Celebrity Photo-Ops

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I’m busy behind-the-scenes here at eWillow.com making projects for the upcoming “So You Think You’re Crafty” all-star round.  In the meantime, I thought I would show you some fun photos.

My uncle is the founder of the Palm Beach Police Foundation, and just about every year my husband and I have the chance to attend the foundation’s fundraising ball.  The ball is held at Mar-a-Lago, which also happens to be the home of Mr. Donald Trump.

It was a fun event!  All of the celebs were happy to pose for photo ops, except for one.  Can you guess who?  Ramona Singer.  I’m not into bashing, but I must say that she was beyond rude.  I don’t think she got the memo that if it weren’t for her fans, she would be a nobody.  I tried several times to ask her about the beautiful jewelry she was wearing, because if you know Ramona, I’m sure it was for sale.  However, everyone except for Donald, was invisible to her.  Hence, the only way I got a pic of her was with Donald in the mix.

(p.s.  the other pretty lady in the pewter dress is my mom!)

Who Needs Twitter & Facebook? Not Crazy Susan!

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Not “Crazy Susan,” that’s for sure!  Did you guys ever hear of or watch “Tough Cookies” on the Food Network over the summer?  If not, you can read about it HERE.  My daughter Erica and I fell in love with this show immediately.  I grew up in southern New Jersey and frequented Ocean City, where the show is based, all the time.  I also come from a large Italian family, so when we watched the show, Erica and I felt right at home.

While we were in NJ over the holidays, we decided to venture downed the shore to check out Crazy Susan in person.  Turns out she wasn’t there, but that didn’t stop us from talking to her “Mack-Daddy,” (you’ll know who he is if you watch the show…Susan’s nephew is married to his daughter) and buying a tray of the most delicious cookies I have ever tasted.

Mack-Daddy filled us in on all the details about how the show “Tough Cookies” came to be, and let me tell you, it was such a refreshing story to hear.  Forget Twitter and Facebook.  Forget all social media for that matter.  All it took for Susan to make it big was a two second Google search by a production team.  Suddenly, her ten years of hard work and perseverance made her an overnight sensation. 

Turns out that there was a need for a summer replacement series for “Cake Boss,” and another show about cakes and/or cupcakes was not what was wanted.  The producers decided they wanted a clean-cut alternative to “Jersey Shore”; something with a large Italian family working together and cooking.  Long story short, the producers Googled “Italian family + Jersey shore + cookies” and that’s how Susan was discovered.  What a delight to meet her!

We met up with her the next day at her stores second location in Vorhees, NJ.  What a delight she is!  She spoke with us at length about her family and her fun life.  The most refreshing part about her is that she really has no idea what is in store for her in the months ahead…but I do!  She is going to be on QVC in a few months, and she has no clue that once she in on there and 90 million people are exposed to her cookies, she’ll have her own cookbook, bake-ware, talk show….you know how it goes.  She doesn’t need a Twitter or Facebook account.  Those of us who seem to think we can’t get from here to there without letting everyone know every move we make can spread the word for her.  😉

Make a Christams Table Centerpiece: Template & Tutorial

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Christmas is only three days away!  I’m sure you are all sitting around with nothing to do, right?  😉  You have to take the time to whip up a few of these centerpieces!  They are so fun to make!  If you have glittery paper, it’s even better; however, regular cardstock works fine, too.

front view:

side view:

Tutorial:

1) Download the template HERE

2) Trace the templates onto cardstock as follows:

**cut two center stands and then glue them together (back-to-back so they turn out double-sided)

**cut eight 3″ x 3-1/4″ squares from a contrasting color and set aside

**cut two box/ribbon pieces and glue them together (back-to-back so they turn out double-sided)

**adhere four squares to each side of the box/ribbon piece

3)  Slide the center stand onto the box and you’re DONE!  (I told you it was easy!!)

Make a Large Christmas Card with a LOT of Bling

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Most handmade cards are made by using 1/2 sheet of 8-1/2″ x 11″ cardstock.  This makes the card end up measuring 4-1/4″ x 5-1/2″.  (Like the size of an invitation.)

One of my clients requested bigger cards this year.  Hmmmm….that is a challenge!  I’m just so used to making standard-sized cards that it is difficult for me to “think bigger.”

What I decided to do was to use a smaller card and just add some additional background elements to make the card bigger. 

I used an entire sheet of cardstock for the card, so the final card measures 5-1/2″ x 8-1/2″.  Yes, it is a lot of paper, but I like the results!

For the bling, I used glittery cardstock, which meant no messing around with glue and glitter.

A nice little touch of bling at the top of the card to pull it all together and balance the colors:

Coming up on Tuesday:  supply list.  There are tons of supplies for this card, but don’t let that scare you!  Promise?

Change of Address Christmas Card: Tutorial (Part III)

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Here is one final version of the change of address cards.  This one is my favorite.  It’s also the easiest to make because for the accent pieces, all you have to do is use scraps of coordinating decorative paper.  No matter what version you decide to use, I’m sure your family and friends will love receiving these cards.  They are meant to give the illusion of a front door.  When they open the card, it’s like you are opening your door and welcoming them into your life.

Join me all next week when I show you how to make a 5-1/2″ x 8-1/2″ card from start to finish, including decorating the envelope.  In the meantime, have a fun and safe weekend while you are out-and-about!  See you Monday.