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Angelina November 19, 2017 entertaining

5 Tips on How to be a Great Thanksgiving Guest – Thanksgiving Etiquette

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I’ve made a list of some great tips for proper Thanksgiving etiquette as a guest – perfect for the big day later this week!

Arrive on time – As you may imagine, your host is going to be running around like a chicken, err, turkey with their head cut off. Don’t add onto the pressure by showing up early and making them entertain you too. I know it is fashionable to show up, well, fashionably late, but this is the one time I would say do not do that! The host has things baking in the oven and with this meal timing is everything!

farmhouse thanksgiving decor

Bring Something – Even if the host says not to bring anything, a small hostess gift is still appropriate. You can bring a little bouquet of flowers, a bottle of wine, a candle, a Starbucks gift card, a little box of chocolates. Something small. If the host didn’t ask for a specific dish, don’t bring one. But everyone loves flowers, and most people like drinks. Whatever you do, do not bring a casserole. If you do decide to bring a dish of yours without asking the host, make sure that you bring all of the ingredients and utensils you need to assemble and serve it. Also assume there is no space in the microwave or oven available for you to heat it up.

Farmhouse thanksgiving

Notify your host of dietary restrictions beforehand – Before the big dinner day, if the host has not asked about dietary restrictions, politely mention if you are pescatarian/vegetarian/vegan/gluten-free/food allergy etc. Do not mention it on the big day and then proceed to sulk about how there’s nothing for you to eat and also be annoying about it. No one wants to hear about your paleo/gluten-free/meat-free/carb-free whatever diet you’re on with every bite that you are having! If they offer you their famous pumpkin cheesecake, just smile and have a bite or take a tiny serving and shove it around your plate… unless you are truly allergic! Catch my drift? There’s a right way to be polite about your dining preferences and a wrong way.

Farmhouse Thanksgiving

Keep Your Phone Tucked Away – You are not invited over for a feast so we can all watch you sit on your phone. One of the major themes about Thanksgiving is sharing and being together – so be with everyone that’s there and keep your phone away! We are there to chat with you in person, not to watch you chat with others online in front of us!

Help out – Ask the host if they need help. This includes before, during, and after the dinner is served! Be astute – if the crackers are running low in the dip tray, say “do you want me to refill the crackers?” or after dinner, offer to rinse some dishes. Assisting with cleaning up the mess is literally the best thing you can do as a guest to help your host! The host will be exhausted and having to clean up the mess can be daunting.

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Angelina February 5, 2017 DIY projects

How to Make a Macaron Tower

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I have been wanting to make a macaron tower for a little while, so I set out to create one. It was surprisingly easy!

I was delighted when I saw my finished product – how pretty!

I thought this pretty pink tower was perfect for a Valentine’s Day post.

Finding a cone to as a base for this was not super easy.

I first went to a specialty cake supply store – but they did not have any. I thought, great, I will just have to make it so they stack up on top of each other without a base. *rolls eyes* like I am skilled enough to do that. Nope I am not.

Then my Mom had the idea to get one of the floral foam cones – so off to Michael’s we went.

And we found one! Or two actually. I bought two sizes but decided to use the smaller one in this post.

Materials Needed

Foam floral cone

parchment paper

toothpicks

macarons

First, pictured below is the foam floral cone that I used.

I wrapped parchment paper around the cone because the foam flakes off. If you do not intend to eat the macarons off the tower, then you do not need to wrap the cone in parchment paper.

Here, I cut the paper and taped it to the cone. The paper didn’t hold very well with tape, so eventually I just put a few toothpicks in it to hold it in place.

Next, cut your toothpicks in half.

Then poke one hole into the cone where you want your macaron. It needs to stick out about halfway – you need enough toothpick sticking out so that it can fully support the macaron otherwise it will fall off.

Then, gently stick the macaron onto the toothpick. *gently*. It does not take much pressure to place it onto the toothpick!

Then, row by row, work your way up until you reach the top!

This tower was approximately 4 inches wide at the base by 9 inches tall.

It took approximately 50 filled cookies to fill this size of cone in the pictures. I estimate, depending in the size of your cookie, it could take 50 +/- 2 cookies.

I used several different sizes of cookies – the largest ones are on the bottom and the smallest ones are at the top. You don’t have to do that… it just had to do with my inconsistent piping and it worked out well in the end!

You could also using frosting to attach the cookies to the foam if you do not have toothpicks. Or you could do both.

I would recommend making this the day of and just before any party you bring it to!

This is *perfect* for bridal showers, tea parties, birthday parties, or fun celebrations! It is a pretty centerpiece! I would love it if you pinned this image.

How to Make a Macaron Tower – a DIY tutorial for French Macaron Towers!

Also, if you are not up to making your ownmacarons, you could just get some store bought ones – for instance, the ones from Trader Joe’s in the freezer aisle would be perfect! It would take several boxes but you could do it!

How to Make a Macaron Tower

You might also enjoy these Valentine’s Heart Macarons

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Angelina June 27, 2016 DIY projects

How to Dry Lavender and DIY Lavender Decorating Ideas

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

I have been busy drying lavender this past month! Do you grow your own lavender? If you do, I highly recommend harvesting it and using it around the house! It so beautiful both alive and dried.

Drying your own lavender is easy to do. It is easier than drying other flowers!

Here are the simple steps:

1. Harvest your lavender just before it’s fully in bloom. Cut the lavender flowers just above the leaves. If you get some of the leaves, just pick them off. Don’t cut the woody part of the plant. I harvest at dusk after the bees have gone home for the night.

2. Gather the lavender into a hand-size bunch. Tie the stems with string, rubber band, etc.

3. Hang the lavender bunch upside down. I attached my bunches to a hanger.

4. Find a cool dark place to allow the lavender to dry. I put mine in my closet – it made the closet smell nice and it was cool and dark in there!

5. Allow to completely dry. Drying times vary depending on how big you made your bunches, where you stored them, etc. I let these hang for 2-3 weeks.

Decorating with lavender is one of my favorite things! I filled my dough bowl this year’s harvest of lavender, as you can see below. (Sorry for the picture quality, it was very difficult to get a good picture because it is so sunny here!)

Or, you can just wrap them up in a bunch and lay them on a table, like below…

You can make your own lavender sachets, like below. This sachet I happened to receive as a party favor from my relatives… they have their own lavender farm! It is very easy to make…. just dry your lavender as above. Then, once dry, you just pick off the flowers.

DIY lavender sachet - perfect for wedding favor or party favor.

Here, I set up a French country lavender table using our home grown lavender.

Here is another pretty lavender sachet… Antique Style Blog used her antique hankies and turned them into these pretty sachets. Check out how she did that here.

How to make a burlap wreath blog teaches us how to make a dried lavender wreath! I love it!

Below in my centerpiece, you can see a dried lavender wreath too. I did not make it! Bought it at my favorite store in Napa!

This past Winter I trimmed the lavender so far back into the woody part all you could see was the woody party! I was afraid it wouldn’t grow back! But it DID! Do you grow your own lavender?

Here is a French farmhouse lavender tablescape I did!

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Angelina June 7, 2016 entertaining

A French Country Evening and a Secret to Living a Glamorous Life

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Hello! I’m here today sharing with you a little French country evening! I have prepared a French raspberry tart for us to enjoy (some of us will enjoy it with our eyes, other with our mouths!)

I made the raspberry tart… the recipe will be coming soon.

Want to know a secret to living a glamorous life?

Make the ordinary… extraordinary!

What do I mean by that? So, here for instance, we are having dessert. Yes, I know it is a raspberry tart, but really it could be any dessert!

I am using some sterling forks to eat. Now, you say, that’s nice, but I can’t do that because of… money or *insert excuse* (too busy, it’s too fragile, that’s too fancy for me)…

Well, except you can!

You don’t have to have own whole sterling set of silverware. (Don’t tell the sterling dealer that). Just… buy two forks. You can find them in a pattern you like for a decent price either on Ebay or an antique mall that won’t break the bank. The forks don’t have to be a matching pattern either, honestly!

Pull out your nicer crystal… I know you have at least two nice cups from your wedding!

Dine on some antique plates that are hand painted and beautiful! I pulled these pretty pink and gold ones off of the wall! Just don’t put them in the dishwasher or use a knife on them (otherwise they will scratch or be ruined!).

You say, I don’t have antique plates… well I know for a FACT that you can pick up some pretty hand painted antique plates for a song.

Don’t keep your antiques stored on the wall or your cupboard… use them! We have some friends that are antique dealers that always dine on antique fine china… Why? Because they can, that’s why!

I also picked some roses from the garden. They smelled delightful. You don’t have to have flowers from the store. Just pick some from your garden!

You see… you don’t have to go out and dine to have a glamorous life… just stay at home!

But pulling out and using some of your nicer things “just cause” can make an ordinary day extraordinary and make you feel special.

You will feel like the Queen of your castle… because you are!

So that’s how I spent my French country evening. Enjoying a tart, sipping on some sparkling lemonade, and watching the stars appear over the countryside.

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Angelina May 29, 2016 entertaining

French Breakfast in Bed… Perfect for Sunday Mornings!

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Good morning! Today I’m having breakfast in bed. A French breakfast to be exact!

I think having breakfast in bed from time to time helps your house feel like a hotel… and you feel like a Queen! It makes your life go from ordinary to extraordinary, don’t you think? Bring some fresh flowers in to make it feel even more enchanting! Make your bed! Put on your nice spa robe, Ugg slippers, and enjoy!

On the menu this morning

Freshly baked pain au chocolat

Espresso

Just like a real French breakfast! If I were a real Parisian, a cigarette too! (ha, don’t smoke, but the French certainly do!)

I bought this little espresso cup in the Napa Valley. It is by Pullivuyt, a French porcelain company. I love it!! You can get a set of four here or one here. Put a little coffee bean on the side of your espresso, stir in the sugar with a silver demitasse spoon!

Want to know a secret about this pain au chocolat (chocolate croissant)?? It is fresh out of the oven! But… it’s from Trader Joe’s! YES! In the frozen section of TJ’s there is the pain au chocolat in a set of four. It is super easy to make – just pull how out many you want to bake the night before – let it thaw and rise overnight, and then in the morning just pop them in the oven for 15 minutes or so!

Voila! Instant, freshly baked, chocolate croissants!

If you’re feeling extra brave, you could always make your own plain croissants. Here, I’ll help you out: two of my favorite French food bloggers versions of croissants recipe 1 and recipe 2.

But I’m lazy in the morning, so I’ll stick with the TJs one! TJs also sells mini plain croissants in a set of 8, if the chocolate ones aren’t your thing!

Well, thanks for stopping by on this wonderful Sunday morning. I’m off to eat enjoy my breakfast and read my blogs! I use bloglovin’ to read my blogs, it’s a great app that makes it easy to follow and read all of your blogs.

Post-Breakfast Outtake: After enjoying breakfast, Chloé the cat had to stop by and smell the roses!

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Angelina August 21, 2014 DIY projects

Easy DIY Pineapple Vase

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

In this post – Easy DIY Pineapple Vase

This post may contain affiliate links.

YOU GUYS. I have got the COOLEST tool maybe…. ever.

A Pineapple De-Corer and Slicer

It did this:

At first I thought, oooh! A neat pineapple cup for drinks! How cool is that?

I thought of another use for this pineapple as well…

A pineapple vase! This would be great for tropical themed parties!

Perfect for luaus.

Or it would make a great vase for an outdoor BBQ or party because it can withstand the elements from the outdoors.

Get it here or get it on Amazon.

You could put more tropical appearing flowers in it: protea, birds of paradise, orchids…

I just used some roses from the garden.

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Angelina July 14, 2014 Drinks

Copycat Dole Whip with DIY Pineapple Party Cups!

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

I have TWO things to share with you today:

1. Easy DIY pineapple party cups

2. Copycat Dole Whip recipe (like Disneyland and Disneyworld!)

Copycat Dole Whip in a pineapple cup

Ok, first you start with your pineapple:

And then with some magic…

Ok, so it’s not really magic. But, there’s a REALLY cool tool that let’s you do this.

cool pineapple decorer tool

Look! It takes out ALL of the delicious fruit and leaves behind the core and outside!

Um. WHOA. I never liked buying pineapple before because it always made a HUGE mess to cut it up and it took quite some time.

This took about 1 minute. And you can see the big mess it left behind in the above pictures (nope, didn’t clean the area for a pretty picture! there was no mess!)

So, here’s where you can get this cool gadget: Pineapple De-Corer and Slicer OR get it HERE

And you’re left with this hollow shell of a pineapple, which is perfect for… drinks!

Copycat dole whip recipe with DIY pineapple cup

Copycat Dole Whip Smoothie Recipe (adapted from Pinterest… couldn’t find original owner)

PRINTABLE RECIPE HERE

Ingredients:

1 whole fresh pineapple (or 2-3 cups frozen pineapple chunks)
1 cup almond milk
1 tbsp honey (optional)
ice (optional: would use for fresh pineapple if not doing the zoku method below)

Directions

Add all ingredients into a blender. If doing the zoku method, omit the ice. Enjoy!
If doing zoku method, pour contents into your zoku slushie cup.

Get a Zoku Cup HERE. It is seriously THE BEST thing to happen to Summer.

Oh PS. It makes the BEST root beer floats. They also have pops here.

This pineapple party cup would be great for Hawaiian themed parties, tropical parties, luau parties! You could add multiple straws to it. I used my fun silly straw and sat it around the core to make it stay in place. You could always remove the core!

Isn’t this just so cool?

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5 Tips on How to be a Great Thanksgiving Guest – Thanksgiving Etiquette

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How to Make a Macaron Tower

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How to Dry Lavender and DIY Lavender Decorating Ideas

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A French Country Evening and a Secret to Living a Glamorous Life

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French Breakfast in Bed… Perfect for Sunday Mornings!

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Easy DIY Pineapple Vase

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Copycat Dole Whip with DIY Pineapple Party Cups!

Copycat Dole Whip Smoothie Recipe (adapted from Pinterest… couldn’t find original owner)

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