Surfing Party Ideas

I know summer is winding down and it's time to start thinking about going back to school, fall parties, and even Halloween { my favorite holiday! } But, I have been collecting ideas for a surfing themed party for some time now and wanted to share them with you. The colors are fantastic and I love the fun in the sun carefree vibe that comes from a surf party.


{ Image } The Homespun Hostess via Pizzazzerie

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{Image } HWTM

{ Image } HWTM

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{ Image } Retro Planet

{ Image } The Party Wagon

{ Image } The Party Wagon

{ Image } Half Baked - The Cake Blog

{ Featured Party } Ballerina Bakery Party

Get ready for a treat! Now that I have a little girl ( yay! ) I have been paying closer attention to all the sweet little girl parties out there. So when I came across this Ballerina Bakeshop party from the creative girls at Icing Designs, I definitely took some notes! My favorite details are the pink ruffle garland, the handmade bakery case, the adorable pink bakery boxes for the girls to take treats home in, and the peppy toppers on the marshmallows from Potter and Butler . You can create your own Ballerina Bakery party with invites and accessories from Icing Designs on Etsy. You can also see more photos and details here and here. Just LOVE it!

Free Baby Shower Printables from HWTM

Jenn from Hostess With the Mostess is offering up her adorable Vintage Sweet Shoppe baby shower collection as free printables!! How great is she?!! Here is the link. She also offers a baby boy version along with party and styling tips here.

Lemon Meringue Pie Shots

I am a big fan of dessert shots. They are cute and offer guests an alternate portion size. I made these chocolate pie shots for my cousins baby shower last year, and they were a huge hit! I was delighted to come across the lemon meringue pie shots below on Honest Cooking. They would make a perfect light summer dessert don't you think? And, what hostess doesn't love a dessert that can be completely or partially made ahead of time?!

{ Image } Honest Cooking

Ingredients
Lemon Curd
■8 egg yolks
■3/4 cup (1,75 dl) sugar
■1/2 cup (1,18 dl or 1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
■zest of 2 lemons
■1/2 cup (1,18 dl) lemon juice
Italian Meringue
■8 oz (227 grams) sugar
■2 oz (57 grams) water
■4 oz (113 grams) egg whites
Assembly
■30-35 vanilla wafer cookies, crushed
■24 shot glasses (I found these plastic ones at a party supply store)



Instructions
Lemon Curd



1.Combine the egg yolks, sugar, butter, lemon zest and juice in a medium stainless sleet or glass bowl, and set over a saucepan of barely simmering water.



2.Whisk constantly until lemon curd thickens and reaches 175 degrees F.



3.Remove from heat and let cool, whisking every few minutes to aid cooling.



4.Cover with plastic wrap so the plastic touches the surface of the curd and chill for a few hours or overnight, the curd will continue to set up as it chills.



5.This can be made in advance, you can store it in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks or freeze.



Italian Meringue



1.Cook the sugar and water together in a small saucepan over high heat until it comes up to 243 degrees F.



2.When the mixture reaches about 230-235 F, begin whipping the egg whites in a stand mixer on medium-low speed until they are foamy.



3.When the sugar reaches 243 degrees F, remove from heat, and pour very slowly in a steady stream into the whipping egg whites.



4.As soon as all the sugar is incorporated, turn the mixer onto high, and whip until completely cool.



Assembly



1.Place a small amount of crushed cookie into the bottom of each shot glass.



2.Transfer your lemon curd to a pastry bag and pipe a small amount into each glass.



3.Top each glass with more crushed cookies.



4.Transfer your meringue into a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip and pipe a big dollop on top of each shot glass.



5.Using a kitchen torch, carefully toast each meringue top until they are golden brown. If you are using plastic shot glasses, be mindful just to toast the tops of the meringues, otherwise you run the risk of melting the plastic.



6.Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Zoku Quick Pop Maker

We love making our own popsicles at our house, but my kids usually drive me crazy waiting for them to freeze. Are they ready yet? Are they ready yet? Are they ready yeeeeeet?? You get it, right?! Well goodbye whining, and helllllllo Zoku! This nifty gadget makes popsicles in 7-9 minutes. Amazing! And, the recipes sound quite delicious...marble cheesecake, key lime pie, and just peachy, to name a few. You can purchase the Zoku Quick Pop Maker here at the Zoku store or here at Williams-Sonoma.

{ Featured Party } Cake Decorating Party

I just adore this sweet and fun cake decorating party from Strawberry Chic! Created for her little sister's birthday, it featured pre made mini cakes ready to be decorated and some always fab shabby chic decor. The girls were given a few decorating tips such as the popular ruffle technique, then went to work on their little masterpieces. Don't you just love the mini "cake" pops?!! To read all the details and tips on hosting your own cake decorating party visit the Strawberry Chic here.

Beach Birthday Party

This fun in the sun beach bash was created by LeAna from A Small Snippet for her son's 7th birthday. Besides a great color scheme and the cutest board shorts banner, I love that LeAna designed the printables herself. You can check out the printable details on her blog here and LeAna's full post on the bash here.

One of the activities was for the guest to find sharks teeth on the beach. So fun!! The areas were flagged by these cute red flags with one of LeAna's printables attached.