Is it motivation season yet?

Two of my lovely ladies

Last year my gardens were a disaster. Not kind of bad, not slightly sub par, but a complete disaster. So sue me, I'd just had a baby and kneeling in the dirt was the last thing on my mind. This year I'm hoping to redeem myself...if I can just find the motivation. Looking at photos of my hydrangeas is slightly helpful; although caring for "the ladies" isn't the problem. My tangled wildflower (now mostly weeds) garden is, along with my veggie garden, which was no more than the domain of several rogue cherry tomato plants (weeds all on their own if you ask me).

Perhaps I'll turn to Pinterest and  photos of bountiful square foot gardens for motivation...assuming my attention isn't stolen by photos of luscious chocolate dessert and opulent tablescapes.

A lovely parting gift

Today is the day! I'm moving all of the party talk over to my little side venture's very own blog - PartyOn!
And with Valentine's Day lurking just around the corner, I thought it would be appropriate to celebrate with a lovely parting gift. So check us out at http://affordablepartyplans.blogspot.ca/ and get a free printable Valentine's Day Invitation!

Affordable DIY party planning

SimplySoirees is taking on a life all of its own. So, it's time to give it its own platform. I'm starting a brand new blog that puts the focus squarely on affordable DIY party planning and everything it entails. Get ready to PartyOn! Coming soon.

Hosting a hot sauce tasting party

My husband is a HUGE chili head (this isn't just a reference to his red hair, I promise), and there would be no better way to celebrate his birthday than with tongue burning endorphin rush. So I took what I already know about cookie exchange parties and applied it to hot sauce to create an interactive hot sauce tasting party! So we not only have a hot sauce tasting, but a bit of a competition for guests to get creative about the type of hot sauce that they bring to the party.

Inviting guests to your hot sauce tasting

Not everyone is into spicy food, in fact some people downright hate it, so if you're planning a hot sauce tasting, make sure your invitation tells people exactly what they're in for! That's not to say that the faint of tongue aren't welcome, especially if you're celebrating a milestone birthday. Just be sure to have a few mild options on hand.

When inviting guests, instead of gifts for the birthday boy or girl, ask them to bring a bottle of hot sauce (you may wish to specify craft sauces -in other words, no Tabasco, Frank's, or anything most people have already tried). If they're stuck for ideas, you can always steer them toward one of the dozen websites that specialize in selling interesting hot sauces. Let them know that you will be giving awards for things like the best tasting sauce, the hottest sauce, and most unusual sauce. That's sure to help get their creative juices flowing.

Setting up

On the day of the hot sauce tasting party, set up a table where guests will sample the sauces. You'll want to add tiny bowls, ramekins or disposable shot glasses into which you will decant some of each sauce for sampling. Also, be sure to place dishes of saltine crackers or tortilla chips on the table that guests may use to taste each sauce. If you wish, you can separate sections by Hot, Hotter, and Hottest.

As guests sample, have them take note of each sauce and then vote their favorites. In addition to awarding the best sauces, you might also enjoying giving awards to guests that are best able to handle the heat as well as to those who can't take it at all!

In my next post, I'll talk about turning your tasting into a full blown hot sauce tasting party! Stay tuned.

Return of the roller skating birthday party!

I grew up in California, in the 80's, which means that when it comes to birthday parties, the roller skating birthday party was the best thing ever! Honestly, about 50% of my birthday parties took place at the skating rink. LOVED!

So when I started researching party trends for my shop's new batch of birthday cards, I was completely stoked to see that the roller skating birthday party is on its way back! It seems that that ladies are definitely leading this trend, and not just little girls! Teens and 20-30 somethings have been behind a return of roller derby. Talk about girl power!

Roller Derby girls were definitely my inspiration for the new 

Sk8tr Grrlz roller skating birthday party invitation:

In fact, I love it so much that I'm planning to create a matching printable party pack. Who knows, this could be my 40th birthday theme in a few years...or maybe I'll go with something less likely to land me in emergency.

The #1 tip for planning men's birthday parties

There's no doubt about it, when it comes to adult birthday party themes and party styling, women's birthday parties always come out on top. Chances are it's because the parties are planned for women by women. We know what we're into and plan events accordingly, whether it's a spa theme, shabby chic decor, or the latest book. And if theme ideas are scarce we can always rely on pretty -pretty colors, pretty flowers, pretty designs.

For men however, their parties tend to require purpose. You typically can't just do a citrus-themed party for your guy just because it's pretty.

So we research. Unfortunately, if you've scoured the internet looking for men's birthday party ideas lately you've probably discovered that there are approximately 4 themes to choose from: professional sports, beer/booze, poker, and the now ubiquitous mustache theme. But what happens if your guy isn't into any of those things?
The answer is simple, and my #1 tip for planning men's birthday parties:

Think like the man you're planning the party for

Figure out what your husband/boyfriend/dad/grandpa/etc is into and build a party around that. Practically anything can become a party theme, from mastiffs to mountain biking, muscle cars,  money, and even mustaches. And if you think you won't be able to find things like invitations and party decor to go with that theme, think again. There are invitation designers who can create them for you, many at very affordable prices. So don't be afraid to dream up something that really speaks to your guy.