Ladies Night Idea – Clothing Swap Party & Potluck Dinner!

I  am so excited about this idea, I saw it on TV and am actually putting it to use soon. I invited a group of my favourite girlfriends and asked them to bring a friend. Everyone cleans out their closets and brings anything they no longer wear. This gives the group the opportunity to pick through the clothes to find some new pieces for their own wardrobes. The leftovers we are going to donate to a local charity. How great of an idea is that?!!?! Gives everyone an excuse to clean out their closets, have the opportunity to add new items to their own wardrobe for FREE and benefits a local charity. I LOVE this idea and I am so glad that everyone was excited to participate. So far, we are up to nine people with the possibility of five more. I have encouraged everyone to bring as much as they have (I currently have three garbage bags full saved up!) I am even more excited about this idea as I have recently lost some weight and need to go down a size or two in my clothes and I can’t afford a new wardrobe right now so I hope there is a lot to choose from!

On the TV show I saw, they made the effort to make the room look like a cute little boutique. My sister is coming over before hand to help me out so we can get our clothes out a head of time to encourage people when they come in to do the same, this way we aren’t digging in garbage bags, it gives us the feel of a shopping for real in a store.

I was initially just going to make a few fun inexpensive desserts for the ladies to indulge in, however, one of my friends suggested we make it into a Pot Luck dinner as well which is a great idea! Less work and cost for me! I LOVE LOVE LOVE potlucks, you always get a chance to try new yummy ideas! We are doing the dinner at 6pm and then the “Swap” at 7pm incase people can’t make it for the dinner.

I am so excited for this. I am borrowing an extra full-length mirror from my sister so we can have two for people to try things on in front of. I am hoping to use just my downstairs bathroom as a change room, may have to open up the upstairs bathroom as a second one (I was hoping to keep everyone downstairs so I didn’t have to clean as much before hand … insert sheepish face)

So excited!!!

Garden/Backyard Oasis

We were very fortunate that the previous owner of our house had an amazing green thumb. Unfortunately, I have let the flowerbeds become over run. I enjoy gardening but I don’t quite get the time to do so. I am planning to overhaul the flowerbeds in the next few weekends to clean up and make something that is easier to control with help from my Mom who has an amazing green thumb.

My budget for flowers this year is $0. Yes, Zero. I want to utilize what I have; I have some great perennials hidden in the jungle of weeds. I decided not to plant flower pots for my back deck, but I love to sit on my back deck to read and relax, as I don’t have a budget to vacation in a far off exotic destination, I try to make my back deck a sweet little oasis. This year I may spend money to spray paint my lawn bed. The lawn bed was my parents’ and it is long overdue for a sprucing up. In the mean time, I have decorated with some of my existing garden ornaments; fun lanterns, pretty clay pots and fresh cut flowers. Last night I cut some of the lilacs from my yard and placed them in a mason jar on a little table on the deck. I love shabby chic, vintage flar-esque styles. I LOVE LOVE LOVE mason jars and flowers. My girlfriends LOVED it and were joking that I hired the beautiful butterflies that kept visiting the beautiful cut lilacs.

I have been blessed over the years to get some beautiful rustic looking garden ornaments as gifts, I utilized what I had! Check out Dollarama, they have some really cute well made garden ornaments for great prices! Check out some garage sales to see if you can find something to fit your style for a great price!!!

My back deck is my favourite place to read a book in the summer.  It allows me some fresh air and is so cosy and comfortable that all I have to worry about is my great book and maybe a nice ice cold drink of sorts. 

Fun Ice Cold Drinks - Nothing fancy, but fun and tasty: Cherry KoolAid!  Who says it's just for kids!  What a fun treat, served in a fun glass! 

2011's Fresh cut fowers from my flowerbeds to spruce up the deck.  Mason Jar vases and Dollar Store Vases - my two favourites!

Pinterest/Pinterest Themed Potluck

I have become a Pinterest addict! I love having access to amazing recipes, crafts, activities, and style suggestions from real people who have actually tried them. So far I have tried a few recipes and am eager to try a few crafts. Last night I had a few of my girlfriends over (see below, Ladies Night!) and I served a pasta dinner with a fun Calbrese Salad that I found through Pinterest and amazing Applesauce Cupcakes with Brown Butter Icing. They were a hit! One of my friends had a GREAT idea for a “Pinterest”themed potluck, everyone bring a dish or two made by a recipe found on Pinterest!

Applesauce Cupcakes

Applesauce Cupcake with Brown Butter Icing - AMAZING!!!

Ladies Night

Last night I had the pleasure of having a few of my favourite girlfriends over for dinner. I love to cook and bake and I was super excited to have the chance to do so for a ladies night. I kicked hubby out of the house for the evening (not that he minded!) I made fresh pasta and homemade sauce, with a simple green salad, fresh baguette and Pinterest Calabrese Salad, for dessert a simple and healthy Pinterest Apple Sauce Cupcake with Brown Butter Icing. Yummy!!!

I was able to do a lot of prep work ahead of time and really when it came down to it was a simple menu but tasty! My Lil’Sister, one of my favourite girlfriends, came by an hour earlier to help me out which was a lot of fun to catch up alone. We played music and danced in the kitchen. When the rest of my friends showed up we ate until we thought we would burst and then chatted the evening away, when surrounded with your favourite people just spending time chatting is the best way to spend the evening! It was a great night!

The ingredients I mostly had in the house, which was great. The only thing I had to buy was the applesauce for the cupcakes and the fresh pasta, this was a treat, as normally we eat dry pasta. This was far more economical then going out for dinner for all of us!

I did not buy anything special dish wise for the meal.  When I first bought our dinner dishes, I bought everything in white so that I would never have to worry about matching dishes or having different dishes for different occasions, I find white dishes can be used all year round.  Definitely a more cost effective choice and requires less thought process when setting the table!

All of the flowers came from my yard.

Nothing I love better then lilacs in an old mason jar.  So pretty.

Garage Sale Season!

Garage Sale season is officially here!!! Hubby and I will be embarking on our first outing this weekend and I am beyond excited!!! The weather is supposed to be perfect, sunny and nice! I love garage sales; you just never know what you will find! You can barter, (do so politely!) and find a great deal on gently used treasures!  (See last year's entry for Garage Sailing tips!!!)

Remember a lot of things have great potential with just a little scrubbing up or a coat of paint!

I have always wanted an all black candelabra, I bought this brass candelabra last summer for $0.25.  As I had no sentimental attachment to it and it only cost me $0.25, I spray painted it with leftover black spray I had.  Voila!  I had my black candelabra!!!  I LOVE it!  :) 

The Annual Nova House Book Riot

The Annual Nova House Book Riot is next weekend. Free to enter, tons of used books galore that have been pain stakenly organized by genre for easy browsing. The proceeds benefit Women’s Place. Nothing I love more the great books for great prices that benefit a great organization.

Optimist Park

Niagara Falls

Saturday, May 12 and Sunday, May 13