A Perfectly PEEPS Easter

I came across this quote the other day and it really reminded me to find joy in the small details of life!  Sooo true!

"To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not, rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common--this is my symphony."
-- William Henry Channing (1810-1884)

With that said...Easter is almost here!  And that means PEEPS, warm weather, the Masters, jelly beans, Easter eggs hunts, sweet tea, dandelions, lightning bugs and mason jars, flip flops, coconut scented sunscreen, popsicles, humming birds, picnic baskets, seer-sucker and cotton, honey bees, and being able to play golf all the way up until 8:00 at night!  Even more importantly, it means I am in the clear to now wear my beloved white linen pants without the crazy fashion know-it-alls giving me the stare down! haha!  But MOST importantly, Easter is the day we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ!  He has risen!!

 I have such wonderful memories of  Easter Sunday growing up!  Our mother always made sure the Easter bunny came to visit us and left us three BEAUTIFUL Easter baskets!  Last week, during one of my daily trips to Michaels, I was inspired with visions of "yellow" as I watched a lady unload bulk boxes of PEEPS and just the day before I had seen a yellow parasol at Hobby Lobby!  And so...here it is, a Perfectly PEEPS Easter.

As you know, I LOVE ribbon!  An inspirational color palette of yellow and white brightens up everything around you... sunshine, happiness, and energy!

 

PEEPS....New life is hatching!  

This was honestly the first time I have ever purchased brown eggs.  I was a little nervous, but come to find out, they are the exact same thing! haha.  Supposedly, white eggs are hatched from white feathered hens, and brown eggs are hatched from red feather hens.  The only reason brown eggs tend to be more expensive than white, is that the red hen eats more and therefore, costs more to raise!  Very interesting! haha

 

Thank you Michelle Curl, of Curl Photography, for helping to take such wonderful photos!

 

Take home candy favors really add a personal touch!  You can even make personalized stickers by printing a message on sticker paper.  

 

 

Lemon candy sticks are always a must!  The best part is....you can buy them at Cracker Barrel for 10 cents each!  And they usually have every color!

 

 Justin thinks I am obsessed! While at the bank yesterday, my eyes spotted a basket full of suckers!  When nobody was looking, I managed to grab all the yellow ones (and then made Justin grab some too!)... then felt bad and confided in "Kurt" our friendly banker who likes to talk golf (he also made the St. Patrick's Day post)  Kurt told me to take ALL the yellows, but I told him I'd probably be taking ALL the red ones when July 4th rolls around, so I'll wait!  

We LOVE cupcakes!  I used Betty Crocker's Lemon Buttermilk Cake and Lemon Frosting recipe that I found online. I added a couple drops of yellow food coloring to the frosting to make it extra yellow!!!

 

Perfectly PEEPS Easter wouldn't be complete with the perfectly matching accessory!

See the Perfectly PEEPS Headband in my Etsy Shop!  (also the Shake n' Bake!)

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter!  Enjoy every last detail!

Here's a funny end note that I had to share!  I sent an email to a couple of close friends that the PEEPS photos were up on the blog.  Here is one of the responses I got; guess its something I might have to try? haha 

    Hey Perry,

     

   I LOVE Peeps.  But this is how I like them....buy them and cut open the package.  Let them air out until they become very stale.  Then eat them.  You have to bite into them...then pull and they "snap"!  Call me crazy...you won't be the first.

   Sincerely, M

           

          

Stay tuned.....for a "Perfectly PEEPS" Easter Blog!

I'm so excited to share some of my Easter ideas!  If you love sweets, peeps, and lemonade then I'm sure you love my next blog post!  My friend, Michelle Curl, of Curl Photography, spent the whole day with me last Saturday taking photos and sharing her creative ideas with me!  There's nothing not to like about Michelle and she obviously takes incredible photographs!  I think I have now found a friend who is just as obsessed with crafty details as I am and I'm so excited to get her involved with Perfectly Perrywinkle (if I haven't scared her off already!)  I'm sure we will be collaborating many more creative ideas together in the future, so hold onto to hats (or is it hold on to your seats??? oh well...you know what I mean!)  We had so many wonderful ideas to take some fun pictures outside for spring with some of my cute girlfriends, but the stormy weather decided to rain on our big day.  Unfortunately, I think its here to stay for a couple more days, but that give me a whole extra week to think up some really fancy ideas, right!  But, despite the weather, Michelle and I decided just to make lemonade from lemons...literally! haha  Here is a sneak peak of what is to come!

You know we LOVE making cupcakes around here, so I had to incorporate them somehow!  And I finally had a good reason to use my white cake stand from Williams-Sonoma that Justin and I got as a wedding present last year!  Stay tuned for more pictures from "Perfectly PEEPS" and a future DIY Tutorial on how to make your own "SWEETS" sign!
 

By the way, after we finished taking these photos, we ate ALL the cupcakes!

Michelle was able to get some great photos for the Perfectly Perrywinkle Spring 2011 line of headbands, even though we were limited staying indoors!  With the huge deluge of rain we got, we decided to postpone the complete headband shoot for next Saturday, so I reluctantly "stood in" for the time being, even though I cringe at the sight of my profile picture, yikes!  I told Michelle to crop me out completely, but obviously she didn't get the memo on this picture......zzzz    I'll be posting more photos in my Etsy shop!  We have scheduled a photo shoot for this Saturday with my two gorgeous model friends!
- Tessa, from Titleless Tess , (also see "I love my crafty friends)"  and my longtime friend and bridesmaid, Chris, who was recently on the Golf Channel's "Big Break."  Check out Chris's Bio Video from the Big Break!  So,  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the sun will come out shining! 

Check out Pink Simplicity in my shop!

Be sure to check back in a couple days for more photos!

Legos, Skateboards, and Cupcakes!

I love birthday parties; especially birthday parties with awesome themes like Legos and Skateboards!  My nephew, Brady, is turning 6!  It just seems like last week that Justin and I were babysitting him and he could not even stand up on his own yet.  We could keep him entertained for hours giggling with Bob the Builder!  Now, he and his older brother, Ethan 9, are whizzing around like professional skate boarders.  Ollies, Kickflips, McTwists???  I was WAY out of the loop on the skateboarding lingo. For the skateboarding novices like myself, here is a detailed list of skateboarding "terms" you should know! You never know...there might be a Skateboarding 101 Pop Quiz for a free giveaway one of these days....so study up! haha

Here is Ethan all geared up!  Helmet, Ipod, the full skating wardrobe, right down to the Nike skater shoes!  Maybe if I had gear this cool, I would take up skateboarding too!

Brady's ready to go!  Can't believe he is already 6!

Brady eyeing up his next move!

Both Ethan and Brady are Lego experts!  Their rooms are filled with meticulously constructed Pirates of the Caribbean battleships, Star Wars T-6 Jedi Shuttles, and Imperial V-wing Starfighters!  Therefore, no other cupcake would have been more appropriate than Lego Cupcakes!  I had so much fun making these cupcakes, even though I think I really did eat half of them myself! And, just a few words of advice....Do Not try to make your own "red icing."  I used every ounce of concentrated red food coloring I had and just ended up with hot pink, then hotter pink, then hottest pink icing!  Luckily, our grocery store's bakery will whip up and sell you whatever color icing you need! So I went scrambling at the last minute on a "red icing" run! 

 

Since it is almost impossible to find Lego themed anything unless you order it over the internet (and I don't think that far in advance!), I figured it was just as easy to print these off my computer and attach them to toothpicks!

I feel like I have been around Legos my whole life!  I did grow up with a brother that was the Lego King!  We did not leave the house for any lengthy trips without the "big red Lego suitcase" that looks like it was something straight out of James Bond!  Sometimes, even things that were NOT legos, made their way into the "big red Lego suitcase!"  and I can vividly remember a big snafu my brother, Swen, encountered at airport security on the way to Denver for our annual family ski trip!  Swen was about 10 years old, (which would have made me 7).  We were already in a rush to get to our gate, when he sent the big red Lego suitcase through the security x-ray scanner.  You know somethings wrong when they send it through a second time!  The guy with the rubber gloves approached the big red lego suitcase with a look of concern, (I mean its just legos Mr?)  He pulled out some handcuffs (Swen was a policeman for Halloween that year), a "missile" looking object that when shot in the air returns nose down to stick into the grass, and some fireworks!!!!!!  I guess Swen was just coming prepared for anything!  After they confiscated Swen's big red lego suitcase, I'm glad they even let us on the plane!

I looked online to even see if they still sold the Red Lego Suitcase.  It looks like they only manufactured them  in 1984 and now is cosidered "vintage!"  Wow, that must be the sign that I am getting old!  I wonder if Swen still has his because I could only find four of them for sale?   Awww....I miss that suitcase!

"The Big Red Lego Suitcase"

I love my crafty friends!

Its soo much more fun when I have friends who want to come craft with me!  However, I am really embarrassed to show anyone the mess I have created! (see last weeks post to see the "mess")  I really am pretty organized and actually OCD when it comes to the rest of the house.  I think Justin has given up all hope that one day our house will be completely orderly.

Tessa came over on Saturday and entered into the "war zone!"  We'll see if she comes back a second time, haha!  Tessa and I met last summer and she re-inspired me to start blogging again!  Check out Tessa's blog, Titleless Tess  and her cute blog "My first date with Perry" ;  she is such a better writer than I am....come to find out, she was a creative journalism major in college!  I should've known!

Here is a picture of the two of us seriously discussing the strategic angle of which the pink ostrich feather should appear from behind the Mardi Gras Madness Masterpiece!

It is soo easy to get into a "creative rut" where I just get into a routine of doing the same thing!  I was so inspired by Tessa's creation, Sweet Simplicity!  It reminded me that "more" is not always "better".  Be sure to check the store soon.  I'm sure there will be more "Sweet Simplicities by Tessa" to come!  I'm hoping that one day I can make enough money to pay Tessa to be my full-time blogger!  That would be a dream come true!

Mardis Gras Madness

Sweet Simplicity

Thanks Tessa for such a fun Saturday!  Stay tuned for photos from the Perfectly Perrywinkle Spring 2011 photo shoot...coming soon!

I'll be in my studio, studio!

Since watching last season's "America's Got Talent,"  I have a slight obsession of singing the ridiculous song... "I'll be in my studio!" (probably when I am dilerious from too many hours of crafts)  If you've never heard it, then you are very lucky! haha.  Well, the infamous, Spongetta, sang her original song....but, it was a little limited on the lyrics!  Even better, they brought her back for the finale for the "I'll be in my studio" Remix!

Well, my studio happens to be my kitchen!   But I decided it was time to get a little more organized (or attempt to get organized).  Of course the two major necessities...diet pepsi, the DVR remote control, and a large bag of feathers.

 

Here I am trying to follow the directions!  I will say....I'm pretty handy with the screw driver and hammer!

 

 I LOVE ribbon!  Now I have an excuse to collect even more ribbon!  One day I would love to go to the "Mecca of ALL ribbon stores" in Atlanta, GA,  Nickolas Kniel's Fine Ribbon & Embellishments.  I especially love adding cute ribbons on gifts and favors!  You can really make something go from ordinary to extraordinary with a fancy ribbon!

I'll be sure to post pictures of the final product soon!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I love any reason to celebrate.....thank goodness for the person who invented holidays!!!  With St. Patrick's Day coming up,  I thought it would be fun to bake some fun shamrock cookies.  Also, St. Patrick's Day is my dad's birthday...Happy Birthday Dad!  It works out well that green is his favorite color!

As I was decorating these cookies, I realized that my cookie cutter only has 3 leaves, not 4 leaves.  What a rip off, haha... we'll just pretend these are 4-leaf-clovers.

 

 

I love using royal icing because it dries smooth and hard.  I've found this to be the best method when decorating cookies, especially if you plan to package them as favors. They will hold up very well and won't smudge.  However, if you going to add glittery details and pearls, make sure you add them quickly after icing, because once the icing dries its too late!  Here is a link to Wilton's Royal Icing recipe.

I look forward to one day having a house full of kids and all of their little friends that come with it, so then all of these treats I love to make will be eaten up no problem!  (not for another year or two or three, haha)  For the time being, I love to give them to our hard working trash men that come every Tuesday morning, our mail man Billy that comes everyday around 1:00, and the nice guy Kurt at our bank that likes to talk golf, and last but certainly not least, our two local CVS Pharmacy ladies, Barbara and Natalie, who make our CVS the best in America!  I love seeing the smiles on their faces!  We can never say "thank you" enough!

I added these cute little St. Patrick's Day quotes that I found.


 "Leprechauns, castles, good luck and laughter.
 Lullabies, dreams and love ever after,
 A thousand welcomes when anyone comes...
 That's the Irish for You!"

"A best friend is like a four leaf clover, hard to find and lucky to have!"

The very first quote I came across was supposedly an Irish Toast.....


"May you die in bed at ninety-five years, shot by a jealous husband (or wife)"

Ummmm....I hope nobody toasts that to me! haha  I thought I should use a quote just a little more uplifting...I'll save that one for April Fools Day!

The Perfectly Perrywinkle Touch

I love details!  This is the main reason I wanted to start this blog.  I love entertaining, creating, experimenting, designing, and paying attention to small details that really add my personal touch....the "Perfectly Perrywinkle" touch.  With my first name being "Perry", I grew up with the nick name "Perrywinkle."  My first name comes from my mother's maiden name and I am so proud to carry my mother's family name on.   Planning my wedding was like a detail dream and I loved every minute of it.  I look forward to sharing my ideas, projects, successes (and failures, hehe)  with all of my friends and family.   Here are a few Perfectly Perrywinkle touches from my wedding.    At some point I'll share an entire DIY wedding post!

I married my very best friend!  He is so supportive of everything I do.  Sometimes I even convince him to help me cut, paste, glue, paint, tie, hold, fold, spray.....haha...as long as he can do it while he is watching golf or football on tv.

My niece and cutest flower girl ever, Sienna.  She dominated the dance floor the entire night!  My sister, Ashley,  who is the "Goddess of all things Arts and Crafts", even sewed Sienna's dress.  Check out her popular blog and children's clothing line at www.lilblueboo.com.

 I love everything vintage!  I've always felt I was born in the wrong decade.  I would love to have experienced life in the 30's, 40's, and 50's..... Everyone was dressed to perfection; stylish hats, done-up hair, fancy shoes!  But, I will admit, I pretty much live my life in my black yoga pants and t-shirt!  I'm pretty sure Grace Kelly or Jacklyn Kennedy did not own anything remotely close to black yoga pants or a t-shirt!  So I'm perfectly happy just where I am.  But I am continuously inspired by vintage black and white photos, so I was so excited to finally get a chance to wear a french tulle birdcage veil!  Stay tuned for a DIY tutorial on how to make your own!