October 16, 2018 · 5:14 pm
BOO! Two white cakes decorated simply. This was by far the easiest party cake I’ve ever made!
It’s almost time to celebrate Fred taking another turn around the sun (2 years flew by!), so I thought I’d share his adorable little birthday party from last year. We have a lot of friends with birthdays in October, so we decided to celebrate his a little late each year closer to Halloween to free up earlier weekends for other parties. I’m sure someday he’ll insist on having a non-Halloween themed party closer to the actual date of his birth, but until he has an opinion about it, we’re leaning way in! Who doesn’t love a costume party anyway?! Here’s the round-up from his last party and I’m sure I’ll be repeating a lot of it this year because it was so stinking cute! 
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Tagged as 1st birthday, animals, appetizers, birthday party, cheap, costume party, costumes, DIY, easy, family costumes, ghost cake, Halloween, halloween cake, home baker, ideas, kid friendly, lawn games, simple, toddler
February 6, 2018 · 12:47 pm
I used to love making little Valentines for my classmates and I distinctly remember refusing to hand out store-bought ones several times. My mom probably just didn’t want to spend money on all of the supplies I needed to make them (and who could blame her), but denying an art-loving child their opportunity to make something is a pointless battle! Since I became a parent, I have tried to teach George, and someday Fred as well, that handmade gifts, handwritten cards or even just proper Thank You notes are important and valued. What better way to show you care about someone than giving them something that took some thought or time? That being said, asking a toddler with little to no fine motor skills to make something for Valentine’s Day is obviously not realistic. Last year, I figured out something that we could make together for his classmates and he loved it! Continue reading →
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Tagged as activities, cheap, craft, DIY, easy, fast, fine motor skills, handmade, kid friendly, kid made, Valentine's Day, valentines
October 13, 2017 · 12:07 pm
I can’t count how many times people have suggested that Halloween must be my favorite holiday because I have a degree in costume design or that my kids are so lucky to have a parent that can make their costume dreams come true every year. Maybe it’s just me, but once something is your profession, even if you aren’t currently working, it’s not really something you seek to also do at home! Around this time of year, I’m always already neck-deep in making Christmas ornaments for my store so Halloween always sneaks up on me! Despite what people may assume, I am perfectly happy to just BUY a costume if it already looks great or is something I can alter or easily make into something better. Continue reading →
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Tagged as animal, costume, DIY, easy, Halloween, handmade, how to, lion costume, mane, semi handmade, toddler
October 5, 2017 · 1:41 pm
A train car at Travel Town Museum!
It wasn’t difficult to pick the theme or location for G’s 4th birthday party this year because he is SOOOO into trains right now! He has to be holding some sort of toy train, train photo, train sticker or train book at all times and at the dinner table, they are allowed to sit and “watch” us eat from a short distance. He even sleeps with them the way most children would sleep with a beloved stuffed animal. It’s amazing. Continue reading →
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Tagged as activities, cheap, cheap party decorations, DIY, easy, favors, Griffith Park, how to, kid's birthday party, simple, train cake, train party, trains, Traveltown party
January 24, 2017 · 10:00 am
It seems like only yesterday that I was posting about my first baby’s birth announcement, but it has been over three years now! I had a lot more time on my hands that year, so when I gave birth again this past October in the middle of getting ready for holiday sales and fairs, I figured there was no way I would be able to pull off an announcement for this second little guy. One day, while working in my studio between feedings, I grabbed a roll of chalkboard paper, really just some black kraft paper, that I had lying around and quickly sketched up his details. I set the camera without him in the photo and then waited until he was milk drunk to plop him down in the middle of the paper for a couple of shots. It really only took a few minutes of his time and I love the result!
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Tagged as baby, birth announcement, black kraft paper, chalkboard paper, DIY, easy, graphic design, ideas, lettering, quick, vintage
June 9, 2016 · 6:13 pm
To say that George loves all things kitchen related would be a ridiculous understatement. He doesn’t just like “playing” kitchen…he likes using the real stuff, carefully stirring at the stove, watching every single step and trying it out himself. He even sort of non-verbally lures new guests or friends to lift him onto the counter near the mixer so he can touch it for a while (since he knows Jeff and I won’t). Obsessed would be a better word to use.
Since George is still mostly non-verbal, we had to guess what theme would be best for his birthday and “cooking” popped into my head as a fun thing for all kids to do! Here’s how we pulled it off: Continue reading →
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Tagged as baking, boy, cooking, DIY, easy, handmade, ideas, kids, party, party favors, party planning, photography, planning, simple, theme, toddler, unisex
January 19, 2016 · 12:00 pm
There’s just something about homemade tomato soup in the winter (yes, even in LA) that warms me to my toes. I was never a fan of the canned stuff growing up, but real tomato soup is the perfect accompaniment to almost anything. When my friend served us this family recipe one night last year, I was blown away by how perfect it was and I’ve been making it two to three times a month since that dinner! Her recipe is a little creamy, a little tangy and a little spicy. It also freezes well which has been a lifesaver during busy months. I recommend pairing it with a grilled pimento cheese sandwich or sweet corn muffins! Continue reading →
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Tagged as cheap, creamy, dinner, easy, family, food, freezer friendly, homemade, photos, recipe, simple, soup, spicy, tomato soup, winter
December 23, 2015 · 12:42 pm
I can’t count how many times someone asked me where they can find a good ugly Christmas sweater this year. Um… Hello?! Get a hot glue gun and make one or better yet, make something just as tacky that’s actually original! Take for instance this crown I made for my Christmas party…equal parts delightful and hideous. I cut antler shapes out of heavy chipboard and coated them liberally in 24k gold glass glitter (and then prayed it didn’t blind me half way through the party). I hot glued them with some jingle bells, shiny balls, and plastic glitter pine needles (all from Michael’s) to sparkly gold elastic. When I put it on the first the time, there were gaps between the stuff where the elastic stretched…so I just hot glued more stuff to the other stuff to fill it in! Boom. Done. But for Pete’s sake, if you do go with a store-bought ugly sweater, don’t buy the sexy fitted one…it really defeats the point and kills the whole funny thing.
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Tagged as antlers, bells, Christmas, craft, crown, DIY, easy, funny, glitter, gold, handmade, headband, hot glue, party, pastel, reindeer, silver, simple, tacky
December 17, 2015 · 12:45 pm
I love my crock pot and I use it all the time, but when winter comes, I like slow cooking in the oven instead to warm up the house. Our friend made garlic confit last year for her New Year’s dinner and it’s taken me this long to finally ask her for the recipe for our Christmas party. I couldn’t believe how simple it was to make, not to mention the glorious, warm, sweet smell of roasting garlic that filled my house. Continue reading →
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Tagged as braised, cooking, dinner, easy, food, garlic, garlic confit, olive oil, party, photograph, recipe, slow, spread, winter
December 9, 2015 · 12:00 pm
I’ve never used my mom’s ceramic cookie stamps and I’ve been dying to for years. I decided to make sugar cookies for my son’s therapy school teachers and thought the stamps would be perfect for banging out a large quantity of simple but gorgeous cookies. At the last second, I thought it might be pretty to dry brush some gel food coloring over the larger designs and they turned out great! These only took about 2 hours total to make, so they are perfect for a last-minute gift or for making in large quantities. Continue reading →
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Tagged as cheap, Christmas, cookies, easy, food, gel food color, gift, large batch, painted cookies, photography, recipe, simple, stamps, sugar cookies
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