Okay, so the title of the post is ambiguous. On purpose. You'll see what I mean once you watch the recipe video below ;) For now, let's juts say that we're super excited to watch the opening ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games today! My mom lives in Rio, and she says the city is already buzzing with excitement and stunning displays to welcome the crowds!

If you follow me on Snapchat or Instagram , you'd have seen how beautiful and lush the lavender I have growing around in the studio garden! Every time I go in there, I HAVE to stop and smells the scents in the air! Just dreamy... It's such a generous plant, and to me, synonymous with summer. So much so that I decided to pair it with peaches and incorporate it in a cocktail recipe that celebrates the best this season has to offer!

If you're on Instagram you probably would have seen that drip cakes are taking over the cake world right now. Well, ever since I've set eyes on them, I've been itching to bake one!  So for our flamingo pool party (see photos here) , I decided to get baking. It turns out, not only drip cakes are not that difficult to make and taste super yum, but they will totally steal the show on any desserts table! :)

Valentines Day's over and we're wasting not time in prepping for St Patrick's Day 'round here! And I'm feeling super lucky, 'cause I get to create AND taste test, yummy recipes like these Stout Chocolate Cupcake with Irish Cream Frosting! This is a super easy and delicious recipe, and I'm sharing my cheat frosting technique too.  Lucky YOU! ;)

You all know the drill: it's Valentine's Day and all you can find are those cheap-looking grocery store flowers for your party (or for your other half). But don't panic, I've got just the trick to help you turn those last-minute wilting blooms into a swoon-worthy floral arrangement!

Beer rhymes with Super Bowl. We know that. But what if beer is not your thing? Or you fancy something sweeter while watching the game? Well, for my Super Bowl party I served this super tasty fruity mixer, which not only is the perfect pairing to wheat beer ; but can can be also added to lemonade, sparkling water or tonic to cater for kiddos and mocktail lovers alike!

When it comes to creating a table centerpiece (or any decor for that matter) that's original and inexpensive, I turn to paper! Bonus points if you can re-purpose, re-use or recycle papers you may already have around the home, like I did for my Origami Christmas Trees table centerpiece this year.

As you saw in my Thanksgiving tablescape post here , my floral arrangement was a DIY jobbie. DIY is not only something I love, because it makes me try out new skills and ideas; but also it's often something of a necessity when I can't quite buy what I need for a particular project or photo shoot. And floral centerpieces or arrangements for me, ALWAYS fall under the 'urgh, I just can't get anything cute 'round here...'  category. So DIY is the only available option :)

This year I'm inspired by all things Monster High for Halloween (mainly 'cause I have a little fan at home...). So much so, that together with some of my fave party and food bloggers; we put together a huge and totally SPOOK-takular spread in the Fall issue of Bird's Party Magazine - with decorated cookies, cake pops, cupcakes and sparkly party ideas inspired by the Monster High vibe!

Disclosure:  This post is sponsored by The Coca-Cola Company, and I may have received goods and/or compensation for it, but all opinions are my own.  As you probably know, I love cupcakes. Baking AND eating them. So for my 4th of July party with Coca-Cola® , I combined my love of the drink with my fave go-to recipe for a super moist, fluffy and scrumptious 4th of July Stars and Stripes chocolate cupcake .

Party trends come and go. Fact. But confetti and balloons will remain forever classics.  At least as far as my parties are concerned... But the way we use and present them will vary to suit season, taste and occasion. For instance. confetti poppers are literally popping everywhere. From weddings, to sweet sixteen parties or bridal showers. 

If you haven't noticed, this week's all about Mexican themed party ideas  and fiesta fun! And today I'm delighted to be joining the one and only Clinton Kelly , TV personality, author, editor and general stylist-crush-of-mine... for a Makeover Your Margarita Challenge !!

The Oscars is on Sunday, if you're a last-minute gal; then you'll LOVE this post! Don't know about you, but pajamas is my go-to outfit for watching anything on TV. But there are such a occasions when a party is planned and you have guests 'round, so my casual-every-day-attire-of-choice is frowned upon... On such occasions, I wanna look like I've made an effort. But without too much hassle.  You know, saying to your guests "Oh, this old thang?! I just threw it on..."  (wink) when they compliment you on your look...

I ♥ you! Yes, you there, reading this. Know why? Because you make me get up in the morning with a spring in my step, and allow me to share my passion for all things party. You rock, basically ;) So on this heart day, I didn't want to post anything else, but a big heartfelt thanks from the bottom of my heart. And, no, you can never have too much "heart" ♥

For my Valentine's Day shoot , I wanted a giant balloon as my table backdrop. But the balloon cord looked naked and boring, so I decided to jazz it up with some tissue paper tassels . Tissue paper tassels are all the rage in the party world, and have been for a while now, but they are new to me in the sense that I only used them once before. And for this occasion, I didn't have time to order any nor buy tissue paper to make them myself. All I had was crepe paper left over from this shoot . So, what's a party gal to do? Yes, make do, of course! ;) I wasn't sure if was even gonna work...but guess what?! Crepe paper has hidden talents!! Full tutorial below.

My daughter loves pink, and I love red. So this year, I decided to go 100% down the girly route for our Valentine's Day styled shoot!  I adored designing our NEW  Valentine's Day printables , and working with some of the party supplies we carry in the shop , like those mini gumball machines, which I am just in love with! ♥  And if you follow me on Instagram , you'd have seen that being surrounded by all that candy is my idea of a heaven! Check out all the photos and styling ideas below. Warning: Glitter and girly sweetness featured heavily (and some crazy photo-bomber...).

A bubbling cauldron of hot chili accompanied by the usual sides provides the perfect Halloween food buffet for hungry little ghouls - It’s also a very relaxed, warming way to entertain and feed a crowd before Trick or Treat!  We love it so much in our house, that we've now made a tradition of having a chili buffet every Halloween! :) Here are some easy ideas on how to style a fun and spooky-licious  Halloween Chili Buffet that I designed and styled for the fall Edition of Yum Food and Fun for Kids Magazine!

TGIF 'cause we're ending our Halloween Cheese and Wine Party week on a  spook-tacular note! We have some creepy FREE party printables for you to enjoy + a quick and easy tutorial to help you inject a little macabre vibe into your party paperie! ;)

This embroidery hoop backdrop really helped to add a touch of spooky modernity to my  Halloween Cheese and Party . It is super simple and quick to make, and can double as a wall feature in the home all year round - I actually have them as a fixture in my craft room now, spider and all! :)

Decidedly, this year will be mostly a grown-up affair for Halloween.  I get bored easily (yes, even of candy...) and though I also have a kid's party to share here soon, in-keeping with the festivities from last week's grown-up Halloween posts ; today I'm showing you how to style a   Halloween Cheese and Wine Party !