Summer has arrived.....serve up some Memorial Day Drinks

Kick off your summer this weekend - the right way - with some refreshing summer drinks you can serve at your Weekend Barbeques!

Some of our favorites....

Patio Lemonade {from hwtm}

1.5 oz vodka

.5 oz chambord

3 oz lemonade

mix ingredients, shake & serve. 

garnish with fresh berries or add a frozen cherry popsicle for some fun!

Watermelon Margarita {from martha stewart}

Makes 2 cocktails:

2 limes

4 tablespoons tequila

2 tablespoons vodka

1 tablespoon Triple Sec

2 cups watermelon, seeds removed

1/4 cup sugar

3 cups crushed ice

rub the rims of two glasses with a slice of lime each, and dip the rims in salt.

process the juice of 1 1/2 limes with the other ingredients in a blender until smooth.

add more crushed ice, and blend until slushy.

Classic Mojito {from thebar.com}

1.25 oz. of your favorite Spiced Rum

12 mint leaves

1 teaspoon(s) sugar

.5 oz. lime juice

2 oz. soda water

Place mint leaves in bottom of glass.

add crushed ice, spiced rum, sugar, and lime juice, and muddle.

add soda water and garnish with mint leaves.

also try frozen

Welcome to Summer!!

Contest: Say "I DO" with Sally Hansen!

Get in the mood for love…Sally Hansen has partnered with Brides Magazine and The Diamond Vault Collection and one lucky winner will win a custom diamond eternity band valued at $3,000, and a collection of Sally Hansen® wedding-worthy products, including Diamond Strength® Nail Color for brilliant nails and Diamond 12 Hour Lip Treatment for lavish lips and lasting moisture. The contest will be live on www.Bridesfirstlook.com on May 11th.

A Bride's Ride

I came across this website where you can not only rent a vintage car for your send off, but you can purchase vintage decorating kits for the car, as well.  Car rental prices start at $250, decorating kits are $47 each.

For more information, visit http://www.abridesride.com/

DIY: Paper Flowers

Now that spring is here, flowers are everywhere.  So many flower varieties are available in the Spring - I love this time of year.  Flowers are also a popular trend on the fashion runways, too.

It's always nice to have fresh flowers in the house to brighten up any room, but something more unique (and longer lasting) are paper flowers.  So fun to make and such a great thing to incorporate into centerpieces, place cards, favor boxes and more.

Here are a few photos from Marth Stewart Living this month....

I saw these and they reminded me of how great the use of paper can be.  You can use paper of different colors and textures, or make paper flowers out of paper with unique patterns for a more eclectic look.

A great source for paper flower kits is http://www.paper-source.com/ - one of my favorite websites!!

Here are simple steps for creating the cherry blossom branches above:

To create five-petal blossoms, start by cutting pink or red glassine or vellum into 3 1/2-inch and 4 1/2-inch squares. Fold a square into a flat cone, following steps 1 to 4.

Using scissors, make four angled cuts to remove the top of the cone as in step 5.

With a utility knife, carve out a small rectangular sliver on each side of the cone. Snip off a tiny bit of the pointed tip of the cone, and unfold and shape the paper to yield a blossom. Collect branches from the yard, and poke their tips through the centers of the blossoms. Place the decorated branches in a tall vase filled with pebbles to anchor the display. For favor bags, fill colored-paper bags with token gifts of your choice, and fold down the closed tops of the bags twice. Punch a hole through one folded corner. Push colored brad through flower, then hole in bag to fasten.

Have fun and Happy Spring!!!

Pretty Paper

I just completed this invitation set for Liz & Chris whose wedding is taking place on June 6th in West Palm Beach, Florida. This invitation from BT Elements (www.btelements.com) is absolutely perfect for a summer wedding. The color palette, the fonts used, the elegant design really showcase their personalities. What is great about this company, I think i have mentioned before, is that you can perfectly coordinate a matching menu card, place card, table number, favor box and gift tag!

Chef's Table

Last night I had the pleasure of attending a chef's table at the PGA National Resort and Spa in Palm Beach Gardens.  We sampled crab cakes, shrimp, a variety of salads, petit filet, lamb chops, and of course several delicious wedding cakes.  It was simply fabulous.

Not only was the food devine, the resort itself offers such a unique location for an event.  For one, because the hotel is on property, your guests can stay there and make a weekend out of it.  They offer spa, golf, tennis and so much more.  The bar in the lobby makes for a fun central gathering spot and they usually have nightly entertainment. 

What I love about the party space is that they offer a few different indoor ballrooms mixed with outdoor possibilies for ceremonies, cocktail hours, etc.

If you haven't seen it, you should take some time to visit.

http://www.pganationalresortandspa.com/

Have a great day!

Fab Find: Rent the Runway

So you've always wanted to wear a designer dress to your next big soiree, but the price tag deters this from happening.  Well, your wish can come true with this fabulous site I discovered called Rent the Runway.  A site by invitation only where you can rent a designer dress for a small rental fee, they send it to you to wear and you send it back!  Yes, you can wear a Badgley Mischka, a Diane Von Furstenberg, Herve Leger, Catherine Malandrino....the list goes on.....for a fraction of the retail price!  Rental fees run from $50 - $250 depending on the dress and designer.  They actually also offer a monthly pass for $350 which gives you access to unlimented rentals for the month or an annual pass for $900.  You keep the dress for 4 or 8 days.

Check it out for yourself at http://www.renttherunway.com/.  You'll be stylin' at your next wedding, gala or night on the town!