REAL SIMPLE magazine

This was a fun interview we did for one of our favorite mags for their "Real life strategies" section.

All about entertaining. (Makes me want to throw another party.)

Sadly- it didn't run :(
So what the h*ll, might as well share it here :)
Makes me miss winter!!

WARM HANDS, WARM HEART.

For the ice rink parties that we host on our lake, I love greeting friends with a basket full of vintage hand knit mittens and scarves- folks relish the opportunity to  swap out the standard issue for something old and handmade and I always pair it with a toasty drink-  spiked hot cider and  Irish cream hot cocoa are crowd fav's. I also provide skates for friends who don't bring any (you can pick up at almost any thrift store) I buy off season to get them cheaper.

CHEERS!

Impromptu bars. I love 'pop up bars'.  Throwing a sheep skin on a dresser, top it off with wooden trays, layer it with bottles. they're easy to throw together in minutes -- one that I do every year is our 'tobaggan bar'-- a 1920s sled on saw horses, decked out to the max with all manner of retro glasses and liquor decanters.

DIY SMILE BOOTH

Rig up a vintage holiday tablecloth or fantastic old piece of retro christmas barkcloth - and set your digital camera up on a tripod. Voila! instant photobooth. To really get folks crazy into it, I set out a basket of props (vintage of course!) 

SHOTSKI

Nothing says holiday like spiced rum from a shotski. Our friends built a '7 seater'-- two vintage snow skis anchored together. I like to mix in 'surprise shots' so their like presents, folks don't know what they'll be drinking.

VINTAGE GEAR

At camp, we immerse our guests in all things retro. I spend the year stocking up on antique snowshoes, snow skis, vintage ice skates and hockey gear, piles of tartan wool blankets and stacks of vintage hand knit sweaters. We want friends to feel like they are stepping back in time- and using vintage gear (and donning that 1940's Pendleton wool pheasant coat) while drinking from a 1950's diner mug does the trick.

PARTING GIFT

Give them a memento to remember their visit. When we throw parties at camp, I like to send them home with a token themed from the parties. Sometimes it's a classic camp counselor whistle on a leather lanyard, or a slingshot. I try to make it something they don't have at home. (Side note: eventually, because we got so many requests for stuff like this, we opened wandawegacampstore.com) 

momfilter

I love this blog.

Our friends at mom filter did a great little post  of our favorite little local bakery-
The Elegant Farmer...

from her post:
"One of our favorite apple pies we’ve ever had was in Wisconsin, from The Elegant Farmer, who make their apple pie in a paper bag. It’s insanely good, and they ship nationwide. Our picture proves we couldn’t wait to dig into it."

another great little local secret that momfilter did a post on was Old World Wisconsin (right up the road).

from the post:

"I just came across this amazing living history museum, called Old World Wisconsin, which is now going to be on my “want to go there” list. Apparently it’s the largest living history museum in the US, but what really caught my attention, is that they have vintage base ball games. They play real games, but also act just as they would in the late 1800s. Umpires get addressed as Sir. Players are called “ballists” and fans are called “cranks”. It’s 35 miles from Milwaukee, 75 from Chicago, and not so far from Camp Wandawega, where you could stay overnight, still in the caught-in-time vibe, albeit many decades later."

scofflaw

I am so happy that Scofflaw came to town. It is quickly becoming one of the best cozy gems in the city. The atmosphere is dark, warm and lodge-like with a twist of modern through the accents of wallpaper and lighting.

Scofflaw has great food and great drinks. I love how simple and straight forward the menu is. There are only a handful of items, but what I have tried has been delicious! The drinks, for you adults, are outstanding as well and they even make their own Gin, called Old Tom Gin, that is in a beautifully designed bottle. Love the touch of using vintage cocktail recipes and putting a modern twist on them! 

Check out more here and here. 

ready. set. camp.

"Shelter co. is a pop up lodging service catering to groups looking for an overnight outdoor experience."

shelter co. rocks.- check it out.

I can't begin to imagine how much work this must be to set these up for  a weekend (we have a helluva time getting our boys cout tents and teepees up for the season) Id love to just show up and have it all ready for us.

some info:

Luxury Tents- start at $750 per weekend. There is a 3 tent or $2,000 minimum.

• Sleeps 2 adults
• Full bed with real mattress
• 400 thread count bedding
• Down comforter and pillows
• Wool Pendleton Blanket
• Bedside tables
• Lounge seating
• Area rugs
• Lighting

Lounge and Activity Tents- Lounge vignettes for seating up to 8
Lighting

• Bar set ups
• Children's furnishings and games
• Beauty stations
• Stocked library

Fancy Movie Folks Have Camp Weddings Too!

Pardon me if I'm getting dangerously close to "Celebrities: They're Just Like Us!" territory, but I saw on the morning news that Matthew McConaughey recently got married and he and his bride did it up camp-style. There were games set up all over their "yard" in Austin, TX, hammocks were hung from trees for relaxing and 47 luxury tents were used for sleeping. The tents were decked out with beds, white fur rugs and outdoor seating with doormats.  While Googling this fancy schmancy camp wedding, I saw that Matthew (in addition to appearing shirtless on camera more often than not) had a vintage airstream trailer customized for himself a while ago.

Check out the back yard wedding set-up and the trailer below...

I spy a fur rug!

I also spy generators for air conditioning.  Nice!

You got a hammock for me?
It'd be a lot cooler if you did.

McConaughey with what he calls his "Canoe."  I'm just happy to have found a pic of him fully clothed.

...and a good time was had by all....

thanks:

David Burkart. editor + cinematographer
all of the lovely ladies of Anthropologie.
everyone who came out + made art!

ROAM & HOME.

and a sweet post! (pun intended)

our friend karen rocks it with the best travel blog ever. she did this post on our camp syrup this past holiday- so nice! (here she is with her husband the amazing photographer bob coscarelli)

in her words:

"Australian [Melbourian to be exact], living in Chicago with her Michigan born super star photographer husband. When at her day-job she is organizing, conceptualizing and redesigning business processes. At home, she loves grey interiors mixed with green, and likes to be surrounded by treasures new & old collected on adventures close and travels afar. She loves: eating scrumptious food; taking photos of everything she eats; hanging out over wine and home cooked meals with friends; cooking new dishes; celebrating life by the gulp; and speaking of which she loves drinking cocktails; and spending time with her wonderful family; researching and organizing travel adventures; and constantly redesigning or rearranging their home. Oh and she really loves to write & share her adventures through this blog."

a wandawega wedding invitation

our new friends lindsay and bobby are getting hitched. 

in our backyard.

literally.

they've made this awesome save the date.(+ website and blog)

heres an excerpt from their invite blog that descrives the venue...

Wandawega. Camp Wandawega. Learn it, live it, love it.

Prior to even getting engaged, the number one, most important, super critical, non-negotiable aspect of our future wedding was that it be held someplace that could function on every level. As lodging (for at least a hefty chunk of guests), as ceremony and reception sites, as a place for people to just lounge about and catch up and simply take advantage of being in the same place at the same time.

Well. Finding such a place is harder than one would imagine. All the blogs and google searches and wedding industry employment history in the world were of no help. Oh sure, there were a few options. But nothing that was the whole enchilada.

Hmmm, enchiladas.....

That was the case until, by the grace of the internet, Lindsay stumbled upon Camp Wandawega. On that day, rainbows shot out of the computer screen and puppies sang. Seriously. It was glorious.

Maybe you just had to be there.

ANYway. Lindsay found Wandawega and did cartwheels. She shared it with Bobby, who agreed that it was indeed rather dope. More cartwheels. Emails were exchanged and dotted lines were signed and happy dances were done. And now here we are, sharing the magic with you fine people.

So that's the story on how we came to be planning a wedding at a former speakeasy slash Latvian church retreat slash current private friends and family getaway. A private getaway which the now owners have put an unbelievable amount of time, sweat and elbow grease into lovingly restoring. We're very, very excited for you to experience this wonderful place. In the meantime, go take a gander at Wandawega's website (wandawega.com) for a little peek at the awesomeness to come.

custom batches - A DIY HOLIDAY project

PARTS N' PIECES:

THE BOX: handmade by an organization who employ adults with disabilities. (designed to be replicas of the pine shipping crates used during prohibition
PACKING: wood shavings
LABEL: (beneath the bottle) describes the sources for syrup. the story behind the newspapers, the syrup, the source)
BOTTLE: it took forever to find these, (Grosch-style flip-top dark amber bottle)
TWINE: vintage leather twine (until i ran out, used natural cord)
HANG TAG: printed by accucolor on heavy craft board stock.(designed by eric ellis)
BOOKLET: offset printed, saddlestitched, one color, (also accucolor)

a summercamp wedding- well done!

not sure what i love more... a bridesmaid swigging straight from the bottle, or hauling the whole mess of em' in the back of an elcamino. amazing.

equal love for the bad-ass author of the blog theloveliestday (nobody else could rock pistol tattoos on the collarbone along with a strapless wedding gown.) *first photo- 'melissa'*

a qoute from the bride:

"Chill out and don't do leave anything to be done the day before. If you're getting married on Saturday then, Thursday is the last day that you should do anything wedding-wise. I did not do this and that's my one regret. I felt like I was in a dead sprint until the very end. Friday, should be for taking it all in and spending the extra time with friends and family. If you still have stuff to do then, you'll be like me, a distracted mess! Slow it down and enjoy. Oh yea, and make sure to grab some dessert before it gets devoured! That way, when you're looking back at pictures, you're not salivating and imagining just how good those s'mores cupcakes must have tasted! It doesn't matter how many you order, people go crazy with bite sized desserts."

Photographer: Boro Creative Visions

i found these amazing photos on the blog: THELOVELIESTDAY.COM