Roundup: Holiday Entertaining Tips

Vintage Christmas Paper from Pinwhirls.com

If you're looking for tips and tricks to make your holiday entertaining a breeze, you're in luck. We've rounded up some of the best holiday entertaining tips the pros have to offer.


10 Holiday Entertaining Tips from Clinton Kelly

Clinton Kelly, host of the popular show "What Not to Wear" offers some great tips for planning your Christmas or New Year's celebration. He suggests that readers "think outside the dinner table" and plan for guests to be very hungry and thirsty! Also, he reminds us all that one of the biggest mistakes we can make is blocking the view (and the conversation!) with an oversized centerpiece.

Thanksgiving Appetizer Recipes 

Martha Stewart offers some absolutely delicious fall appetizers to share with your guest (or take with you) this Thanksgiving. From Winter Squash Dip to Baked Brie with Pecans, there are plenty of dishes on Martha's appetizer list that might just steal the turkey's thunder this year.

12 Tips for Holiday Entertaining Success

Sandra Lee offers advice for holiday decorating that you might not have thought of before. For example, she recommends renting fancy dinnerware rather than buying. We think that's a great idea for those who want to create a super special party or get-together but don't have the money (or storage) for all that extra dinnerware.

7 Tips for Easy Holiday Entertaining

Let's face it, the holiday parties are as much about the food as they are about spending time with the people you love. Eating Well has some great tips for preparing healthy cocktails and appetizers that won't send all of your guests reeling toward a food coma before the evening has even gotten started. Don't miss the related recipes section featuring Vegetable Satay and Pomegranate Cosmos.

6 Ways to Celebrate St. Patrick's Day as a Family

Because St. Patrick's Day is coming up next weekend, we wanted to give you some family friendly ideas for celebrating on March 17. Because let's face it: green beer and pub crawls just aren't for everyone.

1. Wear Green: This should go without saying. However, if green doesn't make regular appearances in your wardrobe, finding the right outfit might require some planning. Fun printed Tees are always a favorite. But if you don't feel like buying a shirt you can only wear once a year, there are plenty of options. Go for some fun (and cheap!) plastic shamrock sunglasses, an emerald cardigan, or go for the mismatch with some bold green socks.


2. Make Green Treats: Shamrock shakes are always a hit, but you can make most anything green with a few drops of food coloring. Try green cupcakes, frosting, cream cheese, milk, and even mashed potatoes!


3. Irish Cupcakes: Nigella's Guinness cake (can be make into cupcakes) makes a great dessert for St. Patrick's Day. Although it's made with a little bit of beer, the cake is moist, sweet, and very chocolatey. We highly recommend it.


4. Irish Decor: Drop some Lucky Charms on a green tablecloth or fill a large pot with gold foil covered chocolate coins and set the pot at the end of your own rainbow. You can make the rainbow by hanging streamers from a door frame in color order or drawing one with sidewalk chalk if you plan to party outdoors. You can also search all Pinwhirls papers tagged "green" in our Flickr gallery!


5. Make a Replica Blarney Stone: The Blarney Stone resides at Blarney Castle in Ireland, and according to old legends kissing the stone will give you the gift of eloquent speech. If you've got a large landscaping stone--perfect! If not, you can always create one out of papier-mâché, poster board or styrofoam.


6. Serve Corned Beef and Cabbage: Corned beef and cabbage is a favorite on St. Patrick's Day. Foodnetwork.com has a great recipe compilation for making this Irish dish inventive. There are even recipes for corned beef and cabbage rolls and pizza. Yum!

How do you plan to celebrate St. Patrick's Day?

Favorite Family Christmas Traditions

One of the best ways to make Christmas meaningful this year and every year is to establish thought family Christmas traditions. There are so many things we can do together as families to celebrate the warmth and love of the holiday season.


Tell Stories

It might be difficult to recreate the holidays exactly as you experienced them at your grandmother's house when you were a small child. However, you can borrow from the inspiration of Christmases past to start new holiday traditions with your own family. One of our favorite ways to do this is to pass on cherished stories of Christmases past. While you make holiday treats, decorate the tree, or open gifts, share your memories of loved ones and friends with your own children.


Make it a DIY Christmas

Get the children involved in the holiday festivities and work on a handmade project together. It can be something as simple as making a new family ornament for the Christmas tree (we have some DIY pinwhirls in festive holiday colors to adorn your tree) or baking and decorating cookies together. (By the way, don't miss our previous post, Favorite Holiday Cookie Recipes!)

Help a Needy Family

If you're able, you might want to consider adopting a family this Christmas. Many local charities are willing to pair you with a family that needs helping this holiday season. Your family can buy groceries and select and wrap gifts for each member of the family. It's a great way to spread holiday cheer and be reminded of how blessed you are to have each other as well as your material blessings.

Read Together

Every night before bed leading up to Christmas, read a treasured holiday story. From The Night Before Christmas to the nativity story, everyone gets a chance to hear their favorite Christmas classic read aloud. If you're children are old enough, they can read to the family too. That way everyone gets a chance to participate.

What are your favorite Christmas traditions? 

Which traditions have been in your family the longest?

Photo Credit: MeiTeng

Top Holiday Cookie Recipes

Source: thepastryaffair.com via sugarpie project

It's that time of year again! Time for holiday baking and sweet treats. Not only are Christmas cookies the stuff Christmas is made of, they are great gifts for teachers, neighbors, coworkers, and sitters.

If you are tired of the same old sugar cookie and chocolate chip cookie recipes, we think you might enjoy baking these delicious recipes we've compiled from one of our favorite sites - Pinterest!

Honey Cookies: These cookies from the Pastry Affair look delicious and are made with honey, brown sugar, and a blend of holiday spices. If you're looking for a soft  Christmas cookie that's elegant in its simplicity, we think you'll want to click over and copy down the recipe.

Hot Cocoa Cookies: Pip & Ebby did their take on a recipe from EveryDay with Rachael Ray magazine. And these hot cocoa cookies look like the perfect sweet treat for chocolate lovers—so delicious! Who doesn't love a little cocoa and marshmallow?

Source: charlotteobserver.com via Emily

Refrigerator Cookies: We all know the holidays are busy. Wouldn't it be nice to have something on hand you could bake up as you needed them? These recipes from the Charlotte Observer include:

• chocolate chip refrigerator cookies
• pinwheel refrigerator cookies (our favorite!)
• refrigerator shortbread cookies

Mix things up with nuts, candies, sprinkles, frosting and more to bake the perfect holidays cookies for your family or as gifts for neighbors, teachers, and friends.

Jingle Jingle Jingle

Jingle Jingle Jingle

You will hear these pinwheels ring!

...

Just in time for the holidays

we are introducing our newest pinwheels.

...

Our 2010 Holiday Pinwheels

feaure either shimmering snowflake centers

OR

jingle bells that actually ring.

...

They are too cute and make just the slightest ring.

They can be purchased at our Etsy shop.

After the holidays, these ringing pinwheels

will also be too cute for bride/groom send-offs!

...

Also perfect for those reception sites that don't

allow tapping of the glasses.

Just ring these cuties instead!

...

On another Holiday note

the Drehers are all decorated for Christmas.

Yep, you heard me correctly.

We decorated, with the help of some friends, last weekend.

Such a relief to have it done.

Hoping this will allow me some time to relax around

the holidays this year instead of spending so much time decorating.

...

I'm also looking forward to the upcoming Turkey Day.

Have already baked pumpkin bread.

Yum.

...

On that note, Gabers is getting up so I best be moving right along.

Hope everyone has a safe and yummy Thanksgiving!

A New Year is Unfolding ...

A New Year is Unfolding

...

like a blossom with petals curled tightly

...

concealing the beauty within.

...

The unfolding year of 2010 is bound to bring many changes to my personal and professional life and I cannot wait to see the beauty unveil.

...***...

In my personal life

...

Roger and I will be welcoming a little one (our first)

in early April of 2010.

...***...

In my professional life

...

the birth of little baby Dreher this Spring will allow me to stay home to raise him/her and also put more effort into my pinwhirls business. Something I've been wanting to do for over 2 years.

...

In the early part of this year I also plan to unveil quite a few exciting new products and product enhancements including

...

1. More DIY Pinwheel Kit Options

2. Pinwheels with 'Dressed Up' Handles

3. Another Place Card Flag Option

3. Traditional Wooden Pinwheels

4. Customizable Party Cones

5. More varieties and sizes of Party Hats
...

We invite you to 'Follow Us' at the link to the right so you to can keep updated as the petals unfold.

Easter Tablescape

So, my Easter tablescape is complete. Yay! To view photos, etc. click here. To be totally honest I had no idea what I was going to do with the wheatgrass as it's height peaked a bit before I was ready. I spent most of the weekend printing papers and assembling the pinwheels. Spent most of Sunday creating the tablescape and taking pictures of the pinwheels - both as part of the tablescape and also separately for use in selling the pinwheels. Then spent the past two evenings importing these items into Etsy. Now, I'm finally finding time to post the pictures.
***
Funny story about the tablescape, I created it while Roger was working outside in the yard. By the time he came back inside for a break, I'd taken all of the photos and disassembled the tablescape. I guess I should have had him come look, but I was so rushed it didn't even occur to me. Just knew that I wouldn't have time to deal with rotting wheat grass this week so I trashed it at the height of it's prettiness. Kind of sad, I know. Although, I just volunteered to host Easter this year so I really wish that wheat grass would last weeks instead of days. As I'm a gluten for punishment, it looks like I'll be growing another round of wheat grass for my actual Easter centerpieces. :)
***

Kiss Me, I'm Irish

Okay, so you don't have to kiss me, but I am Irish. ;-) In honor of the upcoming March holiday, I've created and posted a St. Pattie's Day themed tablescape at my site. Feel free to peek your head into my shop for more photos and explanations on how to achieve this St. Patrick's Day centerpiece look yourself. Or, for a full slide show, without my annoying comments, click here.
***
As always you can always visit all of my past tablescapes either here at my blog or here at my shop.
***
Enjoy! It's not too long until Corned Beef and Cabbage time. Yum.

Creations in Bloom

With the official start of spring only about a month away (yay!), I've been busy, busy, busy creating springish items for my shop.

*~*

Last weekend, a client of mine asked if I was able to make larger pinwheels. I had never attempted larger ones as I thought they would have difficulty spinning. I decided to give the larger pinwheels a try - this time on 12" handles instead of 8". It turns out I had been wrong all along - the pinwheels above actually spin easier than the pinwheels on 8" handles. Who knew? And, I'm still not sure why. I was so giddy with delight. (Just ask Roger I get so excited about all things pinwheels. Yep, I'm weird.) So, in addition to the custom order that I prepared for the client I also made a few more sets for my website. They measure around 15" tall and I now heart them more than any of my other sizes!

***

My other big project ...

I've just completed my spring line of pinwheel papers! So pretty. I'm so happy to be working with pastel colors again. Yippee. There are over 35 paper designs available here. Haven't had time to create pinwheels using these papers YET but I hope to do so soon. Who knows - I may also create another spring tablescape utilizing them.

***

Speaking of tablescapes. I plan on putting together a March themed table this weekend. Anyone have a guess on the theme?

Romantical Holiday Table

Our Valentine's Day table is all set for the most romantical day of the year. To view pictures of our 2009 Valentine's Day Tablescape, click here. For those who missed out on our 2008 heart themed tablescapes, click here. Similar pinwheels are available for purchase at our pinwhirls site. We've even launched some festively fabulous Valentine's Day themed papers and are able to totally customize pinwheels for your upcoming Valentine's Day parties.

***

Speaking of Valentine's get-togethers, we are procrastinating on our plans this year. It's not a very good year to be procrastinating since the big holiday falls on a Saturday night. Not sure I'm up for going to an overcrowded restaurant. The church is once again having a Spaghetti dinner for couples on Vtines day. We went last year - with my older sister and her hubby - (in addition to White Castles and the Opera) and I must tell you, I was pleasantly surprised, but being in a gym is not very romantic - even with candles. I've been thinking that maybe we should just fondue it at home. And maybe invite the same sister and her hubby over as well and have a couple's fondue night. We shall see.

***

Anyone else have any big plans or ideas for Vtines Day?

Candy Cane Dreams

Christmas has arrived a bit early at the Dreher household this year.

While I was dreaming candy cane dreams last evening, I could have sworn that I heard some bells ringing in the distance. When I awoke this morning, guess what I found in my living room! A fully decorated Christmas tree complete with my favorite thing - pinwheels! And not only are those little elves great at creating creative toys, they even got super creative and made pinwheels into ornaments! Talk about thinking outside the Christmas box. And my those elves must have been busy bees working until the wee hours of the morn' as I know how long it takes to assemble pinwheels and Santa's right hand boys and girls assembled enough to fully cover an entire Christmas tree. And my are they good - they even coordinated the pinwheels with my living room colors perfectly. Santa must have been watching me closely this year and I'm supposing from the loot that he also feels I've been a good little girl this year!

They also inserted several of these gigantic candy canes into the whimsically decorated tree. These things probably weigh more than the elves themselves. I better start licking now or I'll never have this deliciousness finished before Santa slides down our chimney once again.

I've been thinking, that since I was given such a bounty of pinwheel ornaments that I should share them. Wouldn't want to be spoiled and keep these unique Christmas ornaments just to myself.

So, for a limited time, if you'd like to also fill your tree with candy cane dreams this holiday season, just visit my site and use the voucher 'elf' for 10% off your entire order. Now through November 30th only. This discount applies at my Crossroads Cottage site only. Discount not available at my Etsy shop.

Besides these pinwheels, we also have an abundance of other holiday decor and gift items on sale - most at wholesale prices!

To view more photos of the goodies the elves left last evening, please see below! And for more information on these candy cane themed ornaments, just click here.

Jackie O. Lantern

Here she is on Halloween night. (I actually put her out on Sat. and Sunday night as well as I just love the glow of Pumpkins!) I'm actually sad to see this Holiday go, as I do love pumpkins, and leaves, and the crisp (but not too cold air).

Above is the custom project I was working on last week. I designed custom paper and pinwheels for WishWrap, which is an online site which sells a gift for every wish. Their logo/icon is a dandelion so the pinwheels were made to resemble a dandelion.

I designed some of our mini pinwheels along with some larger pinwheels. Each also had a wish printed in a quadrant of the pinwheel. I thought they turned out pretty fabulous and hopefully they will love them too. :)

I also worked on another client for a birthday party order. This mom was so fun and clever to work with. Her daughter's third birthday is going to be bubble and pinwheel themed. So, we integrated dots into her pinwheel designs. She wanted everything from the party invites to party hats to be pinwheel themed so I had a blast designing her items.

Above is one of my pinwheel party hat kits, that was also sent off to her. The pinwheel toppers come fully assembled and the party hats are all cut-out and ready to be assembled when received. The kit also comes with elastic (for the chin straps) and of course complete assembly instructions. (The hats utilize a notch system so they are super easy to assemble - no messy gluing or stapling, etc.) We offer these pinwheel party hat in both kit format or pre-assembled, for a higher fee. We also offer custom party hat kits, without the pinwheel toppers.

And above is her custom pinwheel party invites. She was going to hand deliver the invites so I was able to clip on mini clothespin pinwheels - too cute. (For those who are mailing, I can also attach flattened pinwheels to the invite, although they would not spin, the general theme would still be achieved.)

I'm looking forward to seeing photos of the above mentioned birthday party. (It's going to be an outdoor garden party so I'm hoping they get great weather as after all this work, the Mom certainly deserves a great day for her daughter's party!).

Jack-O-Lanterns Burning Bright

May Jack-o-lanterns burning bright

Of soft and golden hue

Pierce through the future’s veil and show

What fate now holds for you.

~Author Unknown

Although our Jack-o-lantern isn't burning bright, just yet (we haven't even gotten around to carving her), she has been sitting pretty on our dining room table for the past couple of weeks.

Above is our Fall (October into November) tablescape featuring fabulous fall colors and the leaves and pumpkins of the season.

Love this ribbon I found a few years ago with its lime green, orange, and yellows.

And what a simple centerpiece, a pumpkin tied with ribbon set prettily in a basket filled with moss and leaves. I had debated either glittering pumpkins (which is the new big thing this season) or poking pumpkins with tons of little daises, but to be totally honest I just ran out of time. Maybe next season. :)

I love the sheer leaves pictured above. I also purchased these a few years ago (from Hobby Lobby) and have found that I can use them to decorate both formal and fun fall tablescapes.

Full view of the tablescape. It only took me about 10 minutes to throw together and believe it or not I didn't have to purchase anything for it. (That's my kind of decorating!) It was all stuff we already had lying around the house or stored, etc.

***

And in case anyone is wondering, no we never actually sit at our table. And although I would love to entertain more and show off the table creations to those besides my blog readers, I actually never have the time. Oh well - maybe some day. :)