level with me people.  do you know how good life can be?  lounging in front of a mimosa bar forgetting about time and cheersing the day away?  k, i sound parched.  but, seriously, big time awesome fun times.  and not just because of the bubbles!  if you are having people over for any daytime buddy times, this watering hole situation is a must!  it's fun, it's beautiful, it's fresh, it's a conversation starter, and it's a load off when you are hosting a gathering because your guests make their own drinks, leaving your arms free to do spontaneous robot dances to entertain your peeps. bonus!

mimosas, if you are not familiar, are delish liquid libations that are usually 50/50 champagne and orange juice.  i personally like a 70% bubbles and 30% juice ratio.  thats just me.  blush.  

there are variations on this drink, such as the bellini, which is a yummy friendship of peach puree and champagne.  well, when it was invented in italy, presecco was used.  which, ladies and gents, is the total jam!  presecco is, in my opinion, far superior to champagne.  it is a sparkling italian wine that tastes better and doesn't give you nerf ball head.  


k, now for the mimosa bar equation, think fruit, juice and bubbles.  i usually try and have 3 fruits, berries are great.  fresh or frozen.  i've used plums, peaches, frozen watermelon cubes, etc.  be creative but also use what you have!  i like offering 3 different juices; always straight orange, something with peach and another fun one that is a different  colour (than orange).  


set out champagne flutes or something like it, an ice bucket (i use a croc) to keep the champagne cold, carafes or pitchers for the juice and fruit bowls.  make labels for juices and a lil instructional sign saying something like, "choose juice, add fruit, add bubbadubs".  and there you have it...fun bubbles.

these are cool too.  take a printed paper napkin and tear it into smallish pieces so that they can wrap around your egg without too much wrinkling.  using a paint brush,  paint on a layer of watered down glue (i used modge podge-any white glue would work, i bet) and then place the napkin pieces together on the surface of the egg, overlapping a bit.  use the brush to smooth down any wrinkles that buckle up.  you will love this one.  it looks a bit like cloth when it's dry.  my friend Patty showed me this technic recently at a lovely crafty ladies night she hosted.  blow your eggs out,  wash them and let them drain and dry before you begin.  you can also use egg whites instead of glue.  

egg decor.  i am getting jiggy wittit!  think i've decorated more eggs this week than i ever have before.  not one of them done with my little guy.  yup.  getting crafty...on my lonesome.  good thing you have come to join my eggciting party.  here are some of my fave's....

the blue robin egg looking ones (above) were hard boiled first.  i wish i had blown the yolks out because i love how they turned out and wish they would last forevz.  mos'def doing these again.  i dyed them in water with good ol' blue food colouring in it.  please, for the love of jahovah and all of his witnesses, do not buy egg dying kits at the store.  such a waste of packaging, cardboard, and your $.  if you are going for the easy, peasy, one, two threesy kinda dye job,  grab food colouring and adjust them to the colours you want.  boom, robin eggs.  

get some gold leaf at a craft store and follow the directions on how to use it on a few eggs..  i did not follow the directions.  big surprise.  i put it straight on the eggs, very carefully, but should have put some sort of glue on the egg shell first (turns out directions direct you in the right direction).  however, i paint brushed on a lil watered down modge podge over the gold leaf and it stayed down perfectly. i adore them.  i might cuddle the lil nest they are perched in when i hit the hay this eve.  sighs.

i've had these DIY temporary tattoos for a while now.  got them in potland, oregon.  decided to see if they'd work on these egg shells.  they did!  i am in love with how they turned out.  so simple and sweet.  filled them up with a little bit of water and put mini flower arrangements in them.  eggciting!

and now, here i am, adding this last picture of the last of todays eggsperiments.  way past midnight....still geeking out.  turns out, black sharpie might be my favorite egg decor.  who knew.  so easy.  i'm such a sucker for mix matching black and white prints.  its classic and clean and apparently totally gets along with easter eggs.  goodnight.  

easter is this weekend!  ostara...eostar...this holiday has been around the block in many different stories and religions and is essentially a time for fertility, birth and rebirth.  i love playing with all the symbols for these things.  eggs, bunnies, bees, flowers, etc. spring is in full swing.  this weekend will mos'def be filled to the brim with egg hunts, mimosas, brunch, children laughing and mommy crafting.

beeswax.  sigh.  the smell is absolutely heavenly.  i bought some from a local bee farmer a while ago and have been waiting for the perfect moment to make candles.  as i was blowing out some eggs to dye, a couple cracked a bit, so i decided to make candles in them.  i have an epic (and somewhat ridiculous) egg cup collection, so, any chance to use them, i do.  i am completely obsessed with this project!!!  sorry...in advance for the 9 million forty two pictures you are about to see...but i really think you will love them too.

you will need:

• wax...i used beeswax, but you can use soy wax or even melt down crayons (after taking off the paper wraps)
• wick...you can purchase candle wicks at most craft stores or online...but you can use a plethora of  other things you probably have around the house.  i've used butcher string but couldn't find it this morning so i used some twisted paper twine i had.  these ones are more for show anyway. using cotton string is great.
• a bit of tin foil (if you don't have a fancy candle wick that has a metal disc at the bottom already)
• egg shells...washed and dried.  i left mine a bit rustic looking and kept the tops.
• a double broiler...if you don't have one, a small bowl that sits on top of a small pot that has boiling/simmering water in it works great.  just make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the bottom of the pan.  
• a box grater.  the beeswax is really hard to get off (use boiling water) so, it's awesome to have one especially for beeswax.  
• stick of some sort.  i used a chopstick and taped the wicks on so they'd stay put.  if you are using a cotton string, twine, or a candle wick, just tie them to it.  you'll see in the photos below.

nail shots...like that? had to.

this is my fancy double broiler.  i found it recently at the recycling depot up the road for 25 cents!  boom.  i got caught doing a happy dance by someone walking by when i found it.  it is now only for beeswax.

this is pre-beeswax spill.  yes, even martha starfishizzle spills wax!  gasp.  i was attempting to pour the wax with my left hand and snap a picture with my right. umm.  don't try that at home, k?  yeah... if you should spill...grab a butter knife and scoop it before it hardens too much.  way easier.  you can use boiling water to get beeswax of of most things, however.

and there you have it.  pretty much the cutest easter/ostara centerpiece i have ever made!!!  i am completely obsessed.  it took no time at all and will make such a sweet gift!!!  i live in a rain forest in BC and have moss not far from my front door, if you do not...you can use something else...grass, flowers, twigs, or thinly cut tissue paper (keep and re-use your tissue paper!).  make them look like little nests!

these are so sweet and will be the perfect touch on easter/ostara morning.  i think i will leave little nests all over the yard and in the house tucked here and there and not say anything about them until everyone catches on.  love the eggs and bunnies and symbology of this fertile time of year.  love the hunt...the excitement and thrill of tiny treasures.  and as you also may know, i LOVE crafting out of recycled materials.  love this project.

(i recently fell in love with the artbarblog.com and that is where i got the idea.  she's got some cute ones.)

materials:

• chopped paper – construction paper, newspaper, catalogs, magazines
  

• paper cutter or scissors (or a shredder would be best!)
• elmer’s glue + thick paint brush
• one bowl of the size that you want your bird’s nest to be
• plastic wrap
  
  

how to:

first, cut our paper into strips about 1/4″ in thickness and vary the strips in length from 6″ to 12″. next, put plastic wrap on the inside of the bowl you want to shape the nests with.  mix glue with water (half and half), and brush it all on the inside of the bowl on top of the plastic wrap.  then take individual strips and arrange them criss-crossing around the bowl.  after a while, paint on more glue which helps keep the layers down.  add more paper strips, until about four layers are formed.  put some of the strips around, like a real nest and others just across so the pieces stick out. when your fingers got too sticky, wipe them on a wet towel.

let the bowls dry overnight. then….get someone to drumroll with their hands on the table…another with their feet on the floor.  lift the nests out of the bowl and peal off the plastic. voila!  the most beautiful and delicate nests!

this was such an epic day!  we invited a bunch of our friends with little ones and had people bring all kind of bits and bobs and dyes and such to have an egg art party.  obviously, mimosas were had and shared for us "big kids" and sweet and brunchy potlucked yum yums too.  i was so surprised at the creativity that happened. it was pretty magical.  i experimented with natural dyes which i made prior and brought in jars.  check this website out (radmegan.com) for amazing recipes to do so...(click the picture below to do so).

on the table, we laid art paper to line it and protect the table from spills and splatters.  next time, i will mos'def put high quality water color paper because it was a serious masterpiece when we were through.

everyone brought so many awesome things to experiment with.  i brought stamps and gold stars (which were my fave), crayons, glitter, mesh netting, string, rubber bands, stickers, oil to add to some of the dyes to create a marbled tecture and my collection of egg cups to display them when they were finished...to name a few.  my friend jen even brought a real batik wax and candle situation to get crazy with. wow.  this is my idea of a good time.  mimosas, sunshine and wunderlust.  the kidlets and adults were equally enthralled in their creative masterpieces.  try this at home!