holidays

May 22, 2013 No Comments

rice krispies cake + free printables

rice krispies cake

My kiddos love Rice Krispies Treats… okay… I love Rice Krispies Treats too… and I really wanted to try my hand at a Rice Krispies Cake. So with Memorial Day celebrations and Fourth of July parties and picnics just around the corner, I decided to make a patriotic red white and blue themed Rice Krispies Cake. I know… YUM!

When I was first dreaming up this idea I thought about tinting the marshmallow creme, but decided to opt for embellishing the cake plate instead. Oh, yep. That white gooey goodness dripping off that cake is marshmallow creme! {grin}

Want to know how I made this three-tier Rice Krispies cake? Want to download my FREE patriotic printables, including cupcake toppers, banner pennants and dessert tags?

You can find it all in my latest contribution to Gibbs Smith Books Red Barn Blog! Hop on over!

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Join The Celebration Shoppe on facebook, sign-up for the daily ideas to come right to your inbox (never miss an idea, giveaway or free printable!), connect with Kim on twitter, pinterest and on instagram. And don’t forget to shop the party store for birthday, baby shower and holiday party supplies. Oh, and now you can follow the blog with Bloglovin too! Hope to see you around!

outdoor furniture {red, white and blue}

Outdoor Furniture

This weekend is Memorial Day, the kick off to a summer of patriotic holiday celebrations. My hubby and most of his family members served in the armed forces so we’re big on celebrating in red, white and blue!

I keep my outdoor furniture in basic/rustic hues so that I can brighten things up with pops of reds! Today I’m sharing a few fun and festive patio and outdoor furniture finds from Kohl’s to get you ready for the upcoming outdoor party season.

AND, I’m sharing my FREE backyard BBQ Party Printables (see more pictures of the feature in Mom magazine) in coordinating colors! DOWNLOAD MY FREE SUMMER PRINTABLES and get shopping!

As always, I hope your inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

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gift wrap paper

This simple gift wrap paper idea is perfect for the kids! It’s fun and maybe a little bit messy (which really just equals more fun, right!), but beautiful when finished and perfect to wrap a Mother’s Day gift!

When the Martha Stewart team asked if anything in this month’s issue inspired me, and would I be interested in sharing the idea with all of you, this super clever gift wrap paper idea was first on my list.

bubble crafts

I mean, finally, a project that gives your kids permission to blow bubbles at the table! Just grab some white butcher paper, build up a froth of paint and water in a baking dish, then gently place the paper on top to create a print.

It’s that easy! Hop over to Martha Stewart for all the how to details and supply list to make your own bubble gift wrap. And pick up this month’s Martha Stewart Living issue for tons of inspiration and ideas for your home and next celebration!

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

easy meringue recipe

It’s Deanna from Mirabelle Creations and I’m so excited to share this fun spring dessert – Strawberry Meringue Roses. I’m a lifelong Kentucky gal, so one of my favorite days of the year is the first Saturday in May – Derby Day! The Kentucky Derby is also known as the Run for the Roses.

This easy, delicious, Strawberry Meringue Roses recipe is the perfect dessert for a Run for the Roses celebration.

So, whether you are hosting full blown Derby bash (download free Derby Party Printable Supplies) or will be watching the race with family at home, you can whip up a batch of these little meringue roses to nosh on while rooting for your favorite horse.

Don’t worry if you don’t have Derby plans. These little meringues would be great for any sweet spring tea or brunch too. They would look beautiful served for a Mother’s Day brunch, as well!

Strawberry Meringue Roses recipe (adapted from Food Network)

4 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
6 tablespoons seedless strawberry preserves 1/2 teaspoon strawberry extract
2 drops red or pink food coloring (optional)
1 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 215 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. (Do not skip this or your meringues will stick to baking sheet).

Beat egg whites, salt, cream of tartar, preserves, extract and food coloring until frothy. With mixer running, slowly add powdered sugar and beat until stiff peaks have formed.

Fit pastry bag with a large star tip. Fill pastry bag with mixture. Pipe round roses on lined baking sheet by piping 2 inch spirals starting from the center and rotating outwards.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Turn off oven and open door. Let meringues dry in the oven for about 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

easy meringue recipe

As always, we hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Mother’s Day picnic + gift ideas

We always celebrate with a picnic. It’s my way of getting to enjoy the day too. No house to clean, grab some awesome goodies from the store, pick a patch of grass and call it a party! {wink}

Mothers Day party

My family celebrated Mother’s Day a little early this year. See, my brother and his beautiful family live down south and I live in Ohio. We only get to see each other a few times a year and so when we do we try to cram in all the holidays and celebrations we can. Well this week he’s here!

Mothers Day Picnic

I normally would share my awesome mom with you when talking Mother’s Day, but this year I want to honor my sister-in-law. My brother and his wife were blessed with three girls and a boy. All of which are now in college or in their last few years of high school. Then along came baby!! They were blessed with one more. And did they hit the lottery!

Mothers Day

My sweet little niece is so incredibly precious. Bouncy red hair, a sprinkling of freckles and a loving personality. And what makes her even more special, she has Down Syndrome.

I’m sharing this with you today for a few reasons. One, I love my sweet little niece and I want to show her off.

AND, because my sister-in-law, her mom, deserves some praise. She’s a calm and relaxed personality by nature. When she and my brother were in high school he used to take me along on their dates sometimes… yep. My parents were getting divorced and he and I lived in two separate homes at the time so we didn’t see each other as much as we wanted so he’d let me tag-a-long. And you know what, she never seemed to mind. As a matter of fact, she even acted like she enjoyed having me around. Even though I was 12 and they were 16. They’re just kind hearted, loving people.

And now I watch them with their little girl and I think God chose this little soul especially for them. My sister-in-law with her gentle nature, never ending patience and big heart makes me proud to call her family.

So now that I’ve gotten a bit teary-eyed, let’s talk Mothers Day picnics. As I mentioned at the beginning we’ve been hosting them for years at a local park. The kids play, we eat — no mess, no fuss. This year we took my niece to the zoo, but no matter where you go, you can host the day with style!

World Market Store Ohio

I chose to shop World Market. Everything in the store is just so bright and bubbly right now. And there is tons of chevron… hence the aqua and white chevron throw we used for our picnic. My little niece took a liking to it. It will be going home with her (and her momma). {grin}

And not only does World Market have lovely décor for the day, they have some awesome Mother’s Day gift ideas too. I would suggest looking at the jewelry and the Scarves!

By the way, World Market is hosting a “My Amazing Mom” Sweepstakes - just like them on facebook and nominate your mom or other deserving mother figure for a chance to win a $5,000 World Market gift card. You’ll upload a photo and tell what makes her special. You can find World Market around the web too: Store, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and even Instagram.

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

This shop is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and World Market, but all my opinions are my own. I would have it no other way! #pmedia #MyAmazingMom. http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO

cala lilies, easy Mother’s Day craft

Cala lilies were my wedding flower. Such an elegant and beautiful flower. AND, such an easy flower to recreate with crepe paper for a Mother’s Day craft!

I’m talking Mother’s Day on Red Barn Blog this week. Join me for the quick 1, 2, 3 (pictorial) of making this easy crepe paper craft!

Plus, download my FREE Mother’s Day subway art print and gift tags (that you can personalize before you print!) while you’re there.

See you there! And as always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Mother’s Day craft – monogram pots

My little alien and I made a Mother’s Day craft yesterday. {grin}

He’s six now, so he’s incredibly independent and always wants to do everything by himself.

Mothers Day Craft

As you ladies know, when it comes to paint we can cringe a little sometimes. But guess what?! The new Modge Podge Washout… washes out… of clothing and furniture with soap and water, even when it dries before you get to it! It’s perfect for us and teachers. Just machine wash whatever it is. No pre-soak needed. And I use Apple Barrel paint all the time because clean-up is so easy when it’s wet.

So I set him up with a few supplies and let him go. There is something to be said for just letting kids be creative. For this project you’ll need:

Mod Podge Washout
Apple Barrel paint (we used Candy Pink and Lime Tree)
Stencils
Sponge brushes
Tape
Fabric
Wooden sticks
Permanent pen
Plants and soil

Mothers Day Craft

We started by making plant markers. He dipped them in Apple Barrel paint and then we stood them upright to dry in a cup of uncooked rice.

Mothers Day Craft

Next we moved on to decorating flower pots. He wanted to monogram one with an “M” for Mimi, what he calls my mom.

Mothers Day Craft

And then he wanted to monogram one with an “L” for Love. I think the “L” was also the easiest letter to cut out of the fabric. “G” for Grandma seemed like too much work. {wink}

As you can see, he painted over the “L” but it does take a while to dry. If you’re in a hurry, you could also just douse the letter in Mod Podge Washout and apply.

Mothers Day Craft

Now on to planting. He chose these Begonias from our trip to the nursery. He and I both loved the deep and bright orange color!

Mothers Day Craft

By the time he was done planting the plant markers were dry and he wrote sweet little messages on them.

Mothers Day Craft

One of the things I loved most about this project is that my little guy can claim that he truly did this project on his own, which of course will make it that much more special to his Mimi and Grandma. Now, if you know them, just don’t ruin the surprise. {wink}

Want more Mother’s Day craft ideas? Follow my Mother’s Day Ideas board on Pinterest. You can also

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Big thank you to Plaid and Blueprint Social for letting us test drive their new Mod Podge Washout product and for the bit of payment. Yes, I did get paid to craft with my kiddo. I know. I love my job! But all opinions are my own of course. You ladies know I would have it no other way!

Mother’s Day craft & free subway art

Mother’s Day is only a few weeks away and I have the perfect Mother’s Day craft for you!

And what’s even better than Mother’s Day subway art… Mother’s Day subway art that you can personalize!!! Yep!

Need one for your Mom? Check.

Need one for Grandma? Check.

Need one for Mimi? Check.

Need one for Nanny? Check.

I made the top line of this Mother’s Day print and the Mother’s Day gift tags so that you can click and type write into the file personalizing them with any name you need. Even if your little one calls your mom “Gigi…” Oh, yes ladies, it happens! {grin}

Join me for my latest contributing post at Red Barn blog and DOWNLOAD your free Mother’s Day Subway Art mat and gift tags. Just personalize and print!

Or, if you think the one shown in my photograph is perfect, no personalization needed. I’m sharing a link on Red Barn for that one too! Enjoy!

By the way, I’ll be back tomorrow with a fun Mother’s Day kid craft and on Friday I’m sharing how to make those paper calla lilies you see in the corner of this pic!

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Easter craft ideas for kids

Hi everyone! It’s Bridget! Kim is out of town, busy with her new craft videos at the Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores studio, so I’m sharing a bit today!

This week is Spring break and in our house, that means lots of fun Easter crafts for kids to stay occupied! What better way to brighten our dreary snow-filled Ohio days than with simple, colorful crafts? Inspired by my 10-year old’s love of sock monkeys, I found these ridiculously cute sock bunnies. Hop on over {I know, I’m a riot} to see the whole tutorial.

With three kids of different ages and stages, I have to have some variety; so,I pulled a few other easy crafts together for you to see, too:

Glitter anything is a hit in my house, so I love these no-dye Glitter Easter Eggs via BHG
These Bunny Whiskers from Kailo Chic are perfect for any Easter guest!
Colorful Easter Egg planters are simple and chic(k) from Craft Passion.
Charming little guy is adorable – Paper Plate Baby Chick via Simple as That

As always, we hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Join The Celebration Shoppe on facebook, sign-up for the daily ideas to come right to your inbox (never miss an idea, giveaway or free printable!), follow us on twitter, pinterest and on instagram at @thecelebrationshoppe. And don’t forget to shop our party store for birthday, baby shower and holiday party supplies

Easter carrot goody bags + template

Hi there! It’s Deanna from Mirabelle Creations. I’m excited to share a no-sew fabric carrot that’s perfect for Easter candy and egg hunt goody bag favors! Kids will love opening these little carrot treats, especially when filled with their favorite jelly beans!

I chose something a little different than the traditional orange carrot this year. I created a Seersucker & Bow Ties Easter party collection and decided to make my carrots out of seersucker too!

What You’ll Need To Make Your Own Fabric Carrots:

Carrot Template
Paper
Scissors
Fabric of your choice
Green ribbon or yarn
Hot glue gun

Easy DIY Instructions For Fabric Carrots:

Print out the free carrot template. Cut out the larger 5×7 rectangle pattern using the fabric of your choice. Repeat for as many carrots as you are planning on making.
After you have finished cutting out the fabric, cut out the template for the smaller square with the diagonal corner. Trace the shape onto plain white paper and cut out.
Run a small line of hot glue along the edge of the paper. Press side with glue onto the wrong-side of the fabric. Gluing the paper to the fabric will make the fabric stronger and able to hold the shape once it’s rolled.
Roll the paper from the shorter side to the longer side, making a cone shape. Run a small line of hot glue along the inside edge to secure.
Tie off the ends of the fabric with green ribbon.

You can find me at Mirabelle Creations and as always, we hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

rice krispies cake + free printables

you may also like:

outdoor furniture {red, white and blue}

you may also like:

gift wrap paper

you may also like:

easy meringue recipe

you may also like:

Mother’s Day picnic + gift ideas

you may also like:

cala lilies, easy Mother’s Day craft

you may also like:

Mother’s Day craft – monogram pots

you may also like:

Mother’s Day craft & free subway art

you may also like:

Easter craft ideas for kids

you may also like:

Easter carrot goody bags + template

you may also like:

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