March 10, 2013 by Allison Hendrix

Great Gatsby/ Roaring 20’s Party

March 10, 2013

What is it about dressing up in ridiculous costumes that puts us in a good mood? Last night we had the privilege of attending The Geneva School’s Roaring 20’s gala. They were celebrating their 20 year anniversary and did so in style.

When I first learned that we were to “dress the part”, I immediately thought Flapper. After sifting through my closet, I changed my tune. I came across a dress my aunt wore to her son’s wedding that screamed the Great Gatsby. I googled Great Gatsby/20’s and pieced together a list of 5 defining elements to dressing the part.

5 Musts for a Roaring 20’s/Great Gatsby look:

1. jewelry – a long strand of pearls or vintage silver sparkles are a must!

2. Gloves – white, cream or black long gloves add polish to the look.

3. Feathers – feathers are a great accessory. Grab a boa, feathery jacket, or even stick an individual feather on your clutch or in your hair.

4. Headpiece- feathers or an oversized flower can be stuck into hair with a barrette or bobby pin. A chignon or waved bob were also popular. A rhinestone necklace can be used as a headband. Also a cloche hat is perfect. Party City sells one for under $20.

5. Dress- A black or cream sheath is the perfect backdrop to accessorize upon. For a flapper look you can go mid-calf or even shorter. For a Great Gatsby look, think long and flowy. Lace, beads and sheer fabrics enhance the look but aren’t necessary. A man can wear a cream morning suit, suspenders, vest, hat, or slick hair. For a more gangster look, he could wear a pin stripes suit, gangsters style hat, and a whole lot of attitude.

So I pieced together a boa, long strand of pearls, and some white gloves I wore in my own wedding. I went to Clarie’s and bought a headband to which I attached a flower pin I already owned. After texting my mom and sister pictures of different hairstyles, they decided for me. I would still like to try a wavy bob but just don’t have those hair styling skills.

My husband is always game when it comes to dressing up. I bought a gangster hat and sequins suspenders at the Party City for his look. He added a pinstriped suit and we were ready to go!

March 9, 2013 by Allison Hendrix

Personalized Mugs

Cups! Cups! and more Cups! That’s what I was cleaning all day long. There are only 5 of us yet 10 cups on the counter. My children also had the habit of drinking from any cup on the counter. So if one child had a cold, we quickly passed it around. That’s when I had the idea of everybody has ONE cup that they are allowed to use. If it’s next to your bed and you’re thirsty, go get it. This simple idea was so easy to implement and drastically reduced the amount of washing I was doing. Here’s how I made these:

Here is how I made these:

cups from Walmart
Waterproof adhesive vinyl
transfer paper
credit card

CUT letters from vinyl – I have a silhouette cutting machine so I designed the names on that software and then cut the letters from that machine. If you do not have a machine, it is a bit harder. You can print a word document on thick cardstock, cut each letter out to use a template, trace the letters onto the vinyl and cut out letters.
Transfer Paper- Stick the transfer tape on the top of your cut out name. Use a credit card to smooth it out and make it stick.
Remove the backing to the vinyl (your name will now be held together on the transfer paper.
Position where you want the name on the cup. Press firmly down and rub credit card to make sure it sticks. You really want to rub harder during this step to make sure it does not peel off later (If some of the vinyl does not transfer to the cup, lay the transfer tape back down and rub again).
You can handwash them or put them in the top section of your dishwasher