Spotted Canary Blog

How do I start this post? Hmm … not really sure. My first three attempts failed with their aimless wanderings to places like my childhood backyard, the first six pages of my 2010 calendar and the land of forgotten song lyrics. Yeah, that last one was way out in left field even for me and my easily divergent mind.

What I really want to tell you about is the story behind this picture.





It was our first, and subsequently only, family trip to Disney World. We had booked a week in the land of magic so to spend some serious family time together before my husband deployed over-seas. What better place to connect and create memorable moments than the happiest place on earth.

We arrived on the 4th of July just in time to throw the bags in our room and race to a “prime” viewing spot for witnessing the much acclaimed fireworks show.

My husband and I were giddy. The excitement and thrill of the upcoming pyrotechnic display blew a second wind into our souls, something we weren’t sure we possessed after the long monotonous hours just spent in the car. But somehow we found the energy to be anxiously excited.

Then the first BOOM and the air immediately filled with applause and shouts of joy. Then the second BOOM and the oohs and aahs were filled with even more amazement. But by the third POW the screams of delight were over taken by our son’s screams of despair.

So much for being the happiest place on earth.

Now at this point I must apologize to anyone reading this story that just happened to be there that evening eight years ago. I’m sorry we subjected you to the uproar of emotion.

For what my husband and I did next will certainly ensure us a spot in the Bad Parenting Hall of Fame (which I do believe is located somewhere adjacent to Epcot).

You see, we covered his ears, ignored his emphatic cries and made him watch the entire show.

Yep. The entire show.

And despite the dehydration caused by the thirty minutes of sweat induced sobbing, he returned to the hotel room no worse for wear, and to this day has no recollection of the incident.

Well, until after he reads this post and then I suppose his dad and I have some apologizing to do.

Needless to say that from that snot-filled instance on, we have been very selective in our fireworks display attendance. Over the years our son has grown more accustomed to the BOOM BOOM POW of July 4th festivities, but we still try to be conscientious of his fireworks sensitivity.

Can you say redemption points?

Speaking of points … don’t the points of a pinwheel say 4th of July to you? Yeah, I know. Another long, super stretchy segue … but I was working on a pinwheel project the other day and it got me thinking about ways to incorporate them into a 4th of July party scheme.

So I did some web searching and found a few inspiration links.

Of course Martha had some cute pinwheels to show off.




And the good people at Good Housekeeping had a fun display.





The City Cradle had some pinwheel party action going on too. Love the pearl accents!





So lots of pinwheel ideas out there to spark my party planning and here’s what I came up with, for what I hope, is your viewing pleasure.





Of course I started with some ginormous pinwheels. Stand these in a drinks bucket and let the ice do the securing for you … at least until it’s melted …. ok, there’s a flaw to this plan, but work with me.





For the pinwheel centers I turned to two of my favorite things, tulle and ribbon. I gathered both into “yo-yo’s”, layered them with loads of hot glue and topped the centers off with some stickers from the new Jolee’s Parcel line. And btw, I fell in LOVE with the sticker’s use of teal alongside the traditional red, white and blue. Loved it so much I used it as my color scheme throughout.

While I had my needle and thread out, and because it was a good excuse to finish watching season six of West Wing with my mom, I made a few, well, quite a few, more rosettes.

I attached one to this lantern I stumbled upon a few days ago. I mean, hello! Could you get any more 4th of July than that? One if by land. Two if by sea. Three if by home with me. I know. It’s THE perfect July 4th centerpiece. Score!





The rest of the West Wing rosettes I wired to lengths of tulle taped to my mantle. Yep. You read that right. I taped it to the mantle using painter’s tape. Hey, it’s blue. That’s within my color scheme. Plus it’s easy to apply and, best part, remove.





Next I turned my efforts to the “paper” goods of the party. Water bottle covers are very popular with the party people these days. So, because I want to be part of the “in” crowd, I made some bottle wraps. I did end up covering these with clear shelf liner. I thought the layer of “waterproofing” might be a perk.





I carried the pinwheel motif to the chips label tag by embellishing it with one. A length of teal tulle to tie the tag onto the bucket adds some softness as well as brings some additional color to the table.





Lastly, I wrapped three packages of Pop Rocks in tulle and topped them with a large paper pinwheel … viola, easy party favors. A simple sign displayed next to these takeaways explains the sentiment behind the gift in addition to adding color and height to the tablescape.





So with a couple of pattern paper sheets, a few yards of ribbon and tulle and a serious amount of hot glue, you too can have some pinwheel fun on the 4th of July! The BOOM BOOM POW fireworks display is optional of course.

But we’ll be there. And you can’t miss us. We’re the family wearing earmuffs.

Have a safe and fun July 4th dear reader!

~ Elizabeth (ekb)

There’s a Sunday night tradition at my house. A tradition filled with laughter, eye rolling, untranslatable jokes and of course, chocolate (I mean, any worthwhile tradition always does, right?). A tradition filled with British comedy sitcoms and chocolate chip cookies. There’s just something about those TV shows from across the pond that totally tickle my husband and my fancies and thankfully our local PBS station devotes the entire after 10PM program line-up to these 30 minute gems.

One show in particular revolves around a group of department store employees, who don’t in the least bit subscribe to the mantra “the customer is always right”; who really seem to be bothered by the inconvenience of having to serve all those troublesome customers.

Another favorite tells of a couple who meet and fall in love during the Korean war conflict then lose touch with each other after army related transfers and a faulty postal delivery system. Forty years and two marriages later they find each other again, rekindle their love affair and eventually marry. It’s a sweet account coupled with loads of witty banter and the requisite miscommunication-leading-to-a-funny-situation side story. Predictable sitcom stuff, but charming nonetheless.

But one of my husband’s most favorite shows revolves around a rather snobbish older lady, and her saint-like patient husband, who is obsessed with appearing to belong to a much higher social class than she actually does. For instance, her name is Hyacinth Bucket, but because of the rather common connotation of her last name she pronounces it Bouquet and the comedy often comes when she is correcting people for their mispronunciation.

Hyacinth is obsessed with giving parties and I’d have to say that it seems like every other episode is about her, and her (did I mention tolerant?) husband Richard, arranging and preparing for one of her self-rated famous soirées. She’s hosted quite the myriad of events; from candlelit suppers complete with Royal Dalton china with hand-painted periwinkles, to picnics on the banks of a local river complete with riparian refreshments (yeah, I had to look it up too : )).

There is a lot of sitcom time devoted to her planning the menu and working out the specific details of location, seating, serving ware and guest entertainment. The comedy comes when all of her careful planning is for not and her party plans quickly disintegrate usually by the unannounced visits of her less-than couth immediate family.

It really is a hoot to watch the party fall apart. Not that in reality I’d like to wish that upon anyone, well, no one I’d care to mention in print, but it’s just dang funny.

Now, how does this relate to you, dear reader, and the five minutes you have given up in your day to read this blog post? Well, Hyacinth spends a lot of time working out how her party refreshments will be showcased. She takes great pride in the presentation and we should all glean something from this, albeit fictitious, fixation.

Presentation, whether it is part of a buffet spread or done on an individual plate-by-plate basis, is key to a successful party and a WOW presentation comes from great serving ware. Fabulous and functional serving ware will stylishly show your food off and can add to the overall mood you are trying to create for your guests. Bottom line; invest in some well thought out serving ware pieces.


Consider these points when purchasing your pieces:

- Make sure they are durable enough to withstand usage.

- Think about getting ones that are microwaveable so that you can reheat food items more easily.

- Make sure you have enough storage space for your wares. I have a few things in the attic because of space limits in my kitchen and can I just say that they don’t get used that often because they require a trip to the hot and dusty attic. Just something to think about …

- Only invest in thematic pieces if you are sure to use them often enough to justify their expense and required storage space. While that snowman platter may be super adorable, if you will only use it three times in ten years, is it really a wise investment? Maybe not so much. (Mom, are you reading this?)

- Choose pieces that reflect your design personality, and which will hopefully stand the test of time. Think about the long term. The country blue and rose pink dinnerware I choose when I got married twenty-something years ago does not have the same appeal to me now. Thank heavens!

If you want / need some more guidance on choosing serving ware, here’s a link to some other things to consider. And here’s a post at Design Sponge with a whole plethora of serving ware pieces to look at and drool over. It’s some serious party ware eye candy.

Now, let’s talk about me. (Hmmm. Reminds me of a country song I used to know. And I mean really USED TO know.)

I started my serving ware collection with two very affordable and very adaptable pieces. I bought both of them at Costco, each for less than $50. These two pieces have seen way more party action than I have, often showing up at event s that I am unable to attend.

Both pieces have black iron accents, which is one of the design elements I use to direct my serving ware purchases. I also choose pieces that are off-white in color and simply embellished. Keeping my service items within these parameters ensures that my tablescapes have a coherent feel as well as work with any color or thematic schemes I am using.

My favorite piece is this four-tiered buffet server.






It’s great because it can stand all vertical and take up minimum space or it can be spread out and allow for easier food access. Amen to that feature!





I love this server so much I bought a twin. The twins have been invited to many wedding receptions and church functions. They are quite the popular pair.

The other piece is this glass drink dispenser.





The stand didn’t come in the box btw. It was a happy coincidence. I had used this black iron plant stand for another purpose but soon discovered it was the perfect size and shape for getting the drink dispenser off the table, which makes getting the cup under the spigot MUCH easier.

Take my word for it, if you decide to purchase a dispenser, get a stand of some kind. If not you’ll have to put the dispenser along the edge of the table and this vicarious position is an accident waiting to happen. And having just sopped up a gallon’s worth of fiery red Kool-Aid from light brown carpet, trust me, you’ll want to avoid that kind of a catastrophe. A sturdy cake stand would work, but also think about using a small wooden stool or a plant stand like I have.

So as much as I *heart* my four-tiered buffet server and glass drink dispenser, there are still some serving ware pieces I want … I mean NEED. I’d like to add (hint, hint dear husband of mine) some various sized cake stands. I’m excited about the prospect of being able to stack them; doubled food presentation area with less table real estate space used. Perfect combo!

I love these from Pottery Barn (hint, hint dear husband of mine) because they fit two of my design element parameters and because everything from PB is just plain, well, yummy.





These PB glass pedestals with matching domes are also on my wish list. I know, they’re glass, doesn’t fit the parameters, but hey, they’re fun and fanciful and every tablescape should have a bit of that included.





And for some reason, I’m also drawn to this galvanized three-tiered stand. Again from PB.  Yeah, I *heart* PB something fierce.





Call me a rule breaker, but I just might have to order me up one of these. I wonder how much expedited shipping would be … because it’s almost Sunday and don’t you think some chocolate chip cookies would look great all nestled in those tiers?

Well, what doesn’t a chocolate chip cookie look good in … just saying.

So with that thought, I will close this short discussion on serving ware and encourage you to evaluate your current pieces. Make sure that you are being served well and that your pieces are not more trouble than they are worth. Think about any holes you might have, or items that you can let go of in preparation for the addition of more functional and useful pieces (hint, hint Mom … I’m pretty sure three snowman platters is a bit excessive … really).

And just in case, dear reader, you are now desperately craving chocolate cookies, here is the link to my favorite chocolate cookie recipe. Speaking of which … I need to go set some butter out to start softening …


Happy serving, dear reader!

~ Elizabeth (ekb)