CasaSugar

David Tutera's New Year's Eve Entertaining Tips

CasaSugar — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 05:30:32 -0800

When it comes to advice on throwing your New Year's Eve party this week, look no further than party planner David Tutera, who’s planned star-studded events for the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Matthew McConaughey, and Star Jones, to name a few. He's given me a few tips on ringing in the New Year with your cohorts in style.

Create a sexy centerpiece. Tutera recommends using "every glass you own - martini glasses, wine glasses and champagne stems martini glasses, wine glasses and champagne stems - and place them down the center of your table filled with water." Then, he says to "add drops of pink food coloring in varying amounts so that there are different shades in each glass," and float votives in each glass for a colorful, sparkling centerpiece.

To hear a few more of his tips, read more.

Start the year by giving back. Tutera suggests asking guests to "Bring Their Own Donation," such as old blankets for animal shelters and money for saving the rainforest, instead of drinks or dishes.
Ring in the New Year right. Great minds think alike; like Yours Truly, Tutera suggests making your own confetti from scraps of colorful paper around your home. But, in his twist, you should, "add in inexpensive sequins or even small pieces of coordinating fabric and package them in small bags or cones for guests to throw when the ball drops." He also suggests tying "a small bag of hand-made confetti to each champagne glass that you pass out."
A low-cost party game. Tutera suggests creating a resolution board "from a framed mirror to a fabric covered piece of foam core," and placing it at your front door, inviting guests to share their resolutions. I say: save your resolution board and check in with your guests in three months and see how well they've followed through!

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Before and After: A Mirrored Makeover

CasaSugar — Mon, 12 May 2008 04:27:32 -0700

Apartment Therapy co-founder, Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan, recently wrote about a new addition to his dining room that really impressed me with its simplicity. He had a Room & Board Infinity Mirror custom ordered a bit larger than the width of his dining room table. He hung the mirror beside the table and below it, a handsome clock, a little off-kilter. Since it's Small Changes month, I wanted to highlight this simple but effective update, and encourage you to consider it for your home. He wrote that mirrors, "add sparkle, liveliness and a sense of enlarged space in as much time as it takes to hang a photograph," and I whole-heartedly agree. If you didn't catch it, I recently wrote a How-To on opening up a space with mirrors, which gives some tips on this topic, as well as some product suggestions if you'd like to pick up a mirror for yourself. To see what Maxwell's wall room looks like after this small change, read more.

Impressive, right? I'm a little disappointed because I was hoping to see those beautiful blossom branches reflected in the new mirror, but the small lamp does look fabulous. I love how the sparkle of the rectangular mirror works with his country cottage style chairs and round table. And how 'bout that wine rack, huh? Be sure to check out his post for some tips on achieving this mirror DIY in your home.
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Casa Beta: Clorox's Green Works Line

CasaSugar — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 07:15:47 -0800

I was recently sent a variety of products from Clorox's new green cleaning line, Green Works.
To hear what I thought about this new line of green cleaning products, just read more.

While I'm definitely not a loyal Clorox user (I am more of a Method gal), I was impressed with their new green line. The ingredients for all of the products come from renewable resources, are biodegradable, and are free from petrochemicals. Green Works cleaners are at least 99% natural, though some of the products include a small amount of synthetic ingredients, such as the preservative and green colorant.

Since I'm sensitive to most conventional bleaches and other cleansers, I was pleasantly surprised by both the efficacy and lack of fumes from these products. The all-purpose cleaner worked well on most surfaces, with the exception of a wine stain, which required additional baking soda and elbow grease to remove the offending mark from our porcelain kitchen countertop.

Additionally, the glass cleaner worked wonderfully and streak-free on mirrors and glass surfaces, and the bathroom cleaner got the tub sparkling clean. In general, I was satisfied with this new line, and can definitely recommend it to Casa readers. And while Green Works will be priced at about a 20 percent premium to standard cleansers, it should still sell for about 10 percent to 20 percent less than other natural cleaners already in the market.

Casa Verde: Greener Disposable Cups

CasaSugar — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 15:49:33 -0700

While reusable containers are always best, sometimes, when you're throwing a big party, it's hard to get around the use of disposable cups. But now there's a better option.

This past weekend I attended a wedding for a bride and groom who are really eco-sensitive, so I was surprised to see plastic cups on the bar. Then the bride's mother told me that even though the cups, which were used for sparkling juice, wine, and beer, looked like plastic, they were made of corn. Since the bride and groom are already old pros at composting, they knew that there were better options than plastic for their disposable (or should I say compostable) cup needs at the wedding.

These PLA cups compost in two months, and they're reasonably priced, at 1,000 cups for around $70.

I found that the cups I used held up just as well as the plastic variety, but without any of the guilt. Just make sure not to leave these cups out in the hot sun, as they may melt or warp at high temperatures.

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