Jayes Studio Giveaway!!!

In showing you photos of my condo those of you with a good eye may have noticed all the darling toleware items throughout. I have trays galore (both the ottoman and catchall size), wastebaskets and tubs. I just love these hand painted pieces as they add color to my home and events. Did you all know tole dates back to 16th century Europe? Artists began hand painting on tea trays and the craft has carried through to modern day.

All my toleware has been purchased from Jayes Studio or the Jayes sale on One Kings Lane. I was therefor thrilled when the lovely Amanda of Jayes Studio contacted me about hosting a giveaway!

One lucky winner will get a wastebasket of their choice from Jayes Studio! I have two of these (one in cheetah and another in pink safari) and simply love them. I keep one in my bathroom and a second under my desk. They certainly add a bit of color and whimsy to my home!
To enter this giveaway visit Jayes Studio and pick you favorite wastebasket. Then leave a comment WITH your email AND your wastebasket of choice.
You can gain a second entry by "liking" Jayes Studio on Facebook. The Facebook page offers frequent giveaways as well as posts sale information so it is a must like for me.

NOTE: It is not required to like Jayes Studio on Facebook. Simple do this if you would like a second entry!

All comments must be left by 3pm CST on Friday, March 2nd, 2012.

Additionally, since today is the 29th of February Jayes Studio is hosting a VERY SPECIAL Leap Year Celebration sale!
If you spend $100 or more you can save FIFTY PERCENT on your order with code LEAP50! This sale is one day only so hop on over after picking out your wastebasket and stock up on toleware gifts!

Blog Sale

I am continuing to slowly work my way through my closets in an effort to live up to my 2012 resolutions. With that being said I have a handful of items up for grabs. All the clothing listed below INCLUDED shipping. Payments must be made through Paypal within 24 hours. Once you are sent an invoice you have committed to the item. If you would like to purchase an item email me at kappaprep@gmail.com with your desired item in the subject line. Cheers to shopping!

Lilly Pulitzer 2010 Stephanie Shift, Size 4- SOLD

This is a darling dress! Though vibrant it does not scream Lilly. I have worn this a handful of times and actually throughout the year. I paired it with tights in the Fall and wear is solo when warmer. This is a great addition to any color lover's closet.

Lilly Pulitzer Stephanie Floral Shift, Size 2- SOLD

Well, it comes as no surprise that I am shift dress fanatic! Another darling LP Stephanie up for grabs. This lovely can also be worn year round though I opted to use it in the Fall (paired with brown). The larger print makes this more unique as does the red palette. It is great for those of you that cheer on football teams whose color might be red :)

Lilly Pulitzer Sabine Shirtdress, Size 4- SOLD
This shirtdress flew off our racks when I worked at Lilly. The darker colors are more toned down, but the print is a classic. This style dress can be worn a million different ways...alone, with tights, leggings, flats, boots, heels or sandals...so many options, just one dress.

NWT Sequin Tahari Dress, Size XS- $125 (retails for $258) OBO

This dress is a real show stopper and perfect for soirees or even NYE! This fully sequined beauty is 5% stretch so it looks great a tad more fitted (of course it can also be worn loose) so I actually sized down. The sequins are all over and in perfect condition. Sleeve are 3/4 length. This dress is the perfect party dress!

Best Dressed on Oscar Night

Well, this is rather redundant seeing as just about every blog on the Internet is covering "Oscar Fashion" today, but I could not resist sharing my favorite dresses of the night with you all.

Emma Stone in Giambattista Valli

This was hands down my favorite dress of the night. I love the silhouette and of course the bow detail at the neck. I know many critics thought Emma played it safe with this lovely, but I just think it is stunning. Plus, she porves how amazing red can look on anyone I think. As soon as a copy comes out (snap to it ABS!!!) I plan to snatch it up!
Natalie Portman in Vintage Dior (circa 1954)
Another red beauty and vintage at that makes this Dior a winner. I think I liked Natalie's dress so much because, like Emma's, it is something I would actually wear. The polka dots, which look like Swiss dots, added some texture to an otherwise simple dress. The fact that this dress is over 50 years old and still stunningly stylish speaks volumes in and of itself.

Gwyneth Paltrow in Tom Ford

Oh Gwynnie, she never lets us down. You can pull of a fitted white dress with a cape better than anyone else. This look was perfect for the elegant Paltrow and while the cape was neat, I preferred the look without. Another winner in GP fashion book (next to her pink RL ensemble of course).

The Pink Giraffe Winner!

Happy Friday all! Thank you all for entering The Pink Giraffe Lilly Pulitzer Tray Giveaway. The Lilly Pulitzer lucite collection is perfect for the warmer weather (OK, or year round for us Lilly lovers) which is hopefully right around the corner!

The lucky lady that will get her very own tray is:

comment 203: Jordan Queen of LA! Please email me and I will get you in touch with Eliza of The Pink Giraffe.

Thank you to all who entered, I hope you have a lovely weekend!

Friday Five

Time sure flies when you are having fun! I feel like I have not posted a "Friday Five" in ages since I took a break last week so here goes:

1. Bath and Body Works Candles and Holders

I LOVE the pineapple candle holders at BBW right now. The "floral" candles collection is also my favorite collection of the year. Flower Shop is my all time favorite scent, but Spring and Pink Tulip closely follow.

2. Colored Denim

Bright colored denim is all the rage right now. I am searching high and low for a mint green pair like that seen above (it is from GapKids). I have come up empty handed at Forever 21 and H&M where I was told to go and regular Gap and Old Navy left me with nothing too. Do you have a suggestion?

3. Bunny Chair Covers

Ha, these are a hoot! I mean for $1 each they would be funny to have out on Easter morning or for a Spring soiree. Perfect for those of you with little ones too.

4. H&M Sweater

This looks JUST like the Lilly Pulitzer Bette Cardigan, but costs 1/6. For $25 this darling little thing is sure to be flying off the racks, in fact my size was already sold out!

5. Last Two Birthday Fun Facts

I totally forgot to post fact 26 and 27 on Monday so here you go!

26. One of my biggest pet peeves is un-ironed tablecloths. It just kills me (and your tablescape for that matter). I know it is super, super petty, but I as you know I like things crisp and fresh.

27. One of my very best friends, BFF N, moved to Jacksonville in 1st grade. She actually took my place at school and then both our families went to Sea Island at the same time every summer, but we REFUSED to speak to one another all those years though. It was not until we were 18 that we finally decided we could talk and the rest is history. Moral of the story: always be talkative and outgoing, you never know what you might be missing!

Printables How-to and Birthday Printables

A handful of people have asked about creating printables, like those I made for Valentine's day and my birthday. I use a combination of GIMP and Picnik (so sad they are closing in April) to make all of mine. GIMP is like a free Photoshop type program which you can download and is useful for more than making printables. It is a little bit overwhelming to me as there are so many functions and buttons, but I have figured it out just enough to make my basic printables.

As far as the patterns/backgrounds and tags go, I buy digital packs on etsy. They are very reasonably priced and make designing things SO easy and fun. Plus, these can be used time after time after time. A few of my favorite etsy digital paper sellers are LillyBimble, Great Graphics, Dennis Graphic Designs, Erin Bradley Designs, Perfect Printables, Sweet Tea Paperie and Gidget Designs.

I re size and scale my background and then I layer the various tags on that before adding any text. It is actually incredibly simple and you can make a new headers in no time!

Anyhow, enough with my poor printable instructions (I promise a how-to tutorial soon, but at least you have some starting points and sources for the time being), below I have included a handful of my birthday printables for those that asked. I just uploaded everything as a photo since so many are having issues with Scribd, but please email me if you would like a larger version of anything and I will send it on.

"live each day like it's yours birthday!"

I spiced my sign up by randomly making some letters sparkle. I think this sign could be used for more than just birthdays. In fact, I still have mine out and plan to put it on my desk.

The above can be used for food tags or place cards. Again, I outlined the yellow in gold glitter for some flare.

There is always a reason to "celebrate"!

Finally, for those that love sweets as much as I do:

"help yourself to something sweet..."

The Pink Giraffe Sponsor and Lilly Pulitzer GIVEAWAY!!!

My love for all things monogrammed goes back to my childhood. I had personalized tin lunch boxes (yes, the tin kind...oh, how times have changed), monogrammed bows and there was never any shortage of pillows with my initials. I love to make something my own by adding my monogram and really went to town when I worked as a monogrammer in college. It is so funny to me that there is really only one monogram shop that I know of in Dallas and they actually do not even sell things. They only monogram things you bring in and it is not even done on sight so the turn around can take weeks! With that being said I have turned to the web when it comes to monogrammed items and more specifically, The Pink Giraffe.

I am thrilled to announce that The Pink Giraffe is not only a fellow Kappa, but new blog sponsor as well. Eliza has built up an incredible virtual store full of items to which you can add your initials. You can literally spend hours and hours on her site and I admit I did when I was making a wish list of my very favorite items:

Monogrammed Rain Boots ($98)

What is one way to beat the gloom on a rainy day? By wearing monogram rain boots of course! These wellies are practical, but more importantly personalized. I think if I owned a pair of these I might have to move to Seattle ;)

Personalized Geometric Table Runners ($63)

These are the perfect way to not just personalize your table, but spice it up as well. They come in an array of colors so matching your china and glassware is no problem at all.

Monogrammed Throw Pillow ($79)

I think every single bed needs at least one monogram something and you can just never have too many pillows. This lovely has a handful of monogram options and of course the thread selection at The Pink Giraffe is quite vast.

Monogrammed Soap ($16)
Monogram soap is a wonderful hostess/housewarming gift and perfect for a bride-to-be too. These soaps are a real steal in my opinion...in fact you might just need more than one!!

Monogrammed Serving Tray ($38)

I LOVE my melamine serving tray I received for Christmas. I use it at home as well as on the go and it has become a staple in my home. These trays are perfect for outdoor entertaining which is hopefully just around the corner!

Monogrammed Headbands ($14)

I could literally wear my monogram headband every single day if it matched all my outfits. I am in dire need of additional versatile colors and am pleased that I have found so many preppy options at The Pink Giraffe! These make darling gifts or favors as well (hint, hint).

Monogrammed Bubble ($29)

Finding the perfect baby gift can be tough not to mention anything personalized usually tends to be expensive. I love, love, love this sweet bubble, not to mention it's incredible price tag!

Now, as if that eye candy was not a treat in and of itself, The Pink Giraffe has something else up their sleeve. We are hosting a giveaway for a small LILLY PULITZER LUCITE TRAY!!!

One lucky lady or gent will win their very own personalized tray!! These are SO cute and perfect for just about any room in your home. You can use it in your kitchen, on a bar (or bar cart), on a dresser, in a bathroom or outside. The possibilities are endless.
To enter this giveaway simply leave a comment below telling me which tray you would pick. Visit The Pink Giraffe for all the options. All comments must be left by 4pm EST on Friday, February 24th, 2012.
You can earn a second entry by "liking" The Pink Giraffe on Facebook. Please leave all entries in ONE comment.
Best of luck to all and hooray for all things monogrammed!

Birthday Cake

This year I decided to take a stab at making my own birthday cake. I had grand plans to make this Bakerella cake from scratch, but in the end my time was limited. In the end I decided to just make a yellow box cake with homemade, pink butter cream frosting. This ended up being perfect and SO delicious too!

I used two Betty Crocker yellow cake box mixes. However, rather than follow their baking directions (I mentioned this many moons ago in one of my very first blog posts) I substituted milk for water and melted butter for oil. I learned from a coworker and a chef friend that many box cake mixes are essentially the same as the ingredients you mix from scratch so by making these simple substitutions your cake tastes much more homemade.

I divided the cake batter into three nine inch pans (not four as you would often do for two box mixes). Once the cakes were done I removed them from the oven and let them cool for just five minutes in the pan. I then popped them out (and realized how Williams Sonoma Goldtouch pans are worth every.single.penny and no other pan compares) and quickly wrapped them in plastic wrap to lock in moisture per Bakerella's instructions. After several hours the cakes were cool and ready to be frosted. However, I again took Bakerella's advice and sprayed sugar water on the cake to ensure it would stay moist once frosted (it is now Tuesday and the cake is STILL moist as if I just baked it).

I frosted the first layer and then added some strawberries for added flavor. I think lemon curd would have been divine as well, but I love good berries. I added my second layer and realized that, thankfully, two layers was more than enough. This was a good thing considering the third cake did not survive...the powers of Goldtouch pans are many!

I have to say that baking my first birthday cake was far less intimidating than I originally anticipated nor did the process take all day as I expected. Using boxed mixes with homemade elements like frosting most definitely lightened my load.

I thought the cake was just delicious and pretty too. Of course, I guess pink frosting and pearls can make even the ugliest thing look perfect :)

My Birthday Soiree!

Yesterday, I hosted my birthday soiree. I think weekday birthday are so fun, but it can be difficult for people to get together with so many evening commitments. Lucky for me, it was SO easy to have something on Sunday afternoon and almost all my bffs were free to attend!

I made all the printables (with the exception of the "Happy Birthday" sign) that I used for my party. I added glitter for some extra flair and was SO thrilled with the result.
Of course no birthday soiree is complete without a few balloons. In case you cannot tell ;) my party colors were pink and gold.
While my condo is on the smaller side, the set up works SO well for entertaining. All the guests sat in the living area where I set up the sweets table for easy indulging purposes.
There were lots and lots of pink treats!

Pink and gold birthday crowns (secured from the one and only Dollar Tree) made things extra festive!
I have made cakeballs countless times, but wanted to add a bit of height to the sweet table so I did a batch of cakepops as well. I LOVE the way they turned out, but found that they are much harder to dip. Anyhow, they were worth the effort as they added that special touch to the table.
There was no shortage of sweet pink vanilla and chocolate cupcakes and bowls of candy.

I made raspberry ginger ale punch and also served champagne.

My plant stand doubled as a drink stand!

I put frozen raspberries in each champagne glass which made the champagne pink and a bit sweeter. It was the perfect touch in my opinion.
Of course there were some savory delights as well. Even though I was a bit behind on my cooking everything made it out of the oven for all the guests to enjoy.
I had several thin crusts pizzas and cut them. This is a perfect (and EASY) canape.

My favorite aspect of the buffet were the little salads I created. I found darling and somewhat elaborate, cupcake wraps at Michael's. I made mini "nest" salads and placed these on the cake stands. This added some height to the table.

The birthday cake had its' very own spot...

I made a yellow cake with pink butter cream frosting and a layer of strawberries.

Pretty in pink was most definitely the theme for the evening!

Rather than giving everyone a scoop of ice cream, I bought the mini Blue Belle's for guests to enjoy. I am a Texas transplant through and through!

Of course no soiree is complete without favors!
Each guest went home with an Audrey Hepburn mug (I made the graphic and uploaded it to VistaPrint), pink Dylan's candy bar, more cake balls and Oreo balls and a handful of Charmed Life goodies.

All in all it was the most PERFECT soiree and the best way to usher in my 27th year!!