Party pics

My camera's battery conked out before I could get pics of everything, but here's a good feel for the fun we had.

I love this Martha Stewart Everyday vase I picked up at Kmart on clearance a few years ago. It's so vintage-y.



After mason jars, my next favorite vase that isn't really a vase is a tin can.



Who says the potty can't look pretty, too?





When you run out of flowers, be creative.

When the host has a mouth full of sweet teeth, jars of coordinating pink candy are a must.





Uh, ya, forgot the flash...





A fun and perfectly fitting IKEA find...pink and orange swirly straws.








And finally, the party favors, also made by yours truly.

Now only 5 more weeks until the wedding!

Today's the day!

It's going to be a busy, busy day. Good thing it's not even 11 am and I've already sampled all of the desserts.

More party prep

I had another busy day prepping for tomorrow's party. Here's a peek at some more fun stuff.

Presents wrapped and ready to go.





Festive desserts for the bride to be.





Party prep headquarters, also known as the disaster area, also known as my kitchen.





My homemade raspberry buttercream frosting. It goes perfectly with chocolate cupcakes, and it's so easy. Take 2 sticks of super, super soft (but not melted) butter, a few heaping spoonfuls of raspberry jam and mix it with powdered sugar until it's the perfect consistency (probably about 4-5 cups, but I've never measured, I just eyeball it). Easy peasy!



The girl that does the mixing gets to lick the beaters. It's a rule. (Rule will be ignored if a 2 year old boy is present.)



Flowers fresh from the market sitting patiently in the sink, ready to be arranged. What flower says August and end of summer more than gladiolas?



I try to get all of my serving pieces ready to go. It helps calm my inner control freak when guests arrive and insist on helping. All they have to do is go in the fridge and take out what I've already done.

The open spot is for tomatoes. We all know tomatoes don't ever go in the refridgerator! The white vegetable on the upper right is jicama. It blows my mind that people have no idea what it is and ask if I put out a raw potato. Now that I've said that, have you had it before?



Another super easy dip to whip up and it disappears in a flash. Take a jar of Fluff and mix it with an 8 oz. bar of cream cheese. That's it. (A tip to get Fluff out of the jar easily: run your spoon under super hot water and then scoop it out.)



Glad Press 'n Seal is my BFF!



I always try to get as much done the night before a party as I can. It makes me feel better knowing that everything is ready to go when I wake up the next morning. You never know when a certain little boy is going to boycott his nap or when another is going to insist on being held all day.

I can't wait to share the pics from tomorrow night!

Handmade party prep

I'm only 1 day away from the party I'm throwing for my sister. Here are a few things I worked on today to get ready.

The now famous flower poms from Martha.

A pink and sparkly banner with my sister's name.

Decorated toothpicks for appetizers.

Cupcake decorations.

Pretty skewers for fruit kabobs.

And what do you think I'm going to do with all this curly ribbon? I'll give you a hint...it's not for presents!

I'll share more tomorrow!

The weekend's decrapification

We have an unfinished portion of our basement that serves as our area for working out/storage/a pantry, and over the past several months, a collecting area for clutter. It's really been driving me nuts. I'd clean a little here and a little there, but it was never enough. So when I saw Sarah's decrapification, I knew I just needed to buckle down and do it.

WARNING: these pictures will make you shudder!







A lot of sorting, organizing, and this heap of garbage later...



I have this happiness to look at.







So neat. So organized. I love it!

Make it work.

Tonight's the night! Project Runway premiere! I don't know about you, but I've been waiting all summer for this.



And just in case you have use for a Tim Gunn talking bobblehead, you can get one here.



ps. It's Thursday, so you know what that means!