The Fickle Hobbyist

Archive for June, 2010

After weeks of designing and planning, Abby’s French Lavender party came and went.  I have to say, things went pretty smoothly.  I was very happy with the end result.

If you remember this was the inspiration for the party.

I have to say, it turned out just how I was planning.  I DID abandon the actual lavender after much internal debate.  I figured kids wouldn’t be too keen on the lavender flavored lemonade, and really I wanted to make them happy with the food and drink, so plain lemonade and vanilla and chocolate cupcakes it was.

Here are some pictures of the party.

First was my Amy Atlas inspired dessert table.  I am constantly amazed by Amy’s gorgeous tables and really looked to her for inspiration.  I hope I did her proud.  (who am I kidding?  she’ll never see this.  haha)

(you can click on the image to view it larger)

Here are a few close ups of the details.  This is Abby’s actual silhouette.  I used the same technique I did HERE way back in February.

Of course you’ll remember the Eiffel Tower that I made. Also notice the Old Fashioned Lollipops. (those were a big hit) I used the same mold to make the candy coating white ones.

Here you’ll see the cupcake toppers that I featured in the post HERE.

The cupcakes were for the guests, but Abby got the top cake all to herself.  She was nice enough to share with her sister, though.  (Who ate only the marshmallow fondant and left the chocolate because she “doesn’t like chocolate” this week.)

This was only my second time working with marshmallow fondant, but this time was significantly more simple.  I found a great tutorial video on youtube that had a way easier method than the one I used before.  Perhaps you’ve made it before and you’ve had to knead in the melted marshmallows by hand?  I would highly recommend using the mixer with the dough hook!  I don’t even have a Kitchenaid.  I just used a hand mixer and it worked amazingly well.  My fondant took probably 10-15 minutes to make which is FAR less time spent than doing it by hand.

The “A” on top is just some melted candy coating stuck to two lollipop sticks.  I used a purple pearl dust on the purple fondant and it was SO pretty!

I found some purple cotton candy at Kroger last week and promptly picked it up.  HOWEVER, while it looks ok for about 10 minutes, I would recommend against using cotton candy on the dessert table.  (I think I remember reading on the Amy Atlas blog that she had the same problem)  The cotton candy MELTED into a big sugar blog.  haha  You can see that it’s starting to wilt even in these pictures.  It doesn’t fare well in Houston humidity, even with the AC on full blast.

Right next to the dessert table, we had the drink table set up.  It was arranged on the coffee table which worked out perfectly for the little kids to be able to get their own lemonade.

I have to say, though small, I think the water bottles were my favorite detail.

Although, the straws were pretty cute too.  (they say “quench” in French)

I didn’t take a close up of these cookies on the table, but I had to share.  Did you know you can buy the frosting paper at your local bakery for around $5 a sheet?  I arranged 12 monograms on one sheet and bought the sugar cookies and frosting at the bakery.  Shhh, don’t tell all my secrets!  The baker actually gave me a “messed up” sheet free because the side monograms were cut off, so I got 4 extras.

Abby was SO delighted with her party!  It warmed my heart to know that she really enjoyed herself.

She got to spend the day coloring, making crafts, having a tea party, eating cake, opening presents, and most of all; enjoying the company of some of her best friends.

It was a great day, and SO worth all the planning and preparation!

I recall reading on Amy’s blog in the comments, one lady said something along the lines of “The only reason these tables look so amazing is because of the display materials.  No one can do this on a budget.”  (she means like the vases, etc.)  I am here to say It’s not so!!!

ALL the vases and things you see on the dessert table are from the Goodwill.  The ONLY thing I bought at a non second hand store was the frame holding Abby’s silhouette, and even then it was 50% off at Hob Lob.  I even got the lemonade dispenser at GW for $6!!  So if you think you can’t create a cost efficient dessert table, I just want to say that it just takes some time scouring the shelves (I’ve been collecting these for a couple months) and a little imagination.  I designed and printed all of the decorations too, so it can be done.  Yeah, it’s definitely a lot of work, but if you’re like me (and if you’re reading a blog like mine, chances are you are) you enjoy this type of thing anyway.  Dive in and make it the best party ever!

-Autumn

We’ve been (and by we, I mean me) really busy this week getting all the finishing touches done for Abby’s party. I have just started to assemble the dessert table and thought I’d share it with you. It is nowhere near being finished, but even in the beginning stage I think it’s cute. I just need to add some dimension now.

I’m getting REALLY really excited for the ‘big day’.  I think even if Abby hated the party idea I’d still be looking forward to it (I know, I’m a great mom), but what makes me really happy is that she keeps telling me “You’re the best mommy, you’re making me the prettiest party EVER!  And I LOVE it”.  (Yes, that was me bragging.  I’m allowed.  It’s my blog, remember?)

**Totally unrelated, but equally as exciting**

Thrifty Decor Chick is having a giveaway!! Get your booty over there and enter to win one of these fabulous Silhouette machines. (btw, Silhouette people, if you are reading, yeah, I’d SO love to host a giveaway for you. Yes, I realize I’m a small blog, but no one would be more grateful than I! Man, I’m knocking them out of the park tonight! Bragging AND begging? It must be a full moon.)

Now go, go!  And if you win it, you owe me a vinyl cut-out.

-Autumn

I think it was last month that I was flipping through the latest Ballard Designs catalog and came across the cutest canisters.

I thought “Ooh, that’s exactly what I need for Max’s food!”  I mean, after all, Tupperware is super functional, but so NOT chic.  Of course, when I looked at the price tag on these canisters, I laughed.  $45?! You’ve got to be kidding me.

See, the reason I laughed is because I had two of these sitting upstairs.

Perhaps you do too?  You know you’ve all seen these.  They’re the tins of popcorn that kids covet at Christmas time.  (at least my kids do)  They come with the three flavors inside.  I had had the idea to use the tins for the tons of Littlest Pet Shop toys we have lying around, but when I saw the food canister, I figured I could spare one for that.

The first thing I did was wash that bad boy out.  Whatever caramel popcorn was left inside, had melted into one big chunk of grossness.  When it was washed and dried, I used a 220 grit sanding sponge and took the shine off of the paint.  Again, I washed the outside and took it outdoors to paint it.  I gave it several light coats of Rustoleum Universal Spray Paint in satin white.

Then I created a text image in Photoshop and printed it out.  (if you’re interested in re-creating this, here is the image I used.)

I think it would have been MUCH easier and quicker had I had a Silhouette for this project, but alas… I do not yet have one.  So I had to resort to tracing paper and paint.

The tracing paper I used was something I picked up in the fabric department of Hobby Lobby but works on all surfaces.

I cut out a piece and taped both the tracing paper and the image to the bucket.

I used a pen so that it ensured the transfer.  After tracing the image I was left with this.

I took some black acrylic paint to fill in the tracing.  I suppose I could have sealed it with something, but I didn’t figure it would get a lot of handling on the word part, so I left it as is.

So I’m not the neatest painter, but I can live with this.

It is definitely much better than the Tupperware container that held Max’s food before.

I think it’s super cute!  Now I just have to do the same treatment and paint “Toys” on the other one.

-Autumn