Piping Hot Etsy Love

It's been awhile since I've showered some Etsy love on some talented people. I have a TON of Etsy loves that are fashion and accessory-related, but in the interest of Stem, I will spare you those (unless you ask for them) and give some love to an Etsy shop full of fun things for your next soiree.

PipingHotPapers has some of the most adorable goodies that you could use as double duty for favors, placecards and decor. Love. This. Store.



Matchbook Notepads would make adorable favors. Write guests' names on the first sheet, open them up and you have a placecard, too.

The Post-it Note Holder is just too good. Post-it Notes are genius but let's face it, not cute. This is both!

Love.Love.Loving the keychain/mirror.

And little Owl Mirror. Just stop. You are killing me with your adorable self.

Lucky Number Seven

My party girls Chris of Celebrations at Home and Donna of Party Wishes both tagged me to find out 7 Things I Love. So, in no particular order...




Wanna hear it? Here it goes:

1. Mi familia - Okay, so this one is in order. I heart my family, both original and married family. (Shout out to my sister for being the funniest person evah.)
2. Match.com - Say what? Yep. I met my husband on Match.com. True story. I was moving to a new city and thought it would be a way to meet people to get out and socialize. Little did I know I'd meet Mr. Right. Hooray interwebs!
3. Fashion in general, Vintage Clothes in particular - Yep. That is me playing dress up in a sampling of my vintage clothes. My friend, Shannan aka Chicfreak, and I had a brief addiction to My Style Diary a couple of years ago. Here is the photographic proof and no, we are not teenagers.
   
4. Mexican Food - (Chris at Celebrations at Home - HOLLA) How you can get so many tasty treats out of about 7 basic ingredients is one of life's magical mysteries.
5. My friends - I know what you are thinking. "No, Amy, I have the best friends." That's cute that you think that, but I'm sorry, I have the best friends. They are an assortment of every cross-section there is out there and I love them all. Okay, maybe I love the funny ones a little more. I also love that they are all trying to figure out who the funny ones are now. Mwaaaahhh haaaa haaaa.
6. Humor/Sarcasm/Laughing/The Daily Show Team/Stand-up Comedy, etc. - If you are funny then come stand by me. Unless you are also really cute and skinny and have cute clothes. Then stand on the other side of the room. Thanks.
7. Each and every one of you that I have "met" online or have been so kind in your comments and emails. I know "Awwwwwwwwww"...it's true though. Big sloppy kisses.
   

I left out planning events/parties because, uh, duhhhhhhhhh.

I think I have to tag some people now. Feel free to play along or ignore me like you would a Facebook request from someone you met once in your life.

Love,
Amy

You're It:

Head of The Table - because I want people to go to your awesome site and rent things
Mix Mingle Glow - because it makes me giggle to think of what you are saying to yourself right now
Chicfreak Cubed - you my homegirl and your babies are cute and need to be seen
My Hair Is Better Than Yours - there is no better blog for the "Two H's" - hair and haiku

Pillow Fight!

Remember a couple weeks back when I professed my love for Party Wishes? Well, now she's just toying with my emotions. The temptress.

I don't just want to throw this party, I want to GO to this party. Please visit Donna's Party Wishes blog to see how she took some inspiration from around the internet and matched it with her own amazing talents to create this adorable Slumber Party Theme package for her little clients.

Very Cherry

Why not throw your little Cutie Pie a birthday party befitting her status?

If a Cutie Pie plate for each guest isn't in your budget, then just get one special plate for the birthday girl. Mix in some of these Cutie Pie buttons tied onto ribbon as napkin rings on red napkins you're all set.

Red and White Gingham and cherry printed fabrics can be found at most craft/fabric stores so have fun with that for your tables. The retro tote bags would be adorable hanging on the back of each chair and make great favors.

You don't actually think I would let this go by without Chinese lanterns, do you? Come on...they are perfect. Fasten two red lanterns together and then create stems with green pipe cleaners and leaves out of green felt. Make a number of pairs of these and hang and/or set all around your party space.

What does one do a Cutie Pie Very Cherry Party? Well, let's make this up together! You could...

• Play Hi Ho Cherry-O
• Play "Pin The Cherries On The Tree"
• Play "Musical Cherries" (Yes, I just said that) with the double cherry rug seen here and if you land on the cherries when the song ends, you win a prize.
  
• Guests could gather hidden cherries in baskets. Just hide small red balls all over and do this variation of an Easter egg hunt. Stock up on plain, non-Eastery looking baskets at the after holiday sales or hit up my favorite, The Dollar Tree.
• Dine on all things either cherry-flavored or just cherry red to match.
  

I know this has you all thinking. So you tell me now.... Leave me some comments and tell me what would you add to make sure this party wasn't the pits.

What? I'm going for a record of using really bad cherry puns. Don't challenge me. You won't win.

Very Cherry Invitations (announcements you can customize to become invites!): Tiny Prints
Cherry Pie Favor Boxes: SweetDee484's Etsy Store
Jane Jenni Cutie Pie Plates: Heliotrope
Cherry Pie Tablecloth and Napkins: Old Vintage Cottage
Double Cherry Boxed Favors (with treats inside!): Shop Toast
Cherry Rug: Retro Planet
Cherry Tote Bag: Retro Planet
Lanterns: Luna Bazaar

Fun With Jane

I can think of about a million parties that you can throw with the whimsical goodies from Jane Jenni, can't you? How can you possibly pick just one though? Each melamine plate alone is a party unto itself.

I foresee a few posts dedicated to various party themes inspired by these little gems. Stay tuned for them!

Until tomorrow, just feast your eyes on the endless possibilities. Jane Jenni items can be purchased at several different places, but two I happen to love are Pop Deluxe and Heliotrope. Two fun finds in their own right!

Hmmm, which will I do first. I think the "Cutie Pie" is calling me. Which would you pick?

Make Them Green With Envy

Kermit thought he made green look good? I say 60% off makes green look even better.

The brilliance that is Whimsy Press is offering 60% off of everything in stock right now. Everything. That includes their "Mixed Greens" collection of Eco-Friendlier totes, notecards, onesies, gift wrap...you name it. Being green never looked so good.

So go shop and Whimsy Press and take a tip from me. If you aren't using reusable totes or bags for your shopping, I highly suggest you do. It will change your life. I'm not kidding. Trust me. Would I lie about tote bags?

Oh Yes She Did. (Plus Giveaway!)

In yet another, "now how did I find this person again" twist of webby fate I have to share the uber talented Mariah DeMarco.



I was originally going to post about the adorable necklaces she will have for sale soon on her coming Etsy Store. Then I thought the flashcards she is making would be the most adorable inspiration for a children's party. THEN I thought you need to see her illustrations and stationery work. THEN I decided...forget it, here's a peek at all of it. Mariah is seriously so talented that it would be a shame to not show you a varitable feast for the eyeballs of her work.

There is so much more to see, too. You can join her on Facebook, Flickr (wait until you see her studio) her insanely adorable blog, her soon to be revamped website (picture above of how it will look...I know...swoon) and soon she'll have that Etsy store so we can all shop.

Oh, and she is amazingly sweet so we can't even secretly hate her for being so talented.

Now, about that Giveaway...stop by Mariah's blog post here and get in line to win the necklace of your choice before they are on sale to the public. Tell you stopped by here when you enter!

Keep up all the inspiring work, Mariah. I know we'll be seeing a lot of you in the future!

You Saw This, Right?

Let's just take a short trip around a few blogs today.

Surely you saw the super colorful and fun new party by Michelle over on HWTM, right? Loves it. Every detail was thought out and executed to perfection. Great job, Michelle!



My girl, Robyn, at Mix Mingle Glow turned St. Patty's Day OUT with not one, not two, but three fantastic tablescapes.



What about the gorgeous new FREE downloads from Tangarang?



What about the deliciously fun "food on a stick" over at Celebrations at Home. Feed me.



Favor Affair Giveaway and short survey on Design by Kendall, anyone?



And, if you haven't seen this AMAZING birthday party over on LotusHaus then go. Get out of here. Go look.

Inspiration: The Sweetest Thing

Stem: The Sweetest Thing



Cristin: Sweet as Sugar

Cristin sent in this "Sweet as Sugar" party she did for her daughter's 1st birthday. Just look at all the sweet touches.

She made the glitteriffic invitations using Yours Truly circle invitations. Once at the party, everyone received a little jar with one serving of hot chocolate - a perfect "sweet treat" for a winter birthday party. Each guest table had a grouping of paper lanterns/candies hanging above it and the pool table was turned into the Candy Shoppe! The Candy Shoppe had a lot of treats and one special treat that I just adore - the centerpiece. The centerpiece was created using a foam topiary to look like a "Bellie Pop" (Bellie = daughter's nickname...real name - Annnabelle). Cute!

Cristin also had two fun things planned for the kids. One was to decorate craft tote bags with foam stickers and then use them to pack up their candy. For the older kids (3+), she had plain coffee mugs that they could decorate with the appropriate markers (came in the kit) - and then take home to use with their hot chocolate.

Thanks for the pictures, Cristin! Let me know how that golf party turns out!

Operation Shower Loves Tiny Prints

As promised, I'll be featuring some of the wonderful donors and sponsors for our Operation Shower Mother's Day Showers in the next couple of months for everyone to see the events come together before our eyes. Should be lots of fun!

As every good party planner knows, it all starts with the invitation. Our goal is to make this as special as we can for these moms while trying to be as Eco-Conscious as we can. We really feel it's important that they have an actual keepsake invitation from us so we called on Tiny Prints - one of the undisputed leaders in fabulous invitations. Lucky for us, Tiny Prints has agreed to donate invitations to Operation Shower!

In case you didn't know, Tiny Prints has an adorable selection of invitations on recycled cardstock.

In keeping with our gender neutral and "earthy" color pallette, we have chosen this invitation for our guests of honor! The fact that we throw "showers in a box" and this is full of boxes was all the more reason to make this little cutie our choice.

Thanks again to Tiny Prints and stayed tuned for more shower donors and details to come!

(BONUS: Tiny Prints is offering 15% off orders over $75 until 3/16 with code TPISFIVE.)

I Love Party Wishes

Do you ever find something and wonder "how did I not know about this before?" Me, too. Case in point, Party Wishes. Now I know the interwebs is big old place but I can't believe it took me until last month to find one of my sisters in soiree.

Donna at Party Wishes has the most adorable children's party packages available for those of you living in California (see her site for areas) and some incredible inspiration for those of us that don't. Just look at this spa party for starters. Can you imagine how fancy these little guests feel getting their very own spa experience?



Not that her clients outdo her own offspring. Far from it. You must check out her blog and look at the Chinese Tea Party that Donna threw for her own daughter. She had me at the hand-delivered kimono invitations. COME ON. I die.



Be sure and visit Donna's website and her blog for many, many more inspiring ideas. You'll love what you see!

Inspiration: Thing One and Thing Two Twins Baby Shower

Today's Stem Inspiration party is from Madeline over at Newly Nesting. She was inspired by my Thing One and Thing Two Shower and boy did she take the ball and run with it!



How cute is this Dr. Suess Party? You must visit her blog for more pictures, as well as recipes and all the details. Her oversized Dr. Suess books are too great for words. You need to go see them for yourselves!

Thanks for sending in the pictures, Madeline and for hanging in there for me to get more reader parties posted.

More to come for those of you that have sent some in and those of you looking for more inspiration!

So Tell Me More About Operation Shower

I thought you'd never ask. Operation Shower is my latest love affair and honestly one of the most rewarding things I've ever had the honor of doing. I am so excited and proud to be on the Board as the Chief Event Planner and want to encourage everyone to check us out!



Operation Shower is a non-profit organization that recognizes and honors the sacrifices military families make by producing and coordinating baby showers for pregnant and expecting military personnel and their families. If you are in the St. Louis area we would LOVE to have you attend our Spring Fundraiser April Flowers Bring May Showers at Mandarin in the Central West End. We have a cool venue, great food and drink and some fun raffle prizes. A great night out for a great cause. Please join us! Click on the photo below to be directed to the site.



I also cannot wait for the two unit showers we are doing in May (hence the bring May showers...) at Ft. Hood in Texas and Scott AFB in Illinois. Our theme is "Boxes in Bloom" and our goal is to make these events as Eco-Conscious as we can! We have already secured some fantastic vendors and sponsors but can always use more.

If you are a vendor reading this that would like to contribute, please contact me. We look forward to helping promote you as you help us.

Lastly, and thanks for reading this btw, if you are a fellow blogger that can spread the love and post about Operation Shower's fundraiser and unit showers, I would be forever grateful. I know our mission can spread like crazy with your help! Let me know if you post, so I can thank you publicly and link back to you!

Coming Soon....

Just a quick note to let you know that I intend to hunker down this weekend and get some fun posts together for all of you that are so kind to stop by here every day.

In between running Stem Parties, my other job (yes, I have another job...hence the sporadic posting at times!), gearing up for a fantastic Spring full of events as a Board Member for Operation Shower, training for a 1/2 marathon in April in honor of my dear friend, Marie, AND attempting to stay sane and spend some time with my husband, my little blog seems to suffer at times.

Next week will bring more parties that readers have submitted as well as some of fun details of our Operation Shower events that are in the works!

So, thanks for your patience and your loyalty. You all are the best!

While doing research for our upcoming Operation Shower Eco Chic Showers for expectant military moms (more on this to come soon!) I found GrowinStyle.

GrowinStyle carries a variety of Eco Friendly diaper cakes as well as Organic Baby Gift Boxes, BPA free teethers, organic plush toys and more.

I am so excited to feature one of their diaper cakes that they so kindly donated for one of our Mother's Day military base showers and thank them for their kindness and generosity.

Many more posts full of design elements and products from our fantastic sponsors and donors to come during the planning of these exciting events. Please visit our website to see what we're all about at Operation Shower.

StudioWed is in the House!

In case you haven't heard (or read online) StudioWed is now open!

If you are in the Atlanta area consider this your Mothership. Can you hear it? It's calling you home.

StudioWed Atlanta located in trendy Midtown West (1000 Marietta St, Suite 124, Atlanta, GA), is an exclusive collection of wedding vendors representing the finest wedding professionals that service the Atlanta area. This is a hip and revolutionary concept in local and destination weddings in Atlanta: a stylish and sophisticated planning studio where the area's best vendors come to you. Meet with a photographer over coffee in the morning and enjoy a glass of wine as you chat with a florist in the afternoon. Best of all, there's no cost to you to use StudioWed's services, so you can feel free to spend an entire day -- or as many as you need -- planning your big day.

“It is my goal with the studio to streamline the wedding planning process and be a resource for engaged couples. I find that brides are quickly overwhelmed with the number of vendors in the marketplace and the time it takes to drive all over the city to meet with these vendors. StudioWed offers couples a haven to find quality vendors and resources for planning their wedding.” ~Michelle Gainey of Lemiga Events and StudioWed.

Congratulations to Michelle and all those have worked so hard to make this happen!