Nothing says "I Love You" more than a simple heart. When it comes to weddings, no matter the theme a simple heart shape is always acceptable. And with Valentine's Day tomorrow what better time to incorporate the heart into your special day. Here are some great ways that you can incorporate the heart into your wedding design.

Incorporate the heart shape into your desserts. These bride and groom wedding heart cookies are perfect for the dessert table or can be a great favor for each guest to take with them. These adorable bride and groom heart cookies are from etsy shop Linda’s Edible Art.

Add a little sparkle to your day with heart shaped sparklers. These can be really cute on top of the wedding cake, as favors or for your guests to use when you leave at the end of the evening. Check out this post to learn a few more ways that you can add a little sparkle to your big day.

Remember the customized heart stamped utensils that I shared with you in last week’s Valentine’s Day Party Crafting post? Take that same concept and customize your stationary and other wedding décor with a heart stamp or a heart punch. I just love a Martha craft inspiration! 

And you can’t forget about the table numbers or place cards. You can go with a DIY craft or purchase some heart shaped stands for your table numbers and place cards. I love these simple luminaries that looks like a carved tree trunk which could also double as your table centerpiece.

What is your favorite sweetheart wedding detail?

xoxo
Megan

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Valentine's Day is just two days away! Whether you are hanging with your girls or your significant other this is the perfect soundtrack for your evening. So whatever your plans are this Thursday, have this playlist ready to go while you are getting ready to go out or if you are cooking dinner in. This is one playlist that everyone is sure to love this Valentine's Day! Enjoy!

1. "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" by Michael Jackson

2. "Stereo Hearts" by Gym Class Heroes

3. "Let Me Love You" by Mario

4. "Silly Love Songs" by Paul McCartney & Wings

5. "We Found Love" by Rihanna

6. "Without You" by David Guetta

7. "Kiss a Girl" by Keith Urban

8. "Just The Way You Are" by Bruno Mars

9. "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction

10. "Love Shack" by The B-52's

What are your plans for this Valentine's Day?

xoxo
Megan

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Super Soft Sugar Cookies Recipe (makes 2 dozen)

Ingredients
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups + 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 eggs
8 ounces sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
4 teaspoons baking powder
approximately 4 1/2 cups flour

What is your favorite Valentine's Day treat that you like to make?

xoxo
Megan

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I always love when holidays are near as that always gives me the chance to craft up something cute. Valentine's Day is no exception. You can take something that you use every day, add a heart or ribbon on it and you have turned it into Valentine's Day decor! To help get you ready for Valentine's Day next week here are some great crafting ideas that will turn your party, for two or for ten, into the perfect Valentine's Day celebration!!

Cupid's Arrow Cupcake Toppers
Oh no! Your cupcake got shot by cupid’s arrow! This cute decoration is easy to make. You will need lollipop sticks, double-sided tape, scissors, and paper. First cut out the arrow tail, you will need 2 per topper. Next take a piece of tape and add it to each piece of paper. Lay the lollipop stick on top of one piece of paper and then cover with the second one, press the two pieces of paper together to seal the stick in. Finally cut your slits and you have created the end of Cupid’s arrow. Follow the pictures below for more step-by-step instructions from Creature Comforts.

Heart Stamped Utensils
Customize the utensils for Valentine’s Day this year. All you will need are wooden utensils, a mini heart stamp and some paint or ink pad. I found great options for ordering both of these items on etsy, just click on each item for the link. Just stamp each utensil with a heart on each end, or all over the utensil step, to make them ready for use on Valentine’s Day.

Heart Tree Centerpiece
And what would a Valentine’s Day party be without an adorable centerpiece? For the perfect Valentine’s Day centerpiece this heart tree is the perfect solution. To make this tree you will need colored card stock, heart punch or scissors, a glue gun, foam cone, and a candlestick holder. First cut out a variety of hearts, with the punch or scissors, from the colored card stock. Next take your cone and start gluing your hearts on, upside down, from the bottom of the cone to the top. You can vary your colors or sizes based on how you want your tree to look. Once your tree is covered, glue your candlestick holder to create the base and add additional Valentine’s Day garland to complete the look!

Now you are ready to host an amazing Valentine’s Day party! Are you going to give any of these Valentine’s DIYs a try?

xoxo
Megan

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Being a part of the JMU Nation I have seen quite a number of people choose purple as their wedding color. (And with the Raven's having just won the Super Bowl I am sure there are quite a few fans out there that love this color too!) Purple has been associated with royalty for centuries, so why should you choose any other color when it comes to your wedding day? Here are some amazing ides when it comes to creating your own royal wedding.

Purple is one color that will look great in large quantities or as an accent. This is also a color that works all year long. You can find great seasonal fabrics as well as seasonal flowers in this shade at any time during the year.

Dress you guys in purple accessories, your girls in purple dresses and you can wear a classic pair of purple pumps.

Using varying shades or incorporating the ombre look are two great options when it comes to choosing your wedding design look. Have your desserts in multiple shades of purple like these cupcakes or have your cake made using the ombre shading, like I shared with you last week. 

Incorporate more of the purple into your event through the use of uplighting, colored table linens, glassware, and flower bouquets.

One thing that I can guarantee you is that you will not have any difficulty when it comes to finding purple dresses, jewels, table linens or accessories for your wedding day. Purple is a color that is here to stay when it comes to wedding event colors.
 
What do you think of this purple wedding palette? 

xoxo
Megan

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Today is National Pancake Day! While this may not be a true national holiday in the US, for those that live in the UK Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday, is a truly traditional holiday. In the UK they celebrate Pancake Day with a variety of events including the “Great Pancake Race” which begins at the Tower of London and has teams racing across the city competing in a variety of pancake competitions.  In 2006 IHOP started bringing the holiday to the US by hosting their own National Pancake Day fundraiser to help raise money for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. You don’t have to go all out like the Brits to celebrate this holiday, though pancake games and races do sound like fun. This year celebrate with some friends by trying one of these creative pancake recipes!


1. Peanut Butter. Make Elvis’ favorite peanut butter and banana pancakes. Thank you, thank you very much!

2. Chocolate. Add a little with chocolate chips or go all out with some chocolate, chocolate, chocolate (for those that are counting that would be 3 types of chocolate!!) pancakes.

3. Birthday. No matter your age these birthday cake pancakes will have you smiling from ear to ear just like when you were a kid. Who says you can’t have 2 cakes on your birthday?!?

4. Berries. Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and raspberries are just a few of the best fruits used to mix-in and garnish your pancake stack.

5. Pumpkin. For the person who loves pumpkin everything these pumpkin spice pancakes are for you. Enjoy these year-round to satisfy that pumpkin craving.

6. Colorful. Use food color to make your pancakes into your favorite colors. This colorful stack makes me feel like a kid again!

7. Cinnamon Roll. For those that can never decide what to eat for breakfast just combine two dishes to get cinnamon roll pancakes. I never said it was going to be healthy.

8. Nutty. Get a little nutty by mixing in some crushed up nuts into your pancake batter, like these toffee nut pancakes.

9. Veg Out. For those that want a healthy touch try mixing in some pureed vegetables into the pancake batter like these zucchini pancakes. 

10. Pancake Art. Have a little fun when you are making your pancakes. Create works of art like a Christmas reindeer, winter snowmen, hearts, snakes or other animals for your own pancake delight! This guy’s pancakes are amazing!!

So grab a few friends and get ready to make a few flapjacks to celebrate! After all today is your last chance to eat rich, fatty foods before Lent starts tomorrow (which is how it all began). What is your favorite pancake recipe?  

xoxo
Megan

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Happy Monday! This past week my friends and I were finally able to get together for our monthly theme dinner. We were supposed to celebrate a few weeks ago, but have been having so many random days of snow that it got postponed until this past week. For January we wanted to get a little festive in ringing in the New Year so we chose to make dishes that are considered “lucky” for the new year. It wasn’t until I started searching for something to make did I realize that most every culture around the world have dishes that they ring in the New Year with. There were so many options!!

I found two great articles, one my Martha Stewart and one by Lauren Salkeld on Epicurious, that share some great knowledge on lucky foods for the New Year and inspired a lot the dishes. The most common foods that you will find on these lucky menus are grapes, greens, fish, pork, legumes and cakes.

I decided to choose the lucky dish of fish, or more specifically cod. Fish is one dish that is associated with celebrating the New Year in multiple countries: Italy, Denmark, Poland, Germany, Sweden and Japan to name a few. I was also going to try and bring some fish scales, the German’s place a few in their wallets for good luck, but my fish came pre cleaned (thank you WholeFoods!). You can make your own “lucky” baked fish with this delicious recipe I used from AllRecipes.com.

We also had grapes (Spain), black eyed peas (Southern US), sesame soba noodles (Japan), and pana cotta with pomegranate syrup (circle foods; Turkey). Everything was so delicious and by the time we made it to the desserts I was so full (but still managed a few bits of the pana cotta).

Do you have a favorite “lucky” food you like to fix to ring in the new year? Next month we are going French! Any suggestions?

xoxo
Megan

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When it comes to planning the menu for a Mardi Gras party you just cannot pass up on having a king cake. Now the king cake comes from the French and Spanish traditions of the “king cake parties” celebrated during Carnival season, what we now call Mardi Gras. When the explorers from these countries settled in the Gulf Coast they brought with them the traditions of the Carnival celebrations, including the king cake.

Since this tradition began in the United States the king cake has evolved and is made many different ways, with different fillings and have adapted the holiday colors of purple, green and gold. This year instead of buying a king cake (what fun is that?!?) you should make one. Here is an amazing recipe to make King Cake knots.

Ingredients
     - 1 loaf refrigerated French bread dough
     - 3 Tbsp butter, softened
     - 1/4 cup sugar
     - 1 Tbsp cinnamon
     - 1 cup powdered sugar
     - 4 tsp milk (may need more to get right consistency)
     - 1/2 tsp vanilla
     - colored sugar - yellow, purple, green

To make, first preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  On a clean cooking surface unroll the French bread dough into a large rectangle, about 16 x 12 inches, and brush the dough lightly with the softened butter. Next mix together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle it over the butter.  Cut the dough in half lengthwise and then cut crosswise into strips about 1 1/4 inches wide.  Twist two strips together and tie each strip loosely into a knot, stretching gently if necessary. Finally place each knot on baking sheet about 2-inches apart and bake for 25-28 minutes. When finished cooking place on a cooling rack and allow to fully cool.

While the knots are cooling you can make the icing. Mix the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla together with a mixer.  When cooled, dip each knot into the icing and then sprinkle with colored sugar.

And as custom dictates whomever finds the trinket in their slice (or knot) buys (or makes) the king cake for the next occasion. If you want to make a more traditional version, AllRecipes.com has a great Mardi Gras King Cake recipe that you can try.

What is your favorite Mardi Gras dish?  

xoxo
Megan

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