To all my Peeps out there ...a Peep Tree!

Happy Monday everyone!  Since Easter is less than a week away, I'll be posting Easter tips every day to help with your party décor or gift ideas.  Today's tip is dedicated to all my Peeps out there!  Marshmallow Peeps only come out during Easter and they are quite adorable. They aren't expensive and you can find assorted flavors, colors and animals.  Instead of giving them as a gift in a traditional Easter basket why not create a Peep Tree and display it on a table for your guests to eat.  It's super affordable and very easy and quick to make. 

(The Peep Tree displayed here was for a baby shower.  

The theme was rubber duckies).  

 

 All you need is:

- 1 Styrofoam ball (it doesn't really matter how big or small it is-it all depends how many Peeps you have) 

- 1 Skewer stick

- Toothpicks

- Floral Foam

- a short Vase that you have lying around the house

- Easter hay or raffia

 

 

Here's what you need to do:

 

1. The first thing you will need to do is cut the floral foam with a knife to fit the size of your vase (I always cut my floral foam in the sink to avoid making any mess).  Make sure the piece you cut is a little smaller than the neck of your vase so it can fit in easily. Also, the foam should be as high as the height of your vase to give extra support to your Styrofoam ball. 

 

2. Push the foam to the bottom of the vase.

 

3. Insert the skewer stick (you can decorate the skewer stick with ribbon or paint it) into the centre of the foam.   

 

4. Gently push the Styrofoam ball into the top of the skewer

 

5. Once the ball is in place, take one peep at a time and insert a toothpick at the bottom of the peep.  The idea is to stick the bottom of the peep into the ball so that it looks like the peep is sitting on the ball. 

 

6. Take the end of the toothpick that's sticking out and insert into the ball. 

Remember to start at the top of the ball to make the peeps look like they're set-up in a pattern.

7. Continue doing this until the ball is completely covered in peeps.

 

8. Finally, top the vase with the colored hay or raffia for a finishing touch.

 

It makes a really cute edible table decoration. 

Who doesn't enjoy a good marshmallow? 

Keeping It Fresh During Your Wedding Reception

 

My apologies for neglecting my daily posts this week.  I've been feeling under the weather these days. - I think there may be a flu-like virus going around.  Since I've been feeling a little out of it, I thought it would be appropriate to share a Wedding Tip that has to do with freshening up and pampering yourself.  I did this for my wedding and it was a hit.  Unfortunately, I don't have any pics but there are lot of ideas on google images that may inspire you.  I created 2 complimentary bathroom baskets that were tailored for men and women.  The woven baskets were decorated to match my theme and were placed in both restrooms.  Guests were invited to take what they needed when they visited the restroom.  Some ideas were:

 

-Gum

-Mouthwash

-Advil

-Sewing kit

-Hairspray

-Bobby pins

-Band Aids

- Hair brush

-Dental floss

-Tums

-and the list goes on and on...

 

Guests will appreciate this personal touch especially if they forget an item at home and find it for free in the restroom! 

 

Have a great weekend all!  Keep it fresh and healthy!

A Stress-Free Way to Eat!

 

Planning a menu for a party can sometimes be a little tricky especially with so people who have food allergies nowadays.  The last thing you want is to make one of your guests ill during your celebration.  Here is a quick and easy trick that will help eliminate some stress when it comes to serving food.  It's always best to plan your menu around your guests food restrictions.  If your friend is allergic to shellfish, avoid serving a shrimp platter!  Even though you are careful with what you are serving, it's always a nice touch to let your guests know what food items they can or can't eat.  It shows them that you care and kept them in mind when planning your menu.  With all the chaos that comes with throwing a party, it can sometimes be impossible to tell everyone what ingredients you used. Why not add Food Labels to your platters!  You can make them yourself and create fun names to describe each food item.  It adds a little personal décor detail to your party and it reassures your guests that what they're eating is safe to eat. Bon appétit! 

 





My latest guilty pleasure

 



Shopping for parties can sometimes get out of hand.  You set a budget, you make a checklist of all the things that you "need" to get, you enter a store and... BANG!  You forget that you ever had a checklist.  $200 later, you are on your way home trying to justify to yourself why you absolutely needed to buy a pack of 12 designer paper straws.  Yes, you read right...designer paper straws.  As an avid Professional Event Planner for over 10 years, I can honestly say that my latest obsession is to buy paper straws to help set the theme to my parties.  I don't know why, I just love them.  They come in a variety of colors to match your scheme. You can add them to your Couture Party Table (a fancy table where you can display your sweets or your meal).  What I love to do is to add them to a mason jar (as seen above and yet another one of my guilty pleasures).  They are just so darn adorable!  They aren't really a party necessity, but if my husband asks...they are!  

Seeing Dots?

If you're seeing dots it's probably because you're suffering from "Crafting Fatigue" (i.e. when you find yourself crafting past midnight and can't see straight) or you're using Glue Dots!  Some of you may be scratching your heads saying to yourself, "What in the world are Glue Dots?"  Glue Dots are the next best thing to using a glue stick.  It's an easy, glue-smudge free way of gluing crafts together.  I use them to assemble invitations and pretty much anything else that needs a little bit of glue.  I adore these little dots and can't say enough about them!  They usually come in a pack of 200 and each dot is placed on a glossy reel of paper making it easy to stick onto stuff.  Each pack costs about $4.00 each.  If you're lucky, you might even find them at Dollarama where you'll pay half the price!  See ya later glue stick, hello Glue Dots!