Dance Session1 Group

What a ride! I had a blast with my 4-5 year olds and 3-4 year olds. They all worked hard and were super-cute to work with. I learned a lot from them and hoped they did as well!

Here are some pictures from the 4-5 year old Session.

Stretching after a great dance session!

The Class!

For more information please visit: http://creativeatmadance.blogspot.com

Valentine's Treats for Kids

Created by none other than our very talented Executive Product Designer, Amy!

She created these valentine's bags, 22 of them, for her girls to give to their friends. 

I made the Valentine Bling Rings using the glitter chenille pipe cleaners to give them more pizazz. Instructions can be found at Mom On Timeout: Bring On The Bling Valentine Ring {Craft Tutorial}...

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Quackin' 2nd Birthday Party

I wanted to throw a party that reflected something my baby girl could actually relate to - not just the typical princess or dora theme (though there's nothing wrong with those either;). Ever since she was little she's loved ducks so I thought it would be fun to make it a duck-themed party and add some pink to the standard blues and yellows. We also call her our rainbow - so we found some fun ways to tie that into the theme.

I wanted to create reusable party favors so I bought these wooden bags, painted them blue, added the duck and the rainbow and had her Aunt personalize them with the children's names written on the cloud of the rainbow. They were filled with homemade chocolate duck lollipops, a rubber duck, bubbles (blue for the boys, pink for the girls), and a duck LED keychain that went 'quack quack' when you pressed the button.

I found a duck-themed calendar and used the images from there to accent the walls.

Amy from Amy's Sweet Cakes made the 'bathtub' cake with a rainbow on top.

The birthday banner was designed and made by us.

The food included items like 'chickadees' and table was accented with yellows and blues.

All in all - I think everyone had a quackin' good time!

Peacock Themed Tablescape - Winner

We recently had the opportunity to compete in Bay Bella's 'Best of' the bay competition in the 'Wedding planner/decor' category. We did not know what to expect or what we were up against! We ended up winning in the 'Alameda County' competition.

My inspiration came from a recent event i did that was peacock themed. I love these birds and their jewel-toned colors (even my website is peacock themed)! I really wanted to do something unique and spent hours searching both online and off for the perfect design elements. Choosing the colors to focus on was the most difficult task as there are so many options when it comes to peacock colors. Once the linens were finalized, the rest seemed to fall into place.

I decided to showcase 2 options for the table settings and the chairs. I did this by alternating the two and was able to keep the harmony of the table in tact. I used bangles to bring in an ethnic accent and lots of glitter for pop.

Stuart Rentals provided all the linens, chairs, and china. Jenna and Michael were both very supportive and are always great to work with.

Amys sweetcakes created these sumptuous cupcakes adorned with butterflies decorated in of course peacock colors.

Peacock Themed 25th Anniversary/50th Birthday Party

This was a really fun event to put together.  The daughters of this couple were super sweet and you could tell how much they wanted this event to be perfect for their parents.  Creative Atma managed & planned everything from A to Z and even played photographer and waitress (on top of being coordinator) for the day.

The event was held in their backyard. We started by renting a 20x30 tent that comfortable held four 60" round tables. We purchased fabric from a wholesale type of store and found beautiful shades of blues and greens. I had a turquoise fabric with paisleys on it which we used to frame the entrance to the tent. Tables were draped with white linens and had turquoise overlays on top. We covered the poles of the tents with the green and blue fabric.

Centerpieces were simple but elegant. We found the blue-tinted vases at the dollar store! I used 3 roses and 2 peacock feathers as well as some accent branches in golds & greens. My favorite part of the decor was the menu cards. They were turquoise on black with the menu printed on vellum. They were accented with ribbon and gems and we placed a peacock feather between the vellum and the bottom layers. Each of the 40 guests had personalized matching table cards with their names handwritten on them. These were done in the opposite of the menu cards: black on turquoise with gold writing. These were embellished with a ribbon that said 'Eat, Drink & Be Married.'

The food was catered by Turmeric Restaurant in Sunnyvale, CA.  Chef Bhargave was great to work with and had many creative suggestions for the menu. We hired Blue Salud for our professional waitstaff as it was a sit down dinner. The guys were sweet, timely, and professional and were great to work with.

One of the most memorable giveaways I have seen to date - the girls, their mother, and their family all contributed stories, pictures and articles of memories with Gopal, their Dad, in honor of his 50th birthday!  They spent countless hours compiling, editing, and formatting everything into a magazine which they designed as a Times Magazine with his picture on the cover. On the back side they grayed out his hair and it just showed what a great sense of humor this family has!

Sahana and Rashmi - thanks for giving me the opportunity to be a part of these joyous milestones for your family. You are by far one of my favorite clients!

Pirate Themed 4th Birthday Party

We hosted a Birthday Party for my 4 year old son and of course I had to go all out with my decor. I think we could have done even more - but he loved it all the same!

Little buccaneers had to pass several tests before they could enter the fort. First they had to walk the plank. I took an old piece of wood and wrote 'Walk The Plank' on it. It was supported on one side by garden bricks and the patio stairs on the other side. Once they crossed the water (blue fabric under the log) - they had to find 5 gold coins in the sand pit (a wagon filled with sand with the coins buried inside). Then they had to get past the Master Pirate (a big inflatable Pirate).

I had the living room streamed with flags and chinese lanterns that were spray painted red and gold to create a ship-like feeling. We hung a pirate flag over one of our paintings and used that as a base for the birthday banner.  His name was personalized using powerpoint, clipart, and by downloading a pirate font. The cake was shaped as a pirate ship. Amy of Amy's Sweet Cakes created this delicious cake.
Capt'n Daddy helped carve out an awesome watermelon ship complete with sails and canon balls (grapes). The rest of the food was also themed (popcorn and white cheddar sticks as bones, goldfish, capt'n crunch cereal).

No party is complete without a Pirate Pumpkin Head surrounded with red and black licorice and chocolates in skull martini cups.  All the kids were handed eye patches, pirate vests, and pirate hats as they entered. They left with a treasure box filled with stickers, a telescope, a pirate bouncing ball, a kazoo, play doh, and a set of cards.

Sunburn Folk Remedies

I recently got sunburned (only the second time in my life) and I thought that I'd post some information on remedies.  As we're nearing the heat of the summer, I thought this information may be relevant to some of the brides out there who love the sun! My personal favorite is Aloe - I grow some in my garden and use it for cuts, burns, and moisturizer!

Courtesy of Health911.com
http://www.health911.com/remedies/rem_sunb.htm

Sunburn

Prevention

Prevention is the best remedy here, if you can. Long-term results from excessive exposure to the sun, such as skin cancer and wrinkled skin, can be avoided with proper precautions. One of the best preventatives is to use a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 that offers protection against both UVA and UVB rays. You can get as much sun sightseeing as baking at the beach, so use sunscreen whenever you are outdoors.

Use an aloe vera lotion containing a sunblock. This will cut out 90% of the burning rays and allow 75% of the tanning rays to reach the skin.

To speed healing take the following supplements for a few days after getting burned: 1,000 mg of vitamin C, 400 I.U. of vitamin E, 15 mg of beta carotene, and 1-2 tablespoons (or about 3 capsules per teaspoon) of flaxseed oil, an essential fatty acid.

Caution: don't ever cover a sunburn that is blistered or open with an ointment, oil, salve or butter, for it will make the area susceptible to infection.

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Remedies

Folk

Aloe Take as many leaves as necessary from an aloe plant; refrigerate; peel off top layer of leaves; apply the side of the leaf with flesh exposed directly to the sunburn. Other remedies use aloe vera juice: for mild to medium sunburn, keep the affected area moist with aloe vera juice. Repeat frequently. This will reduce the pain and the amount of peeling. Aloe vera ointment works well, too, as it contains oil and will not evaporate. For a severe sunburn, keep the area moist at all times with aloe vera juice. Since aloe vera is an astringent, you may want to use aloe vera ointment or some sort of oil, such as olive or baby. Aloe is very effective in relieving pain and inflammation.

• Combine aloe juice with ½ the amount of vitamin E. Dab on the sunburn. Vitamin E is a good moisturizer.

Apple cider vinegar Apply apple cider vinegar to the burn with a cottonball, or make a cooling compress for a large area to relieve the pain. Keep the skin moistened. This remedy will prevent blistering and peeling.

Aspirin Aspirin kills the pain and reduces inflammation and redness of a sunburn. It short-circuits the whole sunburn process. It must be taken within 24 hours of getting sunburned. Aspirin is preferable to ibuprofen or acetaminophen because it is less stressful on the liver and kidneys.

Baking soda Dissolve some baking soda in water and make a compress using a clean cloth. Another remedy is to add 1/2 cup of baking soda to a tepid bath and soak. Instead of drying the affected area with a towel, let it air dry. Baking soda is cooling and will help the skin retain moisture.

Baths Add 20 drops of each of lavender and chamomile essential oils to a tubful of cool water and soak for 10 minutes.

Bergamot Add bergamot oil to cool bathwater.

Calendula Put 20 drops of calendula tincture in four ounces of water and bathe the skin until the pain goes away. Calendula is also available in gels and salves. Calendula will help soften and heal burned skin. It is anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial, and can be used long after the burn to heal the skin.

Cucumber Rub sunburned area with fresh cucumber slices. They are very cool and will soothe the area.

Epsom salts Dissolve epsom salts in water and make a compress using a clean cloth.

Ice Apply ice or cold water to the burned area. This will stop the burning process and cool the skin.

Lavender Mix 20-25 drops of lavender oil in one cup of water and bathe the sunburned area.

Lemon water Mix the juice of three lemons into two cups of cold water and sponge on the sunburn. The lemon will cool the burn, act as a disinfectant, and will promote healing of the skin.

Milk Make a compress of whole milk (or buttermilk) and apply to the burned area for 20 minutes; repeat every two to four hours. Wash the milk off so you won't smell sour! The fat content of the milk is soothing for burns.

• A similar remedy suggests using a cup of skim milk and four cups of water, adding a few ice cubes, and applying as a compress as recommended above.

Oatmeal Put some oatmeal in tepid bath water, soak for a few minutes, then air dry yourself.

Oil Cover the area with cooking oil and sprinkle powdered ginger on the oil. This will promote healing.

Onion Bruise an onion and rub on the burn.

Peppermint Apply peppermint oil to the sunburned skin. You can also make a mild peppermint infusion and use it as a wash to cool the sunburn.

Potato Grate a potato and apply it to the burned area. The starch will cool and soothe the burn.

St. Johns Wort Make an ointment or salve with the essential oil of St. Johns wort for burns that have not broken the skin. It is anti-inflammatory, antiviral and antibacterial. Caution: St. John's wort makes the skin more photosensitive, so stay out of the sun if you have used this remedy or if you are taking another form as an antidepressant. The cauton is courtesy of a reader named Wendi.

Shower Take a warm shower to draw out the heat of your sunburn. The warm water will increase circulation to the area while hydrating it, thereby speeding the healing process.

Tea Make some tea, cool, and apply to the burn. While any tea may be beneficial, mint tea, such as peppermint or spearmint are especially good. The teas have tannins that help the healing process.

Urtica urens Put 20 drops of urtica urens tincture in four ounces of water and bathe the skin. This remedy is good for itchy, prickly skin.

Vinegar See Apple Cider Vinegar remedy above.

Witch hazel Make a decoction of witch hazel and apply with a compress.

Yarrow Native Americans used an infusion of ground yarrow as a wash.

Yogurt Apply plain yogurt with live cultures, let it stand for a few minutes, then rinse off under cool water.

• Another remedy using yogurt is to mix equal parts of yogurt and mashed strawberries and apply to the sunburned area for 15 minutes. Rinse with cool water.

Caution! You may have sun poisoning if you experience chills, fever, or get blisters or a rash. See your physician!