pink sweats: Victoria Secret, Pink flowers with oranges in vase: DISboards, Candy Buffet: Love-Sweet-Love blog, Cupcakes: Simply Sweets blog, Pink cocktail: Cointreau

My cousin (who's also my best friend), is turning 25 this year and asked me to plan a little party for her. After we talked through a couple of different ideas, we came up with the idea of an all girls adult PJ party! She let me loose to come up with ideas for decor, food, events, etc. Because her birthday is the beginning of March, and it always seems that we get our worst snow storms during that time, I thought that bright colors were great to get us in a spring-like mood - plus, what fun would a PJ party be with drab colors? I've really been in love with the pink, orange and white theme so I choose to base the party around those colors.

Theme:

- Pink and Orange Girls Only Adult PJ Party - Bring your drinking slippers (and of course a sleeping bag and pillow... we need to be responsible here!)

Decor:

- I love the look for those circle paper lanterns that you can pretty much hang from anywhere... not to mention they're not too expensive.

- I'm thinking pink and orange table cloths, pink and orange themed paper plates, silverware, cups, napkins, etc.

- Centerpieces could be square vases filled with cheaper flowers (we're not rich here!). I love the vase that has orange slices placed around the outside of the clear vase in the inspiration board above - how cute!

- Displaying our favorite girly quotes from movies, books and famous women around the kitchen and living room will definitely give it a more girly feel (as if the hot pink and bright orange aren't enough, right?!)

Food:

- I LOVE candy buffets - I think they're such an awesome and fun focal point for a any party or event. I'd like to add some healthier options as well, though - such bowls of colorful fruit and veggies. I love the idea of cutting the fruit into various shapes rather than the traditional cubes, such as hearts, stars, etc.

- My cousin wanted to have fondue pots, so pink marshmallows, pretzels, rice krispie

treats, poundcake, fruit (mentioned above), etc. (any great ideas readers?!?!) She wants cheese as well, so bread, peppers, meats, etc. (any other ideas for the cheese?!?!)

- Dips and other easy finger foods and dishes - more ideas to come!

- Plenty of cocktails and other beverages, including cosmos, orange soda, pink lemonade (spiked with vodka, anyone?!) mimosas, etc.

Activities:

- I thought it would be fun for everyone to bring a bottle of wine and to do a "blind" taste-test. By blind, I mean covering the label of each bottle and having each guest sample and rate which wine was the best. The guest who brought the bottle of wine with the most votes receives a "prize".

- We LOVE our board games - so games such as Catchphrase, Apples to Apples, Scattergories and cards are a definite essential!

- As the night winds down, ending the evening with girly movies. Judging by how our nights usually seem to end, "falling asleep" to these movies is probably more accurate.

Favor ideas:

- Candy goody bags

- Homemade candles (in shot glasses?!)

- Personalized wine glass charms

Those are the quick ideas I've come up with. Overall, I think this party could be a great success without having to spend too much money. A lot of this items needed can be picked up at a dollar store or at places like Target or Wal-mart. Some of the items are traditional household items, so purchasing them won't be necessary.

If you have other ideas that would make this party POP, leave a comment! There's always ideas out there that could make any party better!

KISS ME - I'm Irish! inspiration board

image credits: green cosmo: the nibble; centerpiece: newsok blog; cupcakes: big sis little sis blog; shamrock cookie favors: My Wedding Favors Direct;

Place setting: Better Home & Gardens;

Shamrock shaped sandwiches: Taste of home; Green beer: unknown

A friend of a friend asked me if I would hand off some ideas for her St. Patty's Day party - opportunity to help plan a party - YES, PLEASE! While I'm still getting some idea of what she's looking to do, I thought I'd try to find some ideas. So I came up with this inspiration board quickly, which includes some drinks (of course you have to have green drinks and green BEER!), some cute cupcakes, some cookie favors, a centerpiece idea and a table setting idea. While I'll be out on the hunt for some great St. Patrick's Day decor and ideas, but this is just a beginner board. Like most blog posts out there - I'm in love with the idea of cupcakess a green cocktail and beer bar (you know like a candy bar, but with beer and green cocktails), some great decor (I checked out some Etsy boutiques, and boy are there some cute ideas!) and of course lots of shamrock and and other green decor!

Check it out and let me know what you think! What fun ideas are you "brewing" up for this year's Irish celebration!

Wow - another amazing DIY Valentine's idea

Oh, boy! Seriously... how am I ever going to choose what to make and give to the boy for Valentine's day when all these super cute, super creative DIY projects keep showing up in everyone's blogs?! Here's another blog I stumbled upon, Nap Time Journal, which featured this awesome idea of filling clear soda bottles with a variety of snacks and candies. The ideas for creativity on this are endless - from choosing which snacks you would like to give to the decoration of the bottles and cardboard bottle carrier.

Becca, from the Nap Time Journal, created little tags that had cute sayings on them to place around each bottle neck, along with decorating the outside of the cardboard carrier. This gift is seriously inexpensive and easy to make - perfect for a last minute gift for that person who's not the easiest to shop for on Valentine's Day!

***BONUS IDEA** Are you attending a Super Bowl party this weekend? What a great "hostess" gift or favor idea! Customize the decorations on the bottles to support which team you're cheering for - and hey! - extra party snacks never hurt anyone!

For more instructions on how to make these adorable gifts, click here.