valentine’s day printables

We have cutesy kid-and-adult-friendly DIY Valentine’s for…all the hot mama’s, the stud{s} in your life, all the cutie’s and for those who make you giggle! Some are healthy and others are not, but they are all adorable, and for Valentine’s Day, that’s all that really matters, right?

The original and new files {revamped with stripes} are available for a $3 purchase here.

DIY Adult Valentine’s

you are one hot mama
{fill the bag with hot tamales, fold over the custom tag and staple closed}

happy valentine’s day stud muffin
{fill the bag with a homemade poppy-seed muffin, fold over the custom tag and staple closed}

Poppy-seed Muffin Recipe
Makes 12 muffins
recipe adapted from our wonderful mom

Add the following ingredients to a large bowl and mix:
2 cups flour
1/8 cup poppy seeds {a used a little more, but less than 1/4 cup}
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter

Add 2 eggs{1 at a time} to the above ingredients and mix well

Add 1 cup plain yogurt and 2 tsp. almond extract and mix into the rest of the mixture.

Put the muffin mixture in baking cups and bake in the oven on 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes {It took me about 18 minutes}.

DIY Kid Valentine’s

i think you are quite a cutie
{fill a bag with clementines, fold the custom tag over the top of the bag and staple closed}

friend, you make me laffy
{fill the bag with laffy taffy for your silly friends, fold the custom tag over the bag and staple closed}

The original cutie file {the orange bubble}, can be bought here.
The original laffy taffy file {the blue bubble} is available too.

{images via j. sorelle}

party like a champion today

First let us just state, we have nothing against Alabama. Second, we’d like to congratulate Alabama and Notre Dame for making it to the BCS Championship game 2013. Third, rah, rah for Notre Dame!

We grew up in a household of Notre Dame fans. It started with our grandpa, and it worked its way down to us. As we grew older, we had come to know about and love the Catholic school, its traditions…and their football team.

Why you ask? Because…

  • Still to this day, every time we watch Rudy, we weep with tears of joy. Something about that movie makes ND a place of such hope and dreams.
  • My parents took us on a trip to South Bend for a Notre Dame football game…there is nothing like it. It’s pure magic and an unbelievable feeling of family and pride.
  • On a college visit to Saint Mary’s College, located across the street from Notre Dame University, I also toured ND. It’s such a beautiful campus and a place of special traditions.
  • I attended the Fiesta Bowl in 2006 with my mom and grandparents when Notre Dame played for the Tostitos crown. Not only will I always remember a fun trip with my mom/grandparents, but at that point in my life, I admit, I really loved ND because I was in love with Brady Quinn.
  • ND reminds us of our grandpa {who will be watching every minute of the BCS game}.

 So, on Monday night, you know we will be cheering the Notre Dame Victory March…

Rally sons of Notre Dame:
Sing her glory and sound her fame,
Raise her Gold and Blue
And cheer with voices true:
Rah, rah, for Notre Dame
We will fight in ev-ry game,
Strong of heart and true to her name
We will ne’er forget her
And will cheer her ever
Loyal to Notre Dame

Cheer, cheer for old Notre Dame,
Wake up the echoes cheering her name,
Send a volley cheer on high,
Shake down the thunder from the sky.
What though the odds be great or small
Old Notre Dame will win over all,
While her loyal sons are marching
Onward to victory. 

Whatever the outcome, we hope it’s a good game, we hope you watch it…and of course, we hope you ‘PARTY LIKE A CHAMPION.’ Here’s some ideas to get your started…

1st Quarter – Drinks
A variety of wine and beer, including Guinness, and Jameson too!

For a fun football touch {and favor}, make your friends a ND turf koozie. Tutorial for an Astroturf Koozie can be found at Little House in the Big D.

2nd Quarter – Apps
Guacamole and Chips
Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip, recipe by Paula Deen here
Chicken Nachos {lite}, With Style and Grace recipe here

3rd Quarter – Dinner
Tailgate Club Sandwich Bar, designed by Courtney from Pizzazzerie at Forrent.com

Chili Bar, Chris from Celebrations at Home

4th Quarter – Dessert
Football Pennant Cookies, tutorial at Forrent.com via Courtney of Pizzazzerie

Football-shaped desserts, such as football-shaped brownies and football chocolate covered strawberries, that we featured in a previous post here.

And, when the fighting Irish win, cheers with a Luck of the Irish Whiskey Cocktail from the Cooking Channel

 Don’t forget about decor…here’s our gold and blue {ok, mainly gold} inspiration board.
 

Tell us, who are you rooting for?

{images via Cooking Channel, Forrent.com, Little House in the Big D,  Celebrations at Home, beer printable: Bird’s Party, diy confetti art: Mint Love Social Club, gold pom pom: Plum Party, play like a champion today sign: ESPN,  metallic hot cocoa bar with free printables: Hostess with the Mostess, gold-dipped wine glasses: Babble, sparkly ‘midnight’ NYE party: Hostess with the Mostess, metallic gold mason jars: Lovely Little Details}

salute 2013

New Year’s Eve is almost here…and it’s time to bust out the bubbly. Our personal favorite is Prosecco. This year, try to find a way to infuse ‘bubbly’ into at least one {if not all} aspects of your party. We’ve gathered a few last-minute ‘bubbly’ ideas for your celebration.

Hanging Bubbly Balls, tutorial at Martha Stewart

Sophia Champagne in a Can Favor, Style Me Pretty

Champagne Jello Shots, Perpetually Engaged

Champagne Ice Cream Bar, Damsel in Dior

Confetti Champagne Flutes, tutorial at Pizzazzerie

Grape Champagne {and year predictor} Skewer, see details at Noble Pig

Champagne Bar, Tutto Bella, shoot by Pink Champagne Events
see full shoot here

{images via A Blissful Nest, Martha Stewart, Style Me PrettyPerpetually EngagedPizzazzerie, Damsel in Dior, Noble Pig, Laura Murray Photography}

peppermints on pizzazzerie

Today is such an exciting day for us here at Tutto Bella. Courtney, the talented and adorable woman behind the wildly successful entertaining site Pizzazzerie, featured our Peppermint Wonderland photo shoot today. Check out the post here.

We spent some time last week broadening the potential for our peppermint candy serving tray we featured last year, and we’re thrilled the results. Not only can you create a tray for your holiday party, but now you can create a frame and coaster too. See all the fabulousness and tutorial at Pizzazzerie.

And, it gets even better. We are thrilled to offer the set red and white chevron stationery from the shoot at our etsy store for a special holiday price. Click here to view and order.

Happy Holidays!

Thanks to the wonderful team we worked with to create the Peppermint Wonderful…

Location: Mom and Dad’s House {thanks mom and dad}…yes we pulled this off with 4 kiddos running/rolling around
Photography:
 Meredith Moran Photography
Marquee Lights: Saddleshoe Signs
Tabletop Accessories and Stationery: Fleur de Lis, a paperie

Mustache and Bows Baby Shower

So sorry for the lack in posts…it’s all for good reason, we promise. Jodi welcomed a sweet baby girl two weeks earlier than expected. She is so beautiful, and we are so blessed!  Mom and baby are fantastic…dad too! 🙂

Speaking of adorable new babies, Kristen, just had a lovely baby shower that we’re so happy to share with all of you…thanks to wonderful pics by Meredith of Meredith Moran Photography.

From Casidy of Meohmy Design: “Since we didn’t know the gender of Baby Abell we wanted to come up with a fun and cute theme that’s a little different than the normal grey and yellow. We used mustaches + bows as our starting point and created the shower around that. We kept the color scheme mostly neutral (whites and greys) but added in the color pop through the mustache and bow details…straws, food cards, etc. Instead of playing traditional shower games, we wanted to leave Baby Abell with warm wishes; a cool and unique keepsake for the parents and for the child as he/she grows up. Favors sometimes get tricky but we didn’t want the guests to leave empty-handed. So, we kept within our theme and made little stickers saying “Kristen’s about to pop” that were stuck onto bags full of sweet kettle corn.”

VENDOR LOVE
Photography: Meredith Moran Photography
Styling and Paper Goods:  Meohmy Design
Cake Designer:  Nothing Bundt Cakes
Bakery:  So Perfect Eats

{images via Two Bright Lights and Meredith Moran Photography}