Annie Lang's Blog!

Let's make it a season of fun!  Whether it's a leisurely  picnic in the park, heading off  to  the campground, relaxing by  the pool or simply grilling up a BBQ feast on the patio,  summer is the best of times. Celebrating the red, white and blue brings on the summer parades starting with Memorial Day, followed by the Fourth of July and wrapping up in September on Labor Day.  For those with a creative flair, the stars and stripe will always be flying high over the tabletops, patio and home decor, fun wearables and clever handcrafted accessories.  Just click on the images below and check out some of my favorite stars and stripes inspired projects, papercrafts and merchandise. You can also download Annie's Americana 12" x 12" digital art prints and  Fun Stars Fonts from Annie Lang's Creative Market Store You can find hundreds of designer  cards by Annie Lang   for every occasion or season that you can personalize from Greeting Card Universe You'll find Ann

Whether it's a holiday celebration or just a quiet night at home entertaining a few friends, you can serve your guests in style by making your own wooden charcuterie tray.  After pricing numerous trays both in stores and online, I decided to make my own food safe tray and it was surprising easy to do and the cost was less than a trip to McDonalds!  I was tempted to paint a design on the tray, but I fought the urge and made this a simple serving tray to use for any occasion.   I bought all my supplies at our local home improvement store.  It took about 4 hours to complete from start to finish and much of that time was spent sanding.  Since this was a new wood board, I applied 3 coats of wax following the manufacturer's directions.  There are numerous finishing products available to make your serving tray both waterproof and 100% food safe.  Many products need to cure before use which is why I chose to go with the Walrus Oil Wood Wax .   It's easy to use and I can apply it t

Here's a quick and easy way to jazz up your warm weather plastic drinkware items!  All you need are paint pens and anyone can finish this project in no time at all.  My pictured sample was painted on clear plastic items I use for summertime entertaining.  I lightly sand areas that will be painted before I begin so I can lightly draw the artwork in pencil as my guide but you can also skip the drawing and jump right into freestlye painting if you choose.  The paint pens I use are waterproof, opaque and dry quickly.  I just color in the areas with a medium tip pen and then outline with a black pen.  Once the drinkware is finished, it can be washed by hand using soap and water as it will not hold up well if you put it in your automatic dishwasher.  I've added the link to the paint pens I use and since they're good on nearly all outdoor projects, they get a lot of use around here!  Below you'll find the full size color character art pattern I used to complete the sample pr

Whether you are hosting Thanksgiving festivities or a dinner guest this year, here are a few of my favorite traditional family recipes to celebrate the Autumn Harvest.  Make sure you snap a few photos for creating memorable scrapbook pages so you can enjoy the blessings of your Autumn Bounty any time of year!

Girl Scout cookies have finally arrived so I stoked up the fireplace and settled in for an absolutely delightful treat! I do love s'mores, but often find them to be too large, too messy and chocolate bars are just too thick to my liking.  Here's how I make my s'mores with a twist, using Thin Mints and Samoas Girl Scout cookies.  This also works great with fudge stripe cookies.  It's a quick, easy and fun treat for party entertaining, too...just provide a plate of cookies and marshmallows, hand your guests a fireside fork and watch them enjoy!

Try these fun ideas to make your Country Western Themed Party a hit! Make it Country!  My husband and I recently attended a very different kind of company hosted themed gathering that could easily be adapted to a Country Christmas theme. Simply add some holiday greens and florals and you're there!  Here's a photo composition created with digital snapshots featuring some of the unique decorations and culinary novelties served at the event.   Hopefully you'll be able to incorporate a few of these delightful ideas for your own Country Western Gala events! Chairs were draped with a satin covering and a red bandana was prominently displayed in lieu of a bow on the back of each chair. An enormous cardboard cutout was lit up on the dessert station using a simple up-light which made the boot appear even bigger!  Stemware filled with apple pie and strawberry shortcake surrounded the boot along with guest choices of carrot cake, bread pudding and cherry cobbler.  Guest ta

Try this fun harvest gelatin and enjoy the seasonal colors! Here's a fun and colorful recipe  you may want to try for your next Harvest themed gathering!    It serves a large crowd which makes it a perfect addition to any Autumn buffet.  Best of all, you can use fruit gelatin colors and flavors to match any occasion.  Hope you'll give it a try and ENJOY...

A simply elegant Autumn Harvest Buffet My Sister-in-Law recently hosted an Autumn Anniversary Gathering at her home and I just had to share a few details about the event with you!  Nearly two dozen guests were in attendance so Linda's "Simple but Elegant" setting was absolutely ideal for a large indoor crowd. Small pumpkins, silk autumn foliage and strategically placed candles served as the perfect backdrop for our Italian themed dinner.   Homemade lasagna, garden salad, and breadsticks were served buffet style followed by a harvest layered gelatin, assorted  individual cheesecakes and coffee for dessert.  It was an absolutely perfect dinner event and a great example of how to celebrate an event with style.           

Fun ideas to make a Shabby Chic Baby Shower memorable   We have a little Grandbaby on the way!  My sister-in-laws recently threw a fantastic baby shower to welcome little Maryann to the family and I thought I'd share a few of their decorating ideas with you in hopes you'll be inspired when coming up with new ideas for your next hosted gathering.  I   digitally scrapped this collage page of  some of the photos I took of the event and hope to add it to our Granddaughter's scrapbook once she safely arrives.   Decorating in "Shabby Chic" style allows the hostess greater flexibility when it comes to working with a theme. One simply needs to gather up some on-hand materials  

October is here and that can mean only one thing around here...it's PUMPKIN TIME!  Here's 12 fun ideas you can use to add a little creative fun to your Pumpkin Days...so whether it's Halloween, Octoberfest or Thanksgiving, I'm sure you'll find something here to brighten up your Autumn Season. E njoy...