Dragonfly Beauty

 l love dragonflies.

 I have this really large metal sculpture on 

my wall. I bought it at the Ann Arbor Art Fair a 

few years ago. I think the artist was 

Steve Anderson.

Today I found this real creature on 

my floor. It was no longer alive.

I had to take pictures of it's stunning beauty.

I took this photo with my iPhone.

It looks like a piece of jewelry that
an artist created, doesn't it?

Even the details in their wings are stunning.

I used a closeup lens on my iphone and saw details on

their little legs that I wasn't even aware of.

Nature is so beautiful.

"Ghost Flower" outdoor YARD ART candle lights....cheap and easy DIY how-to instructions.

I saw some similar Ghost Flowers on Pinterest but they had

no instructions on how to make them. So I had to go 

on a learning mission because I had to have some of these

fun candle lighting yard art flowers.

I wanted to be able to make a bunch so they had to be 

simple to make and not cost too much in supplies.

The best features of these silvery Ghost Flowers is

that they are fast & easy to make and inexpensive.

And no painting or hot glue is required.

I'll show you how.

First, these are the supplies I bought at Lowe's:

• silver aluminum screening 

36" x 84" ($8)

• 36" metal rods 1/8" diameter

(with or without threads...each will

be around $2-$3)

• alligator clips (about 50¢ each)

• tea lights (I had some leftovers that I had

purchased at the Dollar Store)

 They are lightweight

and come in a little silver cup and last about 2 hours.

We're going for light-weight here so heavier candles

or candles in glass holders won't work here.

You also have to find some plastic 

pop or water bottles...cheaper and

lightweight is best and as close to

flat on the bottom and inside as you

can find. Usually there is a small bump but

I have a fix for that.

Use some gummy floral tack or candle holder

adhesive in the bottom of the cut off bottle. 

Then set the candle on top of it.

Cut a square of the aluminum mesh about

18" square and round the corners so 

you have a loose circle shape. You don't have

to be exact here. Grab the middle and pinch it

together and clip the alligator clip on it. 

Then insert the clip over the rod.

You could super glue the clip to the rod or

twist it onto the rod if it has threads.

Put the plastic bottle bottom in the

middle and scrunch up the wire mesh around

the bottle bottom.

Now the fun begins.

Maybe you want to wear gloves for this part 

because now you are going to bend and shape

the flower. You can fold down the edges or

roll them over...either over or under. It doesn't 

matter. Free form is what you're going for.

Something graceful and nestling around

the plastic candle cup.

You'll find that each one develops into it's own

look and some you'll like better than others. 

Just like real flowers!

And they glow so beautifully at night!

I want a yard full of them!

Diamond mesh blings up party decorations

Silver has ALWAYS been the single most

popular party accent color.

One time we did an all silver party 

with lots of silver mylar. 

It was beautiful but almost impossible to

take a picture of what it really looked like.

There was so much reflection.

But "Diamond Mesh" is a bit different than

shiny silver mylar with big areas of reflection.

There are no stones in the diamond mesh but

it looks like there are stones in the 

concave round circles.

They really shine.

The tiny silver circles add bling and glitz yet 

blend so well with other items and 

let's them showcase as well.

It cuts with scissors and bends and curves.

We get it in 10 yard rolls that are 4.5" wide.

That's a very versatile thickness and works great

on our octagon bases that are 3 1/2" high. We always

have uses for the extra leftovers.

 It's fun stuff.

Ask us about using some on a design for you.

Or maybe just order some bases. 

The diamond mesh bases make even the simplest

items placed on top look very special. Think about using

model cars, stuffed animals or even flowers.

marlyss@mac.com

Hollywood Movie Centerpieces for that red carpet party.

Hollywood parties are fun with a

variety of ways to present the idea.

You can do oscars, cameras, film strips,

popcorn, clapboards and even the

Hollywood sign itself makes a 

cute centerpiece.

We make a real klieg light out of

foam core that lights up. It can

be a centerpiece by itself or 

part of a larger one like this one

with a large directors chair.

We can make big centerpieces for spots like

the placecard table or sweet/candy table.

marlyss@mac.com

Las Vegas/Gambling or Casino themed parties

VEGAS/CASINO/GAMBLING

What a theme 'LOADED' with possibilities!

You can go the LasVegas hotel route for 

centerpieces and sign in boards.

You can go the gambling route and use

casino games as table centerpieces.

(click to view larger)

You can go with the slot machine route.

Slot machines make cute table centerpieces,

welcome signs or even hold gift cards.

We've made gift card box slot machines with bling for a Sweet 16.

We've also made them for a Monte Carlo casino theme 

and even a wedding.

And...oh yeah....that big iconic sign.

That always works for any variation on

the Vegas theme.

Even 'what happens at ....(wherever)....

stays at ......'

We'll make whatever you would like to make your

party fun and maybe even crazy.

email us at: marlyss@mac.com

Or VISIT OUR TWO WEBSITES for more ideas!

partydecorationsbymarlyss.com

guitarcenterpieces.com

Themed party placecards

Lately we've done some 

unique  and different placecards.

Here's a card stock ice skate we did.

It inserts into a silver foamcore

base with slits for the cards to stand in.

Here's the same idea but with a TV show theme.

The foamcore boards with slits ship easily and

gives you the opportunity to set-up the place

cards ahead of time. Then you can just

carry the board into the party and set it on 

the table top and it's ready to go.

Here's an iTunes (or in this case hTunes)

placecard. The name card itself was not

a separate piece but made to

look like it was. The price of 

$3.16 was the date of the party 

which was March 16.

Of course, tickets of ANY kind are

always a fun idea. You can chose from

one of our previous designs or 

we can design something from

scratch to match your theme.

What can be more custom than

using your own photo for the

placecards. You know that would

be a treasure your guests would keep.

Email us with your ideas and 

we can work up an idea just for you.

marlyss@mac.com

Having a Diner Themed party?

With all the cooking shows on cable tv, it

seems like food and diner themes are 

becoming popular.

I think it makes for a fun party.

Here's some place cards we made 

for  Wally's Diner. They looked like guest

checks and we used a font that looked

like handwriting.

They stood in slits cut into a foamcore topper

with a cute waitress....also known 

as the guest of honor.

For kids centerpiece there were elevated 

and low hamburger and fries centerpieces

made from foamcore and a

Milk Shake Bar sign for them.

 Kids had Open Seating in 

the RESERVED area.

There was also a big D.J. sign

and a candle lighting 

centerpiece made in tiers

with coke glasses with candles.

The candles were held in 

place with coke-colored stones that 

made the glasses looked like iced coke.

And, of course, red checks all over.

Loved that touch.

iPhone/iPod Music Centerpieces & magazine covers

I think a good party centerpiece should be personalized.

This one sure was.

Her name and a personalized magazine 

cover design with words related to her favorites

musical groups and fun and playful wording

like on the bottom corner: "Family Reunited and

It Sounds So Loud." 

Kinda fits a party, don't you think?

Here's another view with the colorful

poufs added around the themed items.

Photos and something curvy like

the ear bud wires makes for

fun and movement in the centerpiece.

These iphones were made from

foamcore and over-sized and 

you wouldn't hear anything out of 

those earbuds...but....hey...it's

all in fun.

That's why we like to make

these funky notes too. A bit quirky 

and whimsical. Color is always

oh so important too.

 The only thing missing is a bit of BLING.

Wouldn't some rhinestones around the

microphone be cute?

Maybe next time.

How to make elf shoes.

Not really too hard to make.

I used an old pair of sandals so the bottom

sole would be waterproof and firm.

Then I cut out the shoe shape from green

vinyl fabric matching the width of the

shoe with the sandal.

I put the right sides of the vinyl together and stitched all 

around leaving the bottom open.

Then I turned the vinyl right side out.

I folded over the bottom of the vinyl about 1/4" and then

used a heavy carpet thread and a strong sewing

needle to hand stitch it to the shoe.

Then I hot glued upholstery gimp trim around

and on top of the stitching.

Then I stuffed the curvy toe of the shoe so 

it would stay upright.

I sewed a bell to each tip and hot glued fluffy fur

around the top.

  

Voila! Sturdy waterproof and durable

elf shoes that were comfortable to wear.

The lovely gold frame design in the top picture was  
compliments of a fellow blogger in France.
http://elfeerique.blogspot.fr/2012/12/mes-ptits-templates-n3-cadeau.html

PEACE. LOVE. LIFE. (party decorations)

Peace.
Love.
And the Important Things in Life.

This is just a wonderful theme. It's so versatile and can

be so personalized to fit the party person.

Here's some ideas from this year.

Coincidentally one was for "HALLE" and
one was for "HALEY".

FOR HALLE:

Here's the logo created by Laura at Party Perfect for 

HALLE in grunge-style lettering.

We made the centerpieces.

Here's the table centerpiece for 
Peace, Love, Laugh.

Peace, Love, Trust.

Peace, Love, Harmony.

You get the idea?
Peace, Love, Adventure.

Each placecard matched a 
centerpiece design.

Here's a bunch of the designs.

www.marlyssandstacey.com

Peace, Love, Out. 
(until next time)