Woodland Themed Birthday Party

When it comes to decorating, we love discovering new trends and ideas. And what better way to try some new decorating ideas at than a birthday party! You can have more fun with themes and there is a more room for new ideas.

That is why we LOVED this blog post from Clean Eats & Treats about a Woodland themed birthday party for her fiver-year-old daughter who wanted a party suited for both her boy and girl friends.

From the decorations to the food, she did a great job, and we are happy we could help her bring her woodland theme to life!

Here are few pictures from the party. You can see the full post on her blog here.

  

The topiaries, moss, decorative balls, and mushroom tree were all from Tai Pan. You can also get a wide variety of white platters/dishware from any of our locations.

This wreath is from Tai Pan and she added a cute cardboard cutout of her daughter’s first initial.

  

If you’re planning a birthday party, don’t forget to check out our TPT deals website for some great product, ideas, and deals!

Sunday Dinner: Thai Lettuce Wraps By Maren Anderson

It’s a fact: Summer has ended, kids are back in school, and Fall is just around the corner.  I thought before everything went “pumpkin” shaped, colored, and flavored, I’d have a crisp clean white-dish Sunday dinner with seasonal lettuce and Thai spices.

My collection of Buy 1 Get 1 Free white dishware is diverse and a perfect background for the lush colors of lettuce, carrots, and all the other delicious ingredients in this easy meal.  As always, there are racks upon racks of every dish you could imagine in the Tai Pan Trading store.

Thai Lettuce Wraps

Chop small:

2 C. cabbage

1 C. broccoli

1 C. course grated carrot

(or use 4 cups of slaw mix)

Add:

3-4 T. minced cilantro

1 T. Thai basil or regular basil chopped (optional)

2 chopped green onions (I used some chives from my garden)

Dressing:

Put 2 T. coconut oil in a small frying pan and grate in 1 large clove of garlic and fry just until it starts to brown.  (I don’t like raw garlic so I usually do this as it infuses your oil with a toasty garlic flavor)

Add:

2 T. rice vinegar

1 T. soy sauce

½ tsp. sesame oil

2 tsp. grated ginger (peel and freeze your ginger for future use.  It grates easier)

½ tsp. honey

Juice of 1 lime

2 tsp. of lemon grass paste (optional)  If you use reduce the lime to ½

½ tsp. Sriracha (optional) not enough to make it hot but adds a nice color.

Thai Slaw

Add Rice Noodles & Eat as a Salad!

Spoon slaw into the center of wide pieces of lettuce for a utensil free dinner!

When ready to serve add 1/2 C. dry roasted peanuts or you could use cashews and a can of drained tuna or chicken.  Toss with the dressing and enjoy!

How to Throw a Stress-Free Birthday Party for a Large Group

  

My nine-year-old daughter’s favorite treat is the dole whips from Disneyland. So we decided to re-create it for her birthday party! It went perfect for the theme of the party, which was a float bar. We used vanilla ice cream, rainbow and pineapple sherbet and then gave guests a choice of root beer, pineapple juice or sprite to top it off. It was so easy and a lot fun!

The tin for the water bottles and the picnic supplies were all from Tai Pan and really helped bring the party theme together.

We also got this cute tray and chalk board from Tai Pan to help label the float bar!

My favorite party hack was using wrapping paper I found at Tai Pan for the table cloth! Using wrapping paper gives you so many more options in patterns and looks for your party.

 

You can also use it for placemats. It’s under $3.00 and you can buy in stores or online!

Whatever your birthday party theme, you can find a lot of creative ways to decorate with items from Tai Pan. And to save even more, check out our TPT Deals, where we post a new deal every day!

 

Front Door Make-Over, Blue is the New Black

“There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in”, stated the novelist Graham Greene.  It seemed a particularly good quote to remember as I perused the photos proud parents posted of their kids on Facebook this week.  Back to school is one of the best times to get fresh photos of kids wearing their newest fashion statements at the front door.  I’ve included a few from the Stewart, Kaufusi, and Colquitt families in my post.  Olivia’s striped blue & white backpack is available in our Tai Pan Trading stores!

        

       

The front door is such a beautiful backdrop for so many of life’s special moments. I was inspired by these charming pictures to update my own front door, perfect timing to maximize the curb appeal of my Fall and Halloween decorating that is just around the corner.

Before: Satin White

           

After: March Aquamarine

 

My friend at the Home Depot paint counter also recommended these colors, many being quite popular:

Yacht Blue S490-

High Dive P480-5

Blue Square S460-5

Rushing Stream P480-4

My little ones are home schooled, but they do look great in front of the new blue front door!  Stay tuned to the blog in the coming weeks, we will have lots of front door & porch decorating ideas to maximize your curb appeal for Fall & Halloween!

Back to School Fashion from Tai Pan

You’ve had a summer full of fun in the sun and family vacations. Now it’s time for back to school and hunting down the best fashion finds and this year you can find them at Tai Pan’s fashion department.

This year, fashion is bringing back an 80’s favorite – overalls. These burgundy overalls from Tai Pan are the perfect addition to your back-to-school wardrobe.

Our fashion department doesn’t end at clothes. Complete your look with our accessories!

  

Need a backpack? We have those too! Carry all your school supplies in style.

  

  

And whether you need some frames to put those first day of school pictures in, or just some great fall décor, stop by TPT Deals for a great discounts.

3 Easy Steps for Perfect Faux Flowers

From the Brittany Maddux blog.

We know that the presentation of your home is important and feeling like you have to stay on top of everything can get overwhelming fast. So finding little tricks to ease up your load can seem like a life saver.

One trick we love is using faux flowers in your home. We know using faux flowers can have a bad reputation of looking “tacky”. But that’s not always true. If they are done right, they can look just a beautiful as real flowers – and they last forever with very little maintenance.

So we teamed up with blogger Brittany Maddux to show you just how great faux flowers can look in your home. She has written an easy step-by-step guide to creating the perfect faux flowers.

And when you’re done, don’t forget to stop by TPT Deals to get great deals on some other great décor to complete the look!

How to Have Your Dream Wedding on a Small Budget

Weddings are a frequent event in Utah. And with Utah’s amazing scenery and the fact that we have all four seasons, each bride can easily have her dream wedding. But when it comes to planning the big day, your budget can get in the way of your dream becoming a reality.

So we have put together some great ideas that can help you save some money without sacrificing the wedding of your dreams.

Flowers

When it comes to flowers it is important remember that you are not limited to what the flower shop offers. Faux flowers can be added to centerpieces to help fill space and save money. Make sure to choose flowers that blend well with your real flowers. We have a great selection of faux flowers and we can help you pick out some flowers to add to your arrangement and no one will ever know!

Can you tell which flowers are real and which are faux in this centerpiece?

Try spray painting a faux flower ball to match your colors, then hang it from a tree, gazebo or or archway!

Add some curly willow to an arrangement for new look. You can even spray paint the twigs to match your wedding colors.

Table Settings

Every detail matters when decorating a wedding – down to the smallest details in the table settings. A great way to enhance your table setting without breaking the bank is using chasers. They don’t cost a lot and you can always spray paint them to match your colors.

Ribbon

Ribbon is a great way to add color throughout your venue without spending a fortune. Hanging wreaths and even some of your pictures with ribbon is a great way to add color and fill wall space. You can also wrap lamp post, tree stumps, etc. with ribbon!

We know how expensive weddings can get. That is why we want you to come into any one of our 7 locations and talk with a sales associate to see what we can do to help. Don’t give up on your dream wedding because of the cost.

Come to Tai Pan first or visit TPTdeals.com to find great deals and ideas.

You can also follow us on Pinterest for some other great ideas!

Photography by: Tiffany Burke

Best (And Easy) Summer Lemonade Recipe

    

It’s summer, which means it’s officially BBQ season – the time of the year we uncover the grill, gather your marshmallow roasting sticks, and invite your friends and family over for some fun in the sun. But with all that time in the heat, you want to be sure you have a tasty drink to cool you down and quench your thirst. We have an easy lemonade recipe that’s perfect for your next summer BBQ. But don’t forget, presentation is everything! Ingredients:

• 2 bottles of Trader Joes limeade (or your favorite limeade brand)
• 3 cans of pineapple juice
• 2 limes juiced
• Fresh strawberries, pineapple, and limes
• Some fresh mint to taste

Best tasting tip: Make it a few hours before your party and keep it in the refrigerator.

To get the look: We used one of our canisters for the lemonade and displayed it on a white tin serving tray (available in three sizes), put the fresh fruit in our small ceramic bowls, and included an orange and white striped towel to complete the summer look.

Don’t forget to head over to TPT Deals to get some great deals on other summer essentials.

Giveaway! Farmers Market Survival Kit!

I love the Farmers Market, nothing says summer to me like farm fresh produce and local vendors displaying their wares outdoors.  I keep a bag on a hook by my front door with all the things I need to shop on a Saturday morning, it keeps me from scrambling around when I’m in a rush to take advantage of the good parking and cool morning hours.  This week I’d like you to have an opportunity to get a free and fashionable set-up to use when shopping your local markets…and yes, TPT counts as a small business and local market!

What YOU Could Win!

• Burlap Bag with Black/White Chevron Lining and an interior pocket.
• 2-Color Straw Fidora with a Blue accent Ribbon.
• 2 Pairs of Sunglasses.

All Shipped for free to your home!

If you follow our blog just leave a comment naming your favorite thing about the Farmers Market and/or your information in the Contact menu and we will enter you in the Giveaway! Winner will be selected at random on Friday, July 24th.

My favorite farmers markets are naturally in close proximity to my stomping grounds. The SoCo Farmers Market is a little piece of heaven in the heart of Orange County.  It runs from 9am-2pm on Saturdays right outside our TPT Home store in Costa Mesa, CA.  Here are a few pictures from their SoCo Farmers Market tumbler, there are lots of helpful bits of information there to help you navigate the market.

          

My other favorite is the Downtown SLC Farmers Market.  This market is huge: there are musicians, crafts, special events, local fare, and even a Bike Valet!

             

5 Easy Table Settings to Brighten up Your Table

Blog post previously written by blogger, Brittany Maddux

The dining room table is one of our favorite pieces of furniture because when it comes to decorating it, the possibilities are endless! From center pieces to chair ties and place settings, you can find the perfect look for your home or event.

Blogger Brittany Maddux recently wrote a blog with 5 great ideas for table settings. We supplied the dishes and décor for the settings, she put them together and then gave her thought to each one. See a preview of each setting below then head on over to her blog to read more!

After you have been inspired, head over to TPT Deals to get started!

Modernly Green

High Tea

Shabby Chic

Classic Pink

Summer Vibes