Don’t quit your day job

I don’t remember who came up with the idea but when my friends were in town last week someone suggested we take pictures of people in front of the Eiffel Tower with my vintage polaroid camera and then go out to dinner with our earnings. It sounded like a fun challenge and the entrepreneur in me was curious if it would work. It was hilarious! As an adult I’m not used to rejection like that! After two hours we’d made 45 euros. Not enough to pay for dinner but not bad either! It was a lot of work but ended up being really fun to interact with all the people. I’m glad I have friends who think doing things like this is a great way to spend an afternoon. Would you ever do anything like this? It’s essentially a lemonade stand.

Thanks to Charlotte Beck for the photo.

Giant Polish Chandelier DIY

A month or two ago I made this giant Polish Chandelier (see all the pictures right here.) I meant to post it earlier so sorry to everyone who has been patiently waiting for the DIY post. This project isn’t fast but its made of cheap materials, so its perfect for someone who doesn’t have a lot of money to spend but has some time on their hands. My favorite thing about this is there is so much variation in the different pieces that I felt like I was doing so many types of crafting just for this one project. It was really fun and satisfying to make. I think these would be so cool at a wedding, it would be sweet to put one above each table. See all the instructions below!

Materials Needed: 36″ hoop (or we bought some thick wire and taped it together to create our own.), crepe paper folded sheets (not rolls) in the colors of your choice, tissue paper, thin cardstock, glue, string, a long needle, tape, scissors, fine gauge wire.

1. If you want to make your own hoop just measure out 36″ and wrap the wire around the circle several times until it feels sturdy then tape it together.

2. Wrap it in crepe paper to make it pretty.

The chandelier is broken down into three kinds of pieces: straws, stars, and flowers. Once you know how to make them you just configure them in different ways.

3. It is possible to buy real straw for this but I couldn’t find any so I made my own out of paper. To make the straws you’ll need some cardstock cut unto strips (about 4″ long) , a pencil, and glue.

4. Roll the cardstock around the pencil to shape it.

5. Then add glue and hold until it sticks. I made 130 of these for my chandelier.

6. Now for the stars. I made these stars out of tissue paper and then out of cardstock. Start with a square about 3″ wide and cut a circle out of it. I usually cut these in a stack to save time.

7. Then cut out little slivers to make the little petals.

8. When you are done with the cardstock make them out of tissue. I didn’t count how many I made of these but it was a lot. I made a hefty pile and then would make more when I ran out.

9. The flowers are fun to make. You need some crepe paper and wire for this.

10. Start with some strips of crepe paper and begin rolling. Focus on making one side tight and the other end a little looser.

11. Pinch the tight end. I keep the finished petals in one hand while I roll with my other.

12. When you have 10-12 petals wire them together  a few times around as tight as you can. Keep adding bunches and wiring it on until the flower gets big enough.

13. Secure the wire by twisting it but leave the tails of the wire  attached for when you are assembling it later. For mine I made 16 large flowers around the rim and 8 small flowers for the bottom.

14. To make the strands first thread a piece of straw.

15. Then add some tissue stars.

16. Crumple the tissue paper to give the stars body.

17. Then add a star made out of cardstock and sandwich it with some more tissue. Repeat.

18. There were a total of eight long strands (ten straw sections each) and eight short strands (which had six straw sections each.)

19. Attach all eight long strands evenly around the hoop and bring them all together at the top in a knot. Then hang the chandelier from a doorway while you finish the assembly.

20. Attach the eight short strands on the hoop between where the long strands are attached. They scallop around the bottom in a ‘U’ shape.

21. Finally attach the large flowers with wire everywhere a string attaches to the hoop. Top it off by adding a little flower to the bottom of each ‘U’ or short strand.

And voila’! You’re done. Of course play around with the colors and design of yours. Traditionally Polish Chandeliers have eight strings but other than that you can add flowers or change colors to your liking. Happy Crafting!

Thanks to Anne for being my model.

Parties: What to do With the Littles

This post is sponsored by UP ALL NIGHT…Life is all about balance. So what happens when you throw a new baby into it? Find out, series premiere Wednesday September 14 on NBC.

I love a party with little kids, but sometimes I just want a party without little people. As a mother of two (adorable and perfect) children and also as someone who likes to throw parties I grapple with how to make parties work with and without kids. It is really nice to have adult conversations where I’m not having to make sure my (adorable and perfect) children aren’t smearing Goldish crackers on the hostess’s sofa. Here are my some guidelines and tips for throwing a party without the littles.

1. Don’t say “no kids” on the invitation. You can either mention to the person verbally that this is an adults only event. If you want to put something on the invitation  say something a little more PC like: “leave the little ones tucked in at home.”

2. Remember babysitters are difficult to find and expensive. We live in big cities where hiring a sitter can be very difficult and one night out can set you back $75(!) Make sure you are making the party worth their time. Make it special! (This is permission for you to go over the top!)

3. If its the right group and time of day consider hiring a sitter to play with the kids in a different part of the house. This is very generous and considerate. I’ve even borrowed portable cribs before so my guests could put their baby down in the other room so they could then stay and enjoy the party.

4. Babes in Arms are different than a two year old. Always allow mothers with babies the option of bringing them. Young babies are so portable they usually just sleep in their carseat in the corner anyway. It won’t cramp the style of the party (unless of course its a rave, in that case its probably better they don’t bring the baby.)

5. Parents: You host the party. We have lots of friends without children. Since I’ve had my own kids my favorite low-key party is when we have our kid-free guests show up at 8pm for a late dinner. Our kids are already in bed and we can have an adult dinner party without children.

6. Start a Babysitting Co-op. We did this when we lived in San Francisco. Basically it worked like this: there were four couples. Every Saturday night for three hours we dropped off our kids at 4:30 pm, fed, with diapers changed, and armed with fruit snacks. One couple would wrangle the kids (with movies and a ton of toys) while the others took off to play. You’d babysit one Saturday then have three Saturdays free! Three hours is just enough time to see a movie or get dinner and explore the city a little. We found having a set date night was so great for us and it felt so much more carefree because it was “free.”

I’d love to hear how you handle having parties without kids.

photo by Aubrey Trinnaman for Oh Happy Day

This post is sponsored by UP ALL NIGHT but the content was chosen and written by me. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that help me run Oh Happy Day! -mwah! Jordan

Rifle Birthday Cards

These Rifle Paper birthday cards are so special. I wish someone would send one to me on my birthday. (And include $5 in it for old times sake.)

Oh Happy Day + Real Simple

I have a fun announcement today! I’m going to be contributing to the Real Simple Magazine blog on a weekly basis. I love Real Simple for their aesthetic and clever ideas and am so happy to join their team. In my first post I share my #1 party tip. (It’s more important to me than the food.)