I've seen the recipe sharing idea at bridal showers before, but I really like using this idea at wedding receptions as well. As an alternative to your guestbook, or even as an addition to, prepare recipe cards for your guests to fill in their favorite recipes on. What better way to begin your new life together than with a bunch of delicious recipes to try after your honeymoon?!
Photos courtesy of Timeless Paper.
One of my Fall '09 brides recently ordered these ADORABLE Pink Chandelier Invites for her upcoming bridal shower this August. At a recent meeting, she shared these with me and I was instantly in love! Minted is an online stationery company specializing in fresh, modern invitations for all occasions. Minted even has an extensive collection of save the date cards and holiday photo cards. The quality of the invitations are definitely top notch and their customer service is unparalleled! If you're looking for an online stationery company, Minted is definitely one you need to check out!
A recent client meeting inspired me to write this post about DIY centerpieces. In today's economy, brides all across the nation are looking for ways to save $$ in all areas of their budget. One area that can easily cause brides to go over budget is flowers, especially centerpieces. My mission this afternoon was to create a simple, yet stylish centerpiece for under $15. Mission Accomplished. I purchased this 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" square vase at Michaels for $9.99 and then purchased two stems of blue hydrangea blooms for $4.33 at my local grocery store (Giant Eagle for all the Pittsburgh brides out there). Total cost with tax = $15.18/centerpiece. A few tips for making these centerpieces at home:
What girl doesn't need a chocolate fix every now and then? These mini ice cream sandwiches are the perfect treat for a hot summer day (like today!) and can even be served for dessert at your bridal shower.Fold down one long side of the box and cut the ice cream into squares that are the size of the candies.
Sandwich ice cream between two pieces of candy and press together gently. Insert small wooden sticks into the ice cream. Freeze, covered, for about 1 hour to harden. Soften a bit before eating.
Enjoy!
The talented Beth Kukucka of Beth Kukucka Photography has created a unique game of questions called PlaySayWhat, a game that is designed to inspire playful and creative conversations in social settings. Beth recently made a mini version of this game designed especially for weddings. PlaySayWhat for Weddings features 40 personalized questions about you and your groom. The game can be played at bridal showers, engagement parties, or even wedding receptions. Each game is packaged in a 4x3 box {as shown above} and is displayed along with an engagement photo, as well as directions on how to play the game. Each game sells for $15.00 and can be ordered by contacting Beth directly at: bethkphoto@comcast.net.
You've probably heard by now that serving cupcakes at weddings is a rapidly growing trend. Couples are choosing to use cupcakes in a variety of ways...some choose to replace the traditional wedding cake all together with cupcakes, others are serving cupcakes in addition to wedding cake, and some are serving cupcakes at their pre-wedding celebrations such as their rehearsal dinners, bridal showers, and engagement parties. Since cupcakes seem to be everywhere lately, I thought that these custom monogram cupcake wrappers from Paper Orchid Stationery were too cute to pass up!
Found this creative idea for DIY ribbon vases from Martha Stewart Weddings. These vases are easy to make and would be the perfect project for a bridal shower or outdoor wedding.
You've found the perfect invitation, you've spent hours neatly packaging the envelopes with all the necessary enclosures, and the envelopes are finally addressed...now what?! You could take your invitations to the post office and pick from the four wedding collection stamps that they offer, or you can custom create your very own wedding postage at Zazzle.com. My vote goes to custom creation! Zazzle offers a variety of pre-designed wedding postage stamps including stamps especially for save the dates, bridal showers, and even bachelorette parties! To see the entire collection, check out their website here.
First of all, how cute is this invitation set from Rock Scissor Paper?! I have to admit when I first stumbled upon this website, I fell in love with all of the amazing products they have to offer! Rock Scissor Paper is an online stationery company offering everything from bridal shower invites to greeting cards to notebooks and journals. The best part about this company is that the invites are not only creative + cute, but also very reasonably priced! Check out their website to see all of the products they offer...I think you'll be pleasantly surprised!
With the holidays right around the corner, there's no better time of the year than right now to start your holiday baking. Serve these adorable and delicious snowflake gingerbread cookies at your winter wedding or bridal shower. Recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart.6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup packed dark-brown sugar
4 teaspoons ground ginger
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
1 teaspoon finely ground pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 large eggs
1 cup unsulfured molasses
Icing - Fine sanding sugar, for sprinkling
Directions
Sift together flour, baking soda, and baking powder into a large bowl. Set aside.
Put butter and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until fluffy. Mix in spices and salt, then eggs and molasses. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Divide dough into thirds; wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough on a lightly floured work surface to a 1/4-inch thick. Cut into snowflakes with a 7- inch snowflake-shape cookie cutter. Space 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper, and refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.
Bake cookies until crisp but not dark, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks.
Put icing in a pastry bag fitted with a small plain round tip (such as Ateco #7). Pipe designs on snowflakes; immediately sprinkle with sanding sugar. Let stand 5 minutes; tap off excess sugar. Let icing set completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. Store cookies between layers of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature up to 5 days.
FOR THE CRUST
1 1/4 cups graham-cracker crumbs (from 10 whole crackers)
1/4 cup sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
FOR THE FILLING
4 packages (8 ounces each) bar cream cheese, very soft
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons pumpkin-pie spice
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs, room temperature
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack in center. Assemble a 9-inch nonstick springform pan, with the raised side of the bottom part facing up.
Make the crust: In a medium bowl, mix cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter until moistened; press firmly into bottom of pan. Bake until golden around edges, 10 to 12 minutes.
Make the filling: With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar on low speed until smooth; mix in flour (do not overmix). Add pumpkin puree, pie spice, vanilla, and salt; mix just until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until each is incorporated before adding the next.
Place springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Pour filling into springform, and gently smooth top. Transfer to oven; reduce oven heat to 300 degrees. Bake 45 minutes. Turn off oven; let cheesecake stay in oven 2 hours more (without opening).
Remove from oven; cool completely. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate until firm, at least 4 hours. Unmold before serving.
One of my bridesmaids actually introduced me to Our Name is Mud and since then I can't help but love their adorable personalized ceramics! I've seen their personalized signature plates before, but then stumbled upon this adorable 'secrets of a happy marriage' jar and thought what a cute idea for a bridal shower! If you're a bridesmaid or MOH then this is a must have at your upcoming bridal shower. Check out all of the ceramics available for a variety of occasions at Our Name is Mud.
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