Friday, February 3, 2012
This year, tell your children’s teachers you appreciate them with a little extra pizzazz. Sending valentines isn’t a chore when you have stationery and packaging as pretty as these:
1. Creative DIY packaging for a teacher’s desk treat from Crescendoh | 2. Felt heart pins from Twig & Thistle | 3. Letterpress alligator card from Egg Press | 4. Calligraphy note cards from Sparrow Nest Script | 5. Printable valentine kits from kbecca | 6. Instructions for a make-at-home panda heart card from Paper Source| 7. Treats with a heart-shaped surprise from eighteen25 | 8. Heart pop-up card by Dreamversion | 9. Letterpress stationery set by Printerette Press | 10. Printable treat bags from Twig & Thistle
You may not know Lyndsey yet (she mostly works behind the scenes for One Charming Party) but in her free time she chronicles her paper obsession at The Stationery Place. She’ll be here every month sharing some of her favorite paper ideas!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Day 4: Heart Votives + Muslin Bags
To finish off this glittery Valentine’s party, create your own votives with heart appliqués. Or send them home as valentine party favors in muslin bags with tealights for the grownups or fill with valentine candy and wrap up in glassine bags for the little ones.
Heart Appliqués
You will need: a Silhouette machine, Silhouette vinyl, muslin bags, glass votive holders, glittering glue, sponge applicator, fine glitter
Directions: We used vinyl stencils created with a Silhouette machine to make the heart pattern on these simple votives and muslin bags. When finding shapes to use with the Silhouette, try to look for dingbat fonts. For this heart we used the Love Romance Font or you could buy the heart shape directly from their online store. (For detailed instructions on how to use your Silhouette to cut out vinyl, check out this great vinyl tutorial.) Cut out three 1” hearts for the votives and one 4” heart for the muslin bag. Since you will be using the outside of the pattern, you can skip the transfer tape step. Attach the vinyl directly to the glass votives and muslin bag. For the muslin bag, insert a piece of aluminum foil so the glue will not soak through. Using a sponge applicator, liberally apply glittering glue to the entire heart. Sprinkle with glitter until completely covered. Let dry for approximately 1 hour and then carefully remove the vinyl stencil and discard. Gently tap off any loose glitter. Let dry for 24 hours before packaging.
This week we’re featuring a beautiful Valentines Day collaboration between Becca of CAKE. + Michele of Cakewalk Baking…. each of these glittery projects was designed, baked and styled by these two amazing ladies. Check out additional projects for this party all week on CAKE. Photography by Sherry Heck.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Day 3: Truffle Pops
A twist on traditional cake pops, this dark chocolate valentine truffles recipe is rich + delicious. And of course these truffle pops are dusted with just a touch of gold edible glitter… because everything’s better with a little sparkle.
Truffle Pops
You Will Need:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
½ cup whipping cream
Candy Melts in your color of choice
Oil food coloring (if desired)
Disco dust (if desired)
Directions: Place the chocolate in a heat proof mixing bowl. Bring the cream just to a boil in a small sauce pan. Immediately pour the cream on the chocolate and let it stand for a few minutes. Stir the chocolate with a spatula until smooth. Leave the chocolate at room temperature, stirring occasionally until firm. This can take several hours. Once the chocolate is firm, roll balls into desired size. Insert lollipop stick and refrigerate until hard, preferably overnight. Melt the candy melts in a heat proof bowl over a double boiler. If desired, add a few drops of oil based food coloring. Holding your pops by the lollipop stick, dip them into the candy melts and swirl to coat completely. Remove from the chocolate and tap gently to remove excess. Insert sticks into a styrofoam block to dry. When dry, sprinkle with disco dust.
This week we’re featuring a beautiful Valentines Day collaboration between Becca of CAKE. + Michele of Cakewalk Baking…. each of these glittery projects was designed, baked and styled by these two amazing ladies. Check out additional projects for this party all week on CAKE. Photography by Sherry Heck.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Day 2: Cupcakes
Your sweethearts will swoon over these pretty treats! This valentine cupcake recipe makes the perfect vanilla cupcakes and frosting. To dress them up for Valentine’s day use metallic gold cupcake papers, glittered flags or filigree lettering to create a lovely little message.
Cupcakes
You will need:
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/4 cups whole milk
Directions: Preheat oven to 350°F. Bring the eggs, milk & butter to room temperature (don’t skip this step, it’s very important!) In a mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and pale. Add in the eggs one at a time and mix until combined. Sift (yes, sift!) together flour, salt and baking powder together. Stir together vanilla and milk. Alternately add dry ingredients and milk to mixing bowl, scraping down after each addition. Start and end with dry ingredients. Fill paper-lined muffin tins with batter 2/3 full. Bake at 350° for 18- 20 minute.
Swiss Meringue Buttercream
You will need:
1 pound unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
8 egg whites
1 cup crème friache or sour cream
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
Seeds from 2 vanilla beans
Directions: Combine sugar & egg whites in mixer bowl and whisk together over simmering water until hot to the touch and all of the sugar has melted and no longer grainy. Transfer bowl to mixer stand and whip on high until fluffy & cool – about 10 minutes. With the mixer on low, add the softened butter 1 tablespoon at a time until incorporated. Add in vanilla, crème fraiche or sour cream, and vanilla beans. Beat until smooth (it may look curdled, but just continue to mix & it will be fine!).
This week we’re featuring a beautiful Valentines Day collaboration between Becca of CAKE. + Michele of Cakewalk Baking…. each of these glittery projects was designed, baked and styled by these two amazing ladies. Check out additional projects for this party all week on CAKE. Photography by Sherry Heck.
Monday, January 30, 2012
Day 1: Printables
We’re kicking things off with a Glittery Pink and Gold Valentines Party today. And what better way to start this week than with these darling free printable notecards and stickers. Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to send a handwritten note, and whether your preference is for traditional hearts or modern arrows, you can offer up one to all the loves in your life.
Print notecards on heavy cardstock in ivory or cream. Each card is 3×5 when cut. Circles can be printed 8.5×11 whole sheet sticker labels (or on cardstock to make favor tags) and punched with a 2” circle punch.
This week we’re featuring a beautiful Valentines Day collaboration between Becca of CAKE. + Michele of Cakewalk Baking…. each of these glittery projects was designed, baked and styled by these two amazing ladies. Check out additional projects for this party all week on CAKE. Photography by Sherry Heck.
Friday, January 27, 2012
To end this adorable Valentine Breakfast Party, Sara has created these valentine favors in cute boxes to send your guests home with (and all of the printables for the week are included below–hooray!).
The small gable boxes are great Valentines to pass out since you can easily individualize what each guest receives. It is also nice to have a box that can fit fun items such as small toys, notebooks, crayons, bouncy balls, etc.
Valentine Favor Boxes
You will need: Small White Gable Box, Pink Dot Mini Cupcake Liners, 3/4 inch red ribbon, LOVE printable circle, 2″ circle punch
Directions: Flatten a cupcake liner and use the 2″ circle punch to cut out a “Love” printable tag. Cut 2 pieces of ribbon, each 5 3/4 inches long. Fold each of the pieces of ribbon into half of a bow shape and glue at the center. Stack your bow together – cupcake liner, ribbon, and then “Love” tag on top. Glue it all in place. Ta da!
We’d like to thank the super sweet Sara Schmutz from Confetti Sunshine for hosting the Valentine’s Breakfast Party all week long. Thanks Sara!
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day–especially for this party. To make the food preparations easier, most of the prep and cooking don’t take a lot of time, which means more fun with your kids. Sara has gone to some of her favorite food blogs and picked out delicious recipes for this valentine breakfast menu.
Ghirardelli Hot Chocolate, Pancakes (sans blueberries and topped with whipped cream and strawberries), Red Heart Paper Straws, Lollipop Sticks, and don’t forget, the party printables will be available tomorrow.
Baked Eggs & Blueberry Muffins
Muffin Topper
You will need: Red Glitter, Pink Dot Mini Cupcake Liners, Red Pin Stripe Mini Cupcake Liners, Lollipop Sticks, 2″ circle punch, ”heart” printable tag, white school glue/tacky glue
Directions: Flatten 1 of each mini cupcake liners and use the 2″ circle punch to cut out one of the heart tags. Roll the edges of the heart tag in the glue. While the glue is still wet, roll the edges of the heart tag in the glitter. Allow to dry. Stack the red pin stripe mini cupcake liner on top of the pink polka dot. Glue in place. Then glue your glittered heart tag on top. Finish by gluing the decoration on a lollipop stick.
We have the super sweet Sara Schmutz here from Confetti Sunshine hosting the Valentine’s Breakfast Party all week long. Come back each day for more Valentine’s inspiration. The printables for this party will be available at the end of the week.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Do you love banners as much as we do? If so, it should be no surprise that this Valentine’s Breakfast Party has a few hanging around. These valentine banners are a cheap and easy way to add a festive decoration to any party.
Cupcake Liner Banner
You will need: cupcake liners (check out the Valentines Cupcake Liner Pack from Confetti Sunshine), string/twine, glue stick
Directions: Flatten a cupcake liner. Place the string/twine down the middle of one liner. Apply glue to one side of the liner on the inside. Gently fold your cupcake liner in half, lining up your edges. Repeat until you have the desired length of cupcake liner banner.
Fringe Banner
You will need: crepe paper (check out the crepe paper rolls from Confetti Sunshine), string/twine, hot glue gun
Directions: Cup out sheets of crepe paper measuring 6 inches by 8 inches. Fold the crepe paper sheet in half and cut upward stripes, about 3 inches upward a 1/4 inch apart, along the unfolded edge. This will create your fringe. Then unfold the sheet and place the string/twine and glue along the middle fold line. Gently fold back together. Repeat until you have the desired length of fringe banner
We have the super sweet Sara Schmutz here from Confetti Sunshine hosting the Valentine’s Breakfast Party all week long. Come back each day for more Valentine’s inspiration–the breakfast menu is tomorrow. The printables for this party will be available at the end of the week.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
We’re featuring an adorable Valentine Breakfast Party this week. Start off your party with some fun table games that could easily be played while waiting for breakfast to be ready (or at any free moment you have during the morning).
The first game you can play is bingo. Kids love a fun game of bingo – especially with cute bingo cards. For an extra special treat, use heart shaped candy as the bingo markers. This bingo game includes 4 different cards (all numbered 1-24) plus a blank card that you can print and fill in your own numbers (printables available at the end of the week).
Another great activity for the Valentine’s breakfast table is to have guests write valentine notes to each other. These adorable mailboxes are from the dollar section at Target. You can give each child the mini post cards to write or draw notes to their siblings and friends. Then let the kids walk around the table and deliver their letters into each mini mail box.
We have the super sweet Sara Schmutz here from Confetti Sunshine hosting the Valentine’s Breakfast Party all week long. Come back each day for more Valentine’s inspiration. The printables for this party will be available at the end of the week.
