DIY Sunflower Bouquet for Easter Centerpiece

sunflower eggs_jsorelle

Martha Stewart’s team sent out an newsletter e-mail with information about an Egg Decorating competition, and although they probably had thousands upon thousands of applicants, part of me thought, ‘why not just attempt a semi-creative egg and see how it turns out, and maybe I can enter?’ Well, it turned out to be a fun project for the kids and I on a cold day, and I like the way it turned out.

I know sunflowers do not typically go hand-in-hand with Easter, but the texture with the ground espresso {oh, and the amazing smell} and the bright yellow color lured me in. Maybe you can follow some of the same steps below and use eggs to create Tulips for your Easter table? If you do, pretty please send me photos.

You’ll Need:
sunflowers
hard, white eggs {they are not plastic, but more plaster and do not open}
hot glue gun
a screwdriver {to screw or drill a hole into the bottom of the egg}
green acrylic paint
scissors
ground coffee or espresso beans {they add the sunflower texture}

How To:

egg sunflower 6steps_

1. Find a sunflower you can part with, and remove it from the stem {I was able to just pull mine off}, and remove all the greenery under the leaves.
2. Cut a circle in the center of the flower – I guessed at the size, and when it was too small, I cut it to make it larger.
3. Slide the flower over the egg and put a little tu-tu {otherwise known as sunflower leaves tu-tu} on it. If it fits snugly, fantastic, and if not, add some hot glue to keep it in place.
3.5. {not pictured} Use a screwdriver or nail and hammer to put a small hole in the bottom side of one egg. I did this, with not much muscle strength.
4. Pull all the leaves back and hold them with your hand. Add a generous, but not too heavy, amount of Modge-Podge.
5. Gently rub the Modge-Podge covered egg in espresso or ground coffee beans.
6. Insert a toothpick in the hole, and paint green acrylic paint on the bottom of the egg. Then place in cardboard or styrofoam to let it dry.

Once it’s dry, add the egg flower back to the stem {mine had little stems to keep them in place}.

You will have an egg-stra special centerpiece for your Easter party!!

diy egg sunflower centerpiece_jsorelle

DIY egg sunflower_jsorelle

diy egg sunflower_jsorelle

{images via j. sorelle}

easter baskets

We’ve gathered some of our favorite gifts for the kids Easter baskets this year. Hop to it!

easter_girls basket_jsorelle

FOR THE PRETTY LITTLE LADIES
1. Pink Bunny Coin Purse, Paper-Source
2. Tropical Romper, The Children’s Place {I just bought this for my daughter – LOVE}
3. LIL tOOders Superhero Custom Cape – enter a giveaway for a free cape {including an Anna or Elsa cape from Frozen} here.
4. Melissa and Doug Bright Flashlight, Yo-Yo
5. Sunglasses, Gap
6. Melissa and Doug Watercolor Paint Set, Amazon
7. Bunny Jute Bin, Land of Nod
8. Frozen Snow Wand, Target

easter basket ideas for boys

FOR THE HANDSOME GENTS
1. Aviator Sunglasses, Gap
2. Swimways Torpedo Bandits, Amazon
3.  LIL tOOders Superhero Custom Cape – enter a giveaway for a free cape here.
4. Woosh Frisbee, Amazon
5. Green Puppet on a Stick Pen, Amazon
6. Galvanized Bucket, Pottery Barn
7. Melissa and Doug Habitats Reusable Sticker Pad, Amazon
8. A Camping Spree with Mr. Magee, Amazon

{images via The Children’s PlaceGap, Target, LIL tOOders, Amazon, Yo-Yo, Paper-Source, Pottery Barn, Land of Nod}

15 tips for a egg-tacular easter

Here’s some tips and ideas to make your Easter celebration memorable, beautiful and fun.

1. How Does She has some great non-candy Easter egg fillers the kids are sure to love, without missing the candy too much.

2. Kick up your hard-boiled egg up a cute notch with these adorable chick eggs on HGTV.

3. Give the most adorable favors we’ve ever seen with these ‘grown up’ easter baskets featured at Elizabeth Anne Designs.

4. At the end of the Easter egg hunt, have an egg popsicle treat ready for the kids to devour after all their hard hunting. Full tutorial found at Kailo Chic.

5. These would make adorable and healthy place cards for the kids, or a cute snack to bring to the kid’s school this week. Pottery Barn Kids has a full recipe and tutorial here.

6. Wants and Wishes created a fresh carrot centerpiece, and we couldn’t think of a better holiday for this look 

7. Don’t forget to decorate the outside of your house when your PEEPS arrive for the Easter celebration. Fill an up cycled window box with your favorite flowers. For a tutorial on how to create a beautiful window box, visit Hostess with the Mostess here.

8. Go one step further with your outdoor decor with a GORGEOUS wreath like this made at Laughing with Angels.

9. Find spring floral and brightly colored fabric and cut into triangles to make a spring bunting banner to add inside the house, or outside in the yard.

10. Everyone is talking about the color mint for this spring. So light, airy and refreshing. Add Essie’s Mint Candy Apple {available at Nordstrom} to the tips of your fingers for this Sunday’s celebration. If you really want to be trendy, make it a diagonal stripe with the other half of your nail being a nude color.

11. Make a refreshing spring cocktail your guests will love like this Ginger Goddess, made with SKYY Infusions Ginger Vodka, Kiwi Juice, Pear and Champagne

12. Set your table pretty in pink with a large vase of pink tulips in the center on top of a white table linen and crisp white, modern plates.

13. Think outside the egg when decorating this year’s batch and create Subway Art eggs like Lil Luna did. So creative! Full tutorial here.

14. Add a vintage touch to your table setting – we love all things vintage, so whether is an old birdcage, burlap bags, old wood boxes, antique vases, etc. –  make it happen. Our Vintage Home set a beautiful, simple table with a vintage vibe. Burlap bags found here.

15. I’m a DIY addict, so at least one thing on Sunday has to be DIY. I made Easter eggs with flower petals – and it was SO easy and I think they turned out pretty cute.

You Need:
Hydrangea {or flower with many petals}
Styrofoam easter egg {I found some at Hobby Lobby}
Push pins with a color ball at the end {in my case, I like yellow}

How To:
Pull petals off the flower and the hard small piece of plastic binding it together
Grab a pin, find a spot on the egg and push the pin in.
Continue until the egg is fully covered.


{images via HGTV, Elizabeth Anne Designs, Kailo Chic, Pottery Barn Kids, Wants and WishesBar None DrinksEpicurious, NordstromHostess with the Mostess, Laughing with Angels, spring banner: One Wed, Lil Luna, Our Vintage Home, Tutto Bella}

DIY gift: 6 colorful ways to spring

Today we’re sharing a DIY project that makes a lovely gift to send to a girlfriend, or bring to the hostess on Easter morning. Or, fill the eggs with school-related items {paper clips, eraser, chalk, etc} for a spring teacher gift or kid-friendly items {stickers, candy, chalk, money, etc} beginning the Monday of Easter week, and it would be a fun countdown to Easter morning.

Ingredients:
Plastic Eggs
Nail Polish {purple}
Sunflower Seed Packet {yellow}
Jelly Beans {orange}
Lipgloss {pink}
Gum {blue}
Starbuck’s Via Packet {green}
Hot glue gun and glue
Free Fleur de Lis printable {Like Fleur de Lis on facebook to get the free printable below}
NOTE: make sure all your color coordinated ‘ingredients’ that go inside the eggs are smaller than the egg, so it fits in the egg when closed.

How To:
Line up the eggs in the order you want, then use a hot glue gun to glue them together.
Be sure to place the hot glue dot under the ‘egg’s closure seam’ so you can close the egg and it stays shut.
Add the color coordinated items to each egg.
Place in a bag or use clear cellophane to wrap the eggs and add a bow.
Write a note, and attach the tag and you’ve got yourself a lovely and affordable gift.

To receive the FREE file via email {without the Fleur de Lis copyright on the file}, just like Fleur de Lis on Facebook with Rafflecopter below, and you will receive the file via e-mail within 48 hours.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Spring.

{image via Tutto Bella}

Semi-Homemade Donut with Vanilla Creme Sauce

I love donuts…and my hubby dislikes donuts…but he LOVED the semi-homemade donuts I’m going to share with you today. That’s how delicious they are.

My cousin and life-long partner in crime, Danielle, introduced me to this donut recipe at her kids birthday party several weeks ago. So, I played around in my kitchen today and have some seriously yummy results for you. The donut’s are semi-homemade, so they are easy, and the dipping creme is to die for – it’s not too sweet, but the perfect accessory for your donut.

I made my donut and creme anglaise Easter-themed. Holy donuts…my Catholic mom is proud! But, think of the adorable inner-ring theme possibilities with these – bridal shower, baby shower, initials, a heart, star, etc.

DONUT RECIPE
recipe adapted from Danielle {owner and baker of Mimi’s Sweeties}

Ingredients
Pillsbury Biscuits
Powdered Sugar
Grapeseed Oil

Directions
{Danielle has a fryer, so she uses that; however I do not, so I fried on my stove}.
To make sure the inside of the biscuit is cooked, bake the biscuits in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes. Remove the donuts before they are golden brown on top.
While still hot, use a knife to cut the shape of the inner donut ring. For Easter, I made a cross {you can try to cut the shape of the inner donut ring prior to baking}.
In a medium saucepan, heat grape seed oil {or vegetable oil} to a temperature  between 360 and 275 degrees F.
Place donuts in the oil to fry to a golden brown.
Remove from the oil, place on a paper towel on top of a plate, then while still hot, roll the donut in powdered sugar.

VANILLA CREME ANGLAISE
recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients
2 cups half and half
4 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Red food coloring

Directions
Prepare an ice-water bath {fill a bowl larger than a medium size bowl with ice and water}.
Beat yolks, sugar and salt with a mixer on high until the mixture thickens and turns a light yellow.
In a medium saucepan, add half and half and vanilla. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat.
Slowly add half of the hot half and half mixture to the bowl with eggs, sugar and salt, and mix on low.
Pour the yolk-milk mixture into the saucepan with the remaining half and half mixture and cook on low, stirring constantly for about 7 minutes until thick enough to coat your spoon or spatula.
Add 4 drops of food coloring to the saucepan for a light pink color Anglaise.
Pour in a bowl {original recipe strains mixture into a bowl, however I didn’t have and it turned out ok} and place in the ice-water bath, stirring occasionally until chilled.

{images via Tutto Bella}