Tag Archives: gifts

Grown Up May Day Celebrations

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Grown Up May Day | Darling Magazine

There were approximately 50 steps to the front door of my crush’s house. I scanned for the doorbell as I tiptoed up the stairs, planning my exit strategy. “I’ll meet you around the block,” my mom had said when she dropped me off two houses down.

My heart tap-danced against my chest. Mustering up as much stealth as possible, I set down a plastic cup, overflowing with treats, with my crush’s name stickered across the front beneath a sparkly pipe-cleaner handle. A few other makeshift baskets, filled with similar fare, sat uncollected on the welcome mat—a good sign. The doorbell glowed orange even in the sunlight. Dismissing the care with which I’d placed the basket I punched the bell and bolted, hurdling a flowerbed and cutting across the neighbor’s backyard and into the open door of my mom’s SUV. Safe.

Where I grew up, we celebrated May Day. Every year on May 1st, we commemorated our friendships and the promise of warmer weather with May Baskets, handmade baskets of treats we delivered to friends’ doorsteps as soon as school dismissed. Folklore had it that if you got caught leaving your gift, you’d suffer a kiss or a pinch from the other person. Though the festivities fizzled out once we arrived at middle school, May Day remains one of my fondest memories growing up. The exchange of simple but thoughtful gifts between friends (and at that age, the allure of competition) brought a certain joy that is often lost in the rush of our adult lives—the joy of showing and feeling appreciation.

May Day has a beautifully storied history. The holiday originated from pagan festivals honoring Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, and Walpurgis Night, a traditional spring festival in Europe’s Germanic countries often observed with bonfires and dancing. As centuries progressed, the holiday lost its pagan affiliations and evolved into a commemoration of the spring or summer seasons, filled with festivities like Morris dancing, singing and weaving ribbons around a Maypole. While some traditions have waned, the day is still considered a national holiday in many European countries and continues to be commemorated with sunrise madrigal singing, breakfast barbecues, flowers and Walpurgis Night celebrations held the prior evening.

As we look forward to long summer days and upcoming beach vacations, May Day is the perfect time to partake in the enchantment of a unique cultural practice as well as demonstrate gratefulness for our closest friends. Use the holiday as a reason to put together a vibrant spring barbecue with friends or to wake up early and watch the sunrise with a loved one, coffee in hand. Or, capitalize on the opportunity to surprise those closest to you with a sweet gift, just because. Here are four ideas for “grown-up” May Baskets your friends will love—no ding-dong-ditch required.

A collection of home-baked treats. Make your favorite springtime sweets and package them in a thoughtfully updated May Basket, like these adorable chevron cookie bags from Etsy.

Fresh flowers. Gather up small bouquets of seasonal flowers at your local farmer’s market and arrange them in antique tin cans to hang on your friends’ doorknobs. I love Martha Stewart’s whimsical interpretation and DIY instructions here.

Handmade bags of loose leaf tea. Emily Schuman of Cupcakes and Cashmere featured a lovely Valentine’s Day gift idea that showed how to put together DIY Valentine’s tea bags decorated with a small, heart-shaped note. Update the idea for May Day with pretty pastel colors and a flower cutout, and learn how to make them here.

A handwritten note. This simple but lovely gesture never fails to inspire in our email and social media-filled days. Find beautifully colored cardstock in bulk in stationery stores like Paper Source and leave a note somewhere your friend will stumble upon later in her day.

Photo by Morgan Johnson

A Voice Without Fear

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A Voice Without Fear | Darling Magazine

Kindergarteners are my favorite kind of people. They’re funny and quirky and always seem to be sticky. They’re also my favorite because they’re fearless.

Have you ever spent time with kindergarteners? If you get a chance, go up to a group of them and ask them this: Who of you are artists or singers or dancers?

I guarantee that before you can finish your sentence, you’ll have 5 or 6 of the bravest ones up front pulling out all of the stops, whipping out their best tree or twirl or rendition of ‘the sun will come out tomorrow.’ Now try that same thing in a group of college students—or even better, a group of professionals.

My dad tells the story of when he was at a conference with 400 law enforcement professionals—experts in their field, people with PHD’s and fully loaded guns on their belts. The speaker asked the same question: Who of you are artists or singers or dancers? There were a couple of nervous coughs as everybody averted their eyes, not wanting to make the rookie mistake of making eye contact with the guy up front.

Not one person raised their hand.

You’d assume that as we get older, we’d become more confident. You’d also assume that the kindergarteners have more to lose because their peers are probably a bit more vocal in their disapproval (not yet having learned the art of tact or political correctness) and because of the embarrassing reality of their still untrained bladders. But time and time again, I can promise that you’d find more reckless confidence in a group of 5 year olds than in a group of 500 qualified, professional adults.

Doesn’t that just make you wonder?

Here’s the conclusion I’ve been drawing as I’ve seen this played out in my life, over and over again: There’s a point, probably somewhere around middle school, when you start to become horrifyingly aware of your potential to embarrass yourself. You start to understand that there are certain people that are the artists and the singers and the dancers—and that generally, those activities should be left to those with a natural affinity for them.

We discover, or maybe just assume that a lot of humiliation can be eliminated if we avoid things that we might not be awesome at right away. And although in some cases there may be some truth to this, it’s not a truth that lends itself to any kind of freedom.

When I was little, I loved to sing—until about 3rd grade when I choked in a school talent show- marking the end of my solo career. I sang in choir, but I literally had to be medicated any time I was forced to sing alone—my voice squeaking out as a shadow of what I (and the walls of my shower) knew it was capable of.

It wasn’t until halfway through my 23rd year of life that I finally began to break through some of that fear, letting my actual voice out. I was terrified at first—scared of being rejected for something that came from deep inside of me—and then things changed. A friend of mine told me to sing and to sing loudly and to forget about what it sounded like. He gave me the permission to be terrible, if need-be, but not to let that stop me.

And with the loving permission to be really, really bad, I realized that it actually was less about the product than it was about the process. It was less about what my voice sounded like, and more about the freedom I could step into if I just opened my mouth and let ‘er rip.

The freedom was incredible. It was amazing what my voice sounded like when it wasn’t choked by my fear of what other people were thinking of me. Within a month or two of that moment, I was playing guitar and singing in front of huge groups of people- actually surprisingly confidently. I may not become a recording artist—then again, you never know—but there’s a freedom that I’ve found in not being ashamed of the sound that’s inside of me.

And it made me wonder…

What would happen if we, as confident, degree holding, weapon wielding (or not…) adults, decided to paint? What would happen if we decided to sing or learn to play the guitar, or take a dance class? What would happen if we decided to go for that thing that we’ve always dreamed about, but always left to the professionals?

What kind of freedom are we missing out on by limiting what we do to the things that we’ve tried and already know that we’re good at? And what would our voices, paintings, and dancing be like if they weren’t choked with fear?

Kindergarteners are finding out—shouldn’t we?

Image via Sincerely Kinsey

Step One: Returning The Favor

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Step One: Return The Favor | Darling Magazine

This is part of our Professional Dinner Guest series, a guide on how to become the kind of dinner guest that people enjoy having over and invite back regularly. Catch up on previous posts here.

Today we will approach the “front door” of professional “guesting,” the first impression a hostess will have of you: what you have prepared. The hostess or host has prepared ambience, a meal, and an evening event—what have you brought to say “thank you?”

Now it is generally not expected that every guest would think to bring something to an event, especially when it is not a potluck or a barbecue. That does not, however, imply that it’s wrong to do so. Bringing a gift for the hosts of the party is a thoughtful and gracious way to say “thank you” and also “I understand that it takes work to make these evenings go smoothly.” Whether or not they end up smooth is not the issue—you should thank them in advance anyway.

Gifts, however, are a bit of an art form. There is no need to feel intimidated by the thought of thinking up the perfect item—there are standbys that will always suffice and bring a warm smile to the face of those who have invited you. Remember, they invited you into their home, they made an effort so that you could be comfortable and well fed, and it is the least you can do to reciprocate in return.

Let’s start with what NOT to do…

1. Show up empty-handed. Regardless as to the type of event (formal dinner party or backyard cook-out), there is always an opportunity to bless and contribute.

2. Overdo it. If it takes both hands to lift it, it’s too big of a gift. If it’s something like a massive basket with 20 items, not only is it probably not situationally appropriate (that’s for when your neighbor is ill and stuck in bed or a relative passes away), but also a bulky bother for those you are giving it to.

3. Give money. Unless the host has found an inventive way to ask for it, like a money jar at the entrance, or asked for it in advance, I have found offering to pay once you have arrived a tacky and sometimes embarrassing idea. However, in the case of a potluck—say for a holiday dinner—it’s okay to offer ahead of time to help buy the Turkey before the host cooks it. Just be sure not to mention it over the table of guests that you did so. Making other guests feel guilty is not something your host will appreciate.

4. Bring porcelain figurines, candelabra or knick knacks. Unless you already know that your host has a very particular proclivity to a certain style, buying these kinds of items can create stress for the hosts if they do not like them. In fact, you might not get invited again because they have already re-gifted your bird figurine and are worried you will notice it’s absence and be offended.

Instead, bring one of these tried-and-true best gifts…

1. Flowers. Probably shy away from a dozen red roses, but otherwise, flowers can be a beautiful centerpiece for the evening, especially if your friend has forgotten a centerpiece in the rush of getting prepared. Try to select blooms that will last for at least a week so they can enjoy them for the maximum amount of time. Also, have them in some sort of water already (even in just a bag taped around the base of the stems) in case they don’t have time to deal with them in the rush of guests arriving. Better yet, offer to put them in a vase yourself.

2. Gourmet chocolates. A little box of truffles or Ghiradelli squares is always a welcome addition, and you can suggest that they can be opened with after-dinner coffee and tea, adding to the party atmosphere without eclipsing your host’s preparations.

3. Locally-made products, like honey or preserves. This can be a sweet addition to anyone’s pantry, especially if you know the hosts’ favorite flavor. If the gift can only be gleaned from a local farmer’s market, the time and effort you took to find them shows your appreciation and care. A little can go a long way.

4. Personal specialty items. For one person, a perfect item may be a set of fine stationary, and for another, a little lemon zester they haven’t gotten around to buying. When you are around your friends who do give these dinners, listen to the little details they talk about and pay attention. I often hear people saying things like “I keep wanting to buy that, but it’s just such a little extra, not a necessity.” That’s the type of little gift you want to keep an eye out for.

Stay tuned for part three, where we will discuss how to dress appropriately for dinner parties…

Image via Valley & Co. Lifestyle

Dear Darlings, Thanks For Your Support!

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Happy December!

As many of you know, we are very excited (like, Christmas excited) to have Issue No. 2 of Darling Magazine officially done, printed and ready to send! With a lot of hope and heart, we were are printing an extra 1,000 copies this time around—with the faith that you, our Darling supporters, are behind us in this very anticipatory time.

We would love your help in the following ways to make our December a little more delightful for the Darling team…

1. Encourage your closest friends and family (and maybe not so close ones), that if they have no idea what get their own friends & family, our print magazine would be a great gift! We even have mugs too!

2. Let us know your favorite stores (boutiques, bookstores, etc) around your town that you think might want to carry Darling as merchandise. We’d love to expand our readership by getting in as many stores as possible this next year—just leave us a comment below with your ideas!

3. Follow us socially on Facebook, Twitter and especially Instagram—and if/when you get your copy of the Winter Issue, hashtag #DarlingMagazine. (Did we mention we have over 1K followers on Instagram?! Woo!)

4. Share this post on Facebook and Twitter to help us spread the word about our amazing second issue, which is full of rich content, deep advice, beautiful photography and truth that helps women live lives of purpose and value.

Ultimately, we are excited to be releasing something so relevant during this chilly, yet oh-so-merry season, and are thrilled to continue to share stories and display conversations that spring from similar hearts as yours.

We are thankful. Without your support, we wouldn’t be Darling.

With love,
The Darling Magazine Team

DIY Cocktail & Hors d’ Oeuvres Napkins

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If you are looking for a simple and economical gift to make, dig through your fabric scraps and whip up a few dozen of these adorable napkins. They are the perfect size (6” x 6”) to accompany a cheese platter, mixed drinks, and desserts as you host your favorite people for delectable delights. I made a bunch of these little napkins from vintage sheets and some linen I found in the discount section at Ikea. Try making some from an old flannel shirt or some dingy jeans–the options are endless! For a pretty present, stack six napkins and wrap with twine or ribbon.

You will need:

pre-washed fabric scraps

an iron

scissors or rotary cutter, thread, and pinking shears

sewing machine

Note: All seam allowances are 1/4”

 

Your New Solution to Your Shopping Obsessions

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You know the situation. Scraps of paper with random items jotted down, pictures of goods from stores on your iPhone, emails to yourself from the site with that new cozy knit sweater that you long to have…trying to keep up with the plethora of consumer goods on the market can be overwhelming, leading us to impulse buy.

Let Darling introduce you to Svpply. It is your visual shopping and inspiration list. You simply add the widget to your bookmark bar and click to add an item from any website you are shopping on, and it immediately adds it to your list on Svpply. Here is what the basic site looks like:


You can follow other people whose taste you enjoy, as well as your friends and family. It is perfect if you are searching for a particular item you want, or to help you know what to buy for a gift, especially for those that are difficult to shop for.

You can create a “Set” which can be, for example, all the lingerie for your bachelorette party (so you get what you want), or gifts for your home, (so you don’t have to be hassled by taking gifts back). In addition, it fulfills the urge to go shopping all the time –”Svpplying” it feels almost as good as purchasing; its practically yours once its in your personal collection. Then you can weigh over time whether or not you should purchase something in real life!

The Darling girls would love to share some Svpply inspirations with you and see what tickles your fancy. You can find a couple of us here and here.

 

25 Days of Darling: Day 6

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Buy a co-worker or friend a bunch of holiday flowers. Next time you are at the grocery store or driving by a florist, stop and combine just the right bouquet. If you have leftovers, grace your own home, or combine another bunch for a second friend!

Ideas: Poinsettias, Christmas berries, greenery (left over from your tree trimmings!), or cream roses are some good holiday choices. Tie a fun ribbon around them and arrange them in a cute container such as a tin bucket or a glass jar…and don’t forget to write a sweet note!

From the series:  25 Days of Darling

Photo Credit: petitpoulailler.tumblr.com