Cookie Exchange 2013

My cookie exchange was a success! We had such a great time!! Smachbox Printable's came to my rescue and truly helped put the day together!

Smashbox Printable's made my cookie exchange come to life!! She provided the invitations and decorations!! She creates the most adorable printables for any type of party you might be interested in! From a cookie exchange to a child's birthday party Smashbox Printable's does it all! From chocolate bar wrappers, to water bottle labels to whole party packs she is at your service! Check out some of the cute items she has:

Introducing Smashbox Printable's:

My real name is Cherry ("Chi" for short). I'm 25 years old and I work with my boyfriend, Joe (26 yrs old) so we've put up Splashbox Printables together. We both enjoy designing but to prevent confusion, only one of us communicates with our customers (that's me) :) Our main focus is events, so you'll notice that most of our merchandise are ready-to-print invites and birthday packages. Our tagline would be "Amazing DIY parties made easy for busy moms." because that's what we do - we help (mostly) moms in the "design area" when they throw parties for their kids. I'm a freelance graphic artist who enjoys applying varying styles in my designs. I place a lot of importance on quality and take some time on these works so that users benefit from them the most. I'll be uploading more soon. Hope you'll enjoy them! :)

Here is the design Smashbox Printable's provided for me!! LOVE them!

Everything was decorated from the mirrors to the table decor!

Each person got  a number to place their cookies in front of for the voting process!

I make a cookbook with all the yummy cookie recipes as a thank you for the ladies!

I had a tabel for the kiddies to decorate their sugar cookies and to make a gingerbread house!!

Everyone brought a yummy app!!

One of my favorites was this recipe from Paula Deen's website:

Brie En Croute

Total Time: 0 hours 38 minutes

Prep:

Cook:

0 hours 10 minutes

0 hours 28 minutes

Yield:

8 servings

Level:

Easy

Ingredients

• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, pre-packaged
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 (8-ounce) wheel Brie
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• Crackers, for serving

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Defrost puff pastry for approximately 15 to 20 minutes and unfold. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Saute the walnuts in the butter until golden brown, approximately 5 minutes. Add the cinnamon and stir until walnuts are coated well. Place the walnut mixture on top of the Brie and sprinkle the brown sugar over the mixture. Lay the puff pastry out on a flat surface. Place the brie in the center of the pastry. Gather up the edges of the pastry, pressing around the brie and gather at the top. Gently squeeze together the excess dough and tie together with a piece of kitchen twine. Brush the beaten egg over top and side of Brie. Place Brie on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes until pastry is golden brown. Serve with crackers. To give a special look, cut extra pastry into heart or flower shapes and bake until golden.

They were ALL YUMMY!!!

We had over 15 cookies!

Let the taste testing begin!!!

At the end of the night we each went around with a tray and collected the cookies that we wanted to take home! YUMMM!

Enjoy!

It is as Simple As 1-2-3!

Happy Fall!

Fall is one of the most magical times for me! I love the smell of apple pie baking..the crisp leaves under your feet and the way the air feels! Some of my bloggy friends have made me some amazing items for the fall season!! Thanksgiving is right around the corner and it is one of my favorite holidays!! Not only for the food...yum! But also for the fact that all my family will be together at one table!


Kim's Kustom Kreations made me this adorable thankful jar! Start a new tradition with your family this year, or carry on an old tradition in a new way!

Idea: Have each family member put a note in daily stating what they are thankful for, on Thanksgiving, open the jar and read the notes together.

Introducing Kim's Kustom Kreations:

I make a wide variety of home decor and gift items. All of the items can be personalized and customized to your liking! I carry wooden signs of all sizes, vinyl decals, blocks, primitive items, ceramic tiles, tumblers, wine glasses, the list goes on and on! Let us help you create something unique!
Check out my website for even more items:
www.facebook.com/kimskustomkreations1 

Since I am pregnant my Etsy friend over at Jelly Bean Apparel made this adorable shirt for me! 

Introducing Jelly Bean Apparel :

***New Holiday Discounts!**** 
Spend $50 and get $5 off! Coupon Code: spend50
Spend $75 and get $10 off! Coupon Code: spend75

We specialize in maternity themed t shirts & tops for pregnant moms and dads-to-be, big brothers, big sisters & grandparents. Long sleeve, short sleeve and tank top styles are available. We've got something for every belly! 

Thank you for visiting our shop!

I love fall decorations!! I love to decorate the house for Thanksgiving and think it really brings the season and holiday into the home! My new etsy friend over at Bountiful Crafts made me this adorable block sign for me!

Introducing Bountiful Crafts:

My name is Jamie Helm-Rowan and my job is to make your memories into something that you can proudly display. I have been crafting with wood now for 3 years and it has truly become my passion. I have come up with a unique way to display your memories or thoughts in a way that you will be able to enjoy and talk about for years to come! I make anything from customized last name blocks, photo blocks, everyday home decor blocks, all types of holiday blocks, custom signs and much much more. I am always open to trying new and different ideas, as to create the customized product you may have a vision for. Thank you for letting me have the opportunity to show you what I can create.

They can order via: 
Email - bountifulcrafts@hotmail.com 
Phone - 509-868-5474 
Facebook – Page name - Bountiful Crafts 
Etsy – Shop Name - Bountiful Crafts

Bitsy Creations made this super cute subway art for me...

Check her out:

BitsyCreations, which began in 2006, had humble beginnings. It was founded out of necessity when a working mom wanted to stay at home, but still needed a way to support her husband who was a full-time student. Over the past few years, BitsyCreations has become the graphic designer of choice for many small businesses and introduces new greeting card, invitation & announcement designs on a regular basis.

BitsyCreations offers not only quality graphic design and paper products, but prides itself on excellent customer service. Whether you're looking for a logo for your business or birth announcements for your new baby, BitsyCreations will make sure you are 100% satisfied with your product. Custom orders are always welcome.

One of my favorite things to eat is apple crumb pie! Check out my blog posting of this awesome and EASY recipe!!

It is as Simple as 1-2-3!

Baby Reveal Party

Boy or Girl what will it be?

I ended up having a gender reveal party for our little baby to be!! Here are some of the pictures and ideas!! I had tons of people send me items!! So if you get a chance stop by their shop and let them know Simple As 1-2-3 sent you!!


The invites were done by Little Rainy Lane! 

This is an example of what the invite looked like:

Check her out:

Follow @littlerainylane on instagram!

Thank you for visiting my shop! I am happy to make my designs fit your custom needs. 

Almost everything in the shop can be customized with your favorite colors, fonts or wording.

Many of my invites are designed to be 5 x 7, if you want a different size, not a problem!

You just let me know, and we will make it happen!

All the paper labels for the mugs, napkins etc. are from Busy Chickadees!

Check her out:

My name is Emily Andrews and my store, Busy Chickadees, sells custom party invitations and decorations for birthdays, baby showers, and gender reveal parties. I love creating fun, modern designs that won't break the bank for people's parties! 

I am a teacher turned stay-at-home mom to our 4 little girls. I have always loved being creative and so I am thrilled to have found a creative outlet that has become a full-time work from home job! 

Come check out my store here! www.busychickadees.etsy.com

All the food had "baby" names attached to them example: baby meatballs, baby vomit, baby poop, mini wieners, etc. 

Here are my baby meatballs! My sister gave me this recipe it is super easy and yummy!

What you will need:

Mini meatballs (2 boxes)

2 Jars of grape jelly

2 Jars of cocktail sauce 

Put everything in a crockpot (meatballs can be frozen)! Put on high for 3-4 hours! yummy!

These awesome water labels are from Labels R Us:

Check them out:

Our mission is to create fantastic quality labels for all occasions while providing incredible customer service. Our customers are blown away by the super fast replies they receive on Etsy messaging.

♥♥Customer Service That Will Surprise and Delight! ♥♥

How many companies will answer your questions, many times within minutes, and have proofs done always within 24 hours, and in many cases less than 30 minutes?

Superb Quality

Many of our customers ask questions like, "Do your labels require cutting?" - "Are your labels self-stick?" - "Is the ink going to run all over the place when I get these wet?"

These kinds of questions are a result of customers who have ordered poor quality labels in the past. LabelsRus has been in business since 1998 and we have thousands of satisfied repeat customers. All of our products are 100% money back guaranteed. If you're not happy, we're not happy. 

After the Sale

We're still here for you if you have questions on your order when you receive it. It's our goal to make the buying experience completely satisfying from start to finish for all of our customers. Got a question about how to apply your water bottle labels or what type of bottles to buy? No problem, just write us a quick convo and we'll be happy to help. LabelsRus Customer Service can be reached at 888-511-5223.

I ordered the cute straws off of Amazon! All labels (except water bottle labels) again done by Busy Chickadees!

I made two punches!

Blue Punch:

Blue Hawaiian Punch

7up

Pink Punch:

Raspberry Sherbet 

7up

I put sliced oranges and lemons in the containers to make them a little nicer!!

Simple…easy and cute!

My sister made "little devils" aka: deviled eggs and died the the eggs pink and blue!! Aren't they super cute?!?!?

I got this next cute idea from the one and only pinterest! Here is a website to help you: 

Old Wives Tales

These super cute napkins are from Gracious Bridal!

Check them out:

Gracious Bridal started in Fall 2006 by mother and daughter duo, Brenda Cascio and Audrey Craig. We love creating all the fabulous details for weddings and events. Our goal is to help brides make their wedding day fabulous! If you see something you love, but would like a different or custom design, just contact us and we will make your dream a reality!! We are here for YOU!

I ended up setting up a side table with a bunch of items on it...

One of them was this super cute chalkboard from Abu Decor!

Check them out:

Welcome to Abu Furniture & Home Decor, shop our beautiful collection of re-purposed "one of a kind" designs.

Pick up local in Morganton, NC at Tea Tree 
Local delivery available within 50 mile radius $50. 
Contact me with zip code for shipping quote before purchasing.

Thank you to Busy Chickadees for all the tags and party decor!!

These super cute buttons are from two different shops Vonderific and KE Design Studio

Check them out:

Vonderific:

I wish I knew what happened to the button that started all of this. At some point in my childhood, I don't even know or remember when, I got a pinback button. It was big, covered in a purple glitter coating and had my name printed in big white letters on top. I loved this button and kept it for years and years but at some point during the big transition to adult it became lost.

I still grabbed buttons all over as souvenirs. Some of my favorites came from a trip to Japan with my husband. That set off the renewed button obsession apparently because my husband was so tired of hearing me talk about wanting a button maker he bought me my first 2.25" machine, punch, supplies and a laser printer.

A few months later I set up shop. I bought a bunch of supplies to make things other than just buttons with the press, like magnets, mirrors and bottle openers. I also bought a second machine that makes 1" buttons.

The two trips to Japan we took had me fall in love with classic cherry & plum blossom and crane patterns and I started making my buttons and accessories with chiyogami paper, silk screened in Japan. I also started buying imported fabrics from asian quilting store nearby, starting with traditional prints and eventually using any colorful fabric around.

I also found great uses for my old book collections, making cute gifts with maps for the homesick or from comic books or old books for people looking for fun accessories.

That laser printer finally got a workout when I decided to make party favors. I'm always working on designs to fill this section of my shop out more.

KE Design Studio:

Welcome to ke design studio, your one stop shop for all things personalized and printable! Follow us on Facebook to see what we're up to and learn about new products before the even hit the internet! www.facebook.com/kedesignstudio2013

I got a book made up on Shutterfly with all my sonogram pictures and the professional pictures we had taken of me being pregnant. Everyone signed the book and wrote a note to the baby!

On the last page I put a siloughette of a baby.. I extended lines and asked everyone to use their finger print and place it on a string or around the page! They used blue or pink depending on what they thought I was having! They then wrote their name in the fingerprint!

We did a door prize...

I made several different desserts!!

These cute elephant punch outs were made by Pretty Paper Haven!

Check her out:

Crafting and Scrapbooking have always been something I loved to do. I began scrapbooking when I was a kid and eventually began making cards, party decorations, and favors for friends and family. I have a beautiful (and energetic) 2 year old daughter and the most supportive and loving husband! I love to create beautiful paper crafts for others to enjoy, thus the beginning of my Etsy Shop! If you don't see exactly what you are looking for, send me a message and I will be happy to collaborate with you to create your vision. 

Everything is handmade and packaged to ship by me. I take great pride in my creations and making my customers happy. If you are not completely satisfied please send me a message and I will work with you to make it right.

I had this super cute cake made to go with the theme!

Everyone had a great time!!

Time for the reveal!! 

 It's a…..

 GIRL!

We are so excited to meet you Addison Reagan!!

It is as Simple As 1-2-3!