Cactus Themed baby shower

Today we are showcasing another gorgeous Life’s Little Celebrations shoot from Issue 2 of our e-mag Celebrating Little One’s – this time a gorgeous cactus themed baby shower styled by Silk and Cedar Events in Melbourne

They collaborated with a range of Life’s Little Celebration members to bring together this dreamy ‘Perfect pair’ cactus themed baby shower. I hope the images inspire your own baby shower planning or other celebration planning with its unique details!

All the vendor details are listed at the end of this post:

Vendors:

Stylist and planner – Silk and Cedar Events

http://silkandcedarevents.com.au/

Photographer – Marzena Photography Melbourne

https://www.marzena.com.au/portraits

Stationery and Artwork – ELK prints

http://elkprints.com/blog/

Venue – Mont Du Soleil

http://www.montdusoleil.com/contact.html

Flowers – Forget Me Not Floret

http://forgetmenotfloret.com/

Macrame cake, cactus cake, donuts and tarts – Taylor Made Gourmet

https://www.taylormadegourmet.com.au/catering

Pink ruffle cake and macarons – My Cake Studio

http://mycakestudio.com.au/

Perfect pair cake topper – A La Roch

http://www.alaroch.com.au/

Cookies – Petite Cookies

http://www.petitecookies.com.au/

Balloons + props – Tracey, Simply Beautiful Decorations and Balloons

https://www.facebook.com/simplybeautifuldecorationsandballoons/?ref=py_c

Partyware – Favor Lane Party Boutique

https://favorlaneparty.com/

Fairy Floss – Fluffy Crunch

https://www.facebook.com/fluffycrunch.au/

Hair and make up – Miss Aimmey

http://missaimmey.com/

Hope you enjoyed this truly gorgeous and unique baby shower! Contact any of the vendors above to source your own elements for your next celebration!

It’s a flamingle!

This is one kids party theme which never fails to be popular! Flamingos are the perfect theme especially for the warmer months and we have all your flamingo party inspiration, flamingo party decor and more from members of Life’s Little Celebrations! (Interested in membership? If you’re an Australian small business then email lifeslittlec@gmail.com for more information. )

This is a theme which could be styled in many ways – whether you go bright and tropical or with a more pretty feel. Here is some inspiration to get you started:

Flamingo Party – Opulenticity Party and Buffet Styling

Flamingo party – Paper Face Party

Flamingo party – Saffy and May (Qld)

Flamingo Party Invitation and Stationery

It all starts with an invitation which you can then follow through into any other party stationery. Love these fun flamingo party designs:

Flamingo invitation – Giggles and Grace

Flamingo invitation – Eve & Co Stationery

Flamingo invitation – Emma Smith Event Stationery

Flamingo Backdrop – Giggles and Grace Designs

Flamingo party decorations

Go bright and add touches of pink to bring out some Flamingle party fun in the styling and decorating of this kids party theme! Mix and match Flamingo partyware with colour specific party decorations or tropical partyware to give this party some real flamingo flair!:

Flamingo balloon – Ruby Rabbit Partyware

Flamingo foil balloon – Little Boo-teek

Flamingo pinatas – Party Pony Designer Pinata’s

Inflatable pink flamingo – Little boo-teek

Flamingo garland – Confectionately Yours

Flamingo bunting – Sugarlicious Parties

Flamingo for hire -Tiny Tots Toy Hire Sydney

Pink party fans – The Party Parlour

Flamingle balloons – Little Boo-teek

Flamingo balloons – Favor Lane

Giant wildberry balloon – Emiko Blue

Table and props – Petite Events Hire (Sydney)

Cart hired from Tiny Tables and Chairs (Melbourne)

Flamingo Party Tableware

Go pretty and pastel or bright and bold when it comes to the tableware for a flamingo party! We’ve rounded up some great finds you can use together to add some Flamingo touches or items to match in with a fun colour scheme!:

Flamingo plates – Little Boo-teek

Flamingo plates – Confectionately Yours

Tropical tableware pack – Party Kit Co

Sambellina stripe plates – Emiko Blue

Paper Eskimo pink plates – The Party Parlour

Flamingo straws – Ruby Rabbit Partyware

Flamingo drink coasters – Favor Lane

Pink glitter candles – Emiko Blue

Flamingo partyware – Merc and Jones

Flamingo candles – Ruby Rabbit Partyware

Flamingo Party: Cakes, Desserts and Cake decorating accessories

The little finishing touches can really help theme your party! Flamingo toppers and cake toppers can add a true flamingo feel to even the simplest of desserts!:

Flamingo toppers – Merc and Jones

Fuschia flamingo toppers – Ruby Rabbit Partyware

Cupcake toppers – Whimsy Chuffed

Flamingo cake topper – Communicake It.
Cake by Minnie’s Sweet Creations. Styled by Paper Face Party

Gold flamingo cake toppers – A La Roch

Flamingo cake and cupcake toppers – That Little Creative Co

Flamingo topper – Kaivalya Designs

For your Flamingo cakes and desserts, here are some of the amazing creations by Life’s Little Celebration members. Visit the Directory to find one in your state!:

Flamingo cake – Quincy Lane (Sydney)

Flamingo cookies – SweetP Cakes & Cookies (Qld)

Flamingo cookies – Vivalicious Sweets (Melbourne)

Flamingo cake – My Petite Sweets (Perth)

Flamingo cookies – Frosted by Nicci

Flamingo macarons – Arelio Sweetbox (Sydney)

Flaming cookies – One Sweet Chick (Sydney)

Flamingo cookies – Petite Cookies (Melbourne)

Flamingo Party Favours:

Finish off the party with some cute flamingo party favours for the kids in colour themed favour bags!:

Flamingo glasses – Ruby Rabbit Partyware

Flamingo necklaces – Merc and Jones

Flamingo party lollipop favours – Glitter and Glue Designs

Flamingo torch – Cotton On

Flamingo bag – K-mart

Flamingo pen – Seed Heritage

Sambellina stripe boxes – Emiko Blue

Sambellina scallop box – The Party Parlour

So are you ready to get your flamingle on? Remember to click any of the above images to be taken to that business to source the item you need and get your tropical party planning happening!

Beat the Festive Season Frazzle! 5 Ways to Get Organised for Christmas 2017

Christmas has a habit of sneaking up, doesn’t it? You’re cruising along feeling like you have all the time in the world and next thing you know, you’re elbowing crowds of shoppers out of the way on Christmas Eve. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Three months might seem like a long time from now but October is the perfect time to start planning for the festive season.

Read on to discover 5 ways to beat the Christmas rush this year thanks to Melbourne event planners Silk and Cedar Events & stationery designer Emma Smith Event Stationery:

Planning a Christmas event? Book it in NOW.

If you’re planning an event anywhere between October to the end of January, your number one priority is to lock in all the details now.

Venues and event vendors book months in advance especially during peak periods such as Christmas / New Year so planning early is the best way to secure your favourites. The Christmas peak season starts in mid-November and runs through to January. Keep in mind that some vendors close during mid-December to the end of January of if you’re planning a party in these months, book early to avoid disappointment.

Events can be time-consuming and stressful to organise – especially in November and December when life tends to get frantically busy.

Choosing a Melbourne event planner to take care of your Christmas celebration or end of year function is the perfect way to reduce festive season stress.

Handing over the reins to a professional event planner gives you the time and space to enjoy watching your vision come to life with someone else juggling the catering, styling and all those little details that make an event truly memorable.

Choose a Stationary Designer to give your Christmas correspondence that special touch

Ditch generic Christmas cards this year and book a Melbourne stationery designer early to create a custom design to reflect your style. Or perhaps you require a complete stationery suite including Christmas party invitations, menus, place cards, tags, welcome signs and seating plans. A good stationery provider can assist with the current trends for this festive season and can design to any specification, theme and colour scheme.

Family portraits are a gorgeous way to personalise your Christmas stationery so be sure to book in a session with your preferred photographer now.

Mailing your Christmas cards early is important whether they’re for family and friends or corporate clients. Families go on holidays and businesses close for the Christmas period so send your festive greetings three weeks before December 25^th to ensure they’re received in time.

We #love a Christmas wish delivered by snail mail!

Travellers Take Note!

If you’re heading away this Christmas, here’s a handy list of things you don’t want to forget:

– Book your flights and accommodation
– Pay for visas
– Check if travel vaccinations are required and book them in with your GP
– Remember any medications that may be required for the trip including prescriptions or travel sickness aids
– If you’re travelling on wheels, book your car in for a service and get the tyres checked
– Make a list of the Christmas presents needed and don’t forget to pack them! Pop spare Christmas cards, tags and wrapping paper in for unforeseen gift emergencies
– Keep the kids occupied with a special snack and goodie pack for the journey

Christmas Gifts: make a list and check it twice!

Christmas can be an expensive time with seemingly endless people to buy for. By planning ahead and budgeting accordingly, you can avoid the stress of last minute over-spending. So make a list of everyone you’ll need to buy for and spend a moment thinking about a gift that they’ll really love. Christmas presents that have obviously been thoughtfully chosen needn’t cost a fortune.

Gift Hampers are a great idea to compliment the dedication and hard work of teachers, coaches and special helpers who have taken care of your family over the year. Gathering other parents to contribute means you’ll have more to spend on an extra-luxe hamper. Pre-order online for a hassle-free gift that can even be delivered.

An excellent way to keep the gift-giving budget down is with a Kris Kringle. Extended families, Mother’s Groups and workplaces can all benefit from the KK tradition by giving each participant only one person to buy for.

Avoid Christmas Day family conflict

Christmas celebrations have a reputation for wreaking havoc on family peace! So how can you avoid it? Planning early is the key to things running smoothly.

Co-ordinating who celebrates where and when can be fraught with drama when there are parents and in-laws and other extended family members to consider.

Make sure all parties have a say in where the celebration will be held and consider a one year on, one year off approach to make it fair for both sides of your family. And to take the pressure off the host, why not ask guests to bring a platter?

This creates a family grazing table which is an informal and more relaxed affair for everyone. Head off tensions between particular family members by setting place cards for your Christmas lunch or dinner.

Large families can simplify gift-giving by having a Kris Kringle, and pre-planning some Christmas activities to keep the kids entertained buys a little extra peace for the grown-ups who traditionally need a nap after all that food!

So there you have it. Some sanity savers in the lead-up to Christmas 2017. And don’t forget, if you’re planning a party and just don’t have the time to handle all the arrangements yourself, a professional event planner and stationery designer are just two of the celebration specialists who are there to make your special occasion perfect!

Business Advice from Miranda Piotrovska of Sweet Sticks

I love hearing from successful business women in this industry – there is always so much to learn from each other! Today we chat to Miranda of Sweet Sticks who is one of our Life’s Little Celebration members and who successfully evolved her business and launched a popular range of Edible art paint. I love seeing the amazing creations bakers and mum’s are making using these paints.

It’s been an interesting journey that has evolved for Sweet Sticks and today Miranda shares more about this business and her advice for other business owners:

Describe your business in 1-2 sentences:

Sweet Sticks is a designer and manufacturer of cake decorating supplies – currently Edible Art Decorative Paint. Selling wholesale and retail worldwide.

When and how did Sweet Sticks come about?:

My previous life was in full time Visual Merchandise management along with a side business selling and manufacturing fashion accessories at the Melbourne markets so when I was pregnant with my first son Jacob I knew I couldn’t keep doing what I was doing as there were a ton of time spent travelling interstate for my day job and a whole lot of extra time spent in my market business. So I did what anyone else would do and turned to google to see what other interests I might be interested in giving a go when I become a mum and so…… Sweet Sticks was born.

How has your business evolved over the years?:

Initially it started with me making cake pops for family and then friends and then friends of friends by before I knew it I was making cake pops as a business.

Back then cake pops were a dessert (and still is) a dessert that a lot of people in Australia do not do as most people had a bad experience making them so then I created an online video class on how to make them.

From there I started teaching around Australia and international which was mega fun.

In the background I was stirring up a science project in making edible paint. The Edible Art Decorative Paints range was created and took off like a hit. Manufacturing the paints is my primary work now and I no longer make or teach cake pops.

Cake by Sweet Tiers using Edible Art Paints

What did you do before starting your business?

My mother passed away when I was 15 so the first thing I did was leave school (hard times for a 15 year old) so I went into full time work and paid my way through fashion school.

From the age of 18 I’ve always had a full time job in either marketing or visual merchandising along with always have a passion for creating my own business. In my twenty years of effort I’ve launched a underwear label, a sleepwear line followed by a fashion accessory range and currently Sweet Sticks.

What is one of your business achievements you are most proud of?:

Probably being recognised and invited to teach at a cake decorating show in Mexico. That was a life changing experience for me personally and professionally.

Cookies by Sugar Sugar Cakes using Edible Art Paint

What do you love about running your own business?

EVERYTHING! I love working my hours around my family, I love having no creative boundaries, I love meeting new people in my field, I love learning each part of business, I love having something that’s my own. Just EVERYTHING!

Cookies by Love in Bloom cakes using Edible Art Paints

How do you keep your creativity alive and the passion for your business going?

This is a long answer but to cut it short – Firstly, I love looking at other unrelated industries for inspiration and wondering how I can create a missing link in my field. I always believe that learning business skills and working on myself personally is just as important as keeping my creativity alive – they all work hand in hand when working for yourself so for me I’m constantly listening to podcasts in business, practising my mediation and yoga regularly and making sure I find outside passions other than my work (currently essential oils – stayed tuned for something there ). When all that is in sync, creativity for my business naturally comes through.

What advice could you offer to other small business owners?:

Most of the issues we have as small business owners is ourselves.

We doubt ourselves, we question our own ability, we seek assurance from others, we compare ourselves to others and sometimes we can say some really bad things to ourselves – i’m not good enough, why would someone want to buy from me, I’m not creative, I don’t know what i’m doing blah blah blah.. We’ve all been there!

My advice would be to invest as much time in yourself as you do for your business. Without a happy heart and mind it’s a constant battle.

Thanks so much Miranda for sharing your gorgeous advice and more about your business with us!

If you’re wanting to find out more about the Edible Art paints, visit the website here.

Pink & Gold Donut party

Today I am delighted to share with you the donut shop party featured in Issue 2 of Celebrating Little One’s Magazine, styled by Enchanted Party Hire

I’ve seen many gorgeous donut setups and often in pastel colours so it was wonderful to see a more unique take on this theme in the popular pink/gold colour trend of the moment!