It’s the summer and what’s the best party for your birthday? A beach party, of course! But no worries. You don’t have to be at the beach to have a beach party. You can do it from the comfort of your own home.

Invitations

Try to be as creative with your invitations as much as possible, to get your guests really excited for the big day. Write down all the information in a small paper, frayed at the edges if possible, and insert it in a bottle. Cut your paper into the shape of a palm tree or sea shell. Put…

“[M]ost people are just plain scared to entertain,” says Denise Vivaldo, author of Do It for Less! Parties. Her book, and another I recently discovered, The Surreal Gourmet Entertains by Bob Blumer, go head to head with many of the common fears that keep us from giving parties. The two books are very different in style, but they both contain plenty of solid advice, and leave you with the feeling that entertaining might not be so bad after all.

If you’re afraid that . . .

• you’ll forget something really important — Do It For Less! tells you exactly what lists…
  

Maybe you’re thinking of getting out the punchbowl for your next party this summer. It’s a touch more elegant than a cooler full of juice boxes and soda cans, and if you make your own soft drinks you can use natural ingredients and adjust the taste to your liking.

Some flavors seem naturally cooling. Mint and lemon are two of them, so why not try them together? People in the Middle East have been enjoying mint lemonade for years.

After experimenting with several mint lemonade recipes, each with its different way of combining the ingredients, I found this to be best:

Boil…

August 21 marks the 2010 Woodward Dream Cruise. What started out as a small fundraiser for a soccer field evolved into the world’s largest one-day automotive event that draws in 1.5 million people from around the world, including New Zealand, Japan and Australia.

The event started, in August 1995, as a tribute to the 50s and 60s and Woodward Avenue, America’s first highway. Everybody went to Woodward Avenue and supported the local establishments located along the highway mostly because these were the places to see and be seen. These were Ted’s, Totem Pole and the Varsity, Hollywood, Wigwam and Suzie Q’s…

This Labor Day, cap off your summer with a pleasant picnic party.  Its the perfect excuse to head outdoors, and enjoy nature! You can keep this party on the small side or make it as large as you want. Setting up a picnic is pretty simple as the theme is nature, giving you the choice of holding the party at a local park or in the comfort of your backyard. Read on for more ideas on how to create the perfect Labor Day Picnic.

1- Make It A Pot Luck Picnic

Save yourself from extra work and ask everyone to bring…