Author:Lori
Create

Second Tier

June 8
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There’s something about pedestals that make everything look better!  You could put just about ANYTHING on one and have it look like a million bucks…or at least a hundred anyway!  A few years ago it was hard to find them in stores at affordable prices…but today you can find pedestals and tiered servers just about anywhere!  They can be plentiful in an array of shops, offered in multiple styles & colors, and often times for very little green!  And if you feel inclined, you can also easily make them yourself!  Today I’d like to share how simple and inexpensive it is to create a tiered server for any occasion.  I use my pedestals and servers all the time and not just for entertaining…even afternoon snacks for a bunch of hungry kids can somehow look fit for a party just by piling them up on a second tier!

two-tier server–DIY style!

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Celebrate, Create

Sunday Sundaes

June 6
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Today I’m going to share a fun treat that I made some time back, not only to dish out to my family but to prepare my first article for our local community magazine Village Life & Home!  I’m so thrilled to share crafting, entertaining, and decorating ideas every now and again in this monthly publication…so if you’re local you’ll see some of my ideas from time to time!  Now that we’ve had some warm weather over the holiday, and the publication arrived in the mail over the weekend, I decided to finally share this simple idea for summer entertaining! Summertime is definitely a season to enjoy frozen treats!  I love serving up cold snacks on a hot, steamy day…and I also know some boys who love eating them!  Several weeks ago when we had the very first glimpse of the heat to come, I decided on a Sunday afternoon to break out the ice cream and create a sundae bar on the patio.  It’s really a very simple thing to do…you can make it as elaborate or minimal as you want.  All you really need is a carton of ice cream and some of your family’s favorite toppings…and I bet if you raid the pantry you’d find plenty of goodies to pile on top without even setting foot in the grocery store!  With plenty of long, summer days ahead and the Fourth of July coming at us soon, a sundae bar would be an easy and festive treat for any celebration!  Get ready to cool off and let your family and friends have some yummy fun creating the perfect…

custom made ice cream sundae!

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Savor

Revel in Goodness

June 2
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Today I’d like to share a recipe that was a favorite in my family when I was growing up…and is now favored by my own family!  To describe a Chocolate Revel Bar would be to compare a soft, oatmeal cookie that is submerged in chocolate fudge!  They don’t always look like the best dessert on a buffet…but once someone tries them and says “YUM!”–they’ll be gone shortly thereafter!  And I have a cute story to share about this tried-and-true dessert.  For years I’ve made a pan to package up for the bake sale at our Elementary School…and every year my husband goes and buys them all back!  It just started to be our family tradition.  I often thought I should just make a donation rather than bake all these bars only to pay to get them back…but it turned out that it was a surefire way my husband would be able to indulge on his favorite sweet that apparently I don’t make enough at home!  But the fact that he would go out of his way to get them back was really sweet and a testament to how mouth-watering good they really are!  So my plan is to make this delicious treat much more often!  And though it makes more than enough for just the four of us, I’ve decided I can freeze half so we always have some of the best bar-cookies ever within reach!  I’ll have the recipe at the end of the post…and you’ll be sure to want to print this one off.  Maybe you can start your own family tradition with this chocolaty treat!

can’t get enough of those revel bars!

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Savor

We All Scream for…Doughnuts!

June 1
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The Memorial Day weekend, which is also referred to as the unofficial start to summer, ACTUALLY felt like summer this year–which is a nice change from the rain we normally see!  However, we catapulted from damp and chilly springtime temps right into the dog days–and I don’t know about you but it was a shock to my system!  Plus, my family had plenty of tournament baseball games to attend, all scattered throughout the weekend.  I really don’t know how those boys do it, sometimes playing up to three games a day!  I could hardly sit through one without melting…and I was just sitting!  So with all this time in the hot sun, some chilly snacks were a must after a long day on the field!  I love making ice cream sandwiches…and my boys love eating them!  But like anything else, it’s also fun to come up with new interpretations of favorite treats…just to mix it up a bit.  So this weekend I tried something I’ve been thinking about making for some time…doughnut ice cream sandwiches!  What’s not to like with this combo?  See how simple this double-duty sandwich is to make!

a chilly treat for summertime heat!

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Savor

Sweet Memory…

May 27
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Happy Friday!  It’s the start of Memorial Day weekend and I hope everyone has plenty of time to enjoy this stretch of summertime weather and can also partake in some holiday celebrations!  Today I’d like to revisit an old treat that I shared last summer that’s so perfect for any patriotic party…and if you’ve got some festivities on your calendar you won’t want to miss this!  These blueberry-maple cupcakes from the archives of Food Network magazine are so wonderfully tasty and easy to make!  Every time I bake them guests swear that they came from a fancy cupcake shop!  They have a fusion of flavor that’s so freshly sweet that they’d make an ideal summertime treat for the holiday weekend or any other!  Check out the link to find plenty of Food Network cupcake recipes that are so simple and delicious you won’t believe you made them yourself!

make this Memorial Day a sweet one!

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Favorite Things

Shop Talk!

May 25
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Now that all my After Prom responsibilities have ended, I’m feeling like my life is getting back to normal!  I’ve now had a chance to attempt to catch up on laundry, house cleaning, yard work, and of course taking care of my family!  But I’ve also had some time to work on my Giggle creations and get back to Alice-Louise Press to help revamp the window and some displays!  I can’t tell you how much I LOVE doing this!  Since I was a visual merchandiser in my life before kids, it’s so much fun to once again have a chance to create fun vignettes with all the lovely things in the shop!  And bonus, I got to spend time with my friends!  I spent yesterday chatting and catching up on all the events that transpired over the past couple weeks, eating delicious PerrysBurger hamburgers, and spending time in Downtown Perrysburg…which actually makes me feel like I’m on vacation even though we were working!  It was a beautiful, summer-like day to get the shop ready for the Farmer’s Market happening on Thursday…another wonderful reason to head on down to Louisiana Ave.!  Have a look at the fun we had…

setting up shop!

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Celebrate

Party Like It’s 1920!

May 23
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This past school year I took on the task of heading the decorating committee for the After Prom party for our Junior & Senior kids.  It’s been a tradition for many years to create a safe environment to keep the celebration going after the Prom ends, and it’s a collaboration of many parents, school staff, and community members to pull this thing off!  I have to say that it has been a long process but one filled with so much fun and many opportunities to spend time with friends that I don’t often get to see anymore due to life with busy teenagers!  And lucky me, not only was the steering committee a bunch of wonderful girls…but my decorating group was also a handful of some of the best people I know!  These girls not only spent countless hours hashing and re-hashing ideas to transform the High School halls into something spectacular but were also game for some hard labor the week of set-up!  It DEFINITELY was a team effort…and I love these gals even more now that I’ve had a chance to work such long and sometimes hard hours with each and every one of them!  With the other committees being equally diligent to provide entertainment, games, prizes and food…not to mention all the fund raising, volunteer gathering, and financial management (jobs that don’t get enough of the glory)–I think we pulled it off!  So after the big dance the kids shed their party attire, donned some comfy clothes, and partied safely into the wee hours!  And you didn’t even have to attend the Prom to participate in the after party…all were welcome in this evening of festivity and celebration!  Have a peek at our…

Club Gatsby!

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Favorite Things

Favorite Things

May 20
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Anyone who knows me understands that I won’t turn down a chance to have a celebration!  That doesn’t mean I’m throwing big bashes all the time…or even little ones for that matter.  What it DOES mean however, is that I love to make even ordinary situations feel like something special…it just makes me happy and I hope it makes others happy too!  So whether it’s an after school treat, a simple dinner with family and friends, the arrival of a new season, or casual gatherings on the patio after a long day of sporting activities or yard work, I LOVE to make the most of it!  Clearly, the most important part of any gathering is the people involved…but it also doesn’t take much to add some festivity with simple supplies you can keep on hand!  With summer in mind, I’d like to share some favorites that I recently added to my party drawer…a small space where I keep extra paper plates, napkins, and other inexpensive goodies to grab when I have a notion!  Check out these favorite things that I can’t wait to use at my next everyday celebration!

bright & colorful summertime inspiration!

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Create

Smile-Maker!

May 18
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What’s better to brighten a dreary day than a yummy treat that reminds us that summer is REALLY coming…it is coming, right?  Since spring and summer temperatures are taking their sweet time getting here, I decided to pretend a bit!  Yesterday was rainy and cold, but a fun find at the store was just perfect to be served as an after school snack to remedy the weather!  My boys really enjoy ice cream on a hot, summer day…but they still won’t turn it down even if it’s chilly!  I found some cute waffle cone bowls while shopping at the grocery store…and a couple days later I found more in a miniature version!  Knowing they’d go over well in my house, I bought them both!  So yesterday might have been rainy and cold…but it felt like summertime in our kitchen!  We had some fun experimenting with some traditional ice cream toppings to embellish the edible bowls…not only did they look cute & were easy to make, but they tasted good too!  Check out the simple snack-time project that had us dreaming of summer!

ice cream toppings aren’t just for cream!

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Favorite Things

Ready for your Close-Up?

May 16
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The other day I was so completely flattered when my dear, and extremely talented friend asked me to help her with some photographs for her product catalog!  I’m really not a professional photographer…but I do enjoy taking pictures for the blog and was THRILLED that she asked!  Throughout the past year I’ve mentioned Alice-Louise Press many times.  Not only do I sell my Giggle creations along side other wonderful merchandise in the fabulous shop…but it’s there that my friend Amy designs the most beautiful and unique letterpress creations!  It is now wedding and graduation season–completely crazy busy for anyone in the letterpress and specialty printing business…but amazingly in her spare time, she whipped together a new line of merchandise that she’ll be promoting in New York this week!  I’ve shared a sneak peek of her designs in my “favorites” and on Instagram but now that she’s already off to NY, she gave me the “thumbs up” to share our photo shoot fun in greater detail!  The cat’s out of the bag now and I’m so excited to take part in revealing this fabulous line of lovely, funny, sweet, even sassy paper bags!  Whether you need to wrap a bottle of wine, fill some treat bags with party favors, or just pack the most adorable lunch sacks you’ve ever seen…Alice-Louise Press is the place to go!  AND these bags will soon be on the shelves of many retailers so everyone can get their hands on some!  I know you all will love them as much as I do…there’s really something for everyone!  Even though my part was so minuscule, I really can’t express how much fun it was to be involved in this process!  Let me share a glimpse of what’s in the new catalog…

photo shoot fun!

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