halloween costume series :: cowboys and indians

Giddy Up!  Last year Ella wanted to be a cowgirl so bad!!!  I wasn't all that thrilled, but what I want doesn't matter... so a cowgirl she was.  Now what was I going to do for Bree???  While flipping through a magazine I saw this Indian costume and I was sold!  So last years theme was the wild, wild west.  Cowboys (girls) and Indians!

halloween costume series :: chicken and the egg

Next costume... the chicken and the egg! We did it!!! We finally answered the infamous question... Which came first? The chicken or the egg?

I had seen the chicken costume idea on Martha several years ago, but we stepped it up a notch with the baby. Aubrey was only about 7 weeks old so it worked out perfectly! You know the amoeba-like age, when they just lay around and don't do much. Definitely not into trick-or-treating, but you don't want to completely exclude them? Well, that was my self-inflicted debate anyway. So, the egg is what we came up with. And it was the EASIEST costume ever. We already had both a white sleeper and hat, so all I had to do was cut out a yellow circle for the yolk. Temporarily tape it on and we were good to go for a few pictures.

As I said, the chicken costume was from a Martha idea several years ago. When I saw it, I knew I had to hold onto it for future use. The chicken feet were what sold me. Can you tell what they are!? Yeap, kitchen cleaning gloves!!! Genius, right!? We fit them over a pair of Crocs and it worked beautifully! The white boa body was also just irresistible! The costume did have some elusive items to find. The white pilot's cap was the trickiest. Let me do the leg work for you... available here at Hannah Anderson. And believe it or not, the long sleeve white onesies (or leotards), were another obscure item to find.

I always try and give credit where credit is due. As I told you before, sewing is NOT my strong suit. Their two grandma's get all the credit for the sewing parts.

I also think it's ironic that today's post is about chickens.... I'm currently "running around like a chicken with it's head cut off!!!!!" Sorry, couldn't resist, but it is true.

Okay, now look at this picture - it cracks me up! The stare down. When I look at this picture, I just imagine them saying...
"No, I was first!"
"Nooooo, I was first!!"
"Balk, balk, baaaalk"
"Come on! Or are you too chicken!?"

halloween costume series :: coppertone girl

Okay, here it is... my favorite costume!  So simple and also so timeless - both the young and old can relate.  Even our elderly neighbors got a kick out of this costume.  We've all used Coppertone Sunscreen right!?  It has been around for 50+ years after all.


Here's our little Coppertone girl.... Blonde hair, blue-eyed and all.

Ready for the next costume?  It is my second favorite.  Stay tuned. 

halloween costume series :: hula girl

I'm here with another costume...  Little Hula Girl!

 

We made the coconut bra and grass skirt by simply cutting down a regular sized costume we found.  My husband used a special little saw with a fine blade so it wouldn't shatter the coconut shells.  She collected her treats in a little Hawaiian purse I picked up while on vacation in Maui.  It worked out perfectly!  I love when the candy bucket even fits in with a kids' costume.

I tried and tried to find a nude leotard for her that year, but I couldn't find one small enough.  She was only 18 months at the time and all I could find was a size 3T unfortunately.  Hence the white shirt.  But that was okay, I ended up using that nude leotard the next year.  Wait until you see the next costume - my all time favorite costume we have ever done!!!!

happy fall!

Fall is, hands down, my favorite time of year!!!  The smells, the colors, the leaves... oh my!!!  (oh, and I get to start wearing boots again!)  There are many things I adore about living in the Northeast, but witnessing October every year is definitely on the top of my list.  October is full of fun - the outdoor beauty previously mentioned, but it also includes the best holiday of the year - Columbus Day!  Just kidding, I'm just making sure you're reading!  It's Halloween, of course!!!

This year, my October is going to be CRAZY!!!  I think it will be my busiest month. Ever!  Get ready folks, I'm probably going to be MIA, but just know I'll have good stuff to share when I get all done.  I have a house decor project starting next week,  two huge fall / Halloween parties, a couple of cakes, oh and oh yeah, a wedding!!!  Yeap, I'm going to be busy.  All this while trying to still be a good stay-at-home momma.

Okay, but back to Halloween... in preparation of the big trick-or-treat night, I thought I would start sharing some of the past costumes I've made for my girls.  Maybe you will see something you'd like to make?

First costume, going back 5 years here.  Ella was only 6 months old - wow!  And just to set the record straight, she did not go out collecting goodies.  (I've recently heard about lots of people being upset when babies go trick-or-treating.  Really!?  I love seeing the little ones all dressed up.  So what if the parents are the ones who will get the KitKat reward - after all, they are the ones who made the costume and took the kid out for me to see.  I, personally, am far more frustrated when the un-costumed teenagers show up at my door and expect handouts.  Most not even giving a customary thank you.   Do you guys have this problem?  How do you deal with it?  Sorry, I'll get off my soap box now.)

Anyway, back to the costume.  We were invited to a family-oriented Halloween party and all our friends wanted to see her dressed-up.  So I had to make a costume!  I should tell you right now, I am not a seamstress.  I did some very simple stitching here and even that proved to be too difficult for me!  Basically, if you were to look at the back of this you would see what I'm talking about.  I ended up hot gluing a lot of the details on out of frustration.  Sewing is definitely a domestic skill I have yet to acquire.

Stay tuned... my favorites were years three and four!

beautiful cake

I didn't even know what to call this post, but I just had to share this with you guys.  This wedding cake (well, cakes, plural I guess) took my breath away.  I was perusing Google images looking for some examples to share with an upcoming cake client and I stumbled upon this beauty.  I don't know who made it (I only have the website I spotted it on), but who ever they are, they are very talented.

Just look at the colors!  The overall display.  (Gotta love the custom acrylic stand.)  The perfect piping work.  I could go on and on.  I will definitely be keeping this beauty in my inspiration file.  WOWZA!  Can you tell I love it!?  The colors and shapes are inspired from the wedding correspondence - invitations, menu cards, etc.

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tutorial :: stamped plates

I'm finally getting around to showing you guys the "how-to" of stamped plates.  As you know, I use this technique at a lot of my events - most recently my daughter's peace party.  While doing the plates for that party, I took some pictures of the process.  It is very easy, but can be frustrating at times - just stay patient.

Things you will need:
-gel paste food color (I use AmeriColor)
-table knife
-un-inked stamp pad (available here)
-plates with a completely flat center (I always use white so the image will show up the best)
-paper towels (one damp and one dry)
-rubber stamp (image of your choice matching your theme)

Let me start by telling you about my plates.  I bought these years ago at Ikea, my favorite go-to places for things like this.  I bought about 50 plates for $1 each I think.  I realized fifty bucks is no small sum, but just think about all the money you will save in the long run since you won't have to buy colored / themed paper plates anymore.  Not to mention the environmental impact.   For those of you who don't have an Ikea near by, try dollar stores.  

** MUST READ**  Now it's very important to use both an un-inked stamp pad and a rubber stamp that hasn't been used already with regular ink.  This MUST be food safe.  When anything moist or wet touches the image, the ink will smear and get on the food your guests will be eating.  You wouldn't want someone feeding you toxic ink right!?

First start by putting the gel food color in the un-inked stamp pad.  I usually use a table knife to spread it evenly.  Making sure to get all the clumps of ink spread throughout the pad.

Next, it's time to stamp!!  Since there was no way I was going to be able to stamp and take pictures at the same time, I enlisted a helper - big smile and all.  When I called her over, she was playing dress-up, hence the glitter hat and countless silly-bandz.  Oh to be five again...  Anyway, just wanted you to see the cute face behind all the hand pictures below!  I used Ella for two reasons.  Like I said before there was no way I could do this and take pictures, but also because I wanted you to see that even a five year old can do this.  It can get trying at times, but it is a super simple concept.

Evenly push the stamp into the ink, but not too hard.  You don't want any ink on any surface that isn't raised.  Basically, do it just like you would if you were making a greeting card or something on paper.  

See, ink only on the raised surface.

Now, here's where it can get tricky.  Put your patient pants on!  Press down EVENLY!  Easier said than done a lot of times, I know.  Since the plate is such a slippery surface, the rubber stamp has a tendency to slip.  Don't give up - it will work!

Viola!  A stamped plate!

Okay, now here is an example of a mess up.  The stamp didn't get pressed down evenly all around so one side didn't have any image showing.  Oops!  No big deal.  Just take your damp cloth, wipe it off and then dry it completely and try again.  Easy!  We probably had to re-do 10 or so.

As I stamp each plate, I stack them up.  Now that they are all stamped I let them sit out for a few minutes to dry completely.  As you can see, this part takes over the entire kitchen!  This is just some of them.  Don't start this right before you need to make dinner!  

Since there is always time sensitive stuff (ie food preparation) to do the day before and day of the party, I always do my plate stamping several days before.  After they dry, I stack them neatly in a clean corner and cover with paper towels.

A note about the rubber stamp... the simpler the image, the simpler it will be to complete this job.  I used a pram stroller stamp one time for a baby shower and it was very detailed.  A wicker basket and all the spokes on the wheels made for an extremely hard job.  I think I re-did every plate 2-3 times.  Now, this peace sign stamp was a cinch!  So when you are picking out your stamp remember simpler means easier.

Let me know if you have any questions.