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)