I haven’t quite celebrated St Patrick’s Day the same way since college – Lucky Charm cupcakes are a long way from my days of kegs and eggs and shamrock stickers on my cheeks. But one thing hasn’t changed, my penchant for playing with my food! Making these ‘lucky’ rainbow St Patrick’s Day cupcakes was a treat for my color-coordination obsessed tendencies, it felt like a nice therapy session sorting through the marshmallows and dropping them into like-colored piles.
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I’m long overdue in recapping the baby shower I helped throw for my darling cousin Jana a few weeks ago. She had a dream team of friends and relatives that jumped in to help throw her a shower, so I volunteered to tackle what I do best — decorations. When I was visiting her a few months back she showed me an amazing DIY mobile she was going to hang over the baby’s crib, a festive little thing full of pink and mint tassels and pom-poms — the perfect inspiration piece for the baby shower. 
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Every year at our annual New Year’s Eve celebration, I stock the bar with the usual suspects (champagne, wine, beer) and then add one signature drink to the mix that is festive and easily prepared in advance. This year my color scheme is revolving around mints and golds, so I thought a peachy colored drink would look great on the bar. After some brainstorming, I landed on a grapefruit juice based cocktail that I’m calling the ‘Grapefruit Sparkler.’ To make a batch for yourself start with a pitcher or carafe and mix together 3 cups of chilled grapefruit juice, 1 cup of white rum, and 1/4 cup of elderflower liquor — use this ratio to double or triple the recipe depending on how large your party is. To serve, pour the mixture 3/4 of the way full in a flute and top the remaining 1/4 of the glass with a bubbly prosecco and a sparkly drink stirrer — cheers!
Find similar champagne flutes here: Anthropologie | Waiting on Martha
As promised, I’m sharing a few of my favorite shots from our Holiday Crafts and Cocktails party that’s over on Style Me Pretty Living today. The holidays can be a crazy busy time of year, so we decided to throw a little party for our best girlfriends that would allow us to celebrate together while being productive and tackling some Christmas projects. We decorated cards, wrapped presents, and ate our fair share of cheese and crackers and cookies. It was great to take a break from the holiday madness and enjoy time with friends, all while marking items off our Christmas to-do-list! Head over to Style Me Pretty to see the full party.
All images by Bring To Light Photography, floral design by Little Flower Cottage
I’ve been gearing up for a little event I like to call the “Super Bowl of Red Carpets” — ladies and gents (but probably mostly ladies), the Oscars are upon us. I’ve been digging around to find a perfect recipe for my mini celebration (read: me sitting on the couch by myself with a cocktail and snacks, ready to tweet my heart out), and let me tell you: I’ve been consumed by how many delicious things you can do to spice up regular popcorn. I’ve landed on a perfect blend of savory and sweet: popcorn drizzled in sea salt and honey butter (inspired by this recipe!), served it up in festive theater-style boxes so I feel like I’m at the movies! Do you have any Oscars-viewing traditions? 
I know that this is a major faux-paus, but while everyone is excited about decorating their tree, my mind zooms straight past Christmas and to my favorite holiday: New Years Eve. While my annual New Year’s shindig may be a month away, I already have my wheels turning gathering inspiration for some fun little touches. Tinsel and drink toppers are on the DIY to-do-list, and I’m seriously eyeing those numbered rocks glasses — aren’t they cute?
Sources: countdown glassware, curly-q DIY, caspari party crackers, tinsel drink stirrer, party hats
