Archive for Parties
The Lost Finale: one final Lost themed party
Posted by: | CommentsI can’t believe after all this time it will be over come Sunday. For those of you who know what I’m talking about, I know you feel my pain. No matter how crazy some of these episodes were this season, LOST is still, hands-down, one of my most favorite TV shows ever. It had everything a good TV should: suspense (what was more suspenseful than the Others in seasons 1 and 2?!), love triangles (you know where I stand: Team Juliet), the classic villain (Ben, then Locke), mystery (How did polar bears get on that Island? And who WAS Illana?), the loveable character (Hurley), and, of course, eye candy (of which, there was plenty: Syaid, Sawyer, Jack, Kate, Jin…)
To commence the series we’re committed to having one last Lost-themed party, complete with Dharma Initiative beer and wine, and a variety of food to represent the different seasons, our favorite characters, and some of our favorite scenes.
Planning your own party? Here are some of our ideas. I’m going to share them with you, but only if you’ll share with 
us (comments, comments) what you are planning to make!
- Pay homage to Jacob and the man in black with classic Black & White cookies. (thanks, Wendy, for the idea!) It can also be a throwback to the Walt-Locke checkers game in season 1. Read More→
Lost Themed Party Ideas – 3 Episodes to Go
Posted by: | CommentsThree episodes to go. And then what will we discuss Wednesday mornings at work? That, my friends, is the million dollar 
question. In the meantime, three more episodes means three more crazy nights of Dharma Initiative wine and beer, and Island-inspired meals.
A few months ago, for the premier in fact, we blogged about using these printable Dharma Initiative labels for beer, wine and all kinds of food. We found a slew of Dharma Initiative labels on Max Picutres’ Blather. He even has labels for different types of wine! Merlot, Pinot Noir, etc. Cool, huh? He has labels for Mac & Cheese, Ranch Salad Dressing, just about everything.
If you’re looking for other fun LOST-inspired treats, check out these cupcakes I found on Neatorama. If you don’t have time to whip homemade cupcakes together for tonight’s show, pick up some already made cupcakes form the grocery store and just add the little planes and palm trees- you can probably find something that will work at toy store, party store, or Wal-Mart.
Also, I was seriously traumatized after the Sun/Jin death. If they kill off Hurley, I may have to write the producers a letter.
Crackers & Lox
Posted by: | CommentsThis weekend I went to a lovely family engagement party for my dear cousin, Maury and her fiancée, Michael. My uncle hosted the party and I decided to bring a light appetizer to add into the mix. My cousin is a vegetarian who eats fish, so I settled on making smoked salmon and cream cheese crackers – something that would resemble the bagel and lox breakfast you’d find in every diner in New York City.
Finished!
These little treats are easy and fast to assemble. They can be prepared in just about 20 minutes.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 1 package of mini breads (I like these pumpernickel ones) or crackers
- Smoked Salmon – we made 18 with 6 ounces of salmon
- 1 package of cream cheese, whipped. 1 tomato, diced
- 1 small jar capers
- 1 small red onion, diced
Directions:
It’s 5 O’Clock. Cocktail Hour, Indeed.
Posted by: | CommentsI love cocktail hour. On my list of most favorite things in the world, it ranks pretty high. Like, well, really high. I love it even more when there’s fancy, shaken cocktails involved. Sure, I can enjoy a Bud Light, but when given the choice between a Bud Light and an expertly made Gin Fizz, we all know what wins.
Years ago a good friend gave me a really nice Cobbler shaker set that I used for years. Unfortunately, too much use and sugary drinks have left the top permanently stuck on the strainer. In the meantime, I’ve tried to figure out how to make a drink using a single shaker and glass method, to no avail. We’ve seen OJ, Pomegranate juice and myriad alcohols strewn all over my kitchen. So imagine how excited I was to see this piece on Apartment Therapy, which gives the glass and shaker apparatus a proper name – the Boston Shaker – and gives a step-by-step tutorial! Fabulous! Cocktails at my house this weekend!
Check out this Apartment Therapy post to see the tutorial for yourself!
It’s Valentines Day, We All Know What We’re Looking For…
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s Valentine’s Day. We’re all adults, and this blog is obviously closer to PG-13 than PG: We’d all like a little sex on the beach in celebration.
But, A: it’s cold. and B: that’s probably not in the cards for many of us. So instead, we bring you the next best thing: The Drink. There’s nothing better than having too many fruity cocktails with your friends to drink until you can’t see your sorrows away. To get the perfect recipe that will have you convinced that you’re in Bahamas, Yay! DIY consulted our favorite bartender and family friend, Pizzi.
- 1 part vodka
- 1/2 part peach schnapps
- 1 part cranberry juice
- 1 part oj
- 1 part Chambord ( substitute razmataz raspberry liquor)
- 1 part midori substitute regular melon liquor)
- 1/2 part vodka
- 2 parts pineapple juice
Pizzi is YAY!DIY’s drinks expert, consultant and friend.
B-I-N-G-Oh my god
Posted by: | Comments
A slightly more toned down card.
Erectile dysfunction! Half-naked girls! Tim Tebow’s mom! Beer! Superbowl commercials can be so raunchy! To spice it up even further, might we suggest the sexiest game of all?
BINGO!
For your friends who could care less about the game, Superbowl Commercial Bingo is an easy way to make sure they aren’t left out.
We first saw this game last year, at our friend Grace’s Superbowl party. It was a blast (Grace even had prizes for the winners!) Following her fun idea, we tried to recreate it with this year’s rumored commercials and quickly found it’s an easy way to make yourself laugh as you prepare for your par-tay. We laughed a lot thinking about appropriately indecent phrases to go in the various squares.
Here are the 24 phrases we came up with (we kept a space free). Let us know which ones you use! Toned down — or not.
Printable Dharma Initiative Labels for LOST Pemier
Posted by: | CommentsFor those of you planning LOST parties, if you’re still at your desk, check out this site. You can print all sorts of labels, including Dmarma Initiative wines! What a better way to get in the mood for tonight’s premier! 
Liquid Courage…Superbowl Style
Posted by: | CommentsAny good host knows that the key to a successful party is making sure your guests get really schnockered have fun. What you serve – food AND drinks – can certainly influence whether your party is one that your friends will talk about for months. Everyone enjoys a little Bud while watching football. And there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s the King of Beers after all. But just in case you’re willing to take it one step further this Sunday, we’ve found two different drinks that will have your guests showing their team allegiance while also praising your mixology skills.
For the Peyton Manning types, try a Colt 45 Cocktail. If you’re thinking of this:
“Kicking Off” Superbowl Week!
Posted by: | CommentsSuperbowl Sunday is one of those rare days when regardless of interest in the actual event itself, everyone just wants to be with friends and have a good time. Superbowl Sunday should really come around more than once a year, shouldn’t it?
As you may have seen last week in our post on University Chic, we put together a foolproof party-in-a-box plan that guarantees said good time! We’ve got a few great treats to serve, some themed drinks, and a game to play during the commercials that YAY! DIY friend Grace debuted at her Superbowl party last year.
This week, we’ll expand on our ideas from University Chic so that no matter if you’re rooting for Peyton and the Colts, Drew and the Saints, or are really don’t care either way, you’ll still be covered.
We’ll start today with the most important part of any soiree — football-centric or otherwise – the food! Here are our takes on a few recipes that will have your guests double-dipping those chips:
LOST Themed Parties Ideas
Posted by: | CommentsI know many of you have been waiting for Tuesday night just as eagerly as I have. If you haven’t already seen the 1 million commercials, it is, in fact, the beginning of the last season of LOST. And I just can’t wait. Last season was traumatic for me (I’m a Juliet fan!) but I’m still eagerly looking forward to what those writers have in store. And please don’t tell me it’s purgatory. Because that will just be the biggest, lamest cop-out EVER. Let’s be a little more creative writers, ok?
And speaking of creative, those of you having parties for the debut are probably searching for the perfect LOST-themed food. This site, which discusses all of the food that’s appeared on the island – from the wild boars, to the food in the hatch (why John Locke ever wanted to blow up their shower and bathroom and food supply is the BIGGEST LOST mystery to me…) to the random dharma wine bottles, is discussed episode by episode. It will give you some great inspiration!
We’re making pulled pork, if you’d like to know. What will you be making? 
Beef Wellington DIY Style
Posted by: | CommentsPosted By Erin…
This winter I was looking for a new “fancy” meal to add to my repertoire for future dinner parties. I had never had Beef Wellington, but I knew that it was impressive. That, I decided, was what I would conquer. And, well, a battle it was. But it is a dish that is certainly master-able, if you have a little patience. Traditional Beef Wellington is made with Fois Gras, which is not quite my forte, so the recipe I’ll share with you is a derivative I created after looking at a few different recipes. It’s “Beef Wellington – DIY style” if you will.
Beef Wellington!
My brother wanted to know why you’d ruin a perfectly good Filet Mignon with puff pastry and an oven, but I think this really is a perfect way to enjoy filet in the winter, when you may not want to go near a grill – or perfect for those of us in NYC, where grills are scarce.
The instructions and photos are from my second attempt at making it. My parents helped me experiment with recipes the first time, and we took quite a few learnings away from that session. Getting the dough (don’t worry – I’m NOT suggesting you make it from scratch!) right is trickier than expected, so I suggest doing a test run before you make it for an important event or dinner.
