Wednesday, May 26, 2010

DIY Paper Pinwheels & Garlands

It's Wednesday, and we have a fab new DIY project for our Swanky Chicks! Check out these adorable paper pinwheels. They have been popping up in swanky parties all over the place. With this little tutorial we found on Style Me Pretty (one of our fav wedding blogs) you can create them for your next party!




















Step #1: Supplies.
Pick your paper and buttons. *Hint*: text weight paper works best. Choosing coordinating patterns and colors for the paper is fun, and choosing different sizes and shapes in the buttons is cute, too. Choose scissors or a paper cutter, and adhesive. Cut 2 strips of paper, equal length and width, depending on the size of the pinwheel you want (thicker strips = larger pinwheel).
pinwheels
Steps #2 and #3: Folding + Combining.
Evenly fold (like an accordion) the 2 strips of paper. Make sure the widths match! (Note: smaller folds make tighter pinwheels. Larger folds are more loose and show more of the pattern. We like to make several of each size – makes for an adorable display). Line up one end of the folded accordion with the end of the other accordion. Fit together and adhere securely. Permanent adhesive squares work nicely, and lie flat.
pinwheels
Step #4: Securing.
Pull the loose ends of the accordion strip around towards each other and adhere securely. The pinwheel will look like a cardstock “circle” (similar to the coffee sleeves they give you at Starbucks). You will need to pop the pinwheel out and push it down (work with it until it looks like a pinwheel should look), holding it in place with your fingers. In the photo, the paperweight is doing the job of holding the pinwheel in place.
pinwheels
Step #5: Finishing Touches.
Choose your button and secure *tightly* with glue dots (you may need to use several!). Note: we recommend weighing the pinwheels down for several hours once they are fully assembled). This will help to ensure that they are secure.
String several pinwheels together to create a pinwheel garland. Scrap book paper, old sheet music and vintage books are great resources for gorgeous paper for this project. 


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Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Desert Table Delight!

Who's ready for some delicious desert inspiration? A hot new trend in entertaining is the decadent desert table. This is an area that you can have fun with and really tie your whole theme together, not to mention indulge your sweet tooth. In our blog travels we came across the sweetest blog we just had to share. Save the Date for cupcakes is a daily dose of deliciousness. A new gorgeous desert table to inspire your eyes and your taste buds everyday! Now that is how I like to start off my day, lots of eye candy! Stop by Save the Date for Cupcakes and take a peak around your eyes and your tummy will thank you.
 We are loving this purple desert bar!
 


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Monday, May 24, 2010

Baby Elephant makes a Perfect Baby Shower Theme


This gorgeous baby shower inspiration was hosted by Style Me Gorgeous for her sons naming day celebration. While a naming day may not be a popular American tradition we think it is the perfect baby shower inspiration! The muted tones of blue, gray, and yellow are sweet and modern all at the same time. Check out the Style Me Gorgeous blog for more great inspiration and a shopping guide to recreate this swanky event. Before you do, feast your eyes on this beautiful party!
 Sarah made the adorable elephant cookies herself with a little help from an elephant cookie cutter!

 We just adore the paper lanterns. The Style Me Gorgeous blog has posted a link where you can get ones to match your party.

The cupcake toppers were purchased on etsy, but you can make your own with the Martha Stewart elephant craft punch.  Thank you Style Me Gorgeous for this wonderful real party inspiration!

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Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Vintage Typewriter = Lovely Guest Book

We adore our facebook friends and fans and love meeting new people on facebook. One of our new facebook finds is Thoughtfully Simple. Filled with tons of great inspiration and unique ideas including this one. We love their idea of using typewriters as an alternative to your traditional guest book. Thoughtfully Simple says Why not set out an old vintage typewriter, a reel of paper and let your guests type you a little note? At the end of the night, roll up the paper like a scroll and secure with a ribbon!

Why not indeed! We love this unique take on the traditional guest book. Have you seen any unique guest book ideas that you just loved? Leave a comment and inspire someone else!

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Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Couture Baby Shower

We have a gorgeous real baby shower to share with you today! Fuschia and Orange created the perfect vibrant color palette to celebrate baby to be. Couture Events by Lottie shared this posh shower with us that was hosted in her honor. It looks like some of her event planner style rubbed off on her baby shower hostesses because they did a fabulous job!

We can't resist a birdie themed baby shower and this one was all owls.

The ladies incorporated the colors and theme into the event through food and paper which always make a budget friendly impact on a space. We love the adorable pinwheel cupcake toppers!

Paper pom poms and pinwheels in bright pops of color created a perfect back drop for the food and desert tables. Learn how to make your own paper pom poms in our DIY Wednesday post here.

The ladies created a sweet alternative to the traditional guest book, a thumb print tree for family and friends to place their mark. It was all in the details with this one and we just love it! You can create a fabulous party like this one with a little creativity and inspiration.
Be sure and check out Couture Events by Lottie for tons of great party inspiration, Lottie is one Swanky Chick! Dallas brides Lottie is a local wedding planner with a great eye for style! 

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Monday, May 17, 2010

Favor Tag & Label Giveaway Winnner!!!

Happy Monday to all of our Swanky Chicks! We have chosen a winner for the favor tag and label giveaway, thank you to everyone who entered! Drum roll please ............. The winner is Terri for her comment on becoming a facebook fan! We are so glad to have you Terri!

If you're not Terri there will still be more chances to win. We will be hosting similar giveaways on other blogs in the coming weeks. If you aren't already become a facebook fan. We will be announcing giveaways on our fan page

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Friday, May 7, 2010

Free Personalized Favor Tags & Labels

Would you like to win $40 worth of personalized favor tags or labels to use at your next party?!!! Swanky Chicks is still accepting entries for our fabulous giveaway. We have launched a brand new online preview tool and want to see what you think. You can choose your size, style, color, add personalization and see an instant preview of your favor tags or labels before you buy!!! Check out our original post here for the details and leave a comment on the original post to enter. Don't leave a comment here we are only using comments from the original post for the drawing!
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