Have a DIY Valentine's Day

Oh Valentine's Day, how quickly you are approaching.... and how lame am I for being so unprepared.

Searching the endless wealth of DIY projects on the blog, here are a few of my favorite finds.

Unravel a Valentine's Day love letter with this stunning project from Paper n stitch blog.

Twig and Thistle is really brilliant.

For a simple way to make a big statement of amor, wrap your love's toothbrush with a little note stating "I've got a sweet tooth for you...."

Or print your own adorable packaging for brownies (use a cookies cutter to make them heart shaped!).

Need a project to do with the kiddos, try Martha's custom candy wrapped craziness, or her "hand"-made cards!

Sometimes the only thing necessary for the the perfect night is wine & chocolate... and a little romantic way to wrap it all up in an adorable little kit via Design*Sponge.

Remember, in the end, all you need is love.

xoxo,

Niki

Brown Paper Bag Perfection

I was honored and excited when Stephanie & Ela from the Elite Bridal Network asked me to design programs for their wedding planner seminar in Key West this month. I racked my brain for something creative and beautiful and was thrilled when Stephanie sent me these favors she saw on Martha Stewart as inspiration.

I blogged about my obsession with kraft paper a few weeks ago and mentioned these fantastic gifts. I wanted to do a take on the brown paper bag, because the programs for the Elite Bridal Network were filled with goodies and snacks for the planners to enjoy during the weekend! I really love the idea of having something be both stylish and practical.

Creating a program or favor like this is not only simple, but it's also extremely economical. The programs looked so elegant and chic when they were assembled! Here's how I did it:

1. I purchased a package of large lunch bags. You can find there anywhere, I found them at my local grocery store.

2. I purchased wood clothespins, again a staple at the grocery store or Target.

3. My final purchase was this vase filler from Target. It's a mixture of glass accent rocks and stones, usually used for floral arrangements. I chose the brown mix to match the Elite Bridal Network logo.

4. I hot-glued a brown glass stone at the top part of each clothespin.

5. I designed the program and printed it on white card stock. We used a simple brown font and printed their gorgeous logo at the top.

6. Lastly, I attached each program to the bag with a clothespin. I rolled the bag down 3 times at the top for a neat and folded look.

Voila! Fabulous programs/goodie bags!

The best part is that there are tons of options to make brown paper bag favors fantastic for your next fete!

Here are a few alternative suggestions:

a. Try closing the bags with a beautiful button like the ones featured in Martha Stewart. You can create your own fabric buttons on Busy Beaver Button Company. Have a button printed with your own slogan.

b. There are tons of things you could hot glue onto a clothes pin. A few of my favorite ideas are seashells, mini sand dollars, sequins, swarovski crystals, fabric flowers, or paper flowers {like these above via paper-source}.

c. Fill the bags with meaningful food, candy and/or favors. In the Martha version, the couple filled their lunch bags with grits from a local farm. They attached a recipe for "Shrimp and Grits" onto the outside of the bag, and gave them out as a favor for their Southern Savannah wedding. Yum!

Hope you are inspired by the incredible versatility of a simple brown paper bag.

Thanks to the Elite Bridal Network!

xoxo,

Niki

Baseball Bash

It's the World Series! In honor of the amazing games between the Yankees & Phillies, I thought I'd feature some of my favorite baseball ideas. Hopefully they'll help you hit a home run the next time you entertain!

It all starts with the perfect invite. Love these round baseballs from Luscious Verde, and these letterpress invites from Twig & Fig that use actual turf! Both available at papery & cakery.

Martha had a wealth of ideas on hosting a kids baseball birthday party. I adore these baseball cupcakes! She also gave ideas for a great party favors filled with with chocolate baseballs, baseball gum balls, Tootsie rolls, baseball-bat taffy lollipops, wax soda bottles, Smarties, and a pack of baseball cards, a whistle and lanyard. I think cracker jacks would be another wonderful addition!

Pottery Barn sells this fabulous glassware etched with your favorite team's name along with a monogram. There are pilsner glasses, old-fashioned, beer mugs and large bowls. You won't strike out serving food and drinks in these!

These stitched cufflinks are made from actual baseballs. I think they'd make the perfect gift for a baseball lover or even for groomsmen.

Hit it out of the ballpark with an awesome cake like this one, featuring a hat and playing cards from Confetti Cakes.

Hope these ideas have you swinging for the fences!

xoxo,

Niki

Pumpkins, Apples and Donuts Oh My!

This past weekend my friends and I went on an apple and pumpkin picking adventure. As a Floridian, this was a totally new experience for me and I loved every second. I was so inspired to come home and bake with the "fruits" of my labor! I never quite realized how much fun fall could be.

We went to Riamede Farm. For an entrance fee of $1 you are given a plastic bag and are allowed to pick any apple on the property. You then pay for your apples by the pound.

I wanted a mixture of apples that would be great for both baking and eating. I chose: Cortland's, which are known for their tart taste and are great for eating as well as making sauces, pies and applesauce; Empire's are also wonderful for baking; Fuji's, which are very sweet and are best for eating and putting on salads; and Matsu's, which have green skin and a sweet and tart flavor.


And of course, the boys just had to get the ones at the very top of the tree!


We also went pumpkin picking. We searched for the perfect pumpkin to carve, roast, and toast for its seeds!

However, every apple and pumpkin picking trip is incomplete without a mug of warm apple cider and apple donuts (the best I've ever tasted!)


Apple and pumpkin picking is an adorable idea for a birthday party. Think of all the apple/pumpkin decorations and foods you could serve!

Like this chocolate cake with green apples from Elisa Strauss of Confetti Cakes .

Or apple and peanut butter sandwiches..

Or these fantastic apple seating card/favors available at Papery & Cakery made by Arak Kanofsky.

And of course Appletini's!

Be on the lookout for a fabulous apple recipe coming up on this Cakery Friday.

Happy Apple and Pumpkin Day!

xoxo,

Ali

Customized Candies

First, be sure to comment on Monday's post and let us know about your favorite blog posting in order to be eligible to win personalized engraved note cards. There will be three winners! If you don't know how to comment just email us at info@paperyandcakery.com.

Halloween is right around the corner, which means pumpkins, costumes and ... CANDY! Yum!!! It's officially my favorite time of year. Stay tuned for a week of Halloween fun later this month on the blog. In the meantime, here are some brilliant ideas in the world of personalized and customized candy, which would be perfect for your next event!







Did you know you can put your photo onto an M&M?!?! I was so excited about the concept, I decided to create one for Ray! You can personalize each photo selected with up to 3 different sayings on the back side, and a select from a huge variety of colors.




There are also M&M's available in team colors and logos for the NBA, NFL and MLB. You can even purchase an old-fashioned M&M dispenser with your team's logo, filled with color appropriate candies.



Papabubble in New York City will create custom hard candies as favors, using your logo and/or motif of choice. The candies are beautifully colored, uniquely designed, and taste outrageously delicious!



What would you do with 3,500 pounds of Valentine's Day Sweethearts? That's how many you'll need to order to personalize the legendary wafers by Necco.




You can also add personalization to Hershey Kisses, with these stickers via the knot. Dove Chocolates helps you create your own favors by adding a custom message into the wrapper.

So many sweet ideas!

xoxo,

Niki