ROYAL TART – Forum/Blog

Need a green, inexpensive and easy summer centerpiece for your next entertaining event? How about using all of the citrus and other golden hued fruit available in the markets now? You can make a single fruit centerpiece such as the one pictured with just lemons. Royal Tart used this as a centerpiece in our Provencal Limon Celebration. The impact of a single item can be stunning.

You may also choose to make a multi-fruit centerpiece such as the one Better Homes & Gardens displayed. They suggest using fruits with golden hues such as pears, apples, kumquats, lemons and kiwis. Piled high on a compote or rimmed cake stand, this fruity assembly forms a sculptural table display. Garnish with herbs and tie a ribbon around the stand and you have a quick and fabulous centerpiece to enjoy now and eat later.

Cheers,
Tricia

Delivering Complete Prepackaged Designer Parties to Your Door

Royal Tart cannot take credit for this quick and easy but very touching Father’s Day gift idea but we can share it with all of you.
I met a woman at a party and she told me she had been doing this for her husband since her children were babies. Now she has several years collected.

Take a white dress shirt of your husbands or if he doesn’t wear business clothes take one of his work shirts (one that is classic as you will want to save it from year to year) and dress your child or children in the shirt. Take a picture. Put the picture in a frame and voila a super easy, super fun Father’s Day gift. Then next year do the same and the year after… it’s a Father’s Day gift that keeps going year after year so you don’t have to worry about what to get the father of your babies every year—now that is a gift that keeps on giving. Plus, by the time your children are young adults and they can no longer fit into the shirt you will have years of Father’s Day pictures from each stage of the child’s/children’s life.

If you are inclined to take it a step farther. Have the child/children decorate a frame and place the picture in the frame. My four-year old decorated four Popsicle sticks with various buttons then we glued the Popsicle sticks together to make a frame; inserted the picture and covered the back with construction paper. The result is darling. It will be part of my husband’s cherished pictures for a long time.

Happy Father’s Day.

Cheers,
Tricia

Delivering Complete Prepackaged Designer Parties to Your DoorHappy Father’s Day.

Hi All You Last-Minuters,

Here’s a super easy quick tabletop centerpiece or decoration for your Father’s Day Celebration. Take an odd numbered grouping (3 or 5 depending on the size of your table) of similar tin pails or even plastic buckets (yes, it is the time of year and like many I really like little tin pails). Place some small rocks or sand in the bottom of the pails to weight them. Then insert small flags or pinwheels or flowers into the sand or rocks to create an arrangement. I have seen darling painted tin pails at Target for $1.00 each so not only will this arrangement look great but it is cheap, cheap, and cheap to create.

I think the pails would look so great with Royal Tart’s Dad Rocks Celebration (above) but also with Royal Tart’s Gone to the Beach Party.

The Centerpiece would also look great with Royal Tart’s Fourth of July Party Red, White & Boom.

I hope this super-easy, super quick and super inexpensive party tip makes your entertaining life easier.

Happy Father’s Day.

Cheers,
Tricia

Delivering Complete Prepackaged Designer Parties to Your Door

After everyone has celebrated, wiggled and giggled then it is time for late night noshing and some quieter activities such as a facial—an at-home kitchen facial that is. You can check out thousands of recipes on the Internet or check out below the two different masks that Royal Tart suggests.

THE MASKS:

A COOL CUCUMBER MASK
Your guests will appreciate a cooling mask after all the regular slumber party silliness.

Ingredients:
Cucumbers and plain yogurt

Directions:
The number of facial masks will determine the amount of ingredients needed. We suggest that for every 4 facials you use one cucumber and two Tablespoons of plain yogurt. Add ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Apply mask to your face with fingertips. Leave it on for about 15 minutes. Take lots of silly pictures while everyone is wearing a green mask. Rinse with cold water.

OATMEAL MASK

Ingredients:
Quick cooking oats and water.

Directions:
The number of facial masks will determine the amount of ingredients needed. We suggest that for every 4 facials you use ½ cup of quick cooking oats and ½ cup of water. Make oatmeal according to package directions. When it has cooled place in blender and puree unless you want to look like a lamb. The first time I made this mask I didn’t blend it. The mask worked but I looked like a lamb with little tufts of fur sticking out. The pictures are hilarious. Spread mask over your face and allow it to dry completely. Remove the mask by gently rubbing it off with your fingers. Rinse your face if needed.

Cheers,

Tricia

Delivering Prepackaged Parties to Your Door

Royal Tart has done it again. An easy party blueprint to help you get your dance slumber party started. So put on your dancing shoes and high-kick and shimmie your way to the slumber party. Pick up some how-to dance CDs or check out dance instructions on the Internet. You can line dance (which is always fun), Jazz dance, Jitterbug or do the Twist. After all the dancers are spent enjoy some groovy refreshments. Then send everyone to the middle of the room for a dance off (this may be competitive or not). Once the guests have settled into their sleeping bags slip in a “dance” movie CD such as dirty dancing or Singing in the Rain, etc.

INVITATIONS: The invitations can be printed on record labels and affixed to old 45s or use plain CDs & their cases for a slightly more modern feel. You can also narrow the theme from just a Dance & Slumber Party theme to a specific type of dance/music or a specific recording artist like Madonna or Hannah Montana. In which case you would want to create invitations that match the narrowed theme. For Madonna I would look for old Madonna 45s or CDs and then affix the invitation to the record.

SET THE SCENE: After invitations have been mailed you will want to start collecting dance inspired items for the party. Hang CDs and records from the ceiling (use clear fishing line) varying the lengths. You can even mix records with CDs. Put an old LP on the entrance door. Make dance steps from the front door leading to the heart of the party. If you have room create a dance floor. If you are going to serve a sit down dinner or breakfast use LPs as placemats. If not incorporate them into serving pieces. If you are serving a birthday cake sandwich an LP between the pedestal plate and the cake. Check out Royal Tart’s selection of prepackaged upscale parties if you need party supplies or ideas.

THE MENU: Think of meals and snacks that coordinate with the dance party theme. If it’s a dance party slumber party for older girls I would serve what I think of as “bar or club” food– food like French fires, stuffed potato skins, onion rings, fried zucchini—it may no be healthy but it is only one night.

Regardless of age I would put out a candy buffet or a “Candy Bar” before the dancing begins. Your guests can enjoy such delights as black licorice (or red) as a nod to records, lollipops, Kisses, Smarties, sugar filled straws, really any candy that looks cool in clear glass containers. Hang some CDs and records over the candy buffet.

PARTY FAVORS: You may choose to provide your guests with cute bags or boxes to take home candy from the candy buffet but since they won’t be leaving until the morning you might have time to burn a few dance moves to DVD. Take pictures or better, have your guests take pictures during the dance contest or while they are learning a line dance. Your guests will appreciate the memory and the effort.

So now that you have some directions and inspirations for one super duper dance slumber party put on your boogie shoes and celebrate! Enjoy!

Cheers,

Tricia

Delivering Prepackaged Parties to Your Door

It’s slumber party time! What does that mean? It means all week long Royal Tart is going to share some of its favorite slumber party ideas, party themes, party games, activities and the mostest funnest slumber party food.

SLUMBER PARTY SUGGESTION #1
SUPERHERO SLEEPOVER

There are at least a gazillion variations on the superhero theme. The one I like best is having all the kids design their own superheroes including their own costumes and superpowers. You may ask them to design their costumes and superpowers on paper before they arrive or you can have them design them at the party. Then provide the supplies so that they can craft their own superhero costumes. Think old hats, old pots, shower caps, old clothes, bed sheets or fabric remnants, felt, ribbon, fabric paints or pens, pipe cleaners, paper towel rolls and of course sparkly things like rhinestones and an other embellishments.

The superhero theme sounds like it is best for boys in elementary school but I think it is a brilliant theme for girls of any age. It would be really empowering for girls to create their own female superhero that had nothing to do with the likes of Superman or Batman.

For food you can serve almost anything but I love serving a superhero breakfast in the morning after everyone wakes up. It would be ideal if they donned their costumes and enjoyed a huge bowl of superhero cereal (mix several different kinds of cereal together like Sugar Corn Pops, Fruity Pebbles, Trix & Froot Loops), stunt juice (think green machine or something as interesting looking) and super hero muffins (again think huge muffins studded with bright fruit & nuts). Or go a totally different breakfast route and serve up a superhero brunch with buttermilk pancakes served with several different toppings, eggs and a breakfast meat. I would of course add food color to the pancakes and eggs so that they looked more like superhero food.

For dinner serve different shaped pasta with marina sauce or serve up macaroni and cheese using food color to change the traditional sauce color.

For late night snacks provide Superhero munch with popcorn, skittles, pretzel sticks and pistachios.

When setting the scene start with a superhero inspired invitation. I like the idea of using the words like “pow” and “zap”, etc. Then carry those words through as wall clings, banners and of course on your cake or cupcakes. As for favors you are going to send each superhero home with the costume they made and you can make goody bags with the same words used above.

With these few super suggestions your imagination is bound to run to the ends of the Earth with great ideas. In fact, my chosen superhero power might be, to always have a great idea.

Don’t forget to check back for other Sleepover ideas this week. We will be discussing a girlie girl sleepover with lip gloss, keepsake boxes & friendship bracelets and a morning tea breakfast served with a Royal Tart’s very pretty Flutterby Tea Celebration. We will also be sharing ideas for a dance party themed slumber party and a camping themed sleepover.

Cheers,

Tricia

Delivering Prepackaged Parties to Your Door