Birthday Party Theme idea (III)

Afternoon Tea is a great theme for birthdays, mother's day, graduations, bridal showers, and baby showers.

It's delightful for any age and any occasion as long as you're one of those people who adores to drink freshly brewed tea served elegantly in tea pots, with proper cups, saucers, napkins, sugar cubes, and the creamer.

Cover table with lace or vintage cloth. Use small and delicate seasonal flowers as centerpiece. Place doily lined platters of scones, wafers, biscuits, cookies, mini cut out sandwiches made up of butter, feta, cucumber, and mint, bowls of pickles and soft butter served in a special plate. Print out place cards for guests and set each seat properly with napkins, pickle folks, butter knives, small spoons, cups, saucers, main and dessert plates.

Decorate cake with marzipan fruits, and tie flowers with ribbons around the base of the cake pedestal and around the cake cutter.

Make tea according to taste and serve warm. Gently pour tea for each guest as they start to eat.

Give a tea bag and a wrapped madeline cookie wrapped in folded doily as take home treat. Cut out invitation and tank you cards to resemble the outline of real tea cups.

Birthday Party Theme idea (II)

This one is very girly girl; Garden Fairy...

This party is about simply memorable and charming yet very easy touches. Find a spot in your yard or side walk that has big bushy trees or tall flowers. Set up tiny child-size and adult-size chairs and tables that are decorative or fancy (if not, cover any folding chair with French tulle and tie ribbons and sprinkle glitter on all chairs and tables).

Twist fake flowers around the legs of tables and chairs. The pictures that you take during this party will turn out unique. Hang cloth banners or ribbons on tree branches. Ask guests to dress up in fancy clothes, dresses, fairy wings, fairy wands, floral haloes, floral wrist bands, floral anklets, or crystal shoes. Paint nails in pale pink or lavender shades and brush on glitter. You can also use glittery make up and fairy tattoos.

I make whimsical fairy accessories, using very simple tools and supplies. I sell my collections to all fairy lovers (email me for more info: rahalanefineart@yahoo.com).

On tables, make floral centerpieces with fake or real flowers; foxgloves, roses, daisies, grape vines, and plenty of silver or white glitter.

To add fairy twinkle, a few pretty lantern lights to hang on tree branches can be purchased (if outlet is available), if not, use small candles in glass jars hanging on fake branches in sturdy jugs (away from all natural plants and away from kids' reach).

Make small sugar and ginger cookies in large batches and decorate them with royal icing and decorative stars or sugar beads. Cup cakes can be made ahead and decorated at the party so that every garden fairy is granted the chance to add her own magic touch to the cup cakes; whipped cream, berries, and colorful sugar served in flower or leaf shaped plates are best for the project.

Fairy drinks can be any colorful juice-blend made with real fruit juices and served in small goblets.

I'd serve tiny and decorative sandwiches with natural and colorful fillings; butter, cream cheese, or mascarpone can be used as spread. Next, I'd use fresh mint, walnut pieces, cucumber slices as one combination; basil, tomato, and fresh mozzarella in grilled sandwiches; and peanut or soy butter, my own homemade strawberry, blackberry, or apple fairy jam, or honey as another combination. Sandwiches can be cut into rounds, squares, triangles, and rectangles and served on crystal trays with a few edible flowers on top of them.

Celtic music, relaxing tunes, sounds of birds, and an occasional fluttering butterfly can add to the fairy effect. Give craft store butterflies, birds, nests, colored eggs, tiny flower baskets, or a truffle to take home as thank you gifts.

For invitation cards and thank you notes, you can print or write very elegant and thin letters and tie the letter or card with a delicate ribbon. Stick a tiny lady bug or butterfly onto the envelopes.

Whatever the theme may be, it's important to make the party special by very simple detailed touches.

Birthday Party Theme idea (I)

This can be for boys and girls alike; Pirates Ahoy!

Treasure boxes filled with marbles, chocolate coins, fake coins, necklaces, and temporary pirate tattoos hidden under a bunch of sand on real beach or a child's sand box can be the focus of the party. As an alternative, you can buy a bag of sand and create a sandy area in the corner of your front or backyard. Later, the sand can be used to fill the bottom of planter pots.

The birthday participants can dig out treasure boxes using little kids' sand shovels; following a map and finding the treasure boxes under a cross. Draw out the cross on sand with colored chalks that have been smashed up into powder inside a plastic bag.

Encourage guests to dress up as pirates. Pass around pirate flags and sing or play music.

I usually make one vanilla cake shaped and dressed like a sand castle and one chocolate loaf cake, decorated like a chest of treasures.

Guests get to take their treasure boxes and maps home as treats.

Serve pirates booties, chips, chicken drumsticks, turkey drumsticks, and plenty of beer! Apples, oranges, and tangerines all hanging in nets can be served as snacks. Large loaves of bread, roasted turkey, and plenty of condiments can also be served on the beach or in the back yard.

Invitations and thank you cards can be personally written or printed pirate greetings; the phrases can be looked up online.

Either for a young or older boys and girls, pirate parties are such delight. Especially if you host them on a beach. The photo opportunities are marvelous.

The romance novels on walls

In the style of urban and city wall art, images from romance novels or even fairy tales can turn corners or otherwise ugly walls into something beautiful, mood enhancing, enchanting, or thought provoking.

I'm generally against public property paintings without permission; which is why I always ask the owners to allow me to use their exterior walls as canvas.

Theatre props and puppets are great additions and inspiration for decorating interiors that need cheering up.

The beginning of Autumn

It usually happens mid October to late November where a different season is in . The autumn wind lifts up gold and copper leaves, swirls them about, and lands them all at our doorsteps. Autumn means many changes for many reasons; I tend to pace my life more thoughtfully in a sense that less time is wasted on idle play and more on reading, learning, exercising, and enjoying the last rays of sun.

There is a vibrant collection of warm colors in sight that blends well into the cool dry grey of the hills. I particularly adore the pumpkins and giant sunflowers. Harvesting fruits right off trees is by far one of my most favorite memories.

Green Revolution

I spent my entire summer thinking green and found myself drawn to the color green, especially during our stay at a lake side cabin in New York. Coincidentally, green turned out to become the color of a vibrant and energetic carnival style election campaign in Iran. I was wrapping up the school year; suddenly the massive post election protests broke out and amidst gatherings, vacationing, and the warm sunny pool days, I found myself protesting for a good cause.

We all wore green to show solidarity with the people of Iran. However, the best part was my green feast. I made a giant spinach and artichoke dip, green herbs frittatas, and green fizzy drinks. My green revolution took place in the kitchen after dinner one night when I served stacked up scoops of vanilla ice cream, dark and milk chocolate chunks, mint ice cream, whipped cream, pistachios, and served them in cones with cherries and wafer rolls.

Seriously, the news that came from Iran was the worst this summer. Now, the summer days are ending and I'd still say, splash green paint around and go green, punks!