Image from A Place for Art

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Happy #EarthDay!

Inspired by my penguin olive appetizers, I pulled together some black and white party essentials (with orange accents, of course). I love mixing patterns on the table and having a pop of colour (not literally though, in the case of the giant balloon–no popping allowed!).

I think Pingu would be proud.

36″ Orange Latex Balloon // Black Tie Napkins // Prairie Girl Carrot Cupcake // PC Sparkling Fruit Juice – Orange Tangerine // Prairie Girl Dark Cocoa Cupcake // PC Sparkling Fruit Juice – Peach Mango // Plastic Orange Cutlery // Black Tie Paper Plates

A note: the cupcakes featured are from my neighbourhood cupcake shop, Prairie Girl Bakery. Bordering on obsessed with the carrot ones (with classic cream cheese icing)–they’re to die for. If you’re ever in the ‘hood, check them out!

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A couple of Saturdays ago, my friend Katie hosted a wonderful dinner party. Throw a bunch of girls together on a patio with yummy drinks (courtesy of Kelly Lynn, as seen below) and you’ve got yourself an evening of laughs, delicious food, and a spontaneous dance party (perhaps after one too many of the previously mentioned drinks!).

I was in change of an appetizer and after some browsing on Pinterest, came across some adorable olive penguins. Done deal!

You will need:
• Cream cheese (I bought it fresh from St. Lawrence Market)
• Black olives (medium + large sizes)
• A carrot (I ended up using two so the circles were consistent)

Full instructions on how to make can be found on Rock Ur Party.

Tip #1: I found it more efficient to do the individual elements all at once (ie cut all the feet, make all the heads, stuff all the bodies, and then assemble). These guys are time consuming but once you get in a groove they come together pretty quickly.

Tip #2: When you’re stuffing the bodies with cream cheese, it helps to wipe your knife clean after each one. This minimizes the amount of cream cheese you get all over the body (and, let’s be honest—yourself. I may or may not have been covered in cream cheese after the first few).

Tip #3: Continuing the theme of Tip #2, keep a damp paper towel beside you to wipe off any excess cream cheese. In the beginning you will be using this A LOT, but as you get the hang of filling you can use just for touch-ups.

Ta-daa! The finished product:

And after all your hard work…you’re ready to pack up your colony for safe traveling!

Safe to say they were a hit at the dinner. I’ll definitely be making them again!

Happy penguin creating!

PS If you make them yourself, tweet me a pic – I’d love to see! @MichelleEReagan