Food trucks aren’t new. Cities like Portland and Austin
have had the roaming food luxury for some time now and NYC has basically had food
trucks for like ever.
I was fortunate enough to see the trend take off in
Chicago before we moved. In fact, my during my first run in with the cupcake
truck, I also spotted the Chicago Blackhawks parading the Stanley Cup through a
neighborhood bar. As a Penguins fan, I was more interested in the cupcakes.
In the last few years, Pittsburgh has hopped on the trend
too. In the fall, Brady and I went to a food truck rally in our hood and tried
foods from two trucks (mentioned below). If you are looking for some quick eats
in the ‘burgh, here are some options!
·
BRGR:
The delish burgers from BRGB and amazing kettle chips. Just if they could sell
the spiked shakes.
Wanna see more food trucks in Pittsburgh? Visit PghMobileFood.com to sign the
petition!
Photo Booths have been a trend at parties, events and
weddings for a rather long time now. While I’m a bit over the trend, there are three
new twists on the booth/photo favor that I do find amusing.
·
Gif Booth: Rather
than just take a photo, make a Gif! (For those of you that don’t know, a Gif is
one of those quick video files that you often see on blogs and websites). Oh and
that video file will ensure that your guests are sharing coverage of your event
with their social media networks ; )
·
Caricaturists:
Another trend that took off in the last two years – illustrators at parties.
Rather than walk away with some photo booth pics, you can give guests the gift
of a custom illustration!
·
Instaprint: This company allows you to
rent machines that will print guests Instagram photos live at your event!
Around the holidays, the more parents and teachers that I
talked to, the more told me that their child wasn’t able to take treats into
school for birthdays and holidays. Let me rephrase that – they could take
treats in, but they needed to be healthy treats.
FUN SUCKERS!
This must be a national trend, because I’m seeing more
and more “treats” that aren’t exactly food, but small prezzies (girlspeak for
presents).
Here are a few that caught my eye for Valentine’s Day…
Loving You Wouldn’t Be a Mistake eraser via Land
of Nod blog
Puzzle
via Nest of Posies (via House & Home)
Other Ideas….
·
“Blowing Valentine’s Day Kisses” - bubbles
·
“You are a-dough-able” - Playdoh
·
“You make my heart bounce” – ball
·
“You’re #1 In my book” - bookmark
·
“You’re a gem” – gems
·
“You sparkle” – glitter
·
“You’re dino-mite” – plastic dinosaurs
·
“I dig you” – plastic shovels
·
“You light up my life” – glow sticks or
flashlight
·
“You’re super” – cape
·
“You add color to my life” – crayons
·
“You rock” – ring
I could keep going…if you have any ideas, write them in
the comment section!
I have a love/hate relationships with Valentine’s Day. I
like the pretty pink and red décor and the thought of sharing cards with
friends and family…but I hate the whole “You need to buy your loved one a
present” thing. I also hate how the holiday can make single people feel lonely.
I’ve always loved companies that went “anti-Valentine’s
Day” with creative products. Here are some that caught my eye this year.
1. This just may be the best anti-V-Day gift I’ve ever seen.
From Sugarfina,
it’s simple gummy candy packaged so freaking cute. For $16, the set of three
gummies include “Stop Kissing Frogs,”
“Men are Pigs,” and “Plenty of Fish in the Sea.” The pretty package
also includes a $5 Sugarfina gift card!
8. Bittersweets
If I’d ever open my own business, right now it would be a
stationary store/party goods store by day and event space by night (let me know if you want to fund that). I once felt
that is one thing Pittsburgh lacks – a space that that you can rent for parties
and bring in your own caterer that isn’t a fire hall or VFW.
Well now, there are more event space popping up! First
there was J. Verno Studios. We attending two weddings there last year and they
were both AWESOME.
Here are some recent additions to the PGH event space
scene.
(Photos sources: Studio on Fifth, Mansions on Fifth Facebook, Bill Chisnell Facebook, Engine House 25)
·
The Studio on Fifth: In
Shadyside/Oakland, there is the Studio on Fifth at WQED. This space was where
Mister Rogers Neighborhood was filmed! You can pretty much host anything here –
weddings, galas, birthday parties, shows – you name it!
·
Mansions
on Fifth: Another Shadyside spot, this
place is a serious mansion. You can rent various rooms for dinner parties,
showers, birthdays. I see this as an alternative to a country club event. They
also host a lot of music nights!
·
BCP
Studio: Event planner Bill Chisnell is opening his Strip District studio
(near the History Center!) for rentals. While the website isn’t updated, if you
do a bit of digging, you can see past events held here!
·
Engine
25: This place is SUPER rad. My company held its holiday part here. An old
fire house in the Strip District/Lawrenceville, it’s also a photo studio,
winery and Roberto Clemente museum – all open for your party! While it seems
very random, it’s an excellent place to host a wedding, birthday party, rehearsal
dinner or shower. And the red wine is
FANTASTIC.
It’s Thirsty Thursday and……SHOT OF MOM’S BIRTHDAY!! You
know what that means?!
We feature Shot of Mom’s Favorite Drink!
Mom's Birthday Dinner - Janet was playing the role of "Dad" for the night due to snow!
Sue trends to indulge in a variety of alcoholic beverages
like “Strong Island” Iced Teas, Little Beers, wine, beer, etc. So I wasn’t sure
what “go to” drink to feature here, so I asked Shot of Mom and she said – “Chocolate
Covered Pretzel Shots.”
By Sue’s request, here is the recipe for Chocolate
Covered Pretzel via the Frangelico website:
· 1oz Frangelico
· 1oz Whipped Vodka
Directions: Shake with ice, pour in shot glass. Lick salt then take shot.
My husband has a new obsession (he’s going to be mad at
me for writing this). He’s obsessed with HGTV. I think this started on a recent
trip to Cleveland when we turned on HGTV before getting ready to explore the
city. Both of us were sucked in.
While Brady is obsessed with HGTV, I’m obsessed with
trying to incorporate animal heads into our apartment décor. Yes, you heard me.
Animal heads. Not so much the kind that my grandparents have, but faux heads.
Speaking of my grandparents, they have a deer head in
their game room. Growing up my pap told me that the deer was running through
the garage and got stuck in the wall and they left him there. And that his
other half was in the garage. I totally believed this for at least a year (or
more).
Beginning last year, I began to see animal heads pop up
on a lot of blogs. Now they are going mainstream in stores like Pottery Barn
and West Elm. Here’s some décor photos and places to purchase your own!
8. White
Faux Taxidermy Deer
10. White
Faux Taxidermy Pink Deer
11. AIC
Faux Taxidermy Moose
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