Ornament Exchange Holiday Party

 We received a lot of great feedback from this post last year so wanted to share again for 2010 Ornament Exchange parties!

Ornament Exchange Holiday PartyOrnament Exchange Holiday Party

An Ornament Exchange is a wonderful way to entertain during the holiday season. Planning is simple and guests leave with a special ornament received from friends. Here are a few tips for the perfect party:

Start with a fun invitation! There are many invitations available for this fun event. On the invitation ask each guest to bring a wrapped ornament to exchange. I recommend including a maximum dollar value for the ornament such as $15.  If everyone brings an ornament in the same price range everyone will leave happy with their ornament.

If you are planning an evening party, serve a fun cocktail. The following recipe for Amaretto-Cranberry Kiss cocktail was a huge hit last year at our party.

Amaretto-Cranberry Kiss Cocktail
2 cups cranberry juice
1 cup vodka
1/2 cup amaretto
3 T Orange Juice

Mix cranberry juice, vodka, amaretto and orange juice in pitcher. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Can be prepared 1 day ahead so perfect for entertaining!

Fill cocktail shaker with ice and fill with one cup of mixture. Cover and shake. Serve in martini glass. Enjoy!

As guests arrive place all wrapped ornaments under the tree. Serve cocktails and appetizers.

To do the exchange:

~On a small piece of paper write numbers for the number of guest. Example, for 15 guests have 15 slips numbered 1 -15.
~Have each guest pull from a number from a Santa hat. The number they pull is the order they will unwrap an ornament.
~Guest who pulled #1 goes first. They unwrap an ornament and show the group. No one should tell which ornament they brought yet.
~Guest who pulled #2 has the option to unwrap an ornament or steal the ornament from Guest #1. We play that any ornament can be stolen only once per round and a new round starts every time a new Guest pull choose.  
~Continue until everyone has an ornament. Encourage stealing others ornaments. It adds a lot of fun to the exchange! Plan on an hour or so for about 15 guests.
~Have everyone go around the room and tell which ornament they brought and where it was purchased. Guests may want to purchase a similar ornament or they may have a fun story of how and where the ornament was purchased.

An Ornament Exchange is a guaranteed fun holiday party! If you host an ornament exchange party let us know your ideas!

Sweet 16 Party Invitations

Planning a Sweet 16 party? Check out these gorgeous invites for a Sweet 16 birthday!

Sweet 16 Damask

Sweet 16 Party Dress

Save 10% on Bridal Shower Invitations at Paper Celebration

Planning a Fall Bridal Shower? We have added many new invitations and also have a nice selection of sale invitations.

We appreciate your business! Paper Celebration includes the printing in all pricing and we email a proof so you can see exactly how the invitation will look when printed. We only offer invitations from designers who are as passionate about quality as we are. Quality card stock and the latest designs can be found at papercelebration.com.

Save 10% on orders over $50! Enter Brides at Checkout.

Margaritas on the Patio

The weather forecast for the next week is HOT! I like hot but not being stuck inside with the AC cranked all day! Around 7pm or so the weather cools off a little and everyone emerges from inside. Try this recipe for Margaritas for a refreshing cocktail and friends will be on your patio right away!
Margarita
(I love this recipe because the result is not too sweet)
1/2 can frozen limeade
1 beer
triple sec
lime juice
tequila

Scoop 1/2 of a can of frozen limeade into a blender. Add 1/2 cup beer, splash of triple sec, 3/4 cup tequila and a splash of lime juice. Add ice and blend. Serve.

Custom Birth Announcements from Paper Celebration - Welcome Baby Mitchell

Friend, neighbor and facebook fan, Nora, had a clear vision for the design of the birth announcement for her second son, Mitchell. Photo with a clean and elegant design. The result is perfect; small tri-fold announcement with photo and monogram/text printed on ivory linen card stock. Tri-fold is metallic stardream card stock. Announcement was complete with matching ink and ivory linen envelope. Beautiful baby and beautiful announcement!

Paper Celebration can create a custom card with your choice of card stocks, colors, etc. Send us an email @ customerservice@papercelebration.com

Photo by Chrissy K-G Photography

http://chrissyk-gphotography.blogspot.com/

Progressive Dinner Party was a Perfect Evening!

The progressive dinner was a lot of fun. An advantage of so many houses in one block - instant large party.
So our party had about 24 and some came for appetizers or just dessert which was great. The weather was ok. No rain but chilly. Appetizers at my house. The amount of alcohol was good but would add more beer next time. I served vodka & lemonade too.  We changed the dinner format from my last post - everyone dined together in one backyard. That was my favorite part. It was great to stay together and easier to keep food all in one spot. The food was great and we had just the right amount. No leftovers at all. Margaret Marshall tried a citrus tarragon marinade for the kabobs and it was awesome! She also included small red potatoes on the kabobs and they were really good. Nice way to add starch to the meal. The parmesan rice was well liked (recipe in last post) and easy to bake and serve. On to the Strye's for dessert and cocktails - a great end to a fun evening.
If I could change anything for next time I would:

• Push the party back one weekend. A lot of conflicts with graduations/sports/etc.
• Try a new menu. Loved the kabobs but fun to try a different cocktail/dinner theme.
• Send a Save the Date months in advance.

It was a really fun party and I hope a new annual event for our block. If your block has a great party idea, Please share!

Just a few invitation ideas for your summer progressive dinner party. Find all of these on www.papercelebration.com

 

Summer Party Invitations from Paper Celebration

Summer Entertaining - Progressive Dinner Party!

Summer Progressive Dinner
 Today is a beautiful day and Summer is near.  Summer is my favorite season by far and our patio becomes our new family room. We love to have friends over and our block of neighbors is the best. This year our neighborhood is going to host a progressive dinner party. Will keep you posted on the success but here are the details so far:

Set the mood with a great invitation. We have a great selection of summer party invitations at Paper Celebration. Everyone meets at our house for cocktails and appetizers at 6:30. At 7:30 we will draw names to determine who goes where for dinner. Each dinner house will host 6-8 people and serve the same menu to keep it simple. After dinner we will move on to the next house for dessert and cocktails. Drawing names for dinner is a good way to mix up the group and encourages everyone to get to know someone new. Providing a menu and recipes also makes it easy for everyone. Each guest is asked to bring a bottle of wine, dinner item or a dessert. Looking forward to the party and keeping fingers crossed for a beautiful summer night!

Neighborhood Progressive Dinner Party Menu

Salad w/ vinaigrette

Parmesan Rice (recipe below)

Shish kabobs (make ahead or have dinner guests assemble their own)

Parmesan Rice

adapted from An Occasion to Gather - Junior League of Milwaukee

2 medium onions, chopped
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups long grain white rice
1 1/4 cups (5 oz) freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
1 cup oil-pack sun-dried tomatoes cut into 3/4 inch pieces

Saute the onions in the butter in a large saucepan until tender. Remove from heat. Stir in the broth, rice, cheese and sun-dried tomatoes. Pour the rice mixture into a 2-quart baking dish sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake, tightly covered with foil, at 400 degrees for 45 minutes; remove the foil. Bake for 10 minutes longer or until the top is golden brown.

Serves 6 to 8