Michelle's Party Plan-It

$1000 Photographer's Dream Shopping Spree!

2013-05-17T08:41:00.000-07:00

I'm thrilled to be part of another AMAZING giveaway! I am not a "photographer" by any means, but I love taking pictures and boy would I love to win this giveaway! Who wouldn't want a chance at $1000?

You have the opportunity to win a $1000 Photographer's Dream Shopping Spree. You can pick out anything you like from DSLR cameras to camera bags to accessories and lighting and more. Or you can opt for $1000 USD transferred to you via PayPal so that you can shop to your heart's content.
There are quiet a few amazing bloggers and vendors who came together to make this amazing giveaway possible including Spaceships and Laser Beams, Yumtastics, Go Against the Grain, Life Revolves Around Them, Mimi's Dollhouse, Not Just A Mommy, Angelina´s Dream Parties, Twinkled Spice Boutique, Hello My Sweet, Party Snobs, Inkberry Cards + Design, UR invited, Petite Bebe, Party Printables, Unlimited Party Themes, Party On! Designs, Vanessa Hankins Photography, My Garden Party, Dorothy Kurzydlowski Photography, Sugar Sugar Cakes, DimplePrints, Creative Juice Cafe, Miss Party Mom, PaperCandee, Creative Designs by Toni, Paige Simple Studio, Calamity Kate's Kitchen, Simply Creative Printables,The Way The Cookie Crumbles, Michelle's Party Plan-It, Paper and Style Co., And Everything Nice, Samantha Walker Designs, Simply Sweet Parties, Events by Kate, Cupcake Wishes & Birthday Dreams, One Inspired Party, Kima's Konfections,This Nest is Best, Triple M Good Parties and Myour Stories Designs. And that's not even everyone!!!

More than 60 people are contributing to this contest. To see the complete list, take a look at the Rafflecopter form. As small businesses and blogs, we would never be able to offer such a cool prize, so it's a lot of fun to be able to combine forces and giveaway something so special.

Prize Details: The winner can select up to $1000 in camera equipment or supplies (including all sales taxes and shipping) to be delivered to the single destination of their choosing. The winner has the option of receiving $1000 USD in PayPal funds in lieu of receiving their prize.
The winner will be selected randomly via Rafflecopter. The odds of winning are dependent on the number of people entering. Should the winning entrant(s) not respond within 48 hours of being emailed, another winner(s) will be selected. Please ensure spaceshipsandlaserbeams [at] gmail [dot] com is on your safe email list. We would hate to have to redraw another winner!

Rules: This contest is open worldwide from May 17, 2013 at 12:01am EST to June 6, 2013 at 11:59pm EST. All entrants must be the age of the majority in their own country. Should unforeseen circumstances occur, this contest could be cancelled at any time. Void where prohibited by law.

Enter Using Our Rafflecopter Form
Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: This blog did not receive any money to participate or promote this contest. This giveaway is in not way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, PayPal or any camera-related company. As one of many participants, we are not responsible for logistics or prize delivery. If you have any questions, please contact Stephanie at Spaceships and Laser Beams by emailing spaceshipsandlaserbeams [at] gmail [dot] com.

Mother's Day Celebration - Scrapbook Luncheon

2013-05-06T10:06:00.000-07:00

I love my Momma, I love being a Mom and I love to scrapbook! So this year I hosted a Scrapbook Luncheon for my Mom and the other great Mommy's in my life (and my nieces) to celebrate Mother's Day.

The Decor:
I combined my love of chevron with my love of turquoise and hot pink to create the invitation and matching party decor. I created two backdrops with tulle and made matching table runners and a banner. My mom made the gorgeous flower arrangement for my centerpiece. Isn't it beautiful? I absolutely love it and can't wait to find a place in my office for it to live permanently.

The Food:
I served finger sandwiches, Mom's red potato salad (my mom makes the best potato salad), Kale salad, fresh fruit, veggies and humus.

Desserts:
The ladies had their pick of cupcakes, cake, strawberry shortcakes and an array of candy for dessert.

Party Favors:
I decorated gable boxes with the initials of each lady and filled them with a handmade scarf. They were a huge hit (so don't be surprised if you see them added to our Rayden Vaughn Grayson Designs line)!

My beautiful friend Gabby modeling her scarf.

We ate, we talked, we scrap-booked and we created memories, it was a fabulous day with some fabulous ladies!

Thank you for visiting!

God Bless,

Vendor Credits:

Styling, Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Michelle's Party Plan-It

Cookies by Cookies by Tree.

KitchenAid Shopping Spree!

2013-04-03T09:00:00.000-07:00

WOW! I'm so excited about this giveaway. I have teamed up with several great party peeps and bloggers to bring you the chance to win $700 worth of KitchenAid products! WHAT? I know! Crazy, huh? You don't need any KitchenAid products at the moment? That's ok! You can get $800 in paypal cash! Woo hoo! Details are highlighted below......

KitchenAid Shopping Spree
Worth $700
Open Worldwide, April 3 - 24, 2013

Brought to you by.......

Spaceships and Laser Beams, Michelle's Party Plan-It, This Little Mama, Flaired Affairs, Inkberry Cards + Design, Mimi's Dollhouse,DimplePrints, BellaGrey Designs, A Wife A Mom A Life, Party-Tales, Paper and Style Co., My Garden Party, PaperCandee, Miss Party Mom, Sweet Eats Cakes, Toadally Cute, Calamity Kate's Kitchen, Kyonda's Korner, Karo's Fun Land, Life Revolves Around Them, Go Against the Grain Lilli May Designs and Saving By Design.

Prize: The winner can select up to $700 in KitchenAid brand products (not including sales taxes), which will be delivered to the single destination of their choosing. The winner has the option of receiving $800 USD in PayPal funds in lieu of receiving their prize.
The winner will be selected randomly via Rafflecopter. The odds of winning are dependent on the number of people entering. Should the winning entrant(s) not respond within 48 hours of being emailed, another winner(s) will be selected. Please ensure spaceshipsandlaserbeams@gmail.com is on your safe email list. We would hate to have to redraw another winner!

Eligibility: Contest is open worldwide from April 3, 2013 at 12:01 am ET to April 24, 2013 at 11:59pm ET. All entrants must be 18 years of age. Void where prohibited by law.

Disclosure: I did not receive compensation to be part of this giveaway. This giveaway is in no way associated with KitchenAid, PayPal, Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. This blog is not responsible for prize distribution. Should unforeseen circumstances arise, contest can be cancelled at any time without notification. Please contact Stephanie from Spaceships and Laser Beams at spaceshipsandlaserbeams@gmail.com should you have any questions.

Enter Using Our Rafflecopter Form
Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Easter Fun!

2013-04-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a wonderful Easter! We had a great time celebrating with a brunch and egg hunt.

My dear friend Jamie made these peep kabobs and marshmallows.

Cross Cookies by Cookies by Tree.

The kids enjoying their brunch.

The Dads hid eggs filled with tickets and the kids redeemed them for toys from the "store". They all had a blast!

Thank you for visiting!

Blessings,

The Blog's Birthday and St. Patrick's Day Celebration

2013-03-18T06:30:00.003-07:00

One year ago, I started this blog with our mini St. Patrick's Day celebration. Has it been a year already? Wow that went by fast! It's been a wonderfully busy year filled with celebrations and holidays. As I look back at the years posts, I reflect on the memories of family getting together and kids filling the room with laughter and smiles. What a true blessing.

I deeply believe every day we are given together is reason to celebrate and there is no better way to celebrate than with family. This year's St. Patrick's Day was no different. We celebrated the holiday surrounded by family and served the traditional corned beef and cabbage along with a dessert table filled with sweeties.

I hope you had a wonderful St. Patrick's Day! As always, thank you for visiting!

xoxo

VENDOR CREDITS:

Styling, Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs

Cookies: Casey's Confections

Sailing Away with Mickey - Part 2

2013-03-06T12:00:00.000-08:00

photo courtesy of Brian Ortega Photography

Last week I shared with you Part 1 of my son's Sailing Away with Mickey party with the promise of more details on the party activities. It rained days before the party and right after, but luckily we had a gorgeous day filled with sunshine and we were able to have several activities outside. The kids enjoyed playing a pin the tail on a donkey type game called "Put the Anchor on Liam's Boat" along with a Mickey Lifesaver Toss game that I created. It was also the perfect theme to finally use a Pin the Tail on the Shark game I picked up at a yard sale for $2 some time ago, what a deal! The smaller kids enjoyed coloring on the Activity Placemats I created. We also hosted a boat race in a kiddie pool along with the not-so-traditional pull string pinata. The pinata proved to be a dud, since the pull string didn't work, but the kids still enjoyed snatching up the candy once I tore the poor lobster apart. Next year the bat is coming back!

To memorialize the event, we asked all the guests to leave a message in a bottle for Liam that I will give him on his 33rd birthday. My hope is when he opens the bottle in 30 years, he can reflect and appreciate all the love that surrounded him on this special day.

"L" is for Liam - photo courtesy of Brian Ortega Photogaphy

The kids all had a great time and above all, Liam had a blast!

Thanks for visting!

Vendor Credits:

Michelle's Party Plan-It
Event Planning, Styling, Set Up, Party Stationary, Customized Coordinating Decor and Photography (unless otherwise noted)
From our Shoppe
Put the Anchor on the Boat Game
Activity Placemats
Lifesaver Toss Game
Tent Cards

The Great Apple-licious Giveaway

2013-02-28T21:22:00.001-08:00

Welcome to the Great Apple-licious Giveaway
March 1 - 24, 2013

I'm so excited for this giveaway! We have joined forces with other bloggers and party peeps to bring you a chance to win one of 3 prizes! Yes that's right... there will be....

3 WINNERS!!! 3 AWESOME PRIZES!!!

First Place - 34GB iPad
Second Place - 16GB iPad Mini
Third Place - 16GB iPad Mini

Open Worldwide

ELIGIBILITY:
Contest is open worldwide from March 1 to 24, 2013. All entrants must be at least 18 years of age.
Winners will be selected randomly via Rafflecopter. The odds of winning are dependent on the number of people entering. Should the winning entrant(s) not respond within 48 hours of being emailed, another winner(s) will be selected. Please ensure spaceshipsandlaserbeams@gmail.com is on your safe email list. We would hate to have to redraw another winner!
The winner(s) have the option of selecting an Apple giftcard or PayPal funds in lieu of receiving their prize. This option will be awarded as follows: first place $603.43 USD, second and third place: $340.22 USD

GIVEAWAY SPONSORS:
The following blogs and businesses have joined together to bring you The Great Apple-licious Giveaway:
Spaceships and Laser Beams, This Little Mama, Mimi's Dollhouse , A Sweet Spot: Home, Pretty My Party, DimplePrints, Michelle's Party Plan-It, Project:Party Perfect, Party Printables , Saving by Design, I'm With Cupcake, Print The Party, Sweet Eats Cakes, Be Sweet, Livingston's House {full} of BOYS, Stunning Party, PaperCandee , Squared Party Printables, BellaGrey Designs, Whimsically Detailed, Creative Juice, OhSoPrintable, Soiree Event Design, Haute Sugar, Magnolia Creative Co, Party Pants LLC, Not Just A Mommy, I DO Invitations by Michelle, PartyTales, Flaired Affairs, Inkberry Cards + Design, Made by a Princess Parties in Style, Yumtastics, Gemini Vintage, Creative Designs by Toni , Itsy Belle, Autumn Lynn's Chocolate Sins , NBrynn, My Paper Pinwheel , Marie Louise Candy Buffets and Events, Capes & Crowns, Two Blonde Chicks Inc. , Angelina's Dream Parties, Painting Paris Pink, Vanessa Grant Events, Ribbon Revelry , Party On Purpose, The Inspired Occasion, Three Little Monkeys Studio, Paige Simple Studio, The Flair Exchange, Green Beansie Ink, Frog Prince Paperie , Sprinkled with Paper, My Garden Party, Miss Party Mom, Oh goodie designs, Feathered Nest Boutique, Cupcake Express , Confetti & Cake, Paper and Style Co., Printable Parties to Go, Superchickland

DISCLOSURE:
This blog was not compensated for being part of the giveaway and all opinions are our own. The prizes will be shipped by Spaceships and Laser Beams, we are not responsible. This event is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or any other social media network. If you have any questions about the giveaway you can contact Stephanie from Spaceships and Laser Beams at spaceshipsandlaserbeams [at] gmail [dot] com. Good Luck!

ENTER HERE!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sailing Away with Mickey - Part 1

2013-02-27T06:30:00.000-08:00

My little fella loves Mickey Mouse and anything to do with water, especially boats. One day while visiting Paradise Pier at Disneyland's California Adventure, it hit me! A nautical Mickey Mouse birthday party would be perfect for his 3rd birthday party!

Here are the highlights of his big day!

The Details & Decor:
To set the tone, I started with the invitation utilizing traditional nautical elements with some Mickey Mouse inspired details in red, white, aqua and navy blue. With the nautical theme being trendy right now, it was easy to find decorative items to coordinate. I even found Seagulls to hang overhead for that extra touch. I also reused several elements from past parties in the same color palette to stay within my budget. I handcrafted most of the paper items using my cricut. I also learned how to make paper boats and sailor knots on YouTube. What ever did we do before the internet and YouTube?

Favors:
I personalized sailor hats for each child and hand painted muslin favor bags with red anchors and filled them with foam boats, whistles, anchor tattoos, bubbles and fish necklaces.

The Food/Desserts:
We served grilled salmon and lemon herb chicken, baked potatoes, macaroni and cheese, crab salad, green salad, cheese toast and clam chowder. The dessert tables were filled with candy and cupcakes along with Mickey cake pops, marshmallow cereal treats and cookies made by my friends Jamie and Theresa.

Fun & Games:
Planning a nautical themed birthday party in February calls for flexibility. Weather is very unpredictable this time of year in Southern California, I needed to have a back up plan in case it rained. It rained days before the party and right after, but luckily we had a gorgeous day filled with sunshine. You can read more about the fun and games in Part 2 posted here.

Thank you to all of our closest family and friends who joined the celebration as Liam enjoyed every minute of his big day.

photo courtesy of Brian Ortega Photography

Thank you for visiting!

Vendor Credits:

Michelle's Party Plan-It

Event Planning, Styling, Set Up, Party Stationary, Customized Coordinating Decor and Photography (unless otherwise noted)
From our Shoppe
Catch of the Day Favor Bag Toppers
Nautical Mickey Inspired Invitations
Favor Bag Stickers
Welcome Door Sign
Welcome Lawn Sign
Cupcake Toppers
Favor Tags

Edible Details
Fondant Cupcake toppers

It's a Minnie Party!

2013-01-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

Now with the holiday's behind me, I can put the party planning in high gear! I will be launching several new party themes this year, so stay tuned!

But first I'd like to share a very special Minnie Mouse party by my favorite photographer and friend, Alexi. Her daughter Ellie turned 3 in December and insisted on a Minnie Mouse party. I was thrilled when Alexi asked me to create a few items for Ellie's big bash. Who could say no to Minnie Mouse and pink bows? Not this girl!

Isn't Ellie the cutest? I just love how Alexi styled Ellie's party, everything came out beautifully. Thank you Alexi for letting me be a small part of Ellie's big day!

Thanks for visiting and God bless!

Vendor Credits:
Party Styling and Photography - Child Essence Photography
Party Stationary - Party Plan-It Designs
Cupcakes and Cake- On a Whim Cupcakes
Cookies - Casey's Confections
Glitter cake pops and table decor - Picture Perfect Party Designs

House of Spooks Halloween Party

2012-10-22T11:00:00.000-07:00

October is my favorite month of the year and Halloween is one of my favorite holidays! Since Halloween falls on a school night this year, a House of Spooks Halloween party for my sons and nieces was in order.

The Decor:

My youngest son is almost 3 and is now totally aware of the "Spookies" so I decided to go cutesy instead of scary for the little ones. My inspiration for the theme was this Haunted House I picked up at Costco. I decided to keep a modest budget for this party since we had 3 birthday parties in the last several weeks and still have another birthday and wedding anniversary to celebrate this month.

I started with my large stash of Halloween decor (which I add to every year the day after Halloween when everything is at least 50% off). This year, I did find a ton of great items at the Dollar Tree that fit perfectly within my budget and color scheme. I also reused several elements from recent parties such as the tulle backdrop from my Seinfeld party.

LOVE these Haunted House boxes and Tombstones (filled with candy bones) that I found at the Dollar Tree and the little plastic ghosts filler found in the dollar bins at Target.

I made the sign with my Cricut and attached Peeps on to sticks with personalized ribbon I purchased last year from Pick Your Plum. The web "curtains" are actually 2 table runners I picked up last year at Michaels.

These snack cups were also from the dollar bin at Target. What a steal! 10 for $1! I added my tags and filled them with cinnamon popcorn.

The names on the tombstones are hilarious!
Diane Rott, Juan Toomany, Will B. Back, Dr. Acula, Myra Maines and Ima Ghoul. They remind me of the tombstones at the Haunted Mansion ride in Disneyland. :)

The Sweets:
We served several sweets for the sweets. Velata caramel chocolate fondue with caramel marshmallows, candy corn sugar cookies, mummy brownie pops, cupcakes with witch hat toppers and fondont skulls, and I made a candy corn rice cereal treat bundt "cake".

My sweet friend Jamie whipped up these sugar cookies and brownie pops, aren't they adorable?

Jamie also made these pinterest inspired Witch Hats for the cupcakes.....

I made these fondant toppers using a silicone skull ice tray I found at the Dollar Tree.

I was going to make some cereal treat candy corns I saw on pinterest, but then I decided to put my own spin on it and and make a cereal treat "cake" topped with shredded coconut. When sliced, it resembled a candy corn.

The Party Favors and Activities:
We played Halloween Bowling, Give the Skeleton a Heart, Halloween "Twister", Bingo, Spider Web Darts and Monster Toss. I made the kids their own Trick or Treat Loot Bags which they filled with treats and prizes they won from playing games.

Party Favor goodies and candy purchased from the Dollar Tree, 99 cent store and dollar bin at Target.

Recognize the Monster Toss? It was first used at my son's Monster Bash birthday party.

One of my favorite moments was watching the kids play a Halloween version of twister.

B-I-N-G-O!

The Food:

We made a Tostada Bar with all the fixings, rice, beans, grape punch, chips and salsa to fill the tummies!

At Nightfall:

Once the sun went down the black lights were turned on and our home became the HOUSE OF SPOOKS.

The little one wanted to change mid-party. :)

It was another great party with wonderful family!

Thank you for visiting and be sure to download your FREE Printable Halloween Tags!

VENDOR CREDITS:

Event Planning, Styling & Set Up - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs

Photography: Party Plan-It Designs

Chevron Nut Cups: Pick Your Plum

Treat Tubes: Party On Designs

Cupcake/Cake Pop Stand: Cupcake Stand

Freebie: Spooktacular Chevron Tags

2012-10-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

It's time for a SPOOKTACULAR Freebie! I am pleased to share with you our Chevron Halloween Tags. Perfect for classroom parties and party favors! Quick, easy and best of all, FREE!

These tags are designed to be versatile!
IDEAS:
Use a 3.5" punch to make them large favor tags or to attach to a gable box.
Use a 2.5" punch and glue them to lollipop sticks for cupcake toppers.
Use a 2.5" punch and attached them to 3.5" scalloped tags to make them layered tags.
Use a 2.5" punch and attach them to your candy dishes, etc.

Some items you may need to create tags.
Acrobat Reader to open pdfs
cardstock
printer
hole punch
lollipop sticks or toothpicks
ribbon
3 or 3.5 inch punch
2 or 2.5 inch punch

DOWNLOAD HERE

Thanks for visiting!

A TRON Party for Two

2012-10-08T07:00:00.000-07:00

Two of my three boys have a birthday in October and it's been a tradition to celebrate their birthdays with one big party. This year the boys wanted a TRON themed party combined with Cosmic Bowling and a sleepover with all of their friends.

The Decor:
Tron Legacy is not a new movie, so it was difficult to find coordinating party supplies, but luckily Disney Family still had a whole section on their site dedicated to Tron for inspiration. A major challenge was to mimic the environment of the grid without making it a glow in the dark party because good black lighting can be costly. We decided to utilize LED lights and also replaced our regular light bulbs with black lights. Fortunately, stores have stocked up on both holiday lights and black lights for Halloween and Christmas.

Kevin Flynn's house in the Grid was a major inspiration for the dessert table along with the Recognizer cardboard cut out I found on Amazon.

I utilized rope light and light cycle toys to capture the light cycle game sequence from the movie.

The Desserts:
I decided to have a simple dessert table for several of reasons:
1. The kids were going to be with us overnight and I didn't want 9 kids overly excited from the sugar rush;
2. Time - because my husband's 40th bday was last weekend I just didn't have a whole lot of time to prepare a large buffet of goodies and
3. Cost- since we were taking all the kids Cosmic Bowling I needed to stick to a modest dessert table budget.

Cereal treats identity discs dipped in blue chocolate.

Blueberry Jello in shot glasses.

Sugar cookies from Casey's Confections.

The donuts also reminded me of Identity Discs.

I also made a Fondant Light Cycle using a template from the Disney site. I also found these Tron characters on the Disney site, I enlarged them and printed them on card stock for decor.

We also served an assortment of candy including chocolate bars, chocolate nuggets, gumballs and licorice. And chocolate covered pretzels with "Flynn's Arcade Snacks" toppers.

Cupcakes with identity discs which I made from Wilton sugar sheets and a scrapbook punch.

And of course the Cake.

Goodie bags.

The invitation.

Cosmic Bowling:

A local bowling alley has glow in the dark bowling on the weekends and it was the perfect activity to continue on with the Tron theme. The kids all had a great time bowling the night away.

Overall the party was a huge hit with my boys and their friends. We had a great time celebrating 2 very important birthdays.

Happy Birthday Tristan and Gavin!

Thanks for visiting!

VENDOR CREDITS:

Event Planning, Styling & Set Up - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs

Photography: Party Plan-It Designs

Cookies: Casey's Confections

He's Aged to Perfection

2012-10-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

This past weekend my wonderful husband turned 40 and we celebrated the milestone with a James Bond themed party. After all, my hubby is indeed "Aged to Perfection" and to me he will always be sexier than the sexiest James Bonds (Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig).

WARNING: Lots of Photos ahead. :)

Inspiration:

I wanted something personalized and original so I looked through dozens and dozens of James Bond posters and memorabilia and decided on making him the next James Bond.

That's my husband Photoshopped to resemble a promo poster from one of the Bond movies.
Tidbit: Did you know that this year also marks James Bond's 50th Anniversary?

The Details:

I wanted something elegant for the decor so I chose red, black,white and silver as the main color pallet and incorporated gold throughout the party as an accent color. I pulled several details from some of my favorite 007 movies for inspiration such as dice, playing cards, golden guns, chess pieces, martinis, guns, gold bars and jewels.

The Food:

For dinner we had a "Locked and Loaded" Baked Potato Bar with all the fixings and an array of salads and soups. My dear friend Jamie made marvelous sweets, the martini shaped rice krispy treats, dice cake pops and chocolate covered Oreo tuxedos and martinis.

Strawberry Lime cake - so delicious!

"Gold Bars" filled with chocolate nuggets.

Jello "Vesper Martinis"

Shaken not stirred.

I tried my hand with fondant and made the golden guns.

Fabulous cookies by Casey's Confections.

Spy Gear Kits for the kiddos, complete with Fedora hats, sunglasses, mustaches and ties. Every secret agent needs a disguise!

Gun shaped ice cubes.

Happy Birthday to the love of my life!

Thank you for visiting!

Vendor Credits:

Event Planning, Styling & Set Up - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs

Photography: Party Plan-It Designs

Cookies: Casey's Confections

Cake Pop Stand - Cupcake Stand

Chevron Table Runner - A to Zebra Celebrations

These boy party ideas were also featured on Spaceships and Laser Beams.

A Seinfeld Celebration

2012-09-17T05:00:00.000-07:00

Being a huge fan of "Seinfeld", I recently had a party, not quite a party about nothing, but a party to celebrate my 37th birthday! The Seinfeld sitcom didn't quite have a style I could replicate for my party decor, so I decided to decorate with my favorite colors, purple, turquoise and black and to memorialize my favorite Seinfeld moments with desserts.

I decorated two main areas in my home for the desserts. (If you look closely you can see Jerry in the background.)

My friend, Courtney from Buttercream Bling made this beautiful fondant flower to top my Oreo Tower.

Angela from Oh Sugar Events created these amazing cookies from my favorite episodes. (See more pics on her blog HERE) Not only were they perfect they were scrumptious!

The Puffy Shirt, Urban Sombrero, Top of the Muffin & Festivus

Del Boca Vista Condos (Jerry's parents live there), Kramer's license plate "Assman", Pretzels from the famous "These pretzels are making me thirsty!" line, Kramer's "Kramerica" logo, The Soup Nazi and of course the gangs favorite eatery, "Monk's.

And George's Art of Seduction! Yes, that's a hand painted cookie!

Doesn't every Seinfeld fan have a puffy shirt of their own? This one was included in a box set I received as a Christmas gift several years ago.

Fusilli Jerry, George's alter ego "Art Vandelay", Frank Costanza's Manzier called "The Bro" .....

My absolute favorite cookie, Elaine and her "Little Kicks".

The cast even made an appearance. ;)

Jen from Sweeten Your Day Cakes created these fabulous fondant toppers for my cupcakes. Not only were they beautifully detailed, they were tasty! Which in my experience, isn't usually the case for fondant.

Fusilli Jerry.

The Black and White cookie. "Look to the cookie!"

Peterman's Urban Sombrero.

Jerry's favorite cereal, Cheerios.

Jerry's favorite super hero...Superman.

Newman's mail truck. Remember the time it caught fire as he was singing, "Once, Twice, three times a lady"? Classic!

"Top of the Muffin to You!" Got to have that exclamation point!

Kramer's Coffee Table Book - It's a "coffee table book about coffee tables!"

Can you "spare a square"?

Kramer is the Assman!

George's fat wallet.

The Marble Rye.

"No soup for you!"

"I don't wanna be a pirate!"

This may be my favorite Elaine quote...."I could drop you like a bag of dirt!"

Seinfeld candy from various episodes. Remember the tweety pez, the "Junior Mint" and the Oh Henry bar heiress?

My dear friend Jamie made Cereal treats, the Chocolate Babka and cake pops.

Marshmallow pops in treat cups on sticks.

"These are just stumps, where are the tops?"

"These [yogurt covered] pretzels are making me thirsty!"

Mom's Killer Cakes and Cookies made these fantastic cake pops based on the Sein-Imation characters. (Sein-Imation is the animated version of the series that was included in the DVD box sets.)

Jerry

Kramer

George

Puddy as the "Mad Devils Fan".

Elaine (her make up was smeared with the summer heat).

Newman

My friend Theresa made the Black & White cookies.

Sweet Fancy Moses! One of my favorite Seinfeldisms.

Just a little cupcake bling.

Candle party favors.

The miniature Monk's mustard bottle, ketchup bottle and napkin holder were a bonus item included in one of the DVD gift sets I received several years ago.

In lieu of gifts for my birthday, I asked guests to bring a gift for a White Elephant "Re-gift" Exchange. Each person brought an unwanted gift they received to re-gift. At the end of the evening, everyone left with a new unwanted gift. :)

For dinner we served "Vegetable Lasagna", Elaine's "Big Salad", George's No "Double Dipping" Velata Chocolate Fondue and "Man Hands" bread.

To carry on the theme, I made shirts for my boys. Clockwise from the right, "The Human Fund", "Top of the muffin to you!" and "These Pretzels are making me thirsty".

What a blessing it was to be able to spend my day with my closest friends and family.

Thank you for stopping by!

Credits:

Event Planning, Styling & Set Up - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs

Photography: Party Plan-It Designs

Seinfeld Cookies: Oh Sugar Events

Seinfeld Cake Pops: Mom's Killer Cakes and Cookies

Seinfeld Fondant Cupcake toppers: Sweeten Your Day Cakes

Fondant Flower: Buttercream Bling

Paper Lanterns, Popcorn Boxes and Paper Fans: Oriental Trading Company

Paper Straws and Paper Goodie Bags: Mindy Mae's Market
Tissue Poms - Party On Designs
Cupcake/Cake Pop Stand - Cupcake Stand

Candy Making for Kids Book Giveaway!

2012-08-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to share with you the new book by Courtney Dial Whitmore of Pizzazzerie!

If you are like me and love Courtney's other book, Push-Up Pops, you are going to love Candy Making For Kids! NONE of the recipes use a candy thermometer so the recipes are super accessible and easy for all kids. Not to mention absolutely YUMMY! I can't wait to make several of the recipes with my three sons, there is something for everyone! The chapter dedicated to holiday-themed candy is sure to keep the little hands busy this holiday season.

I just love these little caterpillars!

These necklaces would make a great party activity for my niece's next birthday party!

Candy Making for Kids is available on Amazon and B&N. Courtney is also offering darling red + white polka dotted book plate labels that will be mailed out to those who request them so they can stick the personalized greeting inside their book. If you would like one, send an email to courtney@pizzazzerie.com with the subject line BOOK SIGNATURE and proof of purchase (screen shot of Amazon order, picture of receipt, etc) along with the address to send the book plate, who to make the greeting out to, and she'll get it on its merry way so you can have your book signed!

Time for a Giveaway!

One lucky Party Plan-It reader will receive a copy of Candy Making for Kids! Enter below for a chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

My Cup Runneth Over - A Tea Party On A Budget

2012-08-06T05:00:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, my mom asked me to style a tea party for the church's ladies bible study group. Each week one of the members of the group hosts the bible study and her turn was fast approaching. She wanted something very feminine with pink and green as the main colors. There were going to be at least 20 ladies in attendance. The challenge for me was to keep within her $75 budget. Luckily our Mother's Day party had similar elements so this was a great time to reuse some of the decor and keep the costs down. Since it was a bible study, I decided to tie in the Tea Party with some scripture, mainly Psalms 23:5 "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou hast anointed my head with oil; My cup runneth over." and with that we had a theme.

We utilized as much stuff we already had in our stash such as the table cloths, fabrics and decor elements. I created the backdrop by cutting strips of fabric and tying them to a ribbon and white sheer curtains.

My mom had this gorgeous crocheted table cloth which we placed over pink fabric.

I also reused the ribbon topiary I made for Mother's Day as our centerpiece. It coordinated perfectly with the fabric ribbon background.

We set up the dessert table in front of my mom's sliding glass door which brought in natural light.

All of the desserts were store bought (which took most of the budget). I was pleased to find delectable desserts at Costco and Sam's Club which were reasonably priced and sold in large quantities.

I created the cupcake toppers with scripture to tie in the theme.

My mom also requested a candy bar, which in my experience seems to be the most costly. To keep costs down, I purchased name brand candy such as the strawberry marshmallows and strawberry malt balls at the dollar store.

I utilized my mom's hutch for the candy bar and we decorated it with the coordinating dinnerware and tea pots, some of which my grandmother bought me years ago. My mom added tulle to give it some extra femininity.

I wrapped chocolate bars in paper and foil. I also made the favor bags out of paper lunch bags and paper doilies from my stash which I had purchased at the dollar store some time ago.

I wrapped apple straws and frappuccino jars with scrap paper from our Mother's Day party. I also used paper straws from my stash and made straw flags to match.

My mom displayed her favorite apron. Which turned out to be one of my favorite elements.

From what I hear, the tea party was a hit and very much appreciated by the ladies. Everyone enjoyed themselves and the treats along with great fellowship.

Thank you for visiting and God Bless!

Credits:

Event Planning, Styling & Set Up - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs

Photography: Party Plan-It Designs

It's a Pick Your Plum Giveaway!

2012-07-24T12:02:00.000-07:00

I love love love Pick Your Plum! I'll admit it, I'm addicted! What's Pick Your Plum, you ask? Well, every day Pick Your Plum offers limited quantities of awesome goodies ranging from craft supplies, jewelry, clothing and my favorite party supplies plus a lot more. All you have to do is sign up for their daily email and be the first one on your block to get the goods!

Giveaway Details
Here is the low down:
Pick Your Plum is giving away a $25 Plum Box full of swank crafting, fashion, baking, and home decor swag! Just enter below and a winner will be picked at random.

Here is a sampling of some items Pick Your Plum has offered in the past....while these products will not necessarily be in the winning Plum Box, you get the gist. ;)

Enter today! The Giveaway ends at 12:01 est on July 31. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Beep Beep...Choo Choo!

2012-07-18T05:00:00.000-07:00

When my longtime friend Gabriela asked me to plan a party to celebrate both of her son's July Birthdays, I couldn't resist! So after tossing a few ideas around, we decided on a transportation theme to celebrate everything that goes vroom vroom, beep beep and choo choo!

As always, I started with the invitation, Gabriela wanted something colorful and fun that would not be too "babyish" for Logan turning 3 and not too "big boy" for Landon turning 1.

It's no secret that I love clouds and hot air balloons, so I jumped at the chance to include them in the design.

On the dessert tables we displayed 2 birthday cakes, cupcakes, candy, kettle corn and cookies along with a large spread of fresh fruit. I designed the backdrop with large posters and re-positionable vehicles which will later be used for Logan and Landon's playroom.

The party was held at a clubhouse and was the perfect venue for the theme. The high ceilings and windows gave the room an airy feel and worked great with the decor. My favorite decoration was the hot air balloon paper lanterns. They were perfect!

We set up 3 tables to accommodate 30 kiddos. Each place setting had an activity place-mat, Logan and Landon's favorite snacks and a large personalized gable box filled with goodies. Each box contained bubbles, crayons, a train whistle, large foam glider, play-doh, a hot air balloon shaped notepad, stamper, party blow out and an eraser.

The kids were busy with the jumper, face painting, balloon animals, activity place-mats and games.

The Birthday Boys!

Happy 3rd Birthday Logan!

Happy 1st Birthday Landon!

Thank you Jeff and Gabriela for letting us be part of your family's Big Day!!!!

xoxoxo,

Vendor Credits:

Event Planning, Styling & Set Up - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Customized Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs

Photography: Party Plan-It Designs

Gable boxes and lollipop sticks: Available in our Etsy Store

Hot Air Balloon Paper Lanterns: Kara's Party Ideas

Paper Straws, Nut Cups and Goody Bags: Hey Yo Yo

Party Favors, Paper Lanterns, Paper Stop Lights and Inflatable Signs for Centerpieces: Oriental Trading Company

Traffic Cones, favors, paper lanterns, balloons, cups and utensils: Party City

Cake Pops: My friend Jamie

Cookies: Casey’s Confections

Cakes: French's Pastry Bakery

Linens: Pacific Party Rental

These boy party ideas were also featured on Spaceships and Laser Beams.

Let Freedom Ring!

2012-07-09T06:00:00.000-07:00

Fourth of July has always been one of my favorite holidays. The fireworks, barbeque, summer activities...and of course celebrating our great nation!

This year we hosted a get together with our friends. The day was filled with fun, food, swimming, laughs and of course fireworks.

I created an American Flag out of streamers as my focal point for the dessert table, it was a fun project but took some time. The picture below is from when I first finished it, unfortunately it fell and took a bit of a beating right before our guests arrived. A little disappointing, but we later used it as a photo booth backdrop. :)

I also created an area for the kids to decorate white Gable Boxes, which we later filled with hot dogs, veggies and popcorn for them to eat during the firework show. They colored the boxes and added star cutouts to show their patriotism. Each place setting also had an activity place-mat and a mason jar of berries.

There was a table of party favors for the Firework show. We had bubbles, water guns, glow sticks, sparklers, poppers, airplane gliders, balls, straws and patriotic tattoos.

The kids loved showing off their American Pride with their temporary tattoo art....

As with all of our parties, we had a large variety of goodies to satisfy everyone's sweet tooth.

Another awesome batch of Sugar Cookies by Casey's Confections. I put them on lollipop sticks for display.

I made the jumbo dipped marshmallows.

My friend Jamie made yummy dipped pretzels and rice crispy treats.

Yep, that's rice! I'll post a little later about that fun project. :)

I created this American Flag Fruit Tray for dipping in Velata Chocolate Fondue....It was the first time I tried Velata. It was fun and the dark chocolate paired perfectly with the fruit and marshmallows. Best of all, it was super easy to clean. You will definitely be seeing more fondue in our upcoming parties.

Jamie also made these wonderful dipped Strawberries.

I cut watermelon stars and made my eldest son's favorite, Ambrosia with extra cherries for color.

A little water fun...

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday! Thanks for stopping by!

Vendor Credits:

Event Styling - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs.

Gable boxes and lollipop sticks: Available in our Etsy Store

Cookies: Casey’s Confections

Father's Day Movie Night Celebration

2012-06-20T07:20:00.001-07:00

Father's Day is a big deal in our home. My husband is an avid movie lover so this year I decided to celebrate his day with a Movie Night themed celebration with his closest friends.

I decided to set up two areas for the party, one with Movie Posters and the other a Movie Lobby Snack Bar.

I started with printing several of his favorite movie posters as a backdrop.

I dressed up some store bought cupcakes to look like popcorn buckets.

One of my favorite details are the movie reels I used for cupcake holders. I dressed them up with a film strip of photos of my husband.

I printed mini movie posters for cupcake parfait toppers.

I made Chocolate Mint Candy Tickets (another hubby favorite). I found the ticket candy mold on Amazon.

Activity Clapboard place-mats for the kiddies.

I had the most fun tying movie titles, quotes and characters to items at our snack bar. We served "Nacho Libre" Nachoooos!, "Goodfella's" Pizza and "Major League" Hot Dogs. We had "Luigi's Spare Tires, "You made me bleed my own blood" Dodgeballs and "Fast Five" Tire Tread along with "Children of the Kettle Corn". To drink we had "Sucker Punch", "El Mariachi's (From Desperado) Coronas and "Captain Jack's" Rum and Coke.

I created the awning with vinyl and the backdrop with party streamers. The hot dog machine was a huge hit! I have a feeling it will make an appearance at several parties in our near future. The movie theater style popcorn maker added the perfect ambiance to the "Theater Lobby". The snack bar was stocked with all of my husbands favorite treats (except the black licorice, that is one of my favorites).

My friend made Bakerella's Popcorn Bag Brownies along with brownie pops and Oreo truffles - YUM!

Peanut Butter Cup tower.

What movie night is complete without Nacho Libre Nachooooos?

AMAZING cookies by our favorite cookie baker, Casey's Confections. Whoppers and Junior Mints are my hubby's favorites. Cookies that look like other goodies are always fun!

It's hard to pick a favorite, but if I had to, I think it would be the Popcorn. So cute!

Time to stock up on goodies! It's almost Movie Time!

YUM!

Another favorite detail are these lap trays we picked up at our local movie theater, they were perfect!

As you can see, we had a wonderful day celebrating a WONDERFUL Husband and Father!

Vendor Credits:

Event Styling - Party Plan-It Designs
Party Stationary and Coordinating Decor: Party Plan-It Designs.

Cookies: Casey’s Confections

Recipe Credits:
Popcorn Cupcakes - Family Fun
Popcorn Brownies - Bakerella

Thanks for stopping by!

These boy party ideas were also featured on Spaceships and Laser Beams.

Lawn Sign Giveaway!

2012-06-05T11:50:00.001-07:00

We just reached 777 likes on our Facebook page! Woo hoo! What better number to celebrate with for our first random giveaway?

What's the prize? A customized Lawn Sign made to match your theme for your next event! Printed and *shipped directly to you.

Sample:

To enter, all you have to do is to answer the question:

"What is the theme for the Father's Day

party we are planning?"

Hint: We posted a sneak peek picture on our FB page last week.

Winner will be picked randomly by Rafflecopter.

*Prize shipped to US addresses only.

Good Luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

THE WINNER IS Entry #11 Lavonne F. CONGRATULATIONS!

It's a Girl - Baby Shower

2012-05-22T05:00:00.000-07:00

I love designing for baby showers, so when my friend Alexi asked me to design a baby shower theme for her bestie Paola, I couldn't say no! How exciting! Paola is expecting her first girl, so of course something pink and dainty was in order.

I used a variety of patterns in the design, polka dots, chevron, damask and butterflies with a splash of light aqua. Her party pack included candy bar wrappers, water bottle wrappers, cupcake toppers, stickers, favor tags, tent cards and an "It's a Girl" banner with little rompers attached. I love how Alexi styled the party, my favorite part is the tulle poms and paper lanterns over the dessert table. Alexi is also a renowned photographer, as you can see by the wonderful photos.

What a lovely baby shower! Thank you for sharing Alexi!

Congratulations Paola!

Vendor Credits:
Styling and Photography - Child Essence Photography
Party Stationary - Party Plan-It Designs
Cupcakes - On a Whim Cupcakes

Mother's Day Celebration

2012-05-15T04:00:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day is a very important day for me, not only because I am a Mother of three, but it's also a day I can express my appreciation to all the lovely Mothers in my family. My Mother, my Nana (whom we miss very much), my Sister-In-Law and my closest friends are great examples of WONDERFUL Moms. So in the spirit of "All Things Mom" I created a celebration to honor them all. I loved the flower petal garland I made for our Easter Brunch so much, I decided to use it as my inspiration for the theme. Pinks and yellows were my colors of choice along with a touch of green. Flowers, birds and butterflies were also peppered throughout the decor which added extra femininity.

Being the wonderful ladies they are, the aforementioned Mothers wouldn't take no for an answer when they asked what they could bring to the celebration. My Mom made a delicious whole wheat pasta salad, chocolate dipped strawberries, deviled eggs and a veggie tray with dip. My sweet and dear friend Jamie made the dipped Marshmallows, brownie bites and yummy cake pops and tissue pom poms to coordinate with the theme. My Sister-in-Law, Lydia made a refreshing fruit salad. My sweet friend Lisa brought the punch and the chicken for grilling and her daughter, Sharon did all the dishes. What a wonderful group of ladies! My husband and his closest buddy did the grilling. The kids played, swam, ate and had a great time!

Fun Tidbit: My friend pointed out how I chose "Mother's" brand lemonade and circus cookies for the table. It wasn't intentional, they just were the color I was looking for. :)

These dipped marshmallows were as yummy as they look!

My mom surprised me with tons of chocolate strawberries which I thought were the perfect touch to the table.

These delicious Brownie Bites were the first to be eaten, they were a huge hit!

I'm not that much of a baker, these are cupcakes that I ordered. I dressed them up a bit with food safe flowers, cupcake wrappers and candy pearls I found at Michaels for variety in addition to the cupcake toppers I made to coordinate.

I made tulle pom poms for the water bottles.

Only the mommies were given the glass jars with straws.

I decorated these letters I found at Hobby Lobby with some ribbon roses and grosgrain ribbon.

This was the centerpiece for my backdrop at the smaller dessert table. It captured my thoughts for the occasion exactly.

Jamie made the tissue pom poms, they came out perfectly.

I made this Ribbon Topiary from the DIY Tutorial on Catch My Party with the ribbon I had left from past projects.

These of course are sugar cookies from Casey's Confections. You will be hard pressed to find one of my parties without Casey's cookies. She is my favorite baker and oh so talented. She even sent me a special batch of her signature cut out cookies in chocolate and vanilla marble that were to die for!

Tokens of Appreciation:
Each Mother was given cake pops, cookies, flower petal soaps, a sticky note pad and candy.

Let's Eat!

Time to cool off!

Thank you ladies for all of your help, the day was perfect!

I also wanted to say a special Thank You to my husband, Garrett.
Thank you so much for all of your help during the pre-party preparation. Not just for this Mother's Day Celebration but for the countless parties we have hosted during the past 14 years. I love you and thank you for being so supportive.

Now let's get ready for Father's Day! ;)

Thank you for visiting!

Vendor Credits:
Party Stationary: Party Plan-It -Water Bottle wrappers, straw flags, favor tags, stickers, cupcake toppers
Cookies - Casey's Confections

Anchors Aweigh!

2012-05-09T04:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Wednesday!

We love custom requests! A couple of months ago, one of my favorite photographers, Sam of Puddle Jumpers Photography, asked me to design a Sweet Sixteen Anchor theme party pack for a special young lady. Well, today I am thrilled to share with you the photos from this beautiful party.

The birthday girl, Paige, requested a black and teal color palette with stripes and anchors. She wanted a very simple design with "not too many anchors" and a splash of silver. So with that, I started with the invitation which to my delight, was well received by Paige and her sweet mother Jenny. And from there I designed and assembled the coordinating decorations. Jenny and Paige recruited the help of Sam to style the party. Sam has a refined eye for detail, as you will also see in her "Olivia the Pig" party which I will share with you later.

The venue was perfect for the theme, the pool area was a serene and inviting backdrop.

Lovely cake by Custom Cakes by Traci

My personal favorite detail is how the ladies incorporated colorful candies in the theme, it gives it that extra something!

What a delectable spread of goodies and confections!

I also made activity place-mats for the kiddos....

I just love how it all came together. Great job Jenny and Sam!

And Happy "Belated" Birthday Paige...thank you for letting me be part of your very special day!

Ahhh....to be 16 again. ;)

Credits:
Photography and Styling - Puddle Jumpers Photography

Cake - Custom Cakes by Traci
Party Stationer - Party Plan-It Designs
Banner, lawn sign, door sign, water bottle wrappers, favor tags, candy bar wrappers, confetti, activity place-mats, invitations, stickers, tent cards and straw flags are available in our STORE. We welcome custom requests!

Freebie Friday - Mother's Day Straw Flags

2012-05-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Freebie Friday!

Mother's Day is just around the corner. Are you ready? Well, to help you along with your party or brunch planning, today I'm sharing our FREE Mother's Day Straw Flags. Great for straws, toothpicks, lollipop sticks or bamboo skewers! So many possibilities!

Click photo to download the pdf.

Enjoy! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend filled with love and laughter!

Michelle's Party Plan-It

$1000 Photographer's Dream Shopping Spree!

Enter Using Our Rafflecopter Form Good Luck!

Mother's Day Celebration - Scrapbook Luncheon

KitchenAid Shopping Spree!

KitchenAid Shopping Spree Worth $700 Open Worldwide, April 3 - 24, 2013

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Easter Fun!

The Blog's Birthday and St. Patrick's Day Celebration

Sailing Away with Mickey - Part 2

The Great Apple-licious Giveaway

Welcome to the Great Apple-licious Giveaway March 1 - 24, 2013

3 WINNERS!!! 3 AWESOME PRIZES!!!

Sailing Away with Mickey - Part 1

It's a Minnie Party!

House of Spooks Halloween Party

Freebie: Spooktacular Chevron Tags

A TRON Party for Two

He's Aged to Perfection

A Seinfeld Celebration

Candy Making for Kids Book Giveaway!

My Cup Runneth Over - A Tea Party On A Budget

It's a Pick Your Plum Giveaway!

Beep Beep...Choo Choo!

Let Freedom Ring!

Father's Day Movie Night Celebration

Lawn Sign Giveaway!

It's a Girl - Baby Shower

Mother's Day Celebration

Anchors Aweigh!

Freebie Friday - Mother's Day Straw Flags

Enter Using Our Rafflecopter Form
Good Luck!

KitchenAid Shopping Spree
Worth $700
Open Worldwide, April 3 - 24, 2013

Enter Using Our Rafflecopter Form
Good luck!

Welcome to the Great Apple-licious Giveaway
March 1 - 24, 2013