DIY Day: Quick & Easy Party "Pick"-Me-Ups

Here's the deal. Pinterest is awesome and all and there may be a bazillion fun themed cupcakes to attempt (and, in my case, fail at miserably) but c'mon...

 

               

Ain't nobody got time for that!

Those cupcakes are super cute and are, no doubt, on the simpler side of the Pinterest scale. But, if you're schedule is anything like mine, baking homemade cupcakes is a stretch, let alone making them Pinterest-worthy! Especially at the last minute. After all, cupcakes can't exactly be decorated a week or two before party day.

So, here's my secret. Go simple. Plain Cupcake + Plain Frosting = Perfect backdrop for a super easy, yet perfectly theme-worthy topper! It doesn't take much time to make (or buy!) plain cupcakes and if time isn't on your side, it take much less time to make some party picks to top them than to cut up candies and arrange them into turtles, fireworks or a beach scene!

Paper straws & food picks are two things you'll see included in just about every party I style for that exact reason. They add color and fun and are quick and easy DIYs! Yay to quick & easy, right?! Even better, they can be done ahead of time, saving you from that last-minute scramble the night before the party or on the day of!

For your next party, don't stress, just break out the craft stash & make some food picks (oh, and they're not just for cupcakes but, you already knew that)!

Since this is all about the quick & easy, I used only supplies I had around the house... scrapbook paper, baker's twine, ribbon, washi tape, scissors, toothpicks, paper punches and good ol' Scotch tape. Admittedly, I tend to have more "supplies" on hand than a lot of people but all of these items are affordable and readily available at any craft store... even some Dollar Stores!

With Memorial Day and July 4th right around the corner, I went with the Americana color-scheme.

I started by creating some pennant flags with a few free-hand cut scrapbook paper triangles, punched holes in one side with a 1/8" hole punch, inserted a toothpick and VOILA! Turn on Netflix and pump out a dozen or so of these a week before your party or the night before! Can it get any easier?! (These can also be made to fit lollipop sticks too - just use a larger size punch)

And, since I had the star paper on hand, I used the old skool jumbo circle punch to cut out some of the large red stars. For this project, I made them single-sided and simply Scotch-taped the toothpick to the back of the paper circle. If you're making these with enough time, or if they will be seen from more than the front angle, use double-sided tape or craft glue to adhere a two circles back-to-back with the toothpick taped to one to ensure it sticks.

To accompany these star-studded paper flags, I thought some glitter washi tape would add the perfect sparkle! Again, simple is the rule of thumb. Unroll some tape, place the toothpick down about an inch from edge...

With the tape attached to the toothpick, hold the toothpick base and fold the tape over towards the roll, matching up the edges carefully.

 Snip the end and cut out a little triangle at the end, if you want...

Boom. Sparkle Flag.

And... ribbon picks. I love these! They're a less expected accent and just as fun & easy to make! 

Cut ribbons to length...

(and pay no mind to the terrible condition of my fingers - they're in desperate need of some lotion and a manicure!)

Fold in half...

Put the cut ends through the loop in the middle...

And pull tight. Lather, Rinse, Repeat. The end.

I've got baggies fulllll of ribbon scraps and these are a perfect excuse for my hoarding :-)

Did I mention that they can be adapted to lollipop sticks and paper straws?! 

 I added a few free-form ribbon banners to the pennant group with a little double-sided tape. (Judge-free zone here... my triangles aren't quite the right shape)

OH! And baker's twine! I hadn't thought to make them before but they turned out pretty cute! And, if you're anything like me, you probably have a dozen different colors just sitting around waiting for a reason to use them!

These lovely food picks and paper straws are headed to Pittsburgh for a Memorial Day shindig!

Now, start digging through your craft stash and top those store-bought cupcakes off with something cute! Go on, make the PTA moms jealous...

** Someday, I'll post the tutorial for some of the other, slightly more complicated/time-consuming (but still easy!) food picks/drink stirrers. I'm especially fond of the metallic foil garland swizzle sticks!