Alice in Wonderland Theme Parties and Tea Parties- best on the web
Earlier this year I posted on my Mad Dinner Party with an Alice in Wonderland Theme which was an unbirthday for my real birthday. Now that the genius Tim Burton has taken the magical story into his own hands everyone seems to be throwing unbirthday parties and Mad Hatter tea parties and royal croquet tournaments. I have compiled my favorite ideas and saved the best for last (seriously it will knock your mismatched socks off)
Cute hand-painted oversized teacup tower makes a big statement- this is something you can make from teacups from the thrift store, some paint and a glue gun. This post came from a kids party featured on Party Wishes complete with a white-roses-painted red bush and a croquet court.
This rose wreath is adorable. Way to stay on theme. This one is from a toddler Alice party on Lark and Lola Idea Blog- even better they have detailed how-to instructions (with pictures!) here.
Classic Sir John Tennian style cupcake toppers from Fancy Flours
http://www.cupcake-decorating-ideas.com/mushroom-cupcakes.html
“One side will make you grow taller, the other side will make you grow shorter”- The Caterpillar. Mushroom cupcake how-to featured on Cupcake Decorating Ideas.
Seriously? You people and your darn creativity. See the full details on the birdcage bird at The Mama Dreamalogues.
“A” for authenticity! Alice in Wonderland decorating ideas from Instructables
The Queen of Class Amy Atlas had to join in on the fun. See the full posting here- love it!
Another darling kids’ party featured on Hostess with the Mostess, Japanese lanterns are key.
Ok here’s my all-time favorite and you’ll see why…
I couldn’t just pick one picture so I have a few
This was from a teenager’s coming out party
If this party wasn’t featured on MTV’s “My Super Sweet Sixteen” it should have been!
I don’t even want to know how much this cost but it leaves for fantastic ideas. See the full article at Trendhunter.
And of course we can’t forget the fabulous Miss Gwen Stefani’s take on the tale- so what you waiting for? (skip ahead to 3:30 to bypass the intro)
Add comment March 11, 2010
Add a little Spring to your space
Today I’m saying “hello!” to my old friend color. Despite the fact it snowed today in Seattle- the sunshine that followed inspired me. You don’t have to go out and completely redecorate to perk up your pad- little touches like textiles, knick knacks and wall art can really transform your space to make it fresh and light- hopefully the weather will follow!
Jar fillings are an inexpensive way to add flavor- like sprinkles. I found these inexpensive Apothecary Jars on a discount crafts website. I love the fresh roses they used in the picture- keep the same organic look but save money by using dried flowers. Other springy fillers include lemons and limes, brightly wrapped chocolates or m&m’s (order from 22 different color plus 3 “shimmer” colors here), or bright colored bath balls for your bathroom.
Birdies! Nothing says springtime like chirping birds. Vinyl wall decals are a cheap way to add a dramatic effect that can be applied and removed easily- most of these you can even customize the colors to match your home. These were all from Etsy and all under $50.Clockwise from top left:
Ruffles! One of this season’s hottest trend in fashion has hit interiors. Urban Outfitters went ruffles crazy this Spring with their duvet ($128), pillow shams ($38), windows curtain ($68) and my personal favorite, bath curtain ($68). So pretty!
…and of course what’s Spring time without greenery and flowers! The bottom three pictures are all the same type of branch that is my new obsession- Manzanita branches. They are like a mini tree you can hang heavy objects from, adorn with flowers, crystals, butterflies, moss (seen right with Hanging Amaranthus) or hanging votives (See the florist’s blog post here on diy hanging votives) You can buy them at a local florist or online from Nettleton Hollow- they also have a really inspiring blog. Mostly wedding and event decor but their ideas can be used every day too.
Top two: mossy greenery makes me think of an enchanted forest or even a beach at low tide, also an inexpensive way to make your house floral and fresh without having to purchase short-lived fresh flowers. Chestnut Branch from Crate and Barrel (19.95), and Organic Moss Balls from Etsy ($22.50).
Happy decorating!
1 comment March 9, 2010
Grown-up Disney Princess Party
For my last birthday I thought I’d combine my three favorite things: Disney, theme parties, and great friends.
I started with the Disney Scene Setter; two plastic rolls that turned my apartment into an illustrated Disney wonderland. The rolls combined came up to be eight feet wide and covered twenty-three feet of wall. The five-ft castle and princesses were add-ons that I simply taped to the background you can find an entire party package here. Its not just for kids- all of my friends loved it!
Here’s my Snow White theme bathroom. I cut the mirror frame out of a large sheet of gold poster board and used a sharpie and acrylic paint to make it look just like the one in Snow White. Using an exacto-knife and a cutting board made cutting out the center a breeze.
“Mirror Mirror on the Wall” was written with a glass market bought at Michael’s
Glittery “poison” apples were placed on the sink to complete the scene. Click here for full instructions to make your own.
A pink-themed dessert bar was set up featuring chocolate covered strawberries and other sweets. The cake stands I made from candle holders and glass plates I picked up at a thrift store. See how-to instructions here.
I made “Princess____” drink tags- guests put their real name and princess names on the tags before tying to the glass stem with the ribbon.
Activities included coloring (I found Disney Princess printable coloring pages here)Princess crown making (I used the Princess Tiana Tiara cutout for my pattern) as well as a Disney Princess Trivia game- the prize was a Snow White DVD.
Other party elements:
- I served champagne with strawberries and Snow White’s Apple Potion (Absolut Pear, Absolut Peach, Cranberry juice, Apple juice, and lemon-lime soda)
- White tissue paper poufs hung from the ceiling to look like puffy clouds (click here for the how-to)
- Pop-up tiara invitations were sent to the guests (click here for the how-to)
All of the guests came dressed as their favorite Disney Princess would have if she lived in 2010 (this was my Snow White costume)
One of my girl friends Holly was so sweet and made cupcakes just for the party. I wish I had thought to take pictures before they were gobbled up! She put in the cutest Princess cupcake toppers she found at Williams-Sonoma. The party was so great- an excuse for a bunch of almost grown-ups to have the dream princess party.
Add comment March 5, 2010
Tissue Paper Poufs
It’s the new, cheap Japanese lantern! And much more eco-friendly as you can recycle these when you’re finished or simply disassemble them for gift wrapping or packing. I would love to re-use this idea using newspaper, maybe for a black and white party, a New York party or a 20’s era party.
I hung about a dozen of these from the ceiling at my Disney Princess Party to create the feeling of puffy clouds. You will need eight sheets of tissue paper in the color of your choice and string or floral wire. Idea inspired by Martha Stewart’s Tissue Paper Pom-Poms.
- stack all eight sheets on top of one another
- fold lengthwise back and forth accordion-style until you have one small long stack
- tie around the middle with the string or wire
- turn the stack on its side and begin pulling the sheets apart and to the center until you have one giant sphere of paper
- tie around the middle and hang from the ceiling
1 comment March 4, 2010
Princess Party Invitation
Invitations to my Disney Princess Party. I started with a tiffany-blue blank card. Using white card stock and pinking shears, I cut out a white square, gluing half to the backside of the card and folding the other half over to make a flap. I then glued a fabric rosette to the front tip of the flap.
Inside the card, I first measured the inside of the card and then used Photoshop to create the insert with the invitation details to glue to the inside. I loved the Old English font to give the invitation a medieval look.
To make the pop-up crown: first cut out your crown and fold the bottom backwards. cut out a small strip of paper and fold the top forward and the bottom back to make a “z”. With the invitation opened to your desired angle, glue one end to the middle of the back of the crown, the other end to the invitation, and the folded bottom of the crown to the bottom of the invitation.
For the insert: I used an Apple Craft Punch to cut out apple shapes from red iridescent craft paper and used a glue pen and red glitter to outline the apples. I then glued to the cards after printing them on card stock.
Lesson learned: when dealing with pop-up cards and other cards involving heavy paper, bring them to the post office for mailing instead of trying to guess how many stamps you’ll need. You will have less invites mailed back to you asking for more stamps!
I spent hours surfing the web for the right inspiration. This was one of my favorites from a UK site- Thyme Graphics
Add comment March 3, 2010
Tissue Paper Roses
You can’t have a Disney Princess Party without roses (if you remember, that was the enchanted flower that starred in Beauty and the Beast.) You will need about three to six sheets of tissue paper for each rose.
- First, stack two sheets together and fold into sixths.
- Cut a large heart shape out of the tissue paper, you should now have twelve large hearts.
- With the third sheet, fold into sixths and cut a teardrop shape out to make six teardrops.
- Start making the middle of the rose by curling one of the teardrops on itself, holding the pointy end in your fingers.
- Keep adding teardrops, layering on one another until you run out, fanning the rounded top part outward.
- Begin adding the hearts with the curved end out, laying more and and pulling the tops outward and back.
- Twist the bottom and secure with a piece of tape.
Add comment March 3, 2010
DIY $2 Thrift Store Cake Stand
You heard that right- $2.00. Can you tell? So simple. The base is a 99-cent candleholder glued to a 99-cent clear glass plate (make sure you wash the plate first.) I used hot glue because I wanted to be able to pull off the plate and paint the base different colors whenever I feel like it to match my party/mood. If you want a more stable piece I would suggest super glue. 
This is a great piece for food displays but you can also use it as a home decor piece by topping with pillar candles, decorative ornaments, or fruit.
Add comment March 2, 2010
Glittery Apple Decorations
Believe it or not these are real apples glammed up for my Disney Princess Party to go along with my Snow White-themed bathroom. All you need is red tempera paint, a paint brush and Martha Steward glitter in Garnet. Simply apply a few coats of paint to the apple- drying for one to two hours in between coats. On the final coat, cover the apple with the glitter immediately after coating while the paint is still wet. After it dries, shake off excess glitter in the sink and decorate at will!
One of my guests at the party is planning a Twilight-themed bachelorette party and was so excited about the apples for her party. Definitely will have to make new ones!
2 comments March 1, 2010
Oh my but I’ve been a busy bee…
This month has been filled with my birthday and the subsequent party that followed. I have always wanted to throw a grown-up Disney Princess Party and my birthday was the perfect opportunity! I took out all the stops and came up with some great party ideas, DIY decorations and invitations and best of all had an amazing time with my friends. I’m posting the juicy details as fast as my fingers can type.
Add comment February 28, 2010
Creamy Wild Mushroom Soup with Sherry
I love mushrooms- especially wild mushroom soup. I searched far and wide for this recipe after lunching at the inconspicuous French bakery Belle Epicurean in downtown Seattle and had their mushroom soup puree- so delicious! I was (and still am) such a klutz I accidentally knocked my soup over and spilled half of it on my new sweater. You know it’s a good soup when you’re more upset about losing the soup than having soup all over you! I got over it.
Serves 6 for a first course or 3 very hungry guests
Ingredients:
- 5 tblsp unsalted butter
- 12 oz wild mushrooms (Chanterelles, Winecap, Portabella, Shiitake) chopped coarsely into bite-size pieces
- 2 shallots finely chopped
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup Dry Sherry
- Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1 tsp Tarragon, chopped
- 1 tsp Chives, chopped
Instructions
- Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Sweat shallots in pan.
- Add mushrooms. Coat mushrooms with butter and stir occasionally until they begin to express their juices.
- Remove 1/3 of the mushrooms allow to cool a bit and purée them. Lower heat on remaining mushrooms.
- Meanwhile, in a stock pot, add veggie stock, and sherry. Bring to a slow, rolling boil for about 10 minutes, allowing stock to reduce a bit.
- Lower heat to a simmer. Add mushroom purée and continue simmering for about another 10 minutes allowing the flavors to marry.
- Add the remaining mushrooms, season soup with salt, pepper to taste, blend well.
- Add milk, taste soup and season to desired flavor
- Add fresh chopped herbs.
- Just before serving whisk in 2 tablespoons of cold butter. Serve.
- Garnish with full sprigs of herbs.
- Serve with fresh popovers or french bread
Lessons learned:
- This recipe was not the purée I loved from the restaurant- next time I’ll thicken by adding less liquid (milk and broth) and blending everything to a chunky pulp.
- After adding the milk I poured up one bowl of soup then kept the stove on high and stepped away for a few minutes. When I returned to the pot the milk was all clotted and separated (it still tasted good!) Next time I’ll make sure to take the soup off the heat before adding the milk or at least lower the heat.
- To make the soup prettier next time I’ll slice a couple of button mushrooms lengthwise and saute, then place a couple on top of each soup for a mushroom garnish.
Love mushrooms like I do? Here’s another great recipe: Wild Mushroom Pizza with Yukon Gold Potato, Arugula, and Rosemary
1 comment January 14, 2010
