Merrymaking

'Tis the season for holiday parties with friends! This past weekend could be summed up a ‘Pinterest perfect’ as Rob and I kicked off the weekend with a Wine & Cheese party, and continued the fun at my friend Lindsey’s Ugly Sweater Party on Saturday.

“I haven’t met a cheese I did not like” was the theme of our wine and cheese soirée as 10 of us made our way through 5 pairings of cheese, chocolate and wine.  I opted to keep what wine my guests were drinking a secret until they had tried them all.  It was fun to see what everyone’s favorites were when they did not have a label to go off of.

And of course no party would be complete without lots of appetizers! Homemade pizza rolls, brie/apple/pecan crescent roll bites, fruit Santa’s, and prosciutto wrapped mozzarella were some of the favorites on the menu. However, nothing could compare with the Oreo truffles Ellie made!

Although I was proud of my spread, the real show stopper was Cards Against Humanity.  Brigette brought it along and we all played for at least 3 hours.  Imagine the game Apples to Apples, put an outrageously inappropriate spin on it and you've got Cards Against Humanity... hence the game’s tagline ‘a game for horrible people.’

The next night proved to be another spectacular party! Lindsey planned to impress with her glass ornament cocktail glasses, pinwheel tree, Christmas crunch, and caprese wreath appetizers, among others.

We ate, drank, took pictures, and played with pets in sweaters.  Derek was the obvious win for best dressed and Ryan came in second. Thanks for such a fun night, Lindsey! 

Gift Wrapping

I got a great head start on our Christmas shopping this year, and while the shopping part is fun, what I really look forward to is wrapping the gifts and placing them under the tree. I may be weird, but there is nothing like sitting on the living room floor, enjoying a glass of wine and watching a Lifetime movie while being surrounded by gifts for all of your loved ones, wrapping paper, bows, tape, and scissors.  This year looked a little different sharing this moment with my husband – a beer and college basketball - but I would not have changed it for the world. 

I had a vision for my wrapping this year and I love how they turned out.  I purchased plain craft paper and red, green, and ivory raffia.  I got creative tying the raffia around the boxes, and finished them off by stamping the recipient’s name on each package. This was very inexpensive and I don’t have to worry about storing leftover Christmas wrapping paper in the closet for the next 11 months!

Just Call Me Rodolphe Salis

Two words: wine and painting.  Sounds fun, right? It is a blast!  Four of my lady friends and I have discovered a new form of entertainment – and we are kind of hooked. 

  It all started when my friend Mel suggested trying something new, Brush and Barrel, for her birthday. So, on a Wednesday night we girls traveled from Iowa City, North Liberty, Marion and Cedar Falls to Coralville for a fun night of painting.

Rob and I had stumbled into a similar bar in Milwaukee last March, but were too late to participate in the class. This time, I was right in the action with my very own easel, paint (which I managed to get on myself within moments of taking my seat), set of brushes, and, of course, a glass of Moscato. The instructor led around 25 of us step by step through the painting of a tree.

What I learned:

1. Mel has an extremely steady hand
2. Lindsay is a freaky fast painter - started 20 minutes behind us and finished early!
3. Brigette and I are meant to be besties because we both opted for a white tree
4. My tree is far too thin to be realistic
5. Sandy can paint grass blades like it’s her job

 

We had so much fun that we brought our men along only a few weeks later to paint Le Chat Noir by Rodolphe Salis.

What I learned:

1. Mel still has an extremely steady hand
2. My husband is not good at following directions
3. Mark & Brian  are very good at following directions
4. Brigette paints her best work when standing
5. The wine glass is NOT the paint brush rinsing glass

 

Special thanks to Brush and Barrel for all the pictures!

Merry Mail

I am always looking for a new craft to make so when the holidays roll around it is an easy excuse for a trip to craft heaven (aka Hobby Lobby) for some supplies for my newest project.

I was inspired by a ‘Merry Mail’ holder I spotted on Pinterest and thought I would take a shot at it. This was super easy to make and will allow me to display holiday cards from family and friends without cluttering the refrigerator!

Step 1: Cut burlap, fabric or ribbon to about 4 inches wide and as long as you think you will need to display all of your anticipated merry mail.

Step 2: Secure wine corks down the center of your ribbon with a hot glue gun.

Step 3: Glue one end of your ribbon to the back of you header (I used a chalkboard). Fold and glue the opposite end of your ribbon under for a finished look.

Step 4: Write ‘Merry Mail’ on your header and hang on a closet door or wall.

Step 5: Display holiday cards with fun push pins. Enjoy! 

Craft Closet

Okay, I am WAY too excited about this, but I finally have a craft closet! No more sifting through disorganized boxes in the cold garage trying to find out if I do indeed have red paint, or leftover iron-on letters – now they are all in one place!

I am, admittedly, a clothes hoarder, but I am proud to report that I was able to condense my wardrobe into one closet, and open up half of the extra dresser in the guest bedroom for this new storage space. After a quick trip to Hobby Lobby, a few hours of screwing in a million tiny screws, and sorting through the garage, I now have an organized craft space. Who is up for a craft day?

 

 

A (Little) Christmas Tree Shopping

Soon after saying ‘I do’, my husband made it clear to me that we would have a real Christmas tree. Growing up with an easy, 3-part assembly tree stored in a box on the top shelf of the garage my entire life, I was a bit apprehensive about getting the real thing.  I mean, I can’t keep a plant alive to save my life!

This past Saturday after filling our bellies at a Miller Thanksgiving feast, and my first Black Friday experience (another story), we loaded up on twine, a tarp, a saw, bungee cords, and gloves at Menards and headed towards the tree farm just outside of Cedar Falls on the search for the perfect tree.

I found probably 10 good options in the first 10 minutes, but Rob insisted that the experience should take much longer and lead me through the maze of pine trees. Finally, we found one we both agreed was perfect.  I imagined the process of cutting down the tree to take some time, but was surprised when it literally took Rob about 15 seconds. 

 

 

We soon realized that our tree was……small…really small….and we’re not sure how we looked past this when we picked it.  It stands about 5 feet tall and embarrassingly fit in the back seat of our car for the ride home…so much for that Menards trip.

The rest of the afternoon consisted of carrying our little tree up the stairs with one arm, securing it in its stand, stringing lights, hanging ornaments, and finishing it off with a new Pottery Barn custom tree skirt – gotta love those wedding gift cards!

Turns out, Rob was right to search a little longer. We could not be happier with our little tree.

Shout out to my thoughtful mother-in-law for our first married Christmas ornament.  I can’t wait to see our collection grow over the years.