Get back to basics. You don't need a computer to help celebrate a birthday when you're far away. - The Crafts Dept.

Printing out real menus and two more musts to make your dinner party amazing. - Ready Made

What's fizzing in the kitchen? Coca-Cola cupcakes let you have your cake and soda too. - Daily Buzz

Why your guests will be begging for another glass of wine (trust us, it's good for them). - Lemondrop

Looking for the best brew for your bash? DIY and do it here. - Asylum

Kick the cabbage: Change up the St. Patrick's menu with a corned beef sandwich that's free of the greens. - YumSugar

Princess parties are the ultimate "girlie girl" celebration. Your little girl will swoon when she is the guest of honor at her very own royal affair.

Invitation By Royal Decree
Create royal party decrees by printing invitations in a calligraphy style font on parchment paper. Roll the scrolls and secure with a bow and let your princess hand-deliver them. These creative invitations will set the theme for your royal event. If they must be mailed, fold them in half and use a heart shaped "punch" to make a hole; thread a ribbon through and tie a bow. Secure in an envelope, address them to the royal court and for the final touch, seal with wax and press in your child's initial.

Crown the Court
As little princesses arrive, greet them at the door and crown them with their very own princess tiara. You can also provide dress up clothing, such as feather boas and princess jewels, to dress the royal subjects. If parents ok it, apply glitter lotions to guess for extra princess sparkle. You can also invite guests to come dressed in their own princess clothing.

Create a Throne
Create a royal throne for your little princess by taking a large sheet and placing it over a chair. Gather the excess material hanging off to the back of the chair and secure at the top with a safety pin; cover the safety pin with a pretty bow. Decorate with streamers, balloons and ribbons for a final touch.

Set A Table Fit for a Princess
Cover the tables in pink table cloths sprinkled with sparkling confetti; finish the scene with streamers of curling ribbon. Plates, plastic ware, napkins and cups either in complementary colors or with your favorite Disney Princess on them will be the final touch to your royal table.

Let Them Eat Cake!
Princess Cakes can range in style and size depending on your budget. If you bake your own, visit a local cake supply store and purchase edible glitter to sprinkle over your cake. It will give your cake that extra princess sparkle! Cupcakes are a big hit with young guest and can be easily princess themed by adding edible glitter and tiny tiaras.

Have Games and Activities Galore

• Play the princess version of pin the tale on the donkey by having the guests place the tiara on a photo of the birthday girl's favorite princess.
• Have a crown toss: Guests toss beanbags into cardboard crowns; each each color crown has a point value. The princess with the most points wins a prize.
• Kiss the Frog! This fun version of hot potato takes a princess twist by using a "Frog Prince" as the potato. When the music stops the girl with the frog must kiss her prince and exit the game.
• Make princess wands. Purchase kits or create your own with stars cut out of wooden dowels and sparkling stickers.
• Create boxes for the princess' crown jewels. Using wooden boxes, glue loose rhinestones and gems to the box. The guests can take the boxes home as favors.
• Set up a pampering station. Paint each girl's nails, apply lotion, create princess hairstyles. Ask a few of the mothers for help in creating a mini princess spa experience.

Being treated like a princess is every girl's dream. The grandeur and special attention will be sure to make her feel like royalty on her special day!

What do you get when you lock "Top Chef" -- and molecular gastronomist -- Richard Blais in a laboratory with a slab of corned beef and a bottle of Michael Collins Irish Whiskey? The answer: The "Corned Beef Collins," a St. Patrick's Day specialty for those who prefer a cocktail that drinks like a meal.

When a famous chef mixes beef, cabbage and whiskey in a glass and calls it a cocktail, it raises some eyebrows -- and elicits its fair share of "ewwws." Is this cocktail a legitimate culinary breakthrough, or the unfortunate byproduct of a late night creative session involving too much alcohol, an overactive imagination, and a blender?

Holidash recently got the chance to chew the fat about meat-infused cocktails with Blais himself. Here's what we learned:

What in the world possessed you to develop the world's premiere corned beef and cabbage cocktail?

The world's premiere and the world's first (chuckles). Michael Collins came to me to develop a drink that works with Collins Irish whiskey, so I started thinking about what kind of ingredients would enhance the whiskey's flavor and background. Obviously, corned beef and cabbage fits in with the whiskey's Irish heritage.

Think about what's happening with bacon right now. Bacon is being tried in everything because of its flavor profile: salty and smokey. In some ways, corned beef has a similar profile that works well with lots of things.

I notice that the word "cabbage" was left out of the drink's official title. Did you do that so as to not gross out folks who hate cabbage?

If I had to say, it's probably a marketing decision, but I think the name has a nice flow to it. No one wants a dish that reads like a list of ingredients, and the cabbage is sort of a back note.

Continue Reading

Feeling awesome this week? Celebrate it on International Day of Awesomeness!

An awful lot of weak and uninspired events are parading around these days, trying to convince Joe and Jane Six-pack that they're legitimate international holidays (International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day?!) -- and The International Day of Awesomeness is by no means one of them.

This annual celebration of awesomeness -- that just so happens to fall on Chuck Norris' birthday (March 10th) -- is the real deal, people. So become an early adopter and get in on the ground floor of this up-and-coming holiday. Your grandchildren will thank you for it.

What is International Awesomeness Day, you ask? According to its founder, Kevin Lawver (Chuck Norris was merely an inspiration), it's a day in which we recognize the "feats of awesomeness" that go on around us everyday unrecognized. Thus, TIDOA is an effort to encourage, promote and inspire ordinary folks to be awesome by whichever means they choose.

As it is with any fledgling holiday, TIDOA is a somewhat free-form celebration with few official rituals or activities, except for what are known as the "Feats of Awesomeness." Quite straightforwardly, these consist of acts that are viewed by the League of Awesomeness as bold, enviable, and, most importantly, super fun (although League approval is by no means necessary).

Continue Reading

Cooking fun with films doesn't have to end on Oscar night -- try Coraline cookies for a kid's party or lobster cupcakes for your beach bash. - Bakerella

The Easter candy is out, but don't eat that Peep yet. Snap a photo of your marshmallow bunny for a big prize. - Gadling

Alice in Wonderland is taking over the birthday party -- let's hope none of the kids are allergic to Cheshire cats. - Hostess With the Mostess

Celebrate National Sauce Month with a saucy quiz -- do your Asian sauce smarts end at soy? - YumSugar

Holidays just aren't the same without the whole family. Find out how to get your pets in on the action. - PawNation

What's cuter than bunnies at Easter? Babies dressed as bunnies have won our hearts. - MomLogic

Is pulling together the party favor bag the hardest part of party planning? - Droolicious

The best way to watch the Oscars: One good friend, trivia and are those microwaved pretzels? - Lemondrop

Easter meets St. Patrick's Day in a hunt for the hidden gold. - Makes and Takes

Staging the Oscars DIY style - prepare for the curtains to rise on part one. - Twig & Thistle

Forget the pre-made invitations. Try your own letterhead on for size. - CasaSugar

You won't be making a peep with all this chocolate-covered Easter goodness in your mouth. - Slashfood

Don't let these common cooking mistakes ruin your party. - AOL Food

The Easter Bunny may favor jelly beans and Peeps when filling Easter baskets, but we think that's a little boring. Why not skip the plastic grass and chocolate bunnies this year and go for something a little more creative? An Easter basket filled with fun craft supplies will not only help your kids avoid the dreaded sugar rush, but will also provide hours of entertainment long after the Easter Bunny has hopped away.

Here are some ideas for crafty Easter baskets for kids of all ages.

Scrapbooking Basket: An Easter basket filled with scrapbooking supplies will provide hours of fun and a permanent memento of the holiday. Include an assortment of colorful scrapbook paper, stickers, pens, scissors and glue. Other helpful scrapbooking items include paper punches, photo corners, trims and stamps. For the novice, include a how-to book for young scrapbookers.

Knitting Basket: For older kids and teens, here's a chance to get them started on what could turn out to be a life-long hobby: Knitting. Pack Easter baskets with a how-to book, an assortment of colorful yarns, needles, and, of course, some fun patterns they can use to make cool accessories for themselves and their friends.

Sculpture Basket: Inspire your little Michelangelo with an Easter basket packed with everything a budding sculptor needs. Start with a beginner's book to introduce them to the art of clay sculpture and teach them basics. Include an assortment of polymer clay, molds, and sculpting tools and sit back and watch the magic happen.

Paint Basket: From finger painters to more advanced artists, a fully-stocked paint basket is a great way to spark some creativity. For the little ones, load up on washable, non-toxic finger paints and lots of paper. Older kids can try their hand at watercolors with the help of a book for beginners, brushes, paints and paper. Or introduce them to the art of pastels with a kit that includes everything they need to get started.

We've got an idea to make your Oscar party a blockbuster -- splash into an Oscar betting pool. A bit of competitive spirit, as everyone casts their votes and roots for their favorite flicks, makes the hours and tongue-tied acceptance speeches fly by.

We've drawn up a Holidash ballot sheet that you can download here and print as needed. It's usually easiest for guests to fill out their ballots at the party, although everyone should know about the pool in advance; the ballots can also be emailed around to your guests ahead of time. (Those gung-ho types need time to hunt down the short films.)

To raise the stakes, we've added a special bonus-point section that could be a game changer! At the end of the ballot, you'll find five extra categories about the awards show. The answers for these are purely subjective; your party's majority opinion will rule.

If you're hosting an Oscar party, consider providing a fun, movie-theme prize for the winner. You could go the straightforward route with DVDs of a few nominated films, or get creative with gifts referencing certain contenders, like a Julia Child cookbook in honor of "Julie & Julia." Sweeten things for the runners-up with consolation prizes of classic movie candy (here's looking at you, Milk Duds).

On the other hand, remember the words of Oscar-winning actress Barbara Stanwyck from the classic screwball comedy "The Lady Eve": "We always play for money, darling. Otherwise, it's like swimming in an empty swimming pool."

Are you watching the show more for the red-carpet styles than the actual films? Check out our fashion ballot to play in a style-centric pool.

Ready to bet? Print out the ballots and get going!

Holidash Oscar Pool Ballot: Page 1

Holidash Oscar Pool Ballot: Page 2

Holidash Oscar Pool Ballot: Bonus Points

How to make a chandelier really light up a room: Use cupcakes. - Hostess with the Mostess

Wolfgang Puck is the man of the hour on Oscar night, so what does he say you need to do for your Oscar party? - Slashfood

The cupcake has gone camo. Will this make them more manly or just more appropriate for your War Games party? - Lemondrop

Finger food's gone "happy and healthy," and so has your next party. - Strollerderby

Girl power's got its own holiday -- celebrate International Women's Day. - AlphaMom

Top your gifts with these candies, and the earn yourself an extra thank you. They don't add an ounce. - Craftzine

What's the secret to the best spinach artichoke dip? Bam! - YumSugar

No more waiting for your beach vacation for good taffy -- make it for your next party instead. - Skip to My Lou

The votes are in -- and we still can't decide if year-round eggs are bad for Easter spirit. - Lemondrop

The ultimate barbecue food might be up for a redesign. Is a hot dog a hot dog if it isn't a long piece of meat? - MomLogic

The food of champions. They eat like Olympians (no, really). - That's Fit

Alcohol at the kids' parties -- is it a "heck yeah" or a "no way, never"? - LilSugar

Macaroon + lollipop = get in my belly! Trust us -- you'll be baking these for your next party. - Bakerella

House guests put a hurting on your dining room chairs? How to help them recover gracefully. - DIYLife