I started by looking for the striped cupcake wrappers on Amazon. I chose the pack of baking cups from Paper Eskimo. They worked great! They’re super sturdy, and you just put them on a baking sheet — no muffin tin necessary. (Note: I’m not an Amazon affiliate, so don’t worry, I’m not making any money if you click on that link.)

I’m not a baker, so I used a Pillsbury cake mix. It was “Yellow” flavor, whatever that is. How is yellow a flavor? Anyway, I chose that because 1) there was a box of it in the cupboard, and 2) the light color would look better in the cupcake liners. I filled the liners half way with cake batter. When done, the cake rose to about a half inch below the rim. Perfect amount of space to put the “popcorn.”

The “popcorn” for the cupcakes is actually mini marshmallows. To adhere them to the top of the cupcakes, I used Betty Crocker Cookie Icing, which is in the supermarket baking aisle. I like cookie icing because it hardens and acts just like glue — and it’s yummy. (I chose the white color.) I put a dab of icing on each mini marshmallow, and then pressed it down onto the cupcake. To build height, I just stacked them, using cookie icing on each marshmallow.

Cute, right? But something was still missing. And that something was a little bit of yellow. You know how real popcorn has the yellow part of the kernel? We needed that for these popcorn cupcakes. My solution was jellybeans. I cut yellow jelly beans in half and attached three pieces to the mound of marshmallows, again using cookie icing. 

These would make great treats for a movie night, a circus party, even a baseball party. Which makes them an Oscar-worthy idea.

Since I’m going to so many holiday gatherings (hopefully), and wine is the go-to hostess gift, I decided to make some wine bottle hang tags to differentiate my wine bottles from the ones from other guests. The first one I made uses Eileen Hull’s Teacup die. First I cut a 3 1/2″ wide by 9″ long piece of card stock from DCWV, and then made one of the teacups using a coordinating DCWV paper. 

Then I printed out the words “It doesn’t count when you drink it from a teacup” and cut it out using a Sizzix magnetic ornamental die, and distressed the edges with one of Eileen Hull’s ColorBox Blends from Clearsnap. 

To make the hang tag portion, I folded the long strip of card stock at the 3-inch mark and punched a hole in it with a Fishers 1 1/2″ circle punch.

Next I glued all the elements together with some Aleene’s Fast Grab Tacky Glue (in the “always ready” inverted bottle.

Put some cellophane in the teacup, and voila!

I made another hang tag using Eileen Hull’s Bow/Create-a-Flower die and more papers and a tag from the DCWV pack.

And another hang tag using more DCWV papers and Eileen Hull’s Vase die, which I made into a cone shape to resemble a Christmas tree. 

Some tinsel garland at the bottom adds a nice touch of bling to the tree, although now I can’t decide if it looks more like a tree or a party hat. Oh well, both work.

Okay, after making all of these I hope somebody actually invites me over for the holidays now.

Disclosure: I received Sizzix dies and DCWV paper to complete this post, but all opinions are mine.

I made them with a variety of Sizzix dies by Eileen Hull.

I used the Button Jars & Labels die, the Leaves/Spring die, the 3-D Adirondack Chair, and the Make-it-3D Box.

First I covered some mat board with burlap, adhering it with Scotch Super 77 spray adhesive,  and made two jar die cuts, plus one of the flexible boxes from the Make-it-3D die.

Next I folded the box at its score markings, gluing this “box” to the jar pieces to make it three dimensional.

It doesn’t look like a turkey body yet, but it will when we add the feathers, which are actually leaves made from the spring leaves die and autumn-themed scrapbook paper.

I glued the leaves to the back of the jar, fanning them out. 

For the turkey head, I die cut the large slat of the adirondack chair die, and the smaller leaf from the spring leaves die.

I glued the turkey neck to the front of the jar, and glued the head to the top of the neck, flopping it over with the leaf stem in the back.

Add some googly eyes.

And for the finishing touch, the turkey wattle! I die cut it out of the label section of the button jar die and glued it under the head. It looked like a wattle!

Fill the jar with nuts or candy, and you’ve got a cute treat cup for Thanksgiving. Get ready to gobble up compliments.

Disclosure: 1) I received product in exchange for this post. 2) All opinions are my own. 3) I make my turkey gravy with Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup.

Do you like how I invited Harry and Ginny Potter to the party? Hopefully, he will not attract any trouble, especially since Draco is sitting at his table. Okay, here are the super simple steps to make these.

Step 1: Adhere colored paper to Little Sizzles Mat board with spray adhesive, and die cut using the ScoreBoards luggage tag die. 

Step 2: Bend at the score to create an easel. It already looks like a TV! Hot glue buttons on the left side to act as the channel and volume controls. They also cover up the opening.

Step 3: Dip the tips of two ball head pins in glue and stick them in a “V” shape at the top right of the television for the antenna. Insert the pins into the mat board so they’re secure in there — the glue helps hold them in place.

Then print out the names of guests and place them in the TV sets. Wow, that was fast.

After the party, guests can use these place card/escort cards as photo frames. Here’s Eileen and me in the picture. Eileen is the one who got me into crafting when she sent me a Sizzix Big Shot. I love my craft wife.

Keep it simple.

Now is not the time to test that elaborate new recipe you’ve been wanting to try. You don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen, especially if your guests are outside on the patio. Prepare dishes ahead of time that can be reheated. Or better yet, plan for food that can be served cold or at room temperature. Also, avoid food that requires a knife to eat, as maneuvering utensils can be a challenge for guests who are standing or sitting on the grass.

Bring the indoors out.

Just because you’re entertaining outside doesn’t mean you have to rough it. Borrow the pillows from the living room so guests can be more comfortable. Take out the dining table or a hallway console table, and use it as a bar. If you have people who can help you to carry them, bring a big chair, or even a sofa, onto your patio.

Have multiple seating arrangements.

If you can spread out in your backyard, take advantage of the space. In addition to a main dining area, set up little pockets of seating all around so friends and family can move around and mingle. You can even hang a mesh canopy from a tree for anyone who wants a private tête-à-tête.

Let there be light.

Make sure there’s plenty of light to illuminate your space after the sun sets. String lights add a festive feel over a patio, and hurricane or votive candles cast a welcome, warm glow. You may also consider battery-operated LED candles so you don’t have to worry about leaving them unattended.

Get real.

It’s tempting to use paper plates and disposable forks, but ceramic (or even colorful-yet-durable plastic) plates and real flatware can help elevate the party. You can find inexpensive plates at the dollar store. And if you really want disposable dishes, try the bamboo plates available at health food stores; at least they won’t linger in the landfill.

Have blankets and sweaters handy.

Temperatures tend to drop markedly in the evenings here in Southern California, and guests may not be prepared for the cold. As a courtesy, have some blankets and sweaters on hand in case anyone needs to warm up. It’s these little things that guests remember.

Invite the neighbors.

Because outdoor parties can get noisy, invite your neighbors beforehand. Your invitation is not only a nice gesture, it also serves as a heads-up that there will be festivities, and possibly some noise. You’ll also be less likely to receive any complaints this way.

Don’t invite the insects.

Keep those pesky mosquitoes from spoiling your party by lighting citronella candles all around your yard. It’s also a good idea to provide some insect repellant lotion or spray for guests if they need it. And if food will be out for an extended period, purchase mesh covers that can go over the platters to keep out the flies.

Accept help.

Don’t be a control freak. If any of your guests offer to bring something, say “yes.” Having even one fewer dish to prepare will free you up to do something else. And if you really insist on preparing all the food yourself, assign each guest some responsibility, such as putting someone in charge of serving drinks.

Factor in fun.

Even if there won’t be any kids at the party, consider having some activities and games available. Everyone’s a kid at heart. Badminton, croquet and miniature golf are popular summer party games, but even having just a hula hoop available can help break the ice — and make for some great photo opportunities.

]]> https://jonathanfongstyle.com/tips-for-summer-outdoor-entertaining/feed/ 0 https://jonathanfongstyle.com/my-thanksgiving-of-gold-ping-pong-balls/ https://jonathanfongstyle.com/my-thanksgiving-of-gold-ping-pong-balls/#comments Sun, 30 Nov 2014 22:48:29 +0000 /?p=1654 I love drama at the dinner table. Now, I don’t mean the type of drama where Aunt Judy has had a little too much to drink and starts spilling the family secrets. I mean the visual drama of a tablescape that lets guests know they’re in for an extraordinary evening. One thing I like to do is hang things above the dining table, because that space above the table is prime real estate for decorating. In the past, I’ve dangled silk rose petals, branches, leaves, fresh calla lilies, but for Thanksgiving this year I came up with the ambitious idea of hanging strings of golden orbs. The question was how would I do it, and would the process drive me insane. The good news is that I did not go insane, though I am probably not going to attempt this again in the near future. Here’s the end result, followed by how I did it.

I started with the balls. I found these ping pong balls at Amazon for only $8.30 for 144, so it cost less than $35 for almost 600 ping pong balls. These were practice balls, so they were softer and lighter than real ping pong balls, which is not good for practicing ping pong, but great for what I needed.

To spray paint the balls gold, I punctured a hole in each one and inserted a piece of stiff wire into the hole. Then I held each ping pong ball by the wire, spinning them as I spray painted them shiny gold so they would have an even coat. Then I poked the wires in styrofoam to allow the balls to dry. 

After I had all the balls painted, I strung them in strands of 4, 5 or 6 orbs, so there would be variance in the lengths. To do this, I used a 5″ doll needle, which went through the center of each ping pong ball as I made the strands.

And at the two points where the thread meets the ball, I added a dab of glue so the balls would stay in place. I used Aleene’s Clear Gel Tacky Glue.

When all the strands were dry, I packaged each in plastic to keep them separated, or else they would tangle on the way to the house where I was doing Thanksgiving. To hang each strand, I placed a dab of poster putty (I used UHU Tac), to adhere the strands to the ceiling.

And the result was magical. The shiny gold on the ping pong balls reflected light so it looked like they were lit from within. I also glued some extra ping pong balls to the branches in the tall vases, and added some to the floral arrangements. I spent all that time painting the ping pong balls you better believe I was going to use each one. I hung all the strands of ping pong balls the night before, and by the next day gravity had taken about 10 of the strands. But there were plenty still up, so the result was still spectacular. I think this idea would also look beautiful for a wedding, don’t you?

WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Half gallon juice carton, smaller juice carton, skewers, clothespins, glue dots, Craft Attitude printable film, lamination pouches, laminator, distilled water.

STEP 1: Drink some juice. First, you will need a half gallon carton, so buy your favorite juice, drink it, and wash the carton. (The lemonade/iced tea I bought was actually 5 ounces short of a half gallon. How long have they been gipping me?) Then you will need a smaller carton. I used the little orange juice carton I got with my Jack in the Box breakfast combo. 

STEP 2: Cut off the tops of the carton so the large carton is about 5″ high, and the small carton is about 4″ high. The smaller carton will sit in the larger carton to create an ice mold, but we want the small carton elevated about an inch so the ice votive holder has a bottom to it. Therefore, we need to suspend the small carton with skewers, as you see in the photo. 

STEP 3: Now print some photos of Elsa on a sheet of Craft Attitude printable film using your inkjet printer. I chose to print on Craft Attitude film rather than regular paper because the film is transparent, so Elsa’s image will be transparent in the ice. Oh, and I sized the images so they were just a little smaller than the width of the larger carton. 

STEP 4: Cut out the images, peel the film from its protective backing, and place the film in a lamination pouch. I have a stack of 4″x6″ lamination pouches I got from Staples. The pouches are frosted, as you see in the photo, but when they go through the laminator, they turn clear. The 4″x6″ pouches are too big to fit in the cartons, so after you’ve laminated the Elsa images, trim the plastic so they will fit. The plastic lamination protects the images by making them waterproof in the ice.

STEP 5: I had 4 pictures of Elsa, one for each side of the carton. The challenge was how to keep the laminated images standing up straight between the walls of the larger and the smaller cartons, as they had a tendency to fall over. Also, when you put water in the ice mold, the images will want to float up rather than stay in place. My solution was holding each image with a clothespin, and placing the clothespin between the cartons. I also put a glue dot on the clothespin so it would stick to the wall of the outer carton. Now the images will stay put. I also put a few rocks in the smaller carton to weight it down.

STEP 6: I used distilled water for the ice block because it freezes a bit more clear than tap water. Supposedly if you boil the distilled water, it comes out even more clear, but I’ve done that I haven’t seen much of a difference. Now, the secret to filling the ice mold with water is to do it in two steps. First, just pour in about an inch of water. We only want this first layer of ice to hold the laminated images. If you pour more water than that, you’ll be freezing the clothespins in water, too.

STEP 7: After the first layer of ice is frozen (wait several hours or overnight), the laminated images are frozen into place and aren’t going anywhere. Now you can remove the clothespins and glue dots, and remove the skewers. Then pour in the rest of the water so it just covers the top of the laminated image. Make sure the water is really cold, so it doesn’t melt the ice that’s already in our little contraption. (In the photo, the skewers are still there because I forgot, but I did eventually remove them.) Put it all back in the freezer for several hours until it is frozen solid.STEP 8: When the ice is frozen solid, take the ice mold to the sink and pour some cold water into the small carton in the middle. Don’t use hot water because it might crack the ice. Just use cold water, and the water in the carton will warm up the ice on the outside. After a while, you will be able to slide out the middle carton.

STEP 9: Lastly, run cold water on the outside of the larger carton. Eventually, the entire ice block will slide out of the carton.

Put a glass votive holder and an LED candle in the opening of the ice block, and Elsa seems to glow. Obviously we’re using an LED candle here and not a real candle because we want the ice to last for a while. And because the LED candle is battery-operated, it’s in a glass holder for protection.

Here is a closeup of the ice surrounding Elsa. I love the pattern of the ice. It’s like her “soul is spiraling in frozen fractals all around.” Okay, I’m off to watch “Let it Go” on YouTube again.

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Check out the tutorial here.

For centerpieces, I found birch boxes at Floral Supply Syndicate in downtown L.A. and filled them with succulents and hydrangeas. They go so well together, and the colors are muted and soothing. I had just received a shipment of stamps from Judikins, so I decided to stamp one side of each box with a chandelier stamp. Because the birch surface is very uneven, the image went on uneven as well. I liked the distressed look of it. Also, I was doing this at 3 in the morning, so anything was looking good at this point. 

I love creating height for tablescapes. I like the drama. So I put manzanita branches in 24″ tall vases to create a little “forest.”

On the manzanita branches, I glued paper roses made of dictionary pages on them, as well as some leaves cut with my Tim Holtz tattered leaves die. Yeah, I’m kind of addicted to making paper roses. I will have a tutorial for them soon.

I also attached battery operated LED fairy lights to the branches because the light is just magical. Remember the old days of battery-operated lights? The lights would be a little faint, and they would only last for 4 hours, max. Well, this new breed of LED lights is wonderful. The lights are super bright, and they last for hours and hours on AA batteries. Love them! I got them online at save-on crafts.

I tried something on the tall vases, and I’m not sure it worked. They have birch trees in the yard, so I attempted to make faux birch trunks with the vases by covering them with distressed dictionary pages. They needed spots of black on them to approximate the look of birch, so I ran my new mustache roller stamp on them. People may not have gotten that I was going for birch, but I guess they still looked kind of cool.

Oh, of course, there was delicious food. But really, hot dogs would taste classy in a setting this beautiful. 

For the full article with all the how-to instructions, click here.