- Created on 11 September 2012
Right at Home: Baby shower hosts get creative
Stylists Maureen Anders and Adria Ruff’s use of a palette of mint, aqua, yellow and lime green for a gender neutral baby shower in Tega Cay, S.C. Incorporating handmade elements like wool pompoms, simple printable paper decor, and using paper, marshmallows and cake decorations as centerpiece “flowers,” is an inexpensive and creative way to create a unique display. (AP Photo/Anders Ruff, Becca Bond Photography)
If you're throwing a baby shower for a relative or friend, creating a suitably festive atmosphere is part of the fun.
Some people go all out by hiring an event planner, while others go more simply, taking the do-it-yourself route.
Whether you're nurturing an elaborate party plan or just want a little inspiration to get started, the Internet opens the nursery door to a wide range of ideas from baby shower experts. Here are a few with their favorites:
Maureen Anders and Adria Ruff, who run the Anders/Ruff event planning company in Charlotte, N.C., recently went with a color scheme of aqua, mint, lemon and lime for a gender-neutral shower. Mint and orange, gray and yellow, and aqua and coral are also on trend, Anders says, and even black and yellow — for a "baby to bee" theme.
"'Gender reveal' showers are really popular," she says. The guests don't know if it's a boy or a girl till the mom-to-be cuts the cake and reveals a pink or blue interior. Even the future mom can be in on the surprise; party planners can have the ob-gyn contact the cake baker with the information.
Book showers are another hot trend: Guests bring a children's book to help build the new baby's library. Party planners A Good Affair, in Newport Beach, Calif., created a "Peter Rabbit" and "Pat the Bunny" theme at one recent baby shower, in Anaheim, Calif., with vintage rabbit books as decor.
On the pregnancy website The Bump, Allison Micarelli-Sokoloff suggests a "Goodnight, Moon" theme, with dark blue and white polka dots and hanging silver foil stars. Blue lemonade with star shaped fruit, a round cake with dark blue icing and white dots, and starry sugar cookies as favors round out the party elements. For an activity, she suggests gathering each of the poem's items: mittens, a toy house, etc. and having each guest list them in the order they appear in the story.
For their gender-neutral party, Anders/Ruff used colorful yet inexpensive yarn to make decorative pompoms, gift ties, even flowers. They dipped marshmallows in colored chocolate and candy pearls to make table displays, and served tinted macarons and paper-cone popcorn.
Designer and party planner Sunny Duran got inventive for a twins baby shower in Ramstein, Germany: Inspired by Dr. Seuss' "The Cat in the Hat," she decorated with book images and typography, and served green egg salad and goldfish in a bowl.
"I wanted everything to have a very playful feel. My favorite part of the book is when Thing One and Thing Two run through the hall with kites," she says, so she ran kite banners around the space and used the motif on labels. The Cat's red-and-white top hat became the party cake.
More tips for a successful baby shower:
— Research a theme. Websites like Hostess with the Mostess, Catch my Party and Any Given Party have dozens of detailed ideas.
— Don't try to do everything yourself. Farm out the sweets-making to bake-savvy friends. Printables are a great way to coordinate all the elements of your theme, with banners and tags. For around $10, you can download artwork from one of Etsy.com's talented designers, and print out as many pieces as you need.
— Choose a favor that's unexpected and useful. Anders and Ruff made tiny pickles and packed them in recycled baby food jars with a cute label. There were also color-coordinated candies in spice jars. A food gift's always appreciated, and will be remembered longer than a cheap tchotchke.
— Save money by buying latex balloons instead of pricier Mylar ones. And with food costs averaging about 40 percent of many shower budgets, opt for a DIY cupcake bar instead of a big cake, and offer finger sandwiches, cheese and fruit instead of fancier fare.
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Sourcebook:
www.andersruff.com
www.sunnybydesign.com
www.agoodaffair.com
www.etsy.com
www.thebump.com
www.hostesswiththemostess.com
www.catchmyparty.com
www.anygivenparty.com
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
- Created on 11 September 2012
Rachel Roy mixes prints, offers palazzos, caftans
In this photo provided by Rachel Roy the Rachel Roy Spring 2013 collection is modeled during Fashion Week in New York, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012. (AP Photo/Rachel Roy)
NEW YORK (AP) — Rachel Roy mixed smudges of blue and gray with an earthy print of birds and animal skulls in a loose one-shoulder jumpsuit and palazzo pants in an eclectic spring collection that included pops of bright coral, neon orange and ivory eyelet lace.
"For me, I do a lot of mixing and balancing," she said Tuesday during a presentation at her Manhattan showroom. "I believe in mixing prints by taking opposites."
A crepe racer tank in the smudged print was worn with an ivory silk trouser adorned with a cascade of purple and light brown dandelions — and a belt offering a third design. Smaller birds in soft blue, red and pink were painted against white blossoms on loose pleated shorts.
"I think that spring should have emotional or vibrant prints or colors," Roy said.
Roy used a wave of coral colorblocking in a more fitted sleeveless dress. She paired a colorblocked, bright orange knit top with long sleeves in blush and a bright, white pair of loose eyelet lace shorts.
Among 20 looks was a flax linen dress with an asymmetrical peplum edge done in raffia the color of peonies. For evening, a dramatic amethyst silk gown had the same style of ruffle with a fluorescent raffia edge in lime.
"Any time I embroidered and embellished, I just wanted it to feel a little more natural and raw," Roy said. "Getting dressed in the morning, you pick a vibrant color and maybe you'll have a vibrant mood."
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Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
- Created on 06 September 2012
Michelle Obama gets raves for Tracy Reese dress
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — First lady Michelle Obama got rave reviews for the custom-made Tracy Reese pink and copper dress she wore while giving a tribute to her husband at the Democratic National Convention.
The sleeveless dress showed off Mrs. Obama's famously toned arms and the length modestly skirted her knees. She paired the dress with pink pumps from J. Crew and her fingernails were painted a trendy blue-gray.
Reese described the dress as a "silk jacquard in an abstract baroque wallpaper patter" with a bodice in hot pink woven with rust and copper. It's not the first time Mrs. Obama chose a design by Reese, an African American designer who is showing a new collection Sunday during New York Fashion Week.
In an email, Reese said the first lady "looked incredible and spoke beautifully; I am so honored that she chose to wear one of my designs for such a memorable occasion."
Mrs. Obama's fans gushed over the outfit on social media, with one admirer, Diane McEachern, getting into a friendly argument with a Facebook friend over who was going to "get the dress" when Mrs. Obama gives it to Goodwill. "I'm getting Michelle's dress!" declared McEachern, who lives in Bethel, Alaska, population 5,000, where, she added, "no stores sell dresses." To show how McEachern would look in the dress, her Facebook friend went so far as to doctor a photo of the first lady in the dress and put McEachern's head on it.
Commentators also praised her look. "You may not be a fan of her politics," Kate Hogan wrote on People magazine's website, "but it's likely that if you watched the Democratic National Convention Tuesday night, you were a fan of Michelle Obama's elegant ensemble."
Last week Ann Romney, wife of the Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, wore a bold red Oscar de la Renta outfit when she gave her speech in tribute to her husband.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
- Created on 11 September 2012
New Apple mobile software to get maps, Siri update
Millions of people will likely buy new iPhones after Apple's expected announcement of a new model on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2012. The new phones would join some 244 million iPhones already sold since the first one launched in 2007. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye, File)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A new iPhone is getting much of the attention, but Apple's older phones will get a software upgrade this fall as well. A new operating system sports a different mapping service and a built-in bond with Facebook.
Apple has said that its iOS 6 software will sport more than 200 new features, though some won't be available on all devices. It will be a free upgrade for iPhones released since 2009, as well as last year's and this year's iPad models. It will also work with newer iPod Touch devices.
And of course, it will be on the new iPhone 5, which Apple Inc. is expected to unveil on Wednesday. The company may provide more details then on when the software update will be available for older phones.
Here are some highlights of iOS 6:
— Maps.
Apple's mobile devices will have a mapping program, built in-house.
In the past, Apple has given prominent billing to Google Inc.'s mapping app. But the two companies have increasingly become rivals as people buy more devices running Google's Android operating system. Google also has been keeping some features, including turn-by-turn directions spoken aloud, exclusive to Android.
Apple's new Maps application will have a voice navigation feature. It will have real-time traffic data and offer alternative routes as traffic conditions change.
It will also include "flyover" three-dimensional images taken by helicopters hired by the company to fly over major cities. Google has been dispatching its own planes to produce similar 3D images.
Apple's map program will be integrated with its Siri virtual assistant so that you can ask for directions and pose other questions.
— Facebook.
The new software promises better integration with Facebook. The upgrade will enable you to log into Facebook just once, and then you will be able to post to the social network from a variety of apps. You can also post about websites directly from Apple's Safari browser.
Facebook will be integrated with Apple's online app store so that you can declare that you "like" specific apps there, as well as songs and movies in iTunes.
Events in Facebook's calendar and birthdays of Facebook friends will also appear on your phone's calendar.
— Siri.
IOS 6 will have enhancements to Siri, which interprets voice commands and talks back to the user. It is also coming to the iPad for the first time.
Siri, introduced last October with the iPhone 4S, is supposed to get better at fielding questions about movies, restaurants and other things.
Apple says it is partnering with Yelp Inc. so that Siri can include ratings and prices of restaurants when you ask her about places to eat. The company is also partnering with OpenTable Inc. to make reservations.
Siri will now be available in more languages and more countries.
Apple also says it's working with car manufacturers to let you use a button on the steering wheel to talk to Siri, allowing you to keep your hands on the road. Apple says General Motors Co., BMW AG and Daimler AG's Mercedes are among the automakers that have promised to offer Siri integration in the next 12 months.
— Calls
Don't want to be disturbed?
Apple's new software will give you more options for preventing messages and text notifications from disturbing you at night, for instance.
You can control how and when you get back to people. If you can't call someone back right away, you can set a reminder to call that person back later or have a text message sent directly to the caller.
There's a "call when you leave" feature that reminds you to call back when you are leaving a building or office. The phone can detect when you are leaving.
— Passbook
Apple's new Passbook feature will be a central place to keep your boarding passes, tickets and gift cards.
When you get to a Starbucks, for instance, the device will bring up your gift card if you have one and if you have the location feature turned on. Likewise, when you get to a movie theater or baseball stadium, the ticket will pop up. Passbook will also alert you to gate changes and flight delays once you have a boarding pass stored.
Passbook could be the foundation for a new digital commerce hub for Apple, especially if the iPhone 5 includes a "near-field communication" chip that enables payment information to be transferred by tapping a device on a terminal at a checkout stand. A few Android phones use this technology to process payments with a feature known as Google Wallet.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
- Created on 05 September 2012
This Week in Black History - Sept. 5 through 11)
Sept. 5: 1899 – J. Ross patented the Bailing Press.
Sept. 6: 1966 – Race riot in Atlanta.
Sept. 7: 1930 – Jazz great Sonny Rollins was born.
Sept. 8: 1965 – Dorothy Dandridge died.
Sept. 9: 1817 – Paul Cuffe died.
Sept. 10: 1956 – Louisville, Ky. public schools were integrated.
Sept. 11: 1943 – Lola Falana was born.
