Dulcie's Winter One-derland

My sweet niece Dulcie turned one at the end of January, and we celebrated on a sunny Saturday afternoon. For weeks prior (and the week after), however, the weather had been snowy and freezing. The surprise sunshine didn't keep the popular Winter "One"-derland theme from being completely adorable.  Her mother (and my baby sister), Mary Ruth, is fantastically talented at creating charming, whimsical decorations for next to nothing, and this  party was no exception. Many of the snowflake- and winter-themed decorations she snagged after Christmas for 75% off!

Everything was sweet and charming, and Dulcie had a fantastic time (and her first taste of cake)! The turquoise and red color scheme (which everyone knows I'm obsessed with) was tailor-made for their cute house.

Our sweet friend Jennifer (whose shower I featured here) made a gorgeous banner with the new Cricut she received for Christmas. 

Mary Ruth made a smaller banner to go over the food table. Please ignore my son's fistful of bread in the bottom left corner. Once that kid spots a plate full of rolls, it's all over.

Sweet and salty goodness: white chocolate-covered pretzel rods with color-coordinated sprinkles.

Some snowy blue and red treats. I got to make the marshmallow pops, which were super cute, but does anyone actually eat those things? It's like an adorable diabetic coma on a stick.

There were "snowy" coconut cupcakes for the guests . . . 

And a "giant cupcake," expertly decorated by my mom, for Dulcie's smash cake. 

A smash it she did!

The guests enjoyed coffee and hot cocoa with wintery fixin's, like giant marshmallows and candy canes.

The gifts were placed on some smartly coordinated fabric that Mary Ruth happened to have.

Happy Birthday, sweet Dulcie Lou! Thank you for letting us share your special day!

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T-minus 12 (11?) Weeks and Counting

So! Here I am (Mom, and my one sister who might be reading this?). I didn't mean to stay away so long. I don't have much of an excuse beyond being busy and pregnant and kind of wimpy. Speaking of which, I'm having a baby in um, 12 weeks. At the most. I'll probably have to have an early c-section in 11 weeks. I'd better get this nursery business wrapped up so this child won't have to sleep in a drawer.

(My friend Mimi is having a girl at almost the same time, so we're going ahead with the Penny Carnival shower theme, and oh-em-gee, is it going to be cute. I can't wait to share pictures.)

I am having boy #2, and I still like most of the red and blue nursery I posted before, so I've forged ahead with that. A few things have changed my original ideas. The first: lack of space in this tiny room (9x10) means I can't fit a changing table AND a dresser in, so I decided to try to find a low and long dresser, the top of which will double as a changing table. I got a crazy deal on a mid-century-esque Basset dresser on Craigslist (thirty dollars!), and the finish was beat up enough for me not to feel guilty sanding and painting it. It currently has 5 coats of red high-gloss on it, out of the 342 that will apparently be necessary. Sigh.

(The dresser in the picture is not mine, but it represents what I hope mine will look like!)

The second thing that changed my plans around a bit was my discovery of the baby bedding virtual designer at Carousel Designs. After fiddling around with the fabrics, I realized I didn't care for all the brown and cream in my first choice of sock monkey fabric, but I loved the blue option. I tried breaking up the print of the bumper and the skirt with a red crib sheet, stuck everything in a crib that looks pretty similar to the one we already have, and I loved it.

Rather than shell out $500 to purchase everything custom, I found the Moda Funky Monkey fabric on fabric.com, ordered $40 worth, and set my mom to work worked with my saint-like mother to make everything. So far, we've (SHE'S) finished the bumper, and it is looking fantastic. I will say that the fabric is a little more vivid than it looked in most pictures I saw, but I'm going to temper that with a super-pale aqua on the walls, so the room isn't too monkey-crazy colors-frenetic.

So, the bedding and dresser are almost ready to be checked off the to-do list. One of the rugs has been purchased, but it's tiny, so I hope to find an identical one to put next to it. The rocker is probably a no-go (too expensive), so I'll need to recover the cushions from Graham's glider (probably in red microfiber), and the $100-plus light fixture will probably end up being some sort of DIY effort (hold me). The book shelf pictured is similar to one I already have (that's followed me around since college), and I have bought the little cube bins to go inside. I'll feel better when I slap some paint on the walls in there.

1. Light shade, Schoolhouse Electric. 2. Bookshelf, generic image via Google to match my ancient Target Dolce bookshelf. Storage cubes, Closetmaid via Target. 3. Mid-Century Rocker, Urban Outfitters (on sale!). 4. Rug, Ikea Sveje (out of stock EVERYWHERE, but I managed to find ONE on eBay. Still hunting for a mate). 5. Crib image generated via Carousel Designs' virtual baby bedding designer using Moda Funky Monkey fabric in blue. 6. Alphabet prints, FinnyandZook, via Etsy. 7. Dresser inspiration from Red Modern Furniture. Lamp inspiration (similar to old Target lamps I already own), Robert Abbey via StyleCaster. Pin It

Harry Potter and the Nerdly Hallows

Because I am insane, last Thursday night/Friday morning I went to the midnight opening of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (which, side note, Oh Em Gee! So fantastic! And then I saw it again over the weekend!).

I have a few friends who are as much in nerd-love with the HP series as I am, and we met at my house at 10:00 (P.M.! As in, night time! This is very wild and crazy for me, now that I am old and a parent and pregnant) for some pre-movie caffeine and snacks and general geeking out like crazy eleven-year-olds.

Of course, I couldn't just have snacks and let that be that. And of course, I ran out of time before everyone got there, so I couldn't take proper photographs. Here are some blurry, but hopefully decipherable, pictures of our little dorkfest.

The (blurry) picture above is of the broomsticks I made, based on Martha's now-famous witch's broom favors. These were full of popcorn for the movie, because we are klassy like that. We pulled out the sticks, shoved the bags in our purses, and voila.

Closeup of my dorky little tag (yes, I burned the edges. Shhh.):

The most important element of the pre-movie gathering was caffeine. I put the coffee into a teapot (which is way cuter than my cheapie, half-broken coffee carafe), and cutesified its name:

To go along with the coffee, some donut holes, or (since the sign here is illegible) Hagrid's Rock Cakes:

Some other snacks: pretzel wands, water, chex mix, and little cauldrons of peanut-butter M&Ms. Healthy!

The snacks were fun, but they were nothing compared to the awesomeness of the movie. If you haven't seen it, GO NOW.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Pin It

It's a Girl! Penny Carnival Baby Shower

Yesterday I revealed my plans for my friend Mimi's baby shower in the event she has a boy. Today I'm getting a little more girly. I think the vintage toy theme works well for either gender, but Mimi has given me such cute (and theme-friendly!) names to work with. Since her chosen girl name is Penny, I decided to take the vintage style in a different direction and came up with a "Penny Carnival," complete with popcorn, pennants, and a "penny candy" buffet.

The aqua and red theme remains from the boy shower, but I'm adding a few other colors for that carnival vibe.

Images courtesy of (clockwise): cupcakes, Cake Central; tissue poms, Pom Love; popcorn favors, Candles and Favors; dessert table, Amy Atlas Events.

Now comes the hard part: waiting to find out what she's (and I'm!) having. Pin It

Jack's Vintage Toy Baby Shower

My friend Mimi is pregnant, and I am so excited to be going through my own pregnancy with such a good friend. I feel a little bad that my memory has turned to such mush (see: pregnancy plus child #1) that when she asks me pregnancy-related questions, my response is usually "Uhhh, I don't remember." What better way to make this up to her than to plan a baby shower?

As this is my second go-round with the baby-having, I do not expect to be showered with anything. Well, other than spit-up and all of the other unmentionable fluids that newborns entail. Baby gear-wise, however, I have everything I need. But this is Mim's first baby, and a bit of a wonderful surprise at that, so our friends want to give her and her husband Kevin a fun party to celebrate.

Mimi has already decided that no matter the gender, she wants to decorate the nursery with vintagey toys and retro-inspired prints. I like to incorporate the nursery's colors or theme into a baby shower when I can. We'll both be finding out our babies' respective genders in the coming weeks, but the planner in me can't wait until then to dream up party plans.

First up: the boy theme. Mimi's chosen boy name is Jack, which is a perfect match for vintage toys! Hello, there's even a game called JACKS.

I have red, round lanterns that I want to use. Paired with giant hanging "jacks" (note to self: must figure out how to make giant hanging jacks), I'm hoping they'll be reminiscient of red rubber balls. I think this grouping would look stunning hanging over food and gift tables.

Most of my other inspiration comes from Bella Grace's Vintage Toy Party and Party Love's Vintage Toy Baby Shower.

I also love the idea of including Cracker Jacks, either as favors or snacks, because of their retro quality and especially because of the Jack tie-in. Retro-inspired bunting and little pennant-style flags on the cupcakes would be adorable finishing touches.

I have a strong feeling Mim's having a girl, though, so I'll post my ideas for a girlier (but still retro-inspired) shower tomorrow! Pin It

Happy Chic: Jonathan Adler for HSN

I literally squealed when I saw Jonathan Adler's new line of housewares for Home Shopping Network. When I emailed some of the items to my friend Marianne, she said, "Emily, it's like that stuff was made with you in mind!" I KNOW, RIGHT? MUST PURCHASE.

I even love the name of this line: Happy Chic. Style doesn't have to mean snooty, and chic doesn't have to mean cold and austere. I do admit, though, that my fondness for bright colors and happy patterns, like these and Orla Kiely's, does have me concerned that my house is slowly turning into Pee Wee's playhouse. Oh well. Pee Wee seemed happy there, right? I can appreciate minimalism and all-white rooms and breeziness, but I need a healthy dose of cheery pattern around to keep me in a good mood.

Happy Chic is priced more affordably than Jonathan Adler's other designs, but not quite at Target-level cheap. I will have to save for some of these things or hope for them as Christmas gifts. Some of my favorites:

Peacock Pillows. At just under $100 for two, these are the priciest items in the collection, but I must have them. Still, when I drop $100 on pillows, especially ones with beading or other damage-able features, I really stress over anyone touching them or even leaning against them, which is quite counterproductive, considering they are pillows. These are just awesome enough for me to get past my issues, though (or maybe I would put them on my bed instead of on the couch, where they are in danger of Graham's peanut butter hands). I love that they are a set, and the peacocks face each other. Drool.

Pop Canister sets in red/orange (Caffeine and Carbs) or blue/green (Calories and Candy). Like I need anything else cluttering up my already teensy kitchen, but I am powerless to resist these. The fun font makes them feel sort of Christmassy to me. I might put them on the shelf on my back wall, or even in the glass-front cabinets.

Apple and Pear Tidbit Trays. Oh, my. So cute. Also candidates for the ledge shelf on the back wall, or perhaps to liven up the drab spot on top of the fridge? 

Tea towels in blue and green (also available in orange/pink). I have lots of fun tea towels: Orla Kiely's towels for Target, some Anthropologie clearance finds, and a few really cute patterns from World Market. I think hanging a pretty tea towel over the bar of my janky oven is the fastest way to make it look cuter and bring some personality to the kitchen. And even though I have a ton of tea towels (some might say--some being my husband--too many tea towels), I can always use more because they get dirty and need to be washed and replaced and cycled through pretty often. These are pretty reasonably priced at under $20 a set, and they'd make great hostess gifts (especially if I happen to be your hostess, har).

Mug Set in blue and orange. Okay, if I have too many tea towels, then I have waaaaay too many mugs. You can kind of see them in this photo, all stacked up in the upper right cabinets, threatening to fall on my head at any moment. But these are so great that I would probably use them on my desk at work, one for tea/coffee and the other to hold pens. My work cube is tragically greige and cluttered, and having these snazzy mugs would make a big difference. 

I like plenty of other items in the line, but these are my must-haves. I'm sure the Happy Chic line will be a big seller, and I hope that Jonathan Adler expands it later.

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Ruby Recap: Joel and Katrina's 40th Anniversary

I never meant to take so long to recap the Ruby Anniversary party. However, a lost SD card reader and my old, janky computer conspired to shut the ol' blog down for a month! Luckily my sister sent me some pictures of Graham's party so I could recap that. So sorry. Let's begin with how I spent my birthday: watching other people open presents. Just kidding! (Well, not completely, but at least sharing a birthday with your in-laws' anniversary means they'll never forget your birthday?)

I pretty much followed my inspiration board to the letter--in fact, right down to the tissue paper monogrammed letters! I ended up buying big cardboard letters from JoAnn (with 40% off coupons, of course), cutting tissue paper into 1.5" squares, twisting the squares, and hot-gluing the center of each twist onto the letters. Joel and Katrina loved them so much, they took them home!

On the interior table, I made a few centerpieces using white spider mums  and pink gerbera daisies. Take a look inside the vases--those are RUBY (well, plastic rubies) vase fillers I found at Target on clearance!

The dessert table maintained the pinky red theme, with a strawberry-topped angel food cake (Joel's favorite), some chocolate-covered strawberries, and a delicious birthday cake for yours truly, thanks to Seth's super-thoughtful sister.

[I sure wish I had gotten pictures of the food, especially the caprese salad and the melon balls that took For.Ever to scoop, just to prove how accurately I stuck to the inspiration board, but no such luck. We even had pretty jars of raspberry lemonade and sangria! I'm sure I was too hungry at that point to remember to snap pictures.]

Along the mantel and on some tables, we decorated with pictures of the happy couple from their courtship and their wedding ceremony. We included a copy of their party invitation, too, since it matched everything so nicely. I used white frames I already had, and I covered their normally black mats with red crepe paper so they would match. We scattered some spare "rubies" along the mantel for fun.

Outside was more festive red, orange, and pink, with the lantern-pom combo and Kara's handy tablecloth. We also had Izze juice drinks (in color-coordinated cans, naturally), plus water and juice boxes.

The party was a big success. All of the grandkids, including my Graham, contributed to some handprint art for Joel and Katrina, who loved the surprise.

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