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Showing posts with label centerpieces. Show all posts
Showing posts with label centerpieces. Show all posts

Fall Centerpiece

Fall has always been my favorite season.

I love all of the beautiful colors, and decorating my house for fall has always been something that I look forward to.

This past Spring I did a small kitchen remodel.
When we built our house 9 years ago, we painted our kitchen red.
"Arresting Red" to be exact.
I loved having a red kitchen, but it was time for a change.

We changed it to a nice brown, it's amazing how paint changes a room!!

It's fun to decorate the rooms for seasons now, because even my old decorations seem new!!

I ran across this post by Shanty 2 Chic on Pinterest this past summer and knew I  wanted to make something like it for my kitchen this fall.


Here is the link to her post on her blog: 




I picked up a fake pumpkin and letters to spell "fall" at Hobby Lobby, a can of cream colored spray paint and painters tape from the hardware store.


Tape off the stem with painters tape and spray your letters and pumpkin with a couple of coats of cream colored paint.

Adhere them with a hot glue gun once they are dry.


I liked the addition of the little burlap flower she added to hers, so I did the same.  
Only I used one instead of three.



I found this candle base and glass candle holder at Hobby Lobby, too.
I already had the pumpkins and acorns that I filled it up with.

I strung some orange accent "vine" through, and added a couple of real gourds to the mix.

and Ta-Da! Centerpiece!



I love buying pieces like this, because I know they can be filled with all kinds of things for other holidays, or even just a candle like it was intended! 


Fall has always been my favorite season.

I love all of the beautiful colors, and decorating my house for fall has always been something that I look forward to.

This past Spring I did a small kitchen remodel.
When we built our house 9 years ago, we painted our kitchen red.
"Arresting Red" to be exact.
I loved having a red kitchen, but it was time for a change.

We changed it to a nice brown, it's amazing how paint changes a room!!

It's fun to decorate the rooms for seasons now, because even my old decorations seem new!!

I ran across this post by Shanty 2 Chic on Pinterest this past summer and knew I  wanted to make something like it for my kitchen this fall.


Here is the link to her post on her blog: 




I picked up a fake pumpkin and letters to spell "fall" at Hobby Lobby, a can of cream colored spray paint and painters tape from the hardware store.


Tape off the stem with painters tape and spray your letters and pumpkin with a couple of coats of cream colored paint.

Adhere them with a hot glue gun once they are dry.


I liked the addition of the little burlap flower she added to hers, so I did the same.  
Only I used one instead of three.



I found this candle base and glass candle holder at Hobby Lobby, too.
I already had the pumpkins and acorns that I filled it up with.

I strung some orange accent "vine" through, and added a couple of real gourds to the mix.

and Ta-Da! Centerpiece!



I love buying pieces like this, because I know they can be filled with all kinds of things for other holidays, or even just a candle like it was intended! 


reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Graduation Party - Theme: Racing, Fishing and Mexican Food

When I started planning for my son's graduation party almost a year ago, the one thing I knew we would have was Mexican food. 
He is truly Mama's boy when it comes to his food tastes!
Maybe it's all of the extra spicy Mexican I ate when I was pregnant?

Our Menu:  Taco/Nacho Bar
taco meat
soft and crunchy taco shells
nacho cheese
Mexican rice
re-fried beans
chips and salsa
and all of the trimmings to top off your creation
(lettuce, tomatoes, olives, shredded cheese, jalapenos, sour cream)

Some of you may know that my husband drives a dirt late model race car.
My son, Spencer, is his right hand in our shop and at the races.

my husband and Spencer in front of his car


We decided that due to Mother Nature and her crazy cold front ways this Spring, that it would be cool to have his party in our building.

Then the rest of my ideas were born!

I played on his love of racing and his other love, fishing.

I wanted some sort of centerpiece, and I wanted it to be fit for a boy.

This is what I came up with:


Do you suppose they know they are about to become a centerpiece??




I bought small fish bowls and rocks in his school colors.
I found fishing lures also in their school colors, and red and white bobbers.

I dug out my stash of scrapbook numbers and added a 2013 to each bowl.
Hung the lure off the side, floated the bobbers on the top and added a gold fish to each bowl.


I also had many black picture frames that I filled with pictures of Spencer at different ages.

Added a few Hot Wheels, some graduation beads and confetti, and my tables were decorated!


Some of the picture frames has a metallic spray with "2013" attached to the back



each table looked slightly different.

I alternated red and black table clothes on the tables.

The head table had a white table cloth with an overlay of a clear one with 2013 in black.
We had a large framed and matted photo for guests to sign and his scrapbook filled with photos from each year of school, Pre-School through senior year.


sign in


his scrapbook




In order to keep guests from bunching up in the doorway, we had the gift/card table inside, close to the drinks and the food.


the gift table


You cannot tell from this photo above, but the gift table and the dessert table were both round.


Last but not least we had the table of desserts.
I decided to do all sorts of bars.  
I did a round table, so people could walk around it.
I used tiered plate holders with desserts, and had back up ones to put in their place.


Keeping with the Mexican theme, I added a large margarita glass filled with assorted M&Ms.



I used the rocks I made for card holders at a past party to show what each dessert was.
They worked great with the fishing theme!


this is a close-up shot of the river rock swirled place card holder I made and re-used.


Here is a list of the desserts, you can click on each one to be taken to it's recipe blog page.


Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Ganache
(I made a box mix brownie and topped with this ganache, they were decadent and the first bar gone!

Nestles Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
(from the chocolate chip package)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Brownies
(box brownies with 1 bag of milk/peanut butter chips and 1/2 bag of peanut butter chips)


(decorated with his school colors!)

My Mother-in-Law made Rice Krispy Treats, but here's a twist on those:




A view from the front door of the race shop, you can get a better idea of the layout.
All of the food was set up along the work bench.



My son, Spencer, the guest of honor on his last day of High School.


Me and Spencer.  I am so proud of you, buddy!!

Love you SO MUCH!!
xxoo

When I started planning for my son's graduation party almost a year ago, the one thing I knew we would have was Mexican food. 
He is truly Mama's boy when it comes to his food tastes!
Maybe it's all of the extra spicy Mexican I ate when I was pregnant?

Our Menu:  Taco/Nacho Bar
taco meat
soft and crunchy taco shells
nacho cheese
Mexican rice
re-fried beans
chips and salsa
and all of the trimmings to top off your creation
(lettuce, tomatoes, olives, shredded cheese, jalapenos, sour cream)

Some of you may know that my husband drives a dirt late model race car.
My son, Spencer, is his right hand in our shop and at the races.

my husband and Spencer in front of his car


We decided that due to Mother Nature and her crazy cold front ways this Spring, that it would be cool to have his party in our building.

Then the rest of my ideas were born!

I played on his love of racing and his other love, fishing.

I wanted some sort of centerpiece, and I wanted it to be fit for a boy.

This is what I came up with:


Do you suppose they know they are about to become a centerpiece??




I bought small fish bowls and rocks in his school colors.
I found fishing lures also in their school colors, and red and white bobbers.

I dug out my stash of scrapbook numbers and added a 2013 to each bowl.
Hung the lure off the side, floated the bobbers on the top and added a gold fish to each bowl.


I also had many black picture frames that I filled with pictures of Spencer at different ages.

Added a few Hot Wheels, some graduation beads and confetti, and my tables were decorated!


Some of the picture frames has a metallic spray with "2013" attached to the back



each table looked slightly different.

I alternated red and black table clothes on the tables.

The head table had a white table cloth with an overlay of a clear one with 2013 in black.
We had a large framed and matted photo for guests to sign and his scrapbook filled with photos from each year of school, Pre-School through senior year.


sign in


his scrapbook




In order to keep guests from bunching up in the doorway, we had the gift/card table inside, close to the drinks and the food.


the gift table


You cannot tell from this photo above, but the gift table and the dessert table were both round.


Last but not least we had the table of desserts.
I decided to do all sorts of bars.  
I did a round table, so people could walk around it.
I used tiered plate holders with desserts, and had back up ones to put in their place.


Keeping with the Mexican theme, I added a large margarita glass filled with assorted M&Ms.



I used the rocks I made for card holders at a past party to show what each dessert was.
They worked great with the fishing theme!


this is a close-up shot of the river rock swirled place card holder I made and re-used.


Here is a list of the desserts, you can click on each one to be taken to it's recipe blog page.


Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Ganache
(I made a box mix brownie and topped with this ganache, they were decadent and the first bar gone!

Nestles Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
(from the chocolate chip package)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Brownies
(box brownies with 1 bag of milk/peanut butter chips and 1/2 bag of peanut butter chips)


(decorated with his school colors!)

My Mother-in-Law made Rice Krispy Treats, but here's a twist on those:




A view from the front door of the race shop, you can get a better idea of the layout.
All of the food was set up along the work bench.



My son, Spencer, the guest of honor on his last day of High School.


Me and Spencer.  I am so proud of you, buddy!!

Love you SO MUCH!!
xxoo

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

My Niece's Shower ~ and her An Affair from the Heart Cookbook!


I am finally getting around to telling you about the bridal  shower I gave for my niece, Leah.
The shower was held in August of 2012, and I couldn't have been more happy to throw it for her.

I was also so totally excited to finally give her her gift!!
For the 6 months prior to her shower, I had been working on a cookbook for her, 
based on lots of her (and MY) favorite recipes from my blog.




This is me, with my niece, Leah.


I had a light luncheon, and we served it where the shower was held, at my husband's office.  
There was more room to seat everyone comfortably in his training room at work.
Chicken salad is always a good "go to" thing to make when you are cooking for women, but guess what?
Leah hates chicken salad!!

So in addition to it, I made her something she does love, 
Little King Salad!!
It's a favorite recipe on my blog, you can find the recipe HERE.



I served the sandwiches, the salad, along with fresh berries and her favorite, DILL PICKLES!!
(We actually gave her one of those GIANT Costco sized jars of pickles for Christmas one year!!)


This was the bouquet I arranged for the entry way.
Instead of the guests writing their name on a paper, a friend gave me the idea to buy the bride her thank you cards, and each guest addressed their own envelope.
Later, we drew a name for a door prize!


My dear friend, Tari, over at Sunshine Cookies made these beautiful bridal gown cookies, and I actually purchased those gorgeous brownies at a local bakery.
I did, however dip those strawberries! 
:)


Leah shown here, showing off one of Tari's creations!!  All the way from Arizona!!


My daughter, Josie, was Leah's Junior bridesmaid.  
She LOVES to paint, so she made Leah this painting for her apartment.

I set the tables up so everyone could visit, and Leah sat in the opening at the front.


The centerpieces were fall colored blooms.




This is Leah opening on of the gifts we gave her.
Have you ever heard of a company called 


Year's ago, my friend, Candi over at The Devilish Dish
bought me one, and I LOVE it!!
I decided that she needed one of her own!

I bought her the 9x13 with the cover.  The cover and the pan itself are personalized.

Then I gave her the cookbook I made.

A little history here.
Leah has long been a guest at many a dinner at our house.
We actually made it somewhat of a tradition on Monday nights when she was in college!
So, when I found out that she was engaged, I knew she would be getting a cookbook!!
Thanks to my friend, Betsy for the help and instruction on how to go about it!

here are a couple of pictures of the inside

These pages include cookies that are my Mom's, (her "Grandma Jane") recipe, as well as cookies that were a specialty of her Aunt, who passed away in 2005.
The book is full of pictures of her with my kids and with us, each of her grandparents has a page, 
and it includes all of her favorite dishes that I make.
This book was a labor of love.  And I know of NO ONE who deserves it more than Leah!!
She is such a ray of sunshine in our lives, and I hope that she enjoys the recipes, the photos and the memories this book hold for many years to come!!



The back page has a favorite cooking/love quote of mine,
"Cooking is like love.  
It should be entered into with abandon or not at all."


  a peek at the front an back covers


We LOVE YOU Leah!!


I am finally getting around to telling you about the bridal  shower I gave for my niece, Leah.
The shower was held in August of 2012, and I couldn't have been more happy to throw it for her.

I was also so totally excited to finally give her her gift!!
For the 6 months prior to her shower, I had been working on a cookbook for her, 
based on lots of her (and MY) favorite recipes from my blog.




This is me, with my niece, Leah.


I had a light luncheon, and we served it where the shower was held, at my husband's office.  
There was more room to seat everyone comfortably in his training room at work.
Chicken salad is always a good "go to" thing to make when you are cooking for women, but guess what?
Leah hates chicken salad!!

So in addition to it, I made her something she does love, 
Little King Salad!!
It's a favorite recipe on my blog, you can find the recipe HERE.



I served the sandwiches, the salad, along with fresh berries and her favorite, DILL PICKLES!!
(We actually gave her one of those GIANT Costco sized jars of pickles for Christmas one year!!)


This was the bouquet I arranged for the entry way.
Instead of the guests writing their name on a paper, a friend gave me the idea to buy the bride her thank you cards, and each guest addressed their own envelope.
Later, we drew a name for a door prize!


My dear friend, Tari, over at Sunshine Cookies made these beautiful bridal gown cookies, and I actually purchased those gorgeous brownies at a local bakery.
I did, however dip those strawberries! 
:)


Leah shown here, showing off one of Tari's creations!!  All the way from Arizona!!


My daughter, Josie, was Leah's Junior bridesmaid.  
She LOVES to paint, so she made Leah this painting for her apartment.

I set the tables up so everyone could visit, and Leah sat in the opening at the front.


The centerpieces were fall colored blooms.




This is Leah opening on of the gifts we gave her.
Have you ever heard of a company called 


Year's ago, my friend, Candi over at The Devilish Dish
bought me one, and I LOVE it!!
I decided that she needed one of her own!

I bought her the 9x13 with the cover.  The cover and the pan itself are personalized.

Then I gave her the cookbook I made.

A little history here.
Leah has long been a guest at many a dinner at our house.
We actually made it somewhat of a tradition on Monday nights when she was in college!
So, when I found out that she was engaged, I knew she would be getting a cookbook!!
Thanks to my friend, Betsy for the help and instruction on how to go about it!

here are a couple of pictures of the inside

These pages include cookies that are my Mom's, (her "Grandma Jane") recipe, as well as cookies that were a specialty of her Aunt, who passed away in 2005.
The book is full of pictures of her with my kids and with us, each of her grandparents has a page, 
and it includes all of her favorite dishes that I make.
This book was a labor of love.  And I know of NO ONE who deserves it more than Leah!!
She is such a ray of sunshine in our lives, and I hope that she enjoys the recipes, the photos and the memories this book hold for many years to come!!



The back page has a favorite cooking/love quote of mine,
"Cooking is like love.  
It should be entered into with abandon or not at all."


  a peek at the front an back covers


We LOVE YOU Leah!!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

PEEP Centerpiece -- Instructions Included!!

PEEP centerpieces

I made these for Easter last year.  


I shared them and have gotten so many questions I figured I would type up a quick step by step so you could have one on your table this year!




I use a 6" square vase, and put a pint sized canning jar in the middle.




The canning jar works great for the size vase I have, and because you can put the lid on top and the jelly beans don't fall inside. If you don't use a jar, plan to fish them out!!

Pour the jelly beans around the vase, taking care to keep them evenly dispersed.





Once you start getting it full, check to see where the PEEP bunnies ear tips land.  You want them to land toward the top of the vase to conceal the stems and the jar.

My 6" square vase houses 16 bunnies perfectly.  Notice how I stagger them to fit in the corners?



Here is a top view of how they line up.

I didn't use the black jelly beans because they are "ugly." 
I didn't use them so we could EAT THEM!!

Yummy!!



Take the remaining beans and fill the void area to stabilize your jar.




Side view.




It's a little early to go buy blooms for in the vase, but my sweet son, Spencer, had cut me some fresh lilacs this morning, so I stuck them in there to show you the flowers inside.

You will most likely need to use a funnel to fill the jar with water.
If you get the beans wet, it makes a big 'ol mess!

Here's what you will need:

6" Square Vase
1 pint size canning jar
2 packages of PEEP bunnies
3 - 16 oz packages of jelly beans
mixed flowers of your choice

I have been contacted by Robyn from Mix Mingle Glow.  She informed me that this was her original idea. Upon researching ALL of the like centerpieces on the internet, I have found so many links that it's hard to tell where it came from first.  But I will give her credit if she made it first!
Sorry for any confusion. But in the day and age of Pinterest, it's just so darn hard to tell.

ORIGINAL IDEA from http://www.mixmingleglow.com


I hope you and your guests enjoy this FUN Easter centerpiece!!
PEEP centerpieces

I made these for Easter last year.  


I shared them and have gotten so many questions I figured I would type up a quick step by step so you could have one on your table this year!




I use a 6" square vase, and put a pint sized canning jar in the middle.




The canning jar works great for the size vase I have, and because you can put the lid on top and the jelly beans don't fall inside. If you don't use a jar, plan to fish them out!!

Pour the jelly beans around the vase, taking care to keep them evenly dispersed.





Once you start getting it full, check to see where the PEEP bunnies ear tips land.  You want them to land toward the top of the vase to conceal the stems and the jar.

My 6" square vase houses 16 bunnies perfectly.  Notice how I stagger them to fit in the corners?



Here is a top view of how they line up.

I didn't use the black jelly beans because they are "ugly." 
I didn't use them so we could EAT THEM!!

Yummy!!



Take the remaining beans and fill the void area to stabilize your jar.




Side view.




It's a little early to go buy blooms for in the vase, but my sweet son, Spencer, had cut me some fresh lilacs this morning, so I stuck them in there to show you the flowers inside.

You will most likely need to use a funnel to fill the jar with water.
If you get the beans wet, it makes a big 'ol mess!

Here's what you will need:

6" Square Vase
1 pint size canning jar
2 packages of PEEP bunnies
3 - 16 oz packages of jelly beans
mixed flowers of your choice

I have been contacted by Robyn from Mix Mingle Glow.  She informed me that this was her original idea. Upon researching ALL of the like centerpieces on the internet, I have found so many links that it's hard to tell where it came from first.  But I will give her credit if she made it first!
Sorry for any confusion. But in the day and age of Pinterest, it's just so darn hard to tell.

ORIGINAL IDEA from http://www.mixmingleglow.com


I hope you and your guests enjoy this FUN Easter centerpiece!!
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Fun and Easy Conversation Heart Centerpiece

Conversation Heart Centerpiece


When I found the napkins and treat containers with conversation hearts on them, 
I knew that was the ticket for my party this year.

It's no secret how much I <3 Conversation Hearts!!

I decided to run with the idea for my table and centerpiece.

Years ago I made a centerpiece for Halloween the same way using candy corn,
 it was super cute so I ran with it!!




Here is what it took:

Two vases, one that fits inside the other with some wiggle room
2 packages of conversation hearts or other candy

Color coordinated flowers

I love to buy flowers at Costco. They always have really unique bunches 
that you can have so much fun arranging.

I bought a bunch of flowers from Costco and in addition to that I purchased a 
dozen roses and eucalyptus to mix in!! 

(Needed the roses for the SANGRIA!! )

Place the smaller vase inside the larger vase and begin to fill the space between with your conversation hearts.
Fill to the top of the small vase.  
I was lucky enough to have a cylinder vase that was the same height, it worked perfectly.

You will have to use a funnel to fill the inside vase with water, being super careful not to get the candy wet!!

Arrange flowers inside water....

DONE!! and SO CUTE!!
Conversation Heart Centerpiece


When I found the napkins and treat containers with conversation hearts on them, 
I knew that was the ticket for my party this year.

It's no secret how much I <3 Conversation Hearts!!

I decided to run with the idea for my table and centerpiece.

Years ago I made a centerpiece for Halloween the same way using candy corn,
 it was super cute so I ran with it!!




Here is what it took:

Two vases, one that fits inside the other with some wiggle room
2 packages of conversation hearts or other candy

Color coordinated flowers

I love to buy flowers at Costco. They always have really unique bunches 
that you can have so much fun arranging.

I bought a bunch of flowers from Costco and in addition to that I purchased a 
dozen roses and eucalyptus to mix in!! 

(Needed the roses for the SANGRIA!! )

Place the smaller vase inside the larger vase and begin to fill the space between with your conversation hearts.
Fill to the top of the small vase.  
I was lucky enough to have a cylinder vase that was the same height, it worked perfectly.

You will have to use a funnel to fill the inside vase with water, being super careful not to get the candy wet!!

Arrange flowers inside water....

DONE!! and SO CUTE!!
reade more... Résuméabuiyad