The Milly and Grace Girls

Oscar Party Treats!

March 1, 2014 By Allison 2 Comments

The Oscars are tomorrow! Are you having a viewing party?? The Milly & Grace Girls love any excuse to throw a little party… and an Oscars Party is one of my favorites. So I put together a few must have treats and traditions that would be perfect for an Oscar Party.

First up, Caramel Corn… When I think of popcorn, I think of the movies. An easy way to fancy up this classic movie treat for an Oscar Party is to cover it with sweet caramel and edible gold stars! I think Caramel Corn is going to be my newest Oscar Party Tradition…

This was my first time making caramel corn… it was really easy! I used this recipe but doubled the vanilla (I always double the vanilla in every recipe… especially my cookie recipes). I sprinkled the Edible Gold Stars (available at Michael’s) after I took the popcorn out from the oven!

You can easily make customized popcorn bags! All you need are these little white bags, letter stamps and a ink pad! All available at Michael’s.

Red Licorice is a classic movie theater treat from the 1920’s. I was reading up on Bon Appetit’s History of Movie Theater Treats that the war between Twizzler and Red Vine started in the early 20th century. Fun Fact: Twizzlers were born in the mid 1800’s and Red Vines were born in 1920. I know I am not the only one that always thought that Red Vines were the original red licorice! I used to be a Twizzler girl back in the day but now I LOVE Red Vines more! (Who knew I could write so much about red licorice?)

Chocolate Covered Strawberries are an Ott Oscar Party Tradition… I decided to fancy them up too with a sprinkle of gold! I might have gone a little crazy with the Edible Gold Stars! That little tube of stars goes a long way.

And finally, every party has to have a signature drink! In honor of Shirley Temple, I decided to try out a new cocktail. Everyone knows the “Dirty Shirley” which is a Shirley Temple with Vodka. But I thought I needed to keep it classy…

A Champagne Shirley Temple Cocktail was born! Grenadine, Champagne, finished with Sprite and of course…. a cherry on top!

And there you have it! A few sweet treats for your Oscar Party! If you need something savory, you can always do a cheese plate or these amazing Chipotle and Rosemary Spiced Nuts.

That little Oscar in all those pictures above is from my 13th Birthday party! Maybe one day… I’ll be able to replace it with a real one?! A girl can dream!

Filed Under: Allison, Party 2 Comments

Lucca, Italy

February 28, 2014 By Caroline 2 Comments

Hannah and I finished off midterms last week with a weekend spent under the Tuscan sun. Both of us had been to many of the major cities in Italy like Rome, Florence, and Venice. So, we decided that we wanted to explore one of the smaller towns with not a whole bunch of tourist attractions so that our weekend could be more on the relaxing side. I got to researching a destination and found out about this little bitty town called Lucca in Tuscany. It is a city built in a circle with high walls surrounding it. We stayed in the cutest Bed and Breakfast, called Locanda Sant’Agostino, run by a mother daughter duo. They could not have been nicer and more accommodating. They offered to pick us up and drop us off at the train station free of charge. And the breakfast was so outstanding. Plenty of different granolas and cereals to choose from, soft boiled eggs in the cute little stands, juice, croissants, bread, traditional pastries from Lucca, homemade jam, prosciutto, cheese, coffee, and tea. If you ever find yourself in Lucca, you must stay with them.

We decided to rent bikes on our first day and ride around the entire city on top of the walls. We spent the next day wandering every single street on the inside. It was great because you didn’t really have to pay attention to a map because as soon as you hit the wall, you just turned around and started walking in the other direction. We ate more than our fair share of gelato (Fifi and Gigi did too!), we wandered markets and bought a couple trinkets, we went in and out of all the cute little shops and several churches, we climbed to the top of a tower for a birds eye view of Lucca, ate the most delicious Tiramisu that we had ever tasted, and we just fell in love with the cute little town.

Filed Under: Caroline, Caroline's Year Abroad, Travel 2 Comments

Pink & Gray Inspiration

February 27, 2014 By Emily 1 Comment

I’ve got Pink & Gray on the mind. Well, I always do. But ever since that Ralph Lauren fashion show, pink & gray has been popping up everywhere!! Here is the image that started the obsession:
Years ago, Caroline was flipping through a Martha Stewart Wedding magazine (surprise surprise) and she came across a pink & gray wedding. We both couldn’t believe how pretty the combo was! It was so feminine – and not in a girlie girl way, in a more sophisticated way. When Milly & Grace came to be, naturally the colors had to be pink & gray.

Some Pink & Gray Pin-spiration from my Pink & Gray board on Pinterest:
While we were in NYC, Patty and I stumbled upon some Pink & Gray “brownstone”!
And much to my delight, a few of the designers that we carry at Milly & Grace are also using pink & gray in their fall collections! I was wondering if this trend was going to trickle down from the high fashion runway world to the contemporary world and it did!!