AUPA Tuesday Tip - 06/26/12

Improve written communication by repeating what you write, verbally.

AUPA Tip Tuesday - 06/19/12

Set up folders ahead of time, physical or electronic

The Five Love Languages Birthday Party (Centerpieces)

When thinking about centerpieces for The Five Love Languages Party that I organized, I contemplated many options. I eventually decided on flowers and candles. There are lots of ways to go about making a centerpiece for an event and typically, this is a part of planning that pulls the theme together and is able to incorporate a personal touch. Additionally, this may turn out to be a main focus so you want to be sure to put some thought into what to use as a centerpiece. Centerpieces are usually made with balloons, flowers, candles, or some sort of edible treat! However, there are no hard and fast rules to centerpieces. My favorite when planning my wedding was the "fish in the bowl" idea. Some times, people use their party favors as centerpieces, then there is no clean up or worry about what to do with them after. You can pretty much go in any direction, when choosing a centerpiece.

With our theme being somewhat "romantic," I decided that nothing is more romantic than flowers and candles. The candles I used were heart shaped floating candles. Unfortunately, the only one I could find (Pier 1) were red, and that was not apart of our color story so I was a little disappointed. So I decided to make submerged flowers in multiple shades of purple and put one floating candle on the top of each. I also put violet colored gems at the bottom of each vase. I made three of these! They were a big hit! (I will try to get some pics of them sitting on the table at the actual party from my client so you all can see what they looked like with the rest of the decor.)

This is a very simple and inexpensive way to build up your theme and color story. Not to mention, it cast a beautiful, romantic glow on the room!

What is your favorite centerpiece idea? What is the most beautiful centerpiece you have ever seen?

(For links to all of the other post about this Five Love Languages event, click on the main blog post here.)

NETWORK SHARE: Consignment cousin Vintage

One of my fellow "Ladies Board" members, Foxy Blanche, of Consignment cousin Vintage, did a fabulous blog post with Gabe, Co-Owner of The SuperGroup for its "For Retro Gentlemen" segment.

Check it out here!

Also, they are having a contest!

"Watch the video and let us know what vintage pieces you like of Gabe's the most.


If Gabe reaches 50 comments by February 15th, he'll select a lucky "commenter" to win a $25 gift card/certificate to the resale store of their choice on February 16th! (leave your name and email address when commenting)


Don't forget to VIEW, COMMENT and SHARE with others by February 15th - before MIDNIGHT!"

The Five Love Languages Birthday Party (Place Cards)

I think I love place card holders more than I love place cards! So you can only imagine that when I plan weddings, I go pretty insane with this little tidbit that adds elegance and class to any event. But place cards are not just for weddings. They can be used for showers, receptions, kids events, meetings, formal affair, casual affairs, and yes, of course, birthday parties.

Place cards serve several functions. Some of them include:

• Helping to keep the event organized
• Encouraging guests to meet new people while at the event
• Incorporating/Magnifying the theme
• Introducing people with like interest
• Making guest feel special with a personalized touch (everyone likes to see their own name in lights, LOL)
• Eliminate empty seats and gaps in the seating plan

Place cards can be pre-printed at a variety of places including Hallmark, Paper Affair, and various vendors online. However, you can also print them at home very easily on your home printer. You can add photos, colors, or motifs to make them as personal or generic as you wish. You can go very formal and have them engraved or you can hand write them on card stock from your local office supply store.

One of the hang ups with making place cards is that people don't always RSVP, and it can get very costly to have place cards printed for people who don't show to the event. This can be extremely annoying! So if you are having a gathering and don't anticipate that people will RSVP or don't have time to ensure that people do, skip the place cards. This tip has saved me a lot of headache.

However, you choose to create place cards for your event, I am sure guests will feel the love in the time and effort you took to make sure they had a place at the table.

With that being said, I have shared the place cards for the Five Love Languages party I am planning this week. Enjoy!

1. I purchased a pack of blank card stock from the store, downloaded the template from the manufacturers website, and my printer kept spitting my labels out incorrectly. This was so frustrating.



2. I adjusted the template as much as possible, even designed my own by pulling out my ruler and putting the specs into Microsoft Word, NO LUCK! I printed out my template a couple of times on regular paper, held it against the labels, and it was correctly placed. However, on the actual labels, it was all wrong.



3. So I figured since the regular paper worked, I could use some pretty purple paper that I got on sale years ago and had never used. It was a good way to incorporate the color story and it would allow each place card to be one-of-a-kind.



4. I printed them on the purple paper and cut them up into smaller, more manageable pieces.



5. I them made each of them into their own scwiggly design and glued them to the place cards. Therefore, I did not waste the ones that printed incorrectly! :-)



6. I let them dry over night, then the next day, placed cute little violet jewels in the center of each. Ta Da!! They are beautiful!!

(For links to all of the other post about this Five Love Languages event, click on the main blog post here.)

The Five Love Languages Birthday Party (Thank You Cards)

Saying "thank you" and showing gratitude was a serious part of my upbringing. Since as young as I can remember, I have been writing thank you cards to friends, relatives, and even strangers for various gifts, acts of kindness, and gestures of love. My parents were ever so diligent to make sure not a graduation, birthday, pageant, wedding, or reception went by without sending out thank you cards. As tedious as it was as a kid to complete those notes, now as an adult, I am ever so grateful that my parents instilled this lesson in me at such a tender age. It is a habit that I have carried with me my entire life. As a matter of fact, my first job out of high school (sophomore year of college) was at a stationary store in Lenox Mall, here in Atlanta. I enjoyed working there so much and was surrounded by beautiful papers and thank you notes each shift. Sometimes, the beauty of the handwritten card is even breathtaking and emotional. Not only do I love to write, but I love beautiful paper.

So, with that being said, the first project I completed for my Five Love Language themed birthday party was the thank you cards. (If you missed my post about this b-day party I am planning, you can find it here.) Saying thank you is a great way to show love to those who come to join you on your birthday. The thank you cards will be handed out at the end of the affair with the party favors. They are personalized on the inside with each couples name and includes a place to write their discovered love language as a keep sake from the event.

I made the thank you cards with card stock purchased at Hallmark that were sealed with a band closed with a heart motif. It was also great that I found this love themed stationary in lavendar, which falls in line with our color story.

Above is a picture of all of the components of the thank you card.
To the right, is a close up of the inside of the thank you card. On the top flap is a thank you message. In the middle is the logo I created with the date of the event. On the bottom flap is the name of the couple with a line by each name to document their love language that they discovered at the party.

UPDATE: So after completing the thank you cards for the event, I started to think about how I wanted each couple to receive the cards. They can't be mailed after, because there is a place to add their love language (which they will learn at the party). Therefore, I'd like for them to open them at the end of the party and write their love language inside the card. So I was just going to sit them on the table, but then I realized that I don't want them opening them during dinner either. I concluded to place them in envelopes and near the end of the evening, pass them to the guests. With that being said, I have added some pics below of the final product, including envelopes. I punched holes in the flaps and placed purple bows on both sides. On the front, I made labels incorporating the logo and with each couples name on the label in a curly script. I sealed the envelopes with little purple stickers. I thought about doing wax seals (as I am a lover of wax seals, {see my wedding blog here with our wax seals}), but we are on a time restraint, as well as a budget. But the stickers add a fun touch, seeing as though the party has a casual feel to it anyway.

(For links to all of the other post about this Five Love Languages event, click on the main blog post here.)

AUPA Tip Tuesday - 01/24/12

The Power of Dreams

There is so much power in the ability to dream. I'm not referring to the type of dreaming that you do when you are sleep. More so, I am referring to the types of dreams that fall in the category of "Dreams, Goals, and Aspirations." Sometimes, I look at little children and the hope that they have in what the future holds. They constantly dream and use their imagination to visualize things as though they were. As adults, I wish we took the time to slow down an dream more. We would truly understand the power of a dream. Everyone dreams, in some form or another. Honda developed a very successful advertising campaign called, "The Power of Dreams" and Celine Dion had a hit song that shared the same title. There is also a Rock Band that calls them selves the Power of Dreams.


Some groups of people who study the subconscious delve deeper into the power of our dreams but as a lay person, I can be a witness to the fact that dreams do indeed have power. They drive us toward certain successes and maintain our energy when attempting to complete a goals. Dreams help us to see the big picture and stay focused as we take small steps. Dreams help us to imagine the impossible and bring out the best in us.

Here are some tips on how to incorporate dreaming into your life:

• Be around people and things that inspire you
• Always continue to learn new things. Try to strategically learn at least one new thing a day.
• Dreams are best when you are relaxed. Find new ways to relax yourself.
• Spend time around children. Their imagination will rub off on you.
• Colors usually help to inspire dreams. A world of only black and white can be very dull.
• Instead of asking "why," ask "why not"
• Tell people about some of your dreams. They may be able to add information that turns them into reality
• Make a conscience effort to wonder about things
• Incorporate meditation into your daily or weekly routine
• Use sounds and smells to help you have time to dream. I love candles that remind me of nature (which I love) and I love my "Whale Sounds" CD's

Happy Dreaming!

Event Planning: Cake Toppers

I spent the morning drawing up plans for an adult birthday party. (If you missed my blog post about the Five Love Languages Birthday Party, you can find it here.) I just love when adults decide to celebrate their birthdays and party as much as children. I love tapping into the kid in me! Another year on Earth, fulfilling your purpose, and walking in your destiny is indeed a reason to throw caution to the wind and celebrate your born day.


One of my favorite things about birthdays is cake! And one of my favorite things about cake is the cake topper! Traditionally, people limit their "creative cake flow" to candles. However, a more modern approach is to use an elaborate cake topper. Cake toppers typically have been reserved for occasions such as weddings and maybe, baby showers but not birthdays. Adding a cake topper at a birthday party has multiple purposes:

• To add decoration to the cake
• To solidify a theme
• To make guests aware of what you are celebrating
• To add "glam" to the event
• To limit the amount of individual candles that need to be blown out (for those of you with more candles than you can handle, LOL)

I have listed below some of my favorite sites that have great, unique, and inexpensive cake toppers! Additionally, it is something that can be used again and again, passed down or passed on, shared with friends for separate occasions, or put on display in your home afterwards.

• Martha Stewart
• Cake Toppers
• Wilton
 
• And my favorites!
• Personalized custom cake toppers made to look like you!
• Head Bobble
• Fun Deliver 

            Lastly, for those of you who know me personally, know how much I like to add a little bling to a celebrations! Below are a few sites that feature cake jewelry! I LOOOOOOOVE CAKE JEWELRY!

• Cake Jewelry Expressions
• Toppers with Glitz
• Couture Cake Jewelry
• Decorating Studio