The Gift of Music + Free Printable

December 7, 2018 3 Comments A Well Crafted Sponsor

Anyone else out there getting overwhelmed with the number of wants and THINGS? I am a gift giver by nature and love to see someone’s face light up with a gift I’ve given, but as my kids’ age, I’ve really begun to appreciate the “experience gift” over the next new toy. What’s great about this particular experience gift is that it is the ultimate DIY– learning a new skill!

This is the seventh day of my 12 Days of Christmas DIYs for 2018. Each day for the next twelve days I share DIY projects, recipes, entertainment, and more, that you can incorporate in your holiday season. Most will be super simple! This post is in partnership with the Hoffman Academy. I received complimentary services. All images and opinions are my own.

I am a part of several moms groups on Facebook and as this holiday season arrives there are countless posts looking for ideas for experience gifts that they can suggest to grandparents or loved ones for their children to help stave off some of the over-abundance of the season. I love this idea but have never really had great options in the past. I’d love to gift my child lessons or sports items, but I also know that it can be SUCH A huge time commitment that I hesitate to do something similar for someone I know. When I discovered Hoffman Academy, an online piano lesson site, I was super excited about the opportunity to do lessons on our own time.

A bit about Hoffman Academy

Hoffman Academy is an online piano lesson “experience,” credited with turning children, from beginner to advanced levels, into extraordinary musicians. Children develop their skill easily and quickly via the “Hoffman Method,” which focuses on learning by ear before learning by eye. Online games help with mastery of concepts and practice tracks make students feel like pros. This new way to learn the piano is engaging, entertaining and effective – and a great way to give the special gift of music, for the holidays and year round.

All of the video lessons are available for free! However, the premium package offers printables, daily practice instructions, games, and much more. Budding musicians can now receive a full year of the Hoffman Academy Premium package for $179! For Ages 5+.

** Holiday Special Update: For a limited time (ending Monday, December 14th at 11:50 PM PST) purchase a year of Hoffman Academy Premium and receive THREE additional memberships! Learn more on the Hoffman Academy website. **

The really cool part (for me at least) is that you can create a parent/mentor account and add your children (or yourself!) as students. My account has both myself and my son as students and the system will keep track of both of our progress individually. Yep, you read that right… I’m learning the piano too! I’d love to be able to break out some sweet piano skills in the middle of a party! Again, the accounts are totally free and you have access to the video lessons right off the bat. Then if you find that you’d like the premium features it is only $18 a month with $9/month per additional student.

Twelve Days of Christmas Songs

In the upcoming weeks, the Hoffman Academy will be releasing twelve different lessons featuring a different holiday tune so that you can learn a new holiday song each day! Check out some of the videos from last year’s 12 Days of Christmas Songs on the Hoffman Academy blog.

DIY Piano Experience Gift Card

You still want to make giving an experience gift as fun as giving a toy. When it is a promo code or gift card it makes it a tad hard to make it super fun.. but, you can use the attached card as a tag added to a gifted keyboard or piano or an adorbable stuffed animal as pictured above. Or, you can slip the free printable piano card into an envelope with a message about the gift.

This gift card would work perfect for a gift subscription to the Hoffman Academy, to give with tickets to a symphony concert, or as an invitation to a holiday karaoke party!

Directions for free printable piano holiday card:

Download the free printable piano card file.
Print double-sided on cardstock
On the side with the piano, cut out along the charcoal colored outer line. Fold the card down the center. Once folded you may find that you need to trim the card a bit.

Christmas

White Elephant Gift Wrap Ideas + Free Printables

December 6, 2018 3 Comments Christmas

I love a good white elephant gift exchange. It gives people the opportunity to mingle and laugh and sends everyone home with a gift! This year I’m attending four different parties with white elephant gift exchanges! One of my goals each time is to create a package that really makes people want to open my gift… and then fill the package with something that is sure to be stolen a few times. I created these white elephant gift wrap printables with the adorable illustrations from Lorats from Freepik.

This is the sixth day of my 12 Days of Christmas DIYs for 2018. Each day for the next twelve days I share DIY projects, recipes, entertainment, and more, that you can incorporate in your holiday season. Most will be super simple!

So, how do you play White Elephant? I am pretty sure everytime someone has described the game it has sounded complicated, but in practice, it is really simple and a lot of fun. I’ll share the rules I have always played by, but always run with the host’s rules!

How to Play White Elephant

All players must have provided a wrapped give of a determined value and/or theme. Most of the times I’ve played the gifts were valued from $15-$25. However, I have totally played with a $10 limit before and had just as much fun. I added in theme here because I’ve been to some white elephant games that set not only a price range but also a theme for a party. One of my favorite traditions is attending a mug swap with friends and we all get different mugs and then play a game of white elephant for the mugs.
Write down a number for each of the gifts and put all the numbers in a bowl/hat/box/what-have-you.
Have every person draw a number.
The person that receives the number one is a very special player. They get the opportunity to go first, but then at the end of the game, they have the opportunity to steal a gift that hasn’t been locked (more on that later).
Person one picks a gift and opens it. They make sure to show the gift to everyone present.
Person two then has the option to either open a new gift or steal the gift from person number one. If they choose to steal the gift then person number one gets to open a new gift.
Each gift can be stolen only twice. Once it has been stolen a second time (so it has reached its third owner) it is locked and cannot be stolen again.
You can steal a gift back that was stolen from you only if it was not JUST stolen from you and is not locked.
At the end of the game the person with the number one gets the opportunity to either steal or end the game. If they steal then the person they steal from has the opportunity to steal, etc. In that case the game goes on until someone ends it by no longer stealing. The gifts that have been locked may not be stolen.

Tips for Great White Elephant Games

Pick a gift that you truly love or think that others will love. Sometimes White Elephant games are called “Dirty Santa” and are gag gifts. Even in that case, go for the funniest gift available rather than the dud gift. No one wants to go home with a dud!
Wrap it up nice! Make the gift look so fun that someone wants to open it up right away. It is fun to see your gift opened up and stolen. Plus, people really enjoy opening gifts. On that note, don’t make the gift too complicated to open. Everyone will be watching and time may be limited.

Free White Elephant Wrapping Printables

Below are some free (for personal use) printable gift wrap items to help make your white elephant gift extra adorable. I mean… if I saw a gift with cute little elephants on it at a White Elephant Party, well, I’d for sure pick it!

Download the White Elephant Gift Tags 2UP: These are the larger tags. Print on cardstock, cut out along red outer lines, and hole punch the top circle. Attach to your gift with ribbon.
Download the White Elephant Gift Tags 4UP: These are slightly smaller tags. Print on cardstock, cut out along red outer lines, and hole punch the top circle. Attach to your gift with ribbon.
Download the 8.5X11 White Elephant Gift Wrap: Print this out on copy paper using a home printer or, for better quality, print at your local print shop. This size is perfect for small trinkets.
Download the 11X17 White Elephant Gift Wrap: Print this on copy weight paper at your local print shop.
Download the 18X24 White Elephant Gift Wrap: Print as a color engineering print from your local Staples or favorite print shop.

Have you ever been to a White Elephant party? If so, what was your favorite gift?

A Well Crafted Life

East India Company + Portland Dining Month

March 27, 2017 No Comments A Well Crafted Life

Each year I look forward to Portland Dining month, devour the menu of each restaurant a few times, and select a couple of restaurants to try a three-course meal for just $29. This year I was offered the opportunity by Travel Portland to try Portland Dining month at one restaurant and share that experience with you the readers! Part of my meal was covered by this opportunity. All opinions are my own.

March Madness?

The month of march is basically a holiday for foodies in Portland. Portland Dining Month (PDM) gives guests an opportunity to try an array of restaurant specialties at $29 for a three course meal. Each March I try to pick at least two restaurants that I’ve not been able to try (or favorites I can rarely afford) and take the opportunity to enjoy a three course meal at an affordable price point. There is a whole rating system for my husband and I when it comes to restaurants participating in Portland Dining Month. We check out their PDM menus, reviews, and local blog coverage. Places that give choices on their menus get moved up on the list. Ones we’ve tried before get moved down. It is an ordeal. So far this month I’ve only been able to try one restaurant, a great choice if I do say so myself, but I hope to hit one more before the end of the month. Best thing about this game of chance? Everyone is a winner. SO many great restaurants to choose from!

India Trading Company — Great Indian Food in Portland, Oregon

Setting up a reservation for India Trading Co. was simple, but I am glad that I did it! When we walked up to the door the place looked empty, however what we couldn’t see was a fairly full restaurant dining room just past the bar. We used OpenTable through the Portland Dining Month website so that our reservation also helped to make a donation to Oregon Food Bank (more on that below) and it literally took less than two minutes to get our reservation for a Friday night.

We haven’t had Indian food in years. YEARS. That is seriously shameful. I love Indian food but have only ventured to make it on my own one time. We kept talking about going back to one of our favorite local restaurants, but with the kiddos it has been difficult due to the spice levels of my favorite dishes. My husband prefers milder dishes and I personally enjoy medium to spicier flavors. This was the perfect date night opportunity and we now added another local restaurant to our favorites list.

We started our meal out with something that isn’t on the PDM menu… cocktails! We love trying house-recipe cocktails. I had the Rangpur Chill, a refreshing and spicy combination of gin, chilis, and cucumber. My husband enjoyed the Harabi Lassi that features a Saffron infused vodka, lassi and mango. Both were delicious. His sweeter and mine spicier… kind of like us, really.

For the Portland Dining Month menu we chose to eat the Bhel Puri first course, Chicken Tikka Masala, and Kulfi. We then went off the PDM menu and tried the Tandoori Khumbi which were grilled mushrooms marinated in five herbs, with ginger and lemon and a spicy Tamarind-Date Chutney. We also tried, on recommendation of our server, something completely off-menu! We did their Korma (“a characteristic Indian dish which can be traced back to the 16th century. The flavor of a korma is based on a mixture of spices along with cashew nuts, fresh ginger, green chilies and cream”) with lamb. It was amazing and SPICY. I always like asking the servers favorite. They are almost always in the know about the best menu (or off-menu) dishes. We also added garlic naan to our order. Naan is perfect for getting all the amazing sauces from the dish into your mouth.

We loved the entire meal, but I have to say my favorites were the grilled mushrooms and the chicken tikka masala.

More info on Portland Dining Month

Portland Dining Month, now in its eighth year, returns to the Rose City this March with a host of new restaurants serving up three-course dinners for just $29 every night of the week. Portland Dining Month, a Travel Portland initiative, gives visitors and locals the opportunity to try Portland’s fan-favorite restaurants and newbies on the scene at a significant discount.

This year, more than 120 restaurants have joined Portland Dining Month, with award-winning chefs preparing three-course prix fixe dinner menus. New additions to the 2017 roster include buzzworthy locales Tusk, Bar Casa Vale, Headwaters, Jacqueline, La Moule, Rue and Wayfinder Beer, as well as classic Portland standbys Huber’s Cafe, Higgins, Jake’s Grill, Mother’s Bistro and Paley’s Place. A full list of participating Portland Dining Monthrestaurants and their menus can be found at PortlandDiningMonth.com.

“Portland has become a world-class culinary destination, which is evident in the seemingly never-ending creativity and fresh concepts that Portland chefs bring to the table,” said Jeff Miller, Travel Portland president and CEO. “Portland Dining Month is the perfect opportunity for locals and visitors alike to try a new restaurant or old favorite while celebrating this incredible food destination.”

Reservations That Give Back

During Portland Dining Month, diners are encouraged to make reservations online through PortlandDiningMonth.com. Once again, Portland Dining Month will partner with Oregon Food Bank, making a donation to the hunger-relief organization for every reservation booked through the OpenTable links on PortlandDiningMonth.com.

A Well Crafted Life

A bit about Hoffman Academy

Twelve Days of Christmas Songs

DIY Piano Experience Gift Card

How to Play White Elephant

Tips for Great White Elephant Games

Free White Elephant Wrapping Printables

Have you ever been to a White Elephant party? If so, what was your favorite gift?

March Madness?

India Trading Company — Great Indian Food in Portland, Oregon

East India Company Grill and Bar Portland Dining Month Menu 2017:

More info on Portland Dining Month