Everyday Celebrating

It's that time of year...

Looking for a unique vase for your graduation centerpiece?  A Class of 2010 birch bark vase!  

Let's talk backdrops

One of the best ways to create impact and drama at a buffet table or any event table is with a coordinating backdrop.  Remember I mentioned earlier that one of the reasons everyone loves Amy Atlas' designs is because she always has a backdrop that compliments her table.  Luckily, she's usually not up against a crazy clashing wallpapered room.  LOL

I recently ran across some great DIY projects that would make beautiful and interesting backdrops, even if their original use was for home decor wall art.

First, this stream ruffle board by blogger Stephanie Lynn.  Stephanie gives a full tutorial of how she created this board and it included sewing but don't worry.. those of us who don't sew, can still pull this off with glue.  :)   And I love it.  Two of these side by side would make a beautiful backdrop, even with no flower.  Very striking in a two color design.... black/white... hot pink/black... etc.

 
Another amazing and easy way to create a backdrop which was originally posted as wall art...



The amazing thing?  How she created it?  She used a door mat as a stencil!
 


See?  Isn't that great?  It's kinda like damask!
 

   
And finally, this.  I love the ocean wall art!  Great for a nautical or pirate theme!
 

 
At your next get together, think about how you can pull together a total look with a creative backdrop! Even a piece of patterned fabric goes a long way!

Easy wrapping touches

This definitely is NOT my best photography.  LOL   BUT.. you still can still get the idea.

I like to add a little somethin' somethin' to my gift wrap.  I've talked previously about adding half of the famous Martha Stewart pom onto gifts.  I love the pop and height they give. This was a baby shower gift and as you can see, I added a name.  That's the baby's name - Karsyn.  These great sparkly rhinestone type letters are available in the scrapbook sections and they are just peel and sticks.  While you have to be extra careful with them because the "stones" are delicately held together, I think they really add to gifts.

Momma to be, Katy, if you're reading... can't wait to see Karsyn in all her fabulousness soon!

Mother's Day Gift idea - SmileBooks!

As we all know, Mother's Day is quickly approaching.  What better way than to put together a beautiful coffee table book of your family photos?

My friends at SmileBooks have TWO great offers for you - both are great ways to celebrate the upcoming holiday!

1.  Want a FREE book?  Sure ya do.  Click on the ad of theirs on the left of my site and get one!  All you have to do it sign up for their enewsletter.  

but here is something better....

2.  Do you have a LOT of photos and no time to put together your own book?   SmileBooks recently started a Design Service.  This is perfect for those folks that either don't have the time to design their own book OR maybe just wants a book, without going through the effort of putting it together.

Here's how it works:

Go to this link on the SmileBooks site.

Log in using your usual SmileBooks user data or register if you are not a SmileBooks customer.

Select the book size and design style you'd like.

Upload LOTS of pictures! The beauty of the image service is you don't even have to choose the best, the designer will do that for you.

SmileBooks designs a book for you

You preview the draft

You then make comments on any changes you'd like and repeat the review process

until you are entirely happy with the result.

And guess what?  When you're ready to order a custom designed book, just enter coupon code EVERYDAYDS and the fee for the design services and image selection will be ZERO.
(Make sure you click "update" once you've entered the code.)

When you're ready to order, enter the coupon code EVERYDAYDS which will
set your shopping cart amount for design services and the image
selection service to zero (please click on the "update" button once you have entered the code).

This code is valid on all photos uploaded to Smilebooks before May 9.  So get busy!!!

It's one amazing deal from my friends at SmileBooks.

SIDENOTE:  These books aren't just for Mother's Day.  Think about ALL the celebrations or memories you want to keep in a beautiful book.  Graduation, Father's Day, birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, Prom, Births, etc.  Gather your photographic memories and create a book that will archive them for a lifetime!

More Martha Stewart poms - with stems!

Yet another take on the ever popular Martha Stewart pom!  Stemmed poms!

PomLove creates these stemmed poms that are perfect vase fillers.  They come fully assembled and opened.  Just pull them out of the box, drop them in a vase and you have instant decor!

These would be great for tailgating.  Get the in your team colors and no regrets tossing them at the end for easy clean-up before the game.

Thank you notes for floral gifts.

Have you ever sent someone flowers and given the florist specific instructions as to what you wanted sent and then always wondered what exactly WAS sent?  Or maybe you didn't tell them what you wanted, but just wondered what that $50 got you?  LOL  And who wants to ask the recipient, "hey, what DID those flowers look like, anyway?"

I heard this suggestion on the radio and thought it was a great idea and wanted to pass it along.

If you RECEIVE flowers, enclose a photo of the flowers inside the thank you note.  Sounds so common sense, doesn't it? 

If you received flowers for having a new baby, take a picture with your baby beside the flowers.  A) Everyone wants to see the baby and feel like they got a special first look at him/her and B) they get to see the flowers they purchased and C) you're taking care of a thank you note!

So easy and the receiver will love seeing the flowers that were sent in their name.

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Speaking of hearing suggestions on the radio... Celebrations.com (a member of the 1-800-Flowers family of brands) has invited me to be a guest on their radio show tomorrow. This show is hosted by the TV Host Jeanne Benedict of the DIY Network's Weekend Entertaining. I'll be talking about end of summer party centerpieces! It's a 30 minute show airing at 3pm EST on Blog Talk Radio and we'd love for you to join us.  If you're not familiar with Blog Talk Radio, it includes a chat feature where you can ask questions and meet other listeners.  Note:  you do have to log in to use this feature.

Inspirational sites and vinyl

Even now, that my son is WAY into the toddler phase, I still love perusing Project Nursery.

My friends over there, Melisa and Pam, have a beautiful site and I love looking at what TALENT people have in creating beautiful rooms for children.

And not only that, I find inspiration in these rooms for other events.
Case in point. The room above is one of my absolute faves because of the incredible mural on the wall.
The mural was created on the computer and projected onto the wall and hand painted.  Every time I see this photo, I smile.  I love the contemporary look of it.

Of course, the Dwell Bedding underneath probably has something to do with it too.  LOVE Dwell!  But moving on...  this mural could be created on a smaller scale for a party with the all the rage now.. vinyl letters.  Vinyl letters are coming out now as not just for home decor, but for temporary party decor as well.  Why?  Because they create impact and are EASILY removed.

Like one of these behind the gift table at wedding:

or one of these to tie in with a space theme boy's birthday placed behind the food table:

or one of these for a french champagne party

You get the idea.  Just another reminder to pull inspiration from many places and transform it into something fabulous for your next occasion.

Custom maps

As you probably would've guessed, I was one of those brides that made my own wedding invitations. This was back when that wasn't popular and there wasn't a lot of ideas to go by on the internet.  That was back when Crane's still ruled and you went searching over books and books of "eh" invites. 

One of the hardest tasks of my involved invitation was the map.Luckily, I'm pretty good with publishing software, but still, it was a chore.  Just getting it to some kind of scale, etc, was awkward and difficult.

But today, there are plenty of amazingly talented people that you can hire to just design your map!
Like the ones above from Go Against the Grain.

For $35, they'll create a 2 sided design that you can print yourself.  WELL worth the money, let me tell you!

And you can have one designed for any type of occasion.  Not just weddings.  Believe me, your guests will thank you! 

Bake it Pretty!

 

 

Bake It Pretty makes me happy!
Lots and lots of adorable accessories and confections to add to your baked goods such as these cupcake liners.  And these adorable sugar buttons already made and ready for your desserts.

 

They have edible glitter and super cute straws like these:

 

And one of my favorites, the love toast stamper!

Be still my EATING heart!

May I present to you some of the most beautiful cookies ever???

Monogrammed houndstooth....

Wedgewood inspired!

brush embroidery

cameo!

Can you imagine the tea party you could have with these?
Stunning!  Purchase them from SweetAmbs