Pinwhirl Party Recipies

Soy Cheese Pinwhirls via norwichnuts 

We have a real treat for you today! We're linking up to some of our very favorite party recipes around the web. The really cool part? All of the recipes are for eye-catching and scrumptious pinwheels (or Pinwhirls, as we like to call them around here!)

Pinwheel appetizers make great party food. If you're looking for something to take and share or something to compliment your dinner party menu, why not try giving one of these tasty recipes a try?

California Pinwheel Sandwiches: Just five simple ingredients make these a cinch to whip up in your kithchen: ham, cheese, pickles, bread, and California dip.

Pizza Pinwheels: Put a new "spin" on a classic favorite with pizza pinwheels. This recipe serves 8 and can easy be doubled or tripled if you are making them for a large party or get-together.

Poppy Seed Pinwheels: This recipe comes from Food Network's Paula Deen. Chives, cream cheese, garlic, parsley, and poppy seeds give these a distinct flavor.

Bacon Cheddar Pinwheels: It's hard to resist the savory combination of bacon and cheddar. These pinwheel apps come straight from the Pillsbury kitchen.

Italian Calzone Pinwheels: These mini calzones are similar to a pizza calzone, but they are paired with a fun and tasty dipping sauce. They're sure to be a hit with kids and grown-ups alike.

Cranberry Cream Cheese Pinwheels: With cranberries in this recipe, these sweet and yummy pinwheels would be an excellent treat for the holidays. But they're so delicious you might not want to wait.

Buffalo Chicken Pinwheels: Every game night of sports party is better with Buffalo sauce! These delightfully scrumptious pinwheels are sure to be a hit with all the guys.

So what do you think? Will any of these recipes end up in your recipe box? Do you have a favorite pinwheel appetizer recipe to share with? Blog about it and leave your link in the comments below.

Use the Pinwheel Theme for Dessert too!

Top 10 Signs It's Fall

With the kids heading back to school and a little relief from the heat, it won't be long before the crisp chill of Fall is in the air. At Pinwhirls, we're ready for Fall. We've added a huge lineup of autumn themed papers for creating custom Pinwhirl items for that school Halloween party or for a family or church harvest gathering.

Before we unveil our Fall additions, though, we've got the top signs that Fall is just is just around the corner so you'll know when it finally arrives!

Top 10 Signs It's Fall

1. The Honeycrisp apples have arrived at your favorite grocery store or farmer's market.
2. The leaves are crunching beneath your feet.
3. Friday nights and Sunday afternoons are filled with football sounds.
4. The lightning bugs and cicadas are quiet.
5. Pumpkin Spice lattes are back!
6. The leaves suddenly seem like they've been set alight
7. You gather around at backyard bonfires to roast marshmallows and make smores.
8. It's time for late night hayrides through the country with a flannel blanket and a cup of steaming hot cocoa.
9. You've packed away your swimsuit and pulled out a cozy sweater or cardigan.
10. Trick-or-treaters are knocking at your door.

What are your favorite signs that fall has finally arrived?

Now for our new pinwheel papers to help you decorate for any autumn party! Here's a small sampling of some of our specialty papers. For the complete gallery, visit us on Flickr.

HallowBlackWeb

HallowChic2

HallowChic9

HallowOldDamask4

HallowOldDamask2

Don't miss out on last year's Monster Laboratory, if you haven't seen it already. You'll find a smorgasbord of party ideas including decorations, drinks, and food. The Cherry Brain Parts, Marshmallow Monster Teeth, Skull Cake, and Brain Juice Punch were real hits!

Have you been blogging about Autumn? Don't forget to share your links with us in the comments.

Best Birthday Printables for Children's Parties

If you're planning a birthday party or just planning to attend a birthday party, we think you'll love incorporating some of these free birthday themed printables at your next party. We rounded up our 7 favorite resources so that you can have fun picking from the best birthday party ideas.

Top 7 Birthday Printables


Creature Pencil Toppers from Disney Family Fun. These adorable pencil toppers feature 7 different colorful creatures. The printable PDF includes simple instructions.

Kids' Coloring Pages from Kaboose.com. Select from a number of different coloring pages, and give your party goers a fun and creative activity to do during the birthday party or to take home.

Printable Birthday Cards from DLTK's Growing Together. Need a card to give? Check out these fun birthday cards you can print at home. There are tons of different themes to choose from.

Printable Gift Tags and Wrapping Paper from Disney Family Fun. Having trouble finding the right wrapping paper? You can get colorful gift tags and wrapping paper designs and print them in an instant at home.

Printables by Amy on Livinglocurto.com. Some cute free vintage ice cream and Lego themed printables. If you don't find what you're looking for, you can also get customized designs from us at Pinwhirls.

Free Coloring Pages & Activity Pages from Printables4Kids. From Super Mario to Princess, you'll find several different activity printables to choose from on this page. Plus you'll also find birthday party theme ideas.

Stickers from Disney Family Fun. You'll find stickers to match your birthday party theme here. They also have a huge selection of holiday and everyday stickers that you can print out too!

Where are your favorite sites to find free birthday party printables?

Why I Love Your Blog (Or Not)

This post is part of the #SummerBlogSocial, hosted by Liz and Jessica.

Liz and Jessica ask, "When you visit a blog, what areas – besides the main post – do you check out? Do you visit the Nav Bar pages? Look at the sidebars? Check for a list of categories or tags? Talk about the elements of a website that are most important to you."

1. The About Page: After reading a post, the first thing I do is go to the about page or the profile link to learn more about the person writing. I like to learn a little bit about other bloggers' favorite things, hobbies, families, or whatever, because I usually find out that we have something in common. I always like to be able to put a name or blog title and a face together. It helps me keep track of everyone!
   


2. The Social Media Stuff: I like to connect on Facebook and Twitter, so I'll look to see if you have links to your social media pages. (Bonus if I can like your Facebook Page, add you on Google Friend Connect, or join your Networked Blogs profile through a widget already on your website!) I also look to see what other social media sites you use that I haven't heard about yet.
   


3. Tags and Categories: I like to browse the categories or tag clouds on your blog to see what kinds of things you write about. Logos, blog titles, and tag lines rarely tell the whole story! So I dig a little to find out what other topics you cover that interest me.
   


4. RSS Links: If it looks like your content is going to be interesting, I'll subscribe to your feed. It's impossible to visit every blog every day, so I think RSS feeds are a godsend! I really want you to make it easy to subscribe though. I might click away if I have to dig too much to find it.
   


5. Pictures: Words and pictures go together like peanut butter and jelly. I love to see a blog with interesting and colorful photos or illustrations. They help me find interesting content more quickly, and they really add something to the blog post. Doesn't matter if they're pictures you took with your cell phone, scanned snapshots, or professional images. They're all awesome.

What do you notice most when you visit a blog?