Guest Posting: Bugaboo, Mini, Mr, & Me...A Pretty Wrapped Up Picnic

Hey guys!  Take a peek over at Bugaboo, Mini, Mr, and Me where I am guest posting for her "Life's a Picnic" party this summer.  I am sharing a couple of fabric wrapping ideas perfect for a picnic for two!

There is a whole bunch of fun picnic ideas as part of the linky party Kimberly has going until August.  

If you have an idea you should join in on the fun too!  

Come over and say hi!

Pretty Paper Party Things

Hi sweet friends!
(say that title 5x really fast...Pretty Paper Party Things.  So fun)

Today I have some more party ideas!
I have put together some paper type projects and I am excited to share them with you.  

Since we are having a picnic during a Florida summer...it will be a tad warm.  So what better idea is there then to make some girly fans!!

I hunted down a bracket frame image I liked, enlarged the image to make a paddle type fan and printed it out on card stock to be a sturdy template.  I used 8 x 8 scrapbook card stock paper which fit it perfectly.  I tried using 12 x 12 but I could only get one fan from the sheet and I felt that was a waste of paper.

I traced the template on the back of each sheet, cut it out and hot glued each one to a craft popsicle stick.

    SO EASY!  Took me one nap time to get it all done. :)

Here is a template to make your own.
Click here to download

Now our girly guests will be able to feel cool and say things like..."I declare!" in a southern accent.

(of which I do NOT have though many others say I do)

I am probably crazy for wrapping up utensils but I really think it adds an extra detail to a party to make it special. It also lets me buy inexpensive napkins and by wrapping them with 4 inch doilies and tying them off with twine...it makes for a lovely presentation.

I have to be honest that I was pretty much over the 4th of July Mason Jar Sippy Cups I made.  I loved them but I was excited to do something else with them for this party! I had an idea and I went on a hunt and was so happy with what I found at Michael's in the scrapbook section...plastic paper. How genius is that? And it is SO PRETTY! I figured y'all would like to see my revamped jars...

I loved how the one sheet looks like lace and the other with dainty pink flowers.  Perfect for my party theme and they are both clear and see through. The lace one reminds me of  overhead projector sheets.  Wow, that must age me, right? If you are wondering...I am 35. :)  The pink flowered one is more thick and opaque.  But perfect!

So I traced and cut the circles out and I am re-loving the jars again.  LOVING THEM! And no mess too.

If the plastic paper thing was not to be found, I was going to hunt for plastic placemats or something.  But I LOVE the look of these and I am so happy with how they turned out!

Happy Tuesday sweet friends!
♥ XOXO ♥

Pretty & Simple DIY: Flower Centerpieces from the Garden

Stir crazy.  That has been the girls and me.  It has been raining like crazy.  To be honest, the rain is my favorite weather.  I love thunderstorms and curling up with a good book and  a cup of tea in front of the window. Even in the summer!  But when it goes on too long...I get a little restless.

 So yesterday I was looking at all my flowers in the front yard drooping from being sopping wet (I really need to prune them back but it makes me sad every time I do it).  I love all the pink (two shades of pink actually...tee hee) and white. These flowers above are vincas which here in Florida are perennials. They re-seed fast and I got a bunch of them this year. But the blooms are fragile and fall off easily.   

My girls always pick them up off the ground to give their mommy flowers. I put them in this little shallow dish and treasure those flowers from their sweet little hearts. But then I got to thinking and had a little inspiration. What if I did the same thing but gave it more impact by putting several glass vessels together as a centerpiece? 

That might be really pretty and completely FREE!

So I scooped some up and hunted down some glass containers I have on hand.

I trimmed some of the stems for the really shallow dishes (most are votive candle holders) so they could float on the water.

It DOES look pretty! Almost elegant. 

And the clustered glasses together look even better!

This would be such a fast and easy idea for a spontaneous dinner party or get together. I like the idea of placing them on a coffee table with some candles for a pretty display. 

I love simple, pretty, and free!

What do you think?  What would YOU do?

PS.  I have more picnic party ideas coming soon!

Hugs and have a great weekend my sweet friends!

♥

Make Your Own Old Fashioned Games... Make Them Pretty too!

Well here we go.  

I am planning this birthday party that I initially intended to be easy with pizza and a jump house. But to my great delight, we decided to go another direction and we are doing this picnic party with some homemade, old fashioned yard games, picnic blankets, and a picnic dinner. And it will be GIRLY!  

HOORAY for girly!  

So get ready!  This next month will be pretty party focused and today I am going to share two projects I have done so far.  

The first one is this Ring Toss game. Isn't it sweet?

I started off with this old small crate, some small embroidery hoops, and a 6 pack of Diet Root Beer.

I wanted the bottles to use in the crate.  I could only fit 5 of them in there but I loved how it turned out.

I used the inner and outer rings of the embroidery hoops to make 6 rings and wrapped them with fabric from those pretty sheets I recently purchased. I just cut them into thin strips and wrapped them around and secured it with a dab of hot glue.

I hope the outer rings with the small screws won't be a safety issue so I figure the grown ups can use those and the kids can use the inner rings.

I wanted a girly but distressed look to the bottles so I painted them a very light green color (I know it looks white...sigh) called celery ice.  After it dried, I painted over it with a light pink color and then wiped it off in different places to reveal the light green underneath.

(I love my little Ella's bare feet jumping into the picture at the last minute ♥)

I painted the crate a really pale blue color (again, it looks white...another sigh) by using a dry brush of paint.  I just dipped the brush in paint and then dabbed off the excess and then with long sweeping strokes made it look distressed.  I prefer painting things this way so that I don't have to sand them later. 

Finally, I used alphabet stamps for the lettering and made them look faded.

Fabric Wrapped Hula Hoops

I love hula hoops!  I love their shiny and fun colors.  But I wanted something more feminine and sweet for one of the outdoor activities I have planned.  Plus, a couple of their hula hoops starting peeling and feeling prickly so I wanted to give them some new life.

 So enter in pretty sheets again! 

I just cut thin strips of fabric and started wrapping them and securing them with dabs of hot glue just like the embroidery hoops.

 Much prettier and they feel so soft!

And yes, they still work!  The girls seem to like them better and actually using them a lot more now.

I believe pretty fabric makes everything better. And prettier.  And happier.

Amen.

Linking to: 

Peaches and Basil... Amazing Together!

 Thought I would share one of my favorite summertime yummy goodness treats!

 I found this recipe in Real Simple (original recipe at link) several years ago and when I tried it I was in taste bud heaven.

For a single serve snack, this is what I do:

1-2 ripe peaches

fresh mozzarella 

fresh basil leaves (5 or 6) torn into small pieces

A splash of olive oil

Freshly ground pepper and a pinch of sea salt

(regular table S & P is just fine)

I make this for parties all the time too. ♥

Mix it together and get ready for an amazing, tasty treat!

  I love peaches, basil, and mozzarella but the idea of salt and pepper with olive oil intrigued me.

Are YOU intrigued?

You will not be disappointed. 

 Seriously.  Go make it.  Right now. And tell me what you think. :)

Fashion Headbands Giveaway Winners!

Good Morning Everyone!

Email me so I can get your information to arrange for your Fashion Headbands to be sent to you!

Picnic Theme Birthday Party Invitation

Hey Friends!  

Have I got a fun little party invite to share!  As you all know by now...the girls have birthdays coming up and they share a party.  So this year I decided I wanted to do a PICNIC THEME.  I have been tossing this idea around for months now and I still don't have a clear picture of what the party will look like.  But what comes to mind are old fashioned games I can make myself (ring toss, kick the can, hopscotch, sack races, etc), ready made picnic meals, and pretty sheets as picnic blankets outside. I am aiming for something simple and sweet.

So the first thing on the to-do list?
INVITATIONS!
 I thought it would be fun to send an invitation that looked like a picnic lunch.  The envelope would be the paper bag and using food images printed and cut out on white card stock, I made each item in the lunch...a sandwich, apple, milk carton, and napkin...contain the information for the party.

Anatomy of the Picnic Theme Invitation

Napkin (cocktail size) with Handwritten Message of Party Theme
Milk Carton RSVP
Apple Date and Time Card
Sandwich Birthday Announcement

 I made a little funny. Tee hee.

 I decided to fold the bag without taping it.  I originally planned on making the paper bags into envelopes and mailing them but I decided to save a bunch of stamps and hand deliver them.

But you still can do that if you need to mail your invites...

1. Place everything inside a flat and VERTICAL bag with the bottom still folded and facing up.

2. Fold the bottom up once.

3. Take the top half and fold into a triangle or point.

4. Fold it down and secure it with double sided tape or a glue stick.

To fold it like I did...

Lay flat with the bottom of the bag facing up.

Slide your picnic food tags/cards into the bag, all the way to the bottom while the bag is still flat.

 With the bag lying horizontal...fold  about 2 inches of the top of the bag down.

Fold the left side over to the right.

Label bag and tie twine around to keep the bag folded closed.  I did it this way so that when they untie and open it...it will be an actual paper bag instead of torn by tape.

This is the back secured with the jute twine. Baker's twine would be adorable too.
I actually tried doing this where the folded part was tucked under the flap but it would not lay flat so this way worked best.

How fun would it be to open up this invitation?

If you would like to make your own, I have a download of the clip art for you. This is a great idea for any kind of party and even great lunch notes too for back to school!

 

Click here to download (4 per sheet)

 Click here to download (9 per sheet)

Click here to download (4 per sheet)



What do you think of my fun invites?
You will probably see a  lot more of my projects for this party over the next month...hope you don't mind!
Happy Monday and Hugs to Each of YOU!