5 Interesting Facts on St. Patrick's Day!

16 more days to go until St. Patrick's Day! Have you started planning for a get together or a party yet? Here are some interesting facts about the holiday and its patron saint in case you are looking for conversation starters!

1. An Irish toast: “The Scots have their whisky, the Welsh have their tongue, but the Irish have Paddy, who's second to none!”
2. The first church founded by Saint Patrick is located at Mag-inis. The ground is considered holy.
3. Believe it or not, the colour of St. Patrick was not actually green, but blue! In the 19th century, however, green came to be used as a symbol for Ireland.
4. An Irish blessing: “May you always have...
   Walls for the winds, A roof for the rain
   Tea beside the fire, Laughter to cheer you
   Those you love near you
   And all your heart might desire.”
5. What's good luck on Saint Patrick's Day?: Finding a four-leaf clover (that's double the good luck it usually is). Wearing green. (School children started this tradition of their own -- they used to pinch classmates who don't wear green on this holiday). Kissing the blarney stone.

A Leprechaun's role in St. Patrick's Day

Do you know just exactly how leprechauns are associated with St. Patrick's Day? We celebrate certain holidays but we may not know where every idea and aspect of the holiday stem from. In this case, I wanted to know how leprechauns came into the picture...

 

How do you perceive leprechuans? The mean looking one on the left or Lucky from Lucky Charms Cereal on the right?

St. Patricks's day, March 17, is an Irish holiday that honors St. Patrick. Leprechauns, little Irish fairies, are also associated with this holiday in Irish mythology and folklore. They are sometimes called the "wee folk". Leprechauns were originally depicted as grumpy little old men only about 2 feet tall. They had pointed ears and beady little eyes. They were said to live in large grassy hills and forests. They were shoe makers and dressed with a hat and a leather apron. According to Irish legend, leprechauns were not very friendly. They lived alone and spent most of their time making shoes. Now the interesting thing about leprechauns is that each of them were said to possess a hidden pot of gold. Leprechauns must always be on guard because as they are making their shoes, the noise of their hammer leads greedy people to them to try to take their pot of gold away.

If a leprechaun is caught, he can be forced to reveal where his pot of gold is hidden. But leprechauns are not easy to catch because they are so fast. And once caught, the captor must keep an eye on the leprechaun at all times or else the leprechaun would vanish and hopes of finding the pot of gold would be gone. Leprechauns were notorious for tricking their captors into looking away so they could vanish and save their pot of gold.

Leprechauns are also said to be very good musicians. They played some of the traditional Irish instruments including tin whistles and the Irish harp. It is said that leprechauns had wild music sessions at night. During these sessions, leprechauns would gather about to dance and sing and drink. The sessions might go on all night. They like to drink Poteen, moonshine. Now the cluricauns are Irish cousins to the leprechauns. The cluricauns are drunken little creatures who wreak havoc at nighttime. Leprechauns and cluricauns are totally different, according to Irish mythology. And leprechauns do not like to be mistaken as cluricauns. In a word, cluricauns are trouble makers.

The cheerful leprechaun that we know today is mostly an American invention that goes well with our celebrations on St. Patrick's Day. Eat, drink, and be merry. Drink all the green beer you can! Shoot the blarney! Sing Irish songs! Have a good time! After all, who wants grumpy little old men running around ruining the fun?

via associatedcontent

St. Patrick's Day Ideas for Teachers

St. Patrick's Day is exactly a month from now! We are counting down to the days. Don't you just love holidays? Holidays are definitely something exciting to look forward to. For now, we are still scoping out for good ideas and tips for you to figure out what you want to do for your celebration.

If you are a teacher, you are in for a treat! We have found classroom ideas from Teacher's Corner for all instructors.

St Patrick's Day Party Activities and Crafts

POT 'O GOLD - Have your students cut small pots out of gold or black construction paper (have cardboard patterns or ready-made die-cut pots available to trace). Have students decorate their pots with gold glitter and coins cut from gold foil! Save these pots to use later for the game described below or decorate classroom with them.

LUCKY CLOVER - Have your students cut clover shapes out of green construction paper (have cardboard patterns or ready-made die-cut clover available to trace). Save these shamrocks to use later for the game described below or decorate classroom with them.

SUGAR COOKIE FUN! - This activity can do double duty - when kids are finished decorating the cookies, they can eat them as a snack! Have a station set up with plenty of sugar cookies cut out in shamrock shapes (if possible - if not, use scalloped or round cookie cutters). On each individual plate, place one cookie and a plastic knife. Provide green and white frosting and sprinkles for decorating.

St Patrick's Day Game Ideas

PIN THE POT ON THE RAINBOW - Paint a rainbow on a piece of poster board or let students paint a rainbow with poster paints. Give each student their construction paper "pot of gold" (made earlier as an activity) to attach. (idea: place velcro on back of each pot) On their turn, blindfold the students, spin them 3 times, point them in the right direction and let them try to "pin" the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

LUCKY TRIVIA - Write trivia questions on the back of shamrocks cut out by students. The questions should be facts about St. Patrick's Day or naming things that are green - depending on age of children. Divide the class into two teams. Place shamrocks in a black kettle (pot). Have students take turns picking a question from the pot. Teams get one point for each question answered correctly. The team with the most points in the end - wins!

POT OF GOLD - Fill a clear container (pot shaped if possible) with gold wrapped candy kisses or other gold wrapped candy. Have each child guess how many pieces of candy are in the container. The student with the closest guess wins the candy!

St Patrick's Day Snack Ideas

SNACK IDEAS - The following snacks are easy to make, and many are simple enough for children to make. Some can do double duty, and work well as table decorations or crafts and then eaten later as a party snack.

LUCKY CLOVER! - Make sandwiches using favorite ingredients and cut out shamrock shapes using shamrock cookie cutters. For a healthier options, cut different foods into shamrock shapes using a variety of sizes! Try melon or cheese.

JELL-O® TREATS - Children always enjoy Jell-O® Jigglers! Cutting green Jell-O® with a shamrock shape cookie cutter is an easy way make a party treat! Or use lemon jello and use circle cutters for gold!

SUGAR COOKIES - This snack can do double duty - as a treat and activity! Use cookies students decorated earlier or bring purchased sugar cookies in St Patricks theme shapes.

IRISH GREEN - Add green food coloring to milk, mashed potatos or any food easliy colored.

Who was St. Patrick?

We have celebrated this holiday ever since around the 17th century, however we never have a complete understanding of how this holiday came about and who St. Patrick is. I searched for information online and found great information for the origin of this Irish holiday and tradition. If you guys wondered who St. Patrick was and why we celebrate this holiday, read on!

St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, is one of Christianity's most widely known figures. But for all his celebrity, his life remains somewhat of a mystery. Many of the stories traditionally associated with St. Patrick, including the famous account of his banishing all the snakes from Ireland, are false, the products of hundreds of years of exaggerated storytelling.

Taken Prisoner By Irish Raiders
It is known that St. Patrick was born in Britain to wealthy parents near the end of the fourth century. He is believed to have died on March 17, around 460 A.D. Although his father was a Christian deacon, it has been suggested that he probably took on the role because of tax incentives and there is no evidence that Patrick came from a particularly religious family. At the age of sixteen, Patrick was taken prisoner by a group of Irish raiders who were attacking his family's estate. They transported him to Ireland where he spent six years in captivity. (There is some dispute over where this captivity took place. Although many believe he was taken to live in Mount Slemish in County Antrim, it is more likely that he was held in County Mayo near Killala.) During this time, he worked as a shepherd, outdoors and away from people. Lonely and afraid, he turned to his religion for solace, becoming a devout Christian. (It is also believed that Patrick first began to dream of converting the Irish people to Christianity during his captivity.)

Guided By Visions
After more than six years as a prisoner, Patrick escaped. According to his writing, a voice-which he believed to be God's-spoke to him in a dream, telling him it was time to leave Ireland.

To do so, Patrick walked nearly 200 miles from County Mayo, where it is believed he was held, to the Irish coast. After escaping to Britain, Patrick reported that he experienced a second revelation-an angel in a dream tells him to return to Ireland as a missionary. Soon after, Patrick began religious training, a course of study that lasted more than fifteen years. After his ordination as a priest, he was sent to Ireland with a dual mission-to minister to Christians already living in Ireland and to begin to convert the Irish. (Interestingly, this mission contradicts the widely held notion that Patrick introduced Christianity to Ireland.)

Bonfires and Crosses
Familiar with the Irish language and culture, Patrick chose to incorporate traditional ritual into his lessons of Christianity instead of attempting to eradicate native Irish beliefs. For instance, he used bonfires to celebrate Easter since the Irish were used to honoring their gods with fire. He also superimposed a sun, a powerful Irish symbol, onto the Christian cross to create what is now called a Celtic cross, so that veneration of the symbol would seem more natural to the Irish. (Although there were a small number of Christians on the island when Patrick arrived, most Irish practiced a nature-based pagan religion. The Irish culture centered around a rich tradition of oral legend and myth. When this is considered, it is no surprise that the story of Patrick's life became exaggerated over the centuries-spinning exciting tales to remember history has always been a part of the Irish way of life.

via History

Partying for St. Patrick's Day

If you want a reason to throw a party, why not throw one for St. Patrick's Day? This holiday is coming up in about a month (March 17th), and it would be a great idea to start planning for it now! We have gathered up some great party ideas for you to steal. 

Four Leaf Invitations
Fold white card stock or construction paper in half to form a card. Create a shamrock from green construction paper by cutting out 4 small hearts and a stem. Glue the shamrock to the front of the card and outline with gold glitter or gold glitter glue.


Decorating
Inflate several balloons in white and different shades of green. Yellow balloons will add some color and represent gold. Hang streamers in rainbow colors from the ceiling and walls, and use green cups, plates and napkins for serving your goodies.

St Patrick's Day Foods
Serve as many green and yellow foods as your imagination will allow. Think green crunchy celery and cucumbers coupled with ranch dressing for dipping. Yellow squash sliced into rings make fun edible “coins”.
For sweet treats, mix white cake batter and a few drops of green food coloring. Make cupcakes and decorate with green tinted frosting, topped off with yellow and white sprinkles. For a different twist, use white frosting topped with yellow decorating sugar. Round cookies can be decorated as coins, or use a shamrock-shaped cookie cutter and decorate with green sprinkles or sugar.

To wash it all down, choose green juice or add a little green food coloring to milk for a fun green drink!

Quickie St Paddy's Day Crafts
Provide your guests with 1 or 2 green chenille stems as they arrive. Form the chenille stems into shamrocks that they can either glue to their goodie bags or take home to show to their family.
Print out some of our St. Patrick’s Day coloring pages. Hand them to guests as they arrive and ask them to help decorate by coloring the pages. When they’re finished hang the pages on the walls for display.

Games to Play
Any traditional party game can be transformed to fit a holiday. The classic game of pin the tail on the donkey, for example, can be made into pin the stem on the shamrock, or pin the hat on the leprechaun. You can also make a typical bucket toss game into a pot of gold toss by wrapping black construction paper or felt around empty coffee cans or similar containers, and have children toss fake gold coins into them. The idea is to stand behind a designated line and try to get the coins into the bucket to win a prize.


Party Favors
Here’s a fun and creative project to put together before the kids go home. Have them decorate their goodie bag when they arrive by using markers, construction paper, glue, scissors, stickers and glitter glue. Be sure their name is on their bag and set them aside to dry while they enjoy the party. When it’s time to go home, fill their decorated goodie bag with their take-home treats!

via Kaboose

Flowers and Valentine's Day

Flower wreaths in the shape of hearts have always been the symbollic gift choice for Valentine's Day. We have found some pictures to share to you. Hopefully these pictures can inspire you to find or make something nice for you valentine this year!

OR..if flower wreaths are out of your budget and your valentine prefers handmade gifts than store bought items, you can consider making a paper heart wreath!

What you'll need:

• 9" dinner plate or paper plate
• Recycled cereal box or other thin cardboard
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Heart pattern
• Construction paper: pink, purple, red, and blue
• Markers, crayons or paint pens
• Glue sticks
• Yarn for hanger (optional)
• Pattern

How to make it:

1. Trace around the 9" plate onto the cardboard.
2. Use your pen or pencil to draw another circle inside that one, about an inch away from the outside circle.
3. Cut out the circle and the center of the circle to create a cardboard wreath base.
4. Fold a piece of scrap paper in half. Using the heart pattern line up the fold line of the scrap paper with the dotted line of the pattern. Cut out the shape so that when you open it, you have a heart shape.
5. Fold the short end of a piece of construction paper up about 3 inches. Place the folded heart around the folded paper and trace the half heart shape into the paper. You should be able to fit three hearts on the paper. Repeat this step for each colored piece of paper; you will have a total of 12 hearts.
6. Cut out all the hearts and flatten out the creases so that the hearts lay flat. Using markers, crayons, or paint pens, you can choose to write conversation candy phrases on the hearts such as "LOVE", "HUBBA HUBBA", "SWEET", "LOVE", "BE MINE", "KISS" and "PAL", or leave it the way it is!
7. Arrange your hearts on top of the cardboard wreath shape without gluing them down. Once you have them where you want them, use the glue stick to attach each one.
8. You can hang the wreath as is or attach a piece of looped yarn to the back as a hanger.

Show your love through crafts: Perfect jewelry box

Valentine's Day is happening in exactly a week! We know that you must have prepared a gift for your Valentine, but do you have a pretty box to put it in yet? Whether it is homemade chocolates, jewelry, cards, candies, or any other Valentine's Day related presents, this simple and classy jewelry box is perfect for anything and it is cheap too!

• Two 3 1/4-by-5 1/4 inch cardboard jewelry boxes with accompanying batting, from containerstore.com
• Decorative faux-lizard paper, from katespaperie.com
• Craft knife
• Bone folder
• Ruler
• Paste-style glue, such as Yes Paste
• Foam craft brush 
• Red art board (a heavier weight than card stock)
• Satin fabric
• Tape
• Gold banding border and gold paper, from blumchen.com
• Gem candies

Customize Box

Separate the box halves; you'll use the bottoms and 1 piece of batting to make the box. Print box template; cut out. Trace template twice onto decorative paper; cut out pieces. Using bone folder and ruler, crease papers, following the dotted lines on template. Apply glue to the back of 1 box half using brush; center it on back of paper. Using glue and following the guidelines on template, cover box half in paper. Repeat to cover second box half.

Create Lip and Box Insert

Add a lip to the box bottom: Cut 4 strips of art board equal to the lengths of the box's sides and all 1/4 inch wider than box's depth. Glue strips along sides inside 1 box half. For a better presentation, raise the box floor (optional):Cut a long, 1/2-inch-wide strip of art board. Fold it as shown, and secure it to box floor with glue.

Make Satin Cushion

Cut a rectangle of art board to the same dimensions as batting. Cut a piece of satin fabric 1 inch larger on all sides. Stack fabric (right side down), batting, and art board (all centered). Wrap fabric around layers, securing it first at the corners and then on sides with tape. For a more pillowy look, leave a little give in the fabric.

Add Flourishes

Apply 4 thin strips of gold banding border along the edges of box top using glue. Repeat, adding strips along sides of box top and bottom. Cut a small heart from gold paper, and affix it to the center of box top. Place cushion inside box, and fill box with candies.

via MarthaStewart

Chinese New Year sayings

It is the year of the Rabbit soon! 

For those of you who are going to celebrate Chinese New Year on February 3th, we have a treat for you! In case you forgot or completely do not know any of the Chinese New Year greetings in Mandarin, we have found some phrases for you to practice to show your friends and family how cultured and prepared you are for the wonderful Chinese New Year festivities! Join us in learning a little bit of Chinese. 

Happy New Year - xīn nián kuài lè - 新年快樂

Happy New Year (another saying) - gōng hè xīn xǐ - 恭賀新禧

Congratulations and Prosper - gōng xǐ fā cái - 恭喜發財

Wishing you prosperity every year - nián nián yǒu yú - 年年有餘

(Said if something breaks to ward off bad luck) - suì suì ping ān - 歲歲平安

Replace the old with the new - chú jiù bù xīn - 除舊佈新

Good luck for the year - nián xíng dà yùn - 年行大運

Origin of Chinese New Year

Do you know how Chinese New Year came about? We weren't quite sure ourselves, so we performed a small research to find out all there is about this holiday. 

The Origin 
Chinese New Year is the first day of the lunar calendar, so it is also called the Lunar New Year. And it is also referred to as the Spring Festival since it is the beginning of the Spring term, which is the first term of the 24 terms on the lunar calendar.
 
It was recorded that Chinese started to celebrate Chinese New Year from about 2000 BC, though the celebrations were held on different times under different emperors. They started to celebrate Chinese New Year on the first day of the lunar calendar based on Emperor Wu Di's almanac of the Han Dynasty.
 
Legend says the celebrations of Chinese New Year may be related to a beast known as Nian. The beast Nian came out to eat people on new years until an old man found a way to conquer it. Then people started to observe and celebrate Chinese New Year. The word "Nian" now has the same meaning as Chinese New Year, which is used as commonly as Chinese New Year. And people often use the term "Guo Nian", which may originally mean "passed or survived the Nian". Now everyone loves Guo Nian.
 
The lunar calendar is represented by twelve animals. Each year is represented by one animal. The twelve animals in order are: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, ram, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. The Chinese zodiac is also based on the 12 animals.

Traditions and Activities

Preparation 
Usually the preparation starts a month before the new year. The preparation includes thoroughly cleaning and decorating the house, buying new clothes, preparing enough food for at least two weeks. The decorations are highly symbolic with a lot of lucky words, printed paintings and red colors everywhere. Kids are busy in shopping for different kinds of firecrackers. Everyone gets a haircut before the new year. So everything and everyone looks new and fresh on the new year.

New Year' Eve
The New Year's Eve is the time for families. The New Year Eve's dinner is the biggest dinner of the year, much like Thanksgiving dinner in the United States. The dinner is full of symbolic meaning, such as Chinese dumplings implying wealth since they have the shape of ancient Chinese gold or silver ingots. Everyone, even children, drinks a little Jiu (usually hard liquor), which symbolizes longevity since Jiu has the same pronunciation as longevity in Chinese. Then the family chats while watching national TV shows or listening to radio together until the coming of the new year. In China, the national TV shows have been prepared for a few months by a group of famous entertainers.

Firecrackers 
Firecrackers are set off as soon as the new year arrives. You can hear or see firecrackers everywhere and this usually lasts for a few hours. Some people will continue to play firecrackers occasionally through out the first half of the first month. Traditionally fireworks are the sign of getting rid of the old and welcoming the new. Fireworks are now banned in China, so this tradition is history.

 

 Red Packets   
Giving Hongbao or red packets during Chinese new year is another tradition. A Red packet is simply a red envelope with money in it, which symbolizes luck and wealth. Red packets are typically handed out to the younger generation by their parents, grand parents, relatives, and even close neighbors and friends. 

Dragon and Lion Dancing

Dragon and Lion dancing is another tradition of Chinese New Year. Traditionally, two people wear a huge lion or dragon costume and dance. The lion dance dates back to the Han Dynasty (205 B.C. to 220 A.D). It is an important tradition in China. Usually the dance is part of festivities like the Chinese New Year, grand openings of businesses, and weddings. If well-performed, the lion dance is believed to bring luck and happiness. Let your children jump, bounce, hop and leap with a lion dance costume to help bring happiness and luck. Also, the lion head makes a unique Chinese New Year's decoration.  

via Party Details

Food for Luck- New Year's Eve

Cultures around the world have different beliefs that eating certain types of food will symbolize good luck for the next year. We have tracked down these interesting practices-- maybe you can try eating some of these food and see if your luck becomes even better!

In many Asian countries, long noodles are eaten on New Year's Day in order to bring a long life. One catch: You can't break the noodle before it is all in your mouth.

Due to pigs' dining habits, many countries, including Austria, Cuba, and Spain, view pork as a good-luck food. As pigs root for food, they keep their feet planted and push their snouts forward, signifying progress and future properity.

Thought to resemble coins, lentils are eaten throughout Italy for good fortune in the new year. Plus, the legumes plump (with water) as they cook, symbolizing growing wealth.

In North America, Asia, and Europe, people eat fish to celebrate the new year. In some countries, people associate fish with moving forward into the new year since fish swim forward. Other people think fish symbolize abundance since they swim in schools.

via delish

Classy New Year's Eve party ideas

Christmas has passed...now time to prepare ourselves for a grand new year's celebration! I have found some cute ways to celebrate this year's new year and party into 2011 with style. Some of these ideas are also great because you could recycle your Christmas decorations to make these!

Make Some Noise- Rattle in the New Year by dropping a few pink peppercorns, popcorn kernels or jelly beans into clear plastic ornaments.

Use those lights- For a festive New Year's night, hang strings of Christmas lights from the ceiling about a foot apart along a blank wall, using extension cords to plug each into an outlet. Hang semi-sheer fabric in front (not touching the lights) to create a light wall.

Blue Eyed- We never need an excuse to eat candy, which is probably why we loved those potted lollipops from Dylan Lauren (of Dylan’s Candy Bar). For a wintry version, just fill a small pot or planter with white gumdrops (or yogurt-covered candies) and “plant” some rock candy sticks. Your New Year's guests will love snacking on the candy all night.

via Rachel Ray mag

Cupcake Frenzy! Christmas Holiday edition Part 2

Hello again to Cupcake Frenzy Christmas edition! I hope you all tried out our part 1 of Christmas cupcake baking ideas, and are ready to tackle this one! I wouldn't say that this second batch of ideas are hard to implement, they are all relatively easy to try out! 

Since we don't want you to have to worry about baking three dozen cupcakes the day before the big family Christmas dinner, you can bake the cupcakes a week in advance and freeze them. However, do not decorate them until the night before. You have have your children or friends help you with this as a fun Christmas Eve activity! Remember that most of these cupcakes are Vanilla or Chocolate cupcakes, iced with Swiss Meringue Buttercream, which is perfect for spreading thin layers or sculpting into thick mounts of icing-- whichever you prefer.

Snowman Cupcakes

Snowman Cupcake How-ToThis snowman wears a fine winter hat: a chocolate-covered mint beret. His plump figure is two marshmallows -- cut a slice off the top one and squish to make it smaller. Dabs of icing hold parts together. His eyes are chocolate sprinkles (poke holes first with a wet toothpick), and his nose is cut from a gummy fish.

 White Christmas Tree Cupcakes

• 12 waffle cones (2 to 2 1/2 inches wide and 4 to 5 inches long)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, perferably Dutch-process
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Frosting for Christmas Tree Cupcakes
• Fine sanding sugar, for sprinkling

Serve this snowy dessert this holiday season. Cupcakes are shaped like trees, covered with Snowy Frosting, and sprinkled with sanding sugar. Save some sugar to create beds of "snow" for serving. Makes 1 dozen!

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Invert two 9 1/2-by-3-inch disposable round foil baking pans. Using a craft knife or a paring knife, cut six X shapes in bottom of each, spacing them evenly, to make 1 1/2-inch openings. Fit a waffle cone snugly into each opening, standing the cones upright. Line each cone with parchment paper, and then place a dried bean or a hazelnut in bottom to prevent batter from leaking. Place pans and cones on parchment-lined baking sheets. Line a 12-cup mini-muffin tin with paper liners.
2. Whisk together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla in a medium bowl. With a mixer on low speed, gradually add egg mixture to flour mixture, beating until just combined. Raise speed to medium, and beat for 3 minutes. Carefully pour batter into cones, filling each two-thirds full. Spoon 1 1/2 tablespoons batter into each muffin cup (these will be the tree bases).
3. Bake until a skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 15 to 18 minutes for cupcakes and 35 minutes for cones. Let cakes cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove cakes from cones and parchment. Let cool completely on the rack. (Cakes can be wrapped in plastic and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days before assembling.)
4. If necessary, use a serrated knife to trim top of each cupcake to create a flat surface. Place a dab of frosting on top of each cupcake, and position a cone cake on top. Insert toothpick through each cupcake base and into "tree" to support it (remember to remove toothpick before eating). Place frosting in a pastry bag fitted with a small star tip (such as Ateco #3) or a small plain 1/8-inch tip, and pipe frosting decoratively all over tree. Sprinkle with sanding sugar. Trees can be refrigerated, uncovered, for up to 6 hours before serving. 

Snowflake and Wreath Ginger Cupcakes

• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 1 cup unsulphered molasses
• 2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
• 1 recipe Butter Glaze
• 1 recipe Chocolate Glaze
• 1 recipe Meringue Buttercream

Use large cupcake papers and two jumbo muffin tins to bake these cupcakes. They are glazed with either a chocolate or butter glaze and then piped with meringue buttercream. Makes 10!

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 10 jumbo muffin tins with paper baking cups, and set aside. In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil. In a bowl, combine boiling water and baking soda; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, ground spices, salt, and baking powder; set aside.
2. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter until light. Beat in the brown sugar until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the molasses, baking-soda mixture, and flour mixture. Beat in the eggs.
3. Fill the cupcake papers three-quarters full, making sure that the batter is divided evenly. Bake cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center of them comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let cupcakes cool a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.

via Marthastewart.com

Christmas trees around the world

I wondered what christmas trees all around the globe looked like and how different people decorated them, so I went on to search for pictures of these trees. CBS News.com had some great pictures in their photo gallery. They had pictures of christmas trees in the United Arab Emirates, the White House...and all the way to Tokyo and China. Take a look at these Christmas trees and see if you become inspired to decorate your own tree in any way!

The Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

The White House in Washington

New York City

 Strasbourg, France 

 Prague, Czech Republic

Tokyo, Japan

Shanghai, China

Sydney, Australia

Brandenburg Gate at Berlin, Germany

Stockholm, Sweden

Christmas Decorating DIY ideas

If you want to decorate your home with something more than a wreath, here are more crafts work steps to follow to achieve chic and affordable holiday decorating.

Card Garlands

The season's first greeting cards, arriving weeks before the family tree goes up, are enough to stir most people's decorative impulses. This year, festoon mirrors with Lametta tinsel and use the sparkly wire to display your collection of cheerful tidings. Under the garlands, nestled in compotes, ribbon-lined candy pouches make sweet, simple party favors.
Steps to making Card Garlands

1. Lametta tinsel -- thin, flexible wire covered in shiny tufts -- is available at crafts stores or by mail order. Narrow ribbon and twine work, too; use metallic finishes for maximum shine. Drape several strands across a mirror; affix to back of frame with thumbtacks. Hang cards with 1-inch double-ring paper clips.2. Our pouches recycle 2- to 3-inch-wide ribbon scraps. Align ribbons; we paired sheers with solids so the treats would be visible. Trim ends with pinking shears, and stitch together lengthwise. Cinch one end of pouch with narrow ribbon or yarn, slip in mints, gumdrops, or peppermint sticks; tie other end.

Everlasting Garland

 Steps to making Everlasting Garland

1. Measure the length of your mantel, and multiply by 1 1/4; cut ribbon to that length.
2. Using a ruler and a pencil, mark ribbon at regular intervals. (We marked the ribbon every 6 inches for the larger garland.)
3. To create swags, mark a second ribbon at regular intervals, with spaces at least an inch greater than that of the first ribbon; leave several extra inches on ends. Make creases on second ribbon wherever marked.
4. Apply hot glue to top of first crease, and attach it to the first ribbon where marked, holding crease at a 45-degree angle across width of first ribbon; hold in place just until glue sets. Repeat. (For additional swags, repeat step 4 with more ribbon, and use hot glue to attach swags at creases.)
5. Trim ribbon ends at an angle.

Paper Evergreens

Step 1 For large Christmas trees, use an adjustable circle cutter to make 2-, 3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-inch-diameter circles from green card stock (for small trees, omit the 6-inch circle).

Step 2 Fold each circle in half 4 times with a bone folder. While circles are folded, snip off the tip of each piece, forming a very small hole in center.

Step 3 Place smallest circle on the pointed end of a wooden skewer (we used 12-inch skewers), letting the tip poke through the hole in circle. With a hot-glue gun, dab underside of circle, where paper and skewer meet. Hold for 10 seconds to secure.

Step 4 Working 1 at a time from smallest circle to largest, slide remaining circles onto skewer; secure with glue.

Step 5 Insert bottom of skewer into a spool; remove, and cut skewer to desired height (we cut ours to 6, 9, and 10 inches), keeping in mind that only spool should be visible beneath standing tree. Return skewer to spool; secure with glue. Add a dot of glue to top of skewer, and attach a gold bead.

Have fun crafting!

via Martha Stewart

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Gift wrapping ideas for Christmas

Tis the season to be giving! We don't like wrapping our gifts in the conventional way. We like it unique and different to switch it up for this year's Christmas! Here we provide you some great ideas for this year's Christmas gift wrapping.

 

Recycle holiday cards as labels for presents. With a pencil, kids can draw (or stencil) the recipient's initial onto a card, and cut it out. Punch a hole in the letter, and tie to gift with yarn or ribbon.

 

Gift tags are all the sweeter when they happen to be crisp cookies. To make them, cut gingerbread dough into shapes or letters, punch with a small hole for threading with cord, and bake. The cookies can be eaten while the unwrapping takes place, or hung on a tree as ornaments.

Who doesn't love tinsel? Here's another way to use it: Twist wired tinsel into six-pointed stars. Cut three pieces of tinsel, two of equal length and one a little longer. Twist equal pieces together at centers, and wrap third piece onto the two twisted pieces, forming a star. Bend end of longer piece into a hook, and attach the star from the ribbon on a gift. Or hang as an ornament on a tree.

via Martha Stewart

A Red and White Christmas Day!

Christmas would be very classy if you do it with just the colors red and white. Look at these pictures of clean and well decorated rooms that can inspire you to do the same. Enjoy!