Summer Garden Party

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One of the reasons we loved this apartment (even though it is tiny) is it has a backyard. Our neighbors are gardeners and do an amazing job of growing a garden and maintaining all the beautiful plants. We love having a place we can be outside smack in the middle of the city. I’ve been excited to throw a party back here for a while. My friend Aubrey just returned from a long trip away all summer so it was a great opportunity to host a little dinner party in the backyard to celebrate her return. It was a really simple party. All I did for decoration is hang these cheap party lights. I also rented a tablecloth (it was $10) because sometimes it makes clean up a lot easier to just rent. It was the perfect summer party with twinkly lights and lots of salads and fresh produce. I hope we can have more this year before it gets too cold out.

Inspiration Edition No. 14

Here are some things I’ve been inspired by lately!

A. I wanted to upholster my sofa all in dots, but pillows will have to do for now. B. I visited the studio of Chloe Fleury the other day (so talented) and she had this gorgeous lamp. I couldn’t believe it when she told me it was from IKEA. It is even prettier in person. C. These shoes I’ve been spying are now 50% off . D.  This cloud tutorial is so awesome. I want to make one for Halloween or maybe for above my bed. E. Fresh Lemonade in pretty bottles. F. This is a pretty sofa. A nice combination of kid friendly but still chic.

Happy Weekend

Happy weekend! My kids are starting at a preschool in a week so it is the last week of real summer for us. We still need to get some more bike rides and picnics in. Since we’ve been back from France we’ve been so much better about setting boundaries with work and and personal time. Even though I still feel behind all the time it is great to feel like I’m at least not dropping the ball on things that are most important to me. I loved listening to Grace’s podcast on this same subject. Do you have a secret for feeling on top of things? Mine includes leaving the laptop at the studio and making sure the house is clean before I go to work. I hope you have a beautiful weekend!

Fruit Stickers for Kids

Here is a DIY for those parents with kids starting school. I was thinking about cute ways to send notes and jokes in lunchboxes and I remembered this genius post by Kathleen of Twig & Thistle on making Valentines from fruit stickers. I thought it would be cute to apply the same concept for school lunches -with jokes and notes for your child. This idea is really simple. Just download it and print onto adhesive label paper. Then cut out the stickers and add them to a pieces of fruit in their lunch box. (The free download is right here.)

DIY Geometric Lanterns

by Jenny Batt

Geometrics aren’t going anywhere soon, why not include them in your party decor?  I saw a tissue paper lantern in a vintage party book and it looks so current in monochromatic hues. Change it into any shade you want by choosing from the array of tissue papers available.

Materials Needed: tissue paper (a variety of shades can be found here), double stick tape, scissors, needle, fishing line

Unfold your tissue paper and take two sheets. Fold in half length-wise. Accordion fold the tissue paper in three quarter of an inch increments. Note: to make shorter lanterns and vary the sizes, trim the open edges shorter. The center fold line should face down, as shown. Unfold and open while keeping the two sheets layered on each other. Pinch one end back together accordion style.

Cut a strip of fishing line about 12 inches long and use it to thread a medium sized needle. Push the needle through the entire accordion gather and tie both ends together to make a circle. Play with the folds to make them evenly dispersed before knotting permanently. Repeat on the other end.  Use a piece of double stick tape to layer the two edges together in the center. Press gently with your fingers to crisp up any deflated crease lines.

Repeat and make many, many more; these look great en masse. Hang and enjoy. Oh, and those cute little streamers? Just the scraps left over from making the shorter lanterns. How do you make party decorations stand out from the usual stand-by?