Imagine, See, Do: September 2013

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Halloween Entertaining and Wedding Design - Latest Trend...Bleeding Flowers!

I love the holidays. For me, Halloween heralds the start of the Holiday Season.

This year I decide to do a design that can be used for entertaining friends or as a design for a Halloween-themed reception.

I chose the color scheme of black, dark red or burgundy, gold and white. I didn't want to use the typical orange and yellow.

I also knew I wanted to incorporate fake blood. I had seen a few fake blood recipes on Pinterest and I knew I could make a lot for really cheap.

You can see the final design above. White tablecloth, black table runner, gold chargers with black and white square plates, crisp white napkin with a red rose at each place setting.

The design also includes cut crystal wine glasses, and an Eiffel Tower black vase with hydrangeas, roses, and white alstroemeria. There are two glass bowls with a pure white lisianthus floating in them. The bowls are filled with fake blood and the alstroemeria have blood added to the centers so they bleed into the bowls and onto the lisianthus.

A wide white satin ribbon was added just under the flowers and it drapes down the stem of the vase. The blood drops are also streaming down the ribbon.

Overall this makes for an elegant Halloween table for entertaining with family, or for a reception table. It would also work with round tables instead of the rectangle that you see in the pictures.

In future posts I will give you my tips for making the fake blood, picking flowers, and how to make the flowers bleed. Comment below if you have any questions.

Time to celebrate!
Laureen

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Halloween Decor: Feather wreath - DIY Level: Easy!

I love Halloween. I am a big fan of DIY Halloween. It was always a big deal for us when I was a kid. My Dad was an artist and we would always have our faces painted instead of using masks. Our costumes were always original since we made them ourselves. Halloween was the start of the Holiday Season for us and it meant 2+ months of fun, crafts, and happy times.

I have already started my Halloween crafts for the year and wanted to share them with you. I love the look of the feather wreaths that are on the market, but I don't want to spend what stores are asking for them.

I found that by using a couple of good boas, a styrofoam wreath, and some U-shaped upholstery pins I could make one in a matter of minutes.

Here is the tricky part: these items can be costly to buy by themselves so you need to look for really good deals. I found the styrofoam wreath form online for $3. I saw them at some places for up to $9! Do not pay that much.

My next tip is to get good feather boas. I found mine at JoAnn's Fabrics and Crafts and used a 50% off coupon to get them. Use the JoAnn's app on your smartphone and there is no clipping or looking for coupons required. When you get them with the coupon they are $4. Some of the dollar store boas are thin and will make for a less expensive looking wreath.

I also found U-Shaped Upholstery Pins for $3 at JoAnn's. Do not get the U-Shaped Hair Pins. Make sure you get sharp pins.

Instructions:

Take one of the boas and the wreath. Use a U-Shaped pin to pin the very end of the boa to the foam.

Wrap the boa around the wreath, looping it into the center of the wreath and around. Space the boa so that you can't see any of the styrofoam.

When you get to the end of the boa, pin down the end. For me, the boa covered half of the wreath form. As shown at right. I like how the full boa makes the wreath really puffy.

There were little bumps at the end of the boa that I purchased and it was easy to pin them into the wreath. Use the second boa to cover the second half of the wreath.

Pin the ends just as you did with the first boa and the wreath is done! You can add bows, skulls, or other accents if you want. Below is the picture of the wreath on my door.

I love the look of it and how full and fluffy it is. You don't get the same fullness with cheap boas (although it's not like $4 is a lot).

I will be showing more crafts and designs for fall and Halloween coming up in the next few weeks.

And I have big news! I am going to be a guest blogger on a local Wholesale flower Store! Details to come! YAY!

I hope you are enjoying your Autumn. Take a few minutes to create your own feather wreath. Happy Haunting!

Laureen

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Invitations with life - seed embedded paper and DIY invitations

I love sending invitations. I like printed invitations because they are so fun to receive and are a physical reminder of the upcoming event. Invitations are the first time guests are getting an idea of the type of party you are throwing. They symbolize the look and feel of the event. The best part is, it is easy to DIY your own invitations.

There are so many ways to make your invitations represent your party by using fonts, pictures, designs and even the paper.

Recently I sent invitations and used a seed-embedded paper that the guests could plant. I included a matching envelope that was seeded too. The seeds were small and didn't impact the printing at all.

I found the paper online by doing a search and immediately loved it.

I created the design of the invitation in MS Word. Search templates for Invitation and all sorts of fun ones come up. I always play with a few designs before I find the one I want. I ended up using a plain one so the beauty of the paper stood out.

Use standard printer paper to layout and test print your invitations. This allows you to make sure the design is working before you use the more expensive paper. When all looks good, add the invitation paper to the printer and print away.

If your paper is thicker than standard paper be sure to adjust the feeder on your printer before you print. If pages are sticking and not printing straight, this could be the cause.

Always plan to print a few that won't be sent. There are always a few pages that give me trouble, especially when use specialty papers.

Since I printed 2 invitations per sheet of paper, I cut them with a paper cutter. This is the easiest method to cut sheets in half, but you can always fold and cut them with scissors or a razor blade.

I included a slip that described the invitation paper and how to plant it so that guests would know this invitation could live on. I added a little flower design to make it special and match the invitation.

I printed the instructions on standard paper and printed 4 per page. Again, I used the paper cutter to cut them apart.

The envelopes matched the paper and to seal them, I used a pressed flower sticker that I found on the internet. It's the little details that really make a big difference. People may not notice each one, but the feeling is there and each detail sets a tone.

When I held the party, guests commented on the invitations and how much they enjoyed them. From the invitations they could tell it would be a special day, with natural details and a slight rustic charm.

The best part? Guest actually planted the invitations. I can't wait to see pictures of the herbs and flowers as they grow.

Make your parties special by sending invitations. They don't need to be expensive and can set the tone for the whole event. If you take your time and make them special your guests will anticipate the event even more.

Comment below if you have any questions about how to create your own invitations.

Laureen

Saturday, September 14, 2013

Incorporating children into Weddings and Parties

Children are fun additions to parties. My wedding included 85 guests, 15 of whom were under the age of 8. Kids love celebrations. Many of my nieces and nephews wanted to be in the wedding. It made the event fun and gave it an energy that you don't get when kids aren't involved.

That means their young palates and ability to sit still needs to be taken into consideration when you are making your plans. If you know there will be a lot of kids at your event make sure you have some foods they will like. It's pretty easy to incorporate fruit, a few vegetables, and some protein that they will eat.

At a recent party I included a fruit plate of apples and strawberries and made up a caramel apple dip.

Caramel Apple Dip

1 8-ounce package cream cheese
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients together until sugar dissolves and all flavors combine.

Cheese plates also make good food for little hands. Be sure to include a taste they are used to like cheddar or Monterey Jack. Add some nuts, seeds, crackers and bread and most children are happy.

My favorite way to serve vegetables is in a glass with some dip in each glass. It keeps little ones from double dipping and is a great serving size. I included carrots and celery but you could also include asparagus, peppers, and snap peas.

Another great food for kids are Mac and Cheese balls, also called Fried Mac and Cheese at some restaurants. I cheated and served ones from Trader Joes and people raved over them. They are really good and look nice when arranged on a plate.

There was plenty of food for young and mature palates. You don't need to serve traditional children's foods make little ones happy and your buffet can still look gorgeous!

Be sure to include a drink that kids will like. I like to set up a drink station that is separate from the bar. It allows for easy access to beverages without people having to stand in line. And it is more sensitive to those who are working to stay away from alcohol.

I always set up water with cucumber and lemon. I also have something to drink depending on the season. At this event we had pink lemonade. This gave guests an option and was enjoyed by both young and old.

It's easy to incorporate items for children when you plan for it in advance. Keep them in mind when you are planning foods and drinks and your party can be fun for all who attend.

Laureen

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Redwoods Wedding - When Dreams become Reality

My niece is incredible. Well, all my nieces are incredible. I have a huge family and 9 nieces. This one that I am talking about is the one that was married at the end of June.

She was married in the hills of Santa Cruz, CA amongst the redwood trees. The weekend was so much fun. The wedding took place over a weekend so we all spent Friday evening, Saturday, and Sunday morning together in the woods. The location was stunning and the event was primarily DIY.

Here are some pictures from the weekend.