It’s that time of year again — when the weather gets colder and family and friends become a priority, and the feeling of togetherness with loved ones warms your heart.
Have you started making your shopping list for the year? For us, making sure we’ve checked off every name is a fun pursuit, even if it’s difficult.
Shopping for your friends and family is a personal journey that is different for everyone. However, every gift must get wrapped.
That’s why we’ve put together a list of unique gift-wrapping ideas for the holiday season.
Read on for a few ways to make sure your gift is a memorable one, even before it’s opened!
While wrapping paper may be the most noticeable thing about how you present your gift — and we’ll get to that — including a few natural elements that reflect the season is a great way to add some fresh flair to your present. According to Good Housekeeping, “kumquats, holly sprigs, and other seasonal decor attached with floral wire add a burst of color” to an otherwise plain wrapping.
A way to add a personalized touch to your gift is to wrap it in the traditional Japanese “furoshiki” style. A furoshiki wrapping technique uses only a single cloth or square piece of fabric and was created centuries ago in ancient Japanese culture. It is a convenient, economical, and eco-friendly way to wrap gifts.
Below is Wellness Mama’s 2 step instruction manual for furoshiki gift wrapping:
As far as patterns go, plaid is the go-to for holiday gifts. But it’s important to differ from the norm if you want your wrapping to stand out.
Just use a different, but extremely recognizable, pattern. Polka dots!
Repurposing old dress clothes can be a quirky, fun way to wrap your gifts. In fact, it serves as two gifts in one! Using a button-down shirt to wrap a small gift makes it ready-to-wear.
Check out Country Living’s tutorial on reusing patterned clothing for gift wrapping here.
This is the most personalized wrapping idea on our list. And all it takes is a few markers, or acrylic paint, and a brush.
By painting minimal, simple patterns on several 24 inches x 36 inches or 18 inches x 24 inches poster boards, you will create plenty of wrapping paper for your gifts.
Check out these instructions by Camille Styles to make beautiful, personalized wrapping paper for your loved ones:
SUPPLIES
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Candy canes and silver lanes are aglow in South Louisiana. The spirit of the season is here, and New Orleans, the Northshore, and Baton Rouge have a host of spectacular events you can check out to celebrate the holidays in true Louisiana fashion.
Read on for a regional breakdown of some great family-friendly holiday events this year.
Metairie and Kenner certainly get merry and bright for the holidays, which is why we love having apartment communities in those areas. You’re just a quick drive away from extravagant lighting displays, Santa visits, and remarkable holiday performances.
Lafreniere Park’s annual light display keeps getting better and better. Entry is $10 per vehicle. Holiday favorites from this years display include: artificial snow, an interactive walking tour set to random scenes from favorite holiday classics, and an over 10 million LED light display.
Ponchartrain Conservancy is hosting their annual Lights on the Lake event! The boat parade is scheduled for 5:30pm to 7:15pm. Local food trucks, refreshments, live entertainemnt, holiday decor and more. Admission is $5 for all and free for children under 5.
Lakeside Shopping Center has Santa photos now through December 24. While you’re there, stop by the North Pole Express, Monday-Saturday 10am-7pm and Sunday noon-6pm, $2 per ride and open now until January 3rd!
Kenner Christmas Village is a great idea for a family outing this holiday season. The Christmas Village located at Heritage Park is filled with things to do and see the whole family will love. There’s nightly performances, lights, snow, music, food, arts and crafts and more!.
Live music by Harpist Patrice Fisher and Arpa, cookie decorating, hot cocoa bar, and children’s activities all at the West Bank Regional Library.
Luna Fete, New Orleans’ free festival of light art located in Lafayette Square Park. From 6pm-10pm.
Join Harahan Police Department and Chief Tim Walker for the Harahan Christmas Parade!
The Riverwalk Outlets will be showing the Grinch movie at their “Movie Under the Stars” event, outside on the Spanish Plaza! Free treats will be available as well as Santa pictures! The event is free.
The Northshore is just a short drive from New Orleans, across Lake Pontchartrain. The Northshore’s holiday calendar is always jam-packed with wonderful events for the whole family.
The 10th annual Merry Madisonville is a holiday festival that begins with a holiday parade, where Santa arrives by boat at Town Hall. Soon after is “Santa’s Workshop,” which features caroling, kids’ activities, photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and arts and crafts.
Finally, Madisonville Mayor Jean Pelloat will begin the “Lighting of the Oaks,” during which Madisonville’s majestic oaks will be illuminated with beautiful twinkling lights.
The 5th annual Bayou Christmas is a free festival presented by the Boys and Girls Club of Southeast Louisiana. It will take place December 19-22, 2018 in Slidell’s Heritage Park.
Over 80,000 lights decorate wonderful lighted displays and holiday music, setting the scene for free photo shoots in Santa’s Village.
Louisiana’s capital city will soon feature plenty of events and shows that will put you in the holiday spirit.
Baton Rouge General Medical Center presents its first fantastic holiday lights display this year, transforming its lawn into a synchronized musical light show. It’s already running, and you’ll have the opportunity to see it through December 31!
Go Downtown to Baton Rouge’s Town Square for an immersive holiday celebration. According to Visit Baton Rouge, the whole family can “frolic in the imported snow, ride a magical train at the Old Governor’s Mansion, see Santa and Movies at the Old State Capitol, and listen to Holiday Music Magic at the Art and Science Museum.” Sounds like a blast!
This year’s event will also feature a “Cajun Night Before Christmas” performance.
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Create instant holiday warmth in your home by streaming our cozy, crackling fireplace on your TV, iPad, or smart phone. Throwing a festive party? Use this fireplace as the centerpiece. You can stream directly from our blog or head to our Youtube channel.
Let’s get crackling!
Want your own apartment with a fireplace? See our list of apartments here: http://bit.ly/1stlakefireplaceapts.
If you’re entertaining at home this Thanksgiving, it’s important to provide your guests with as much personal space as possible. All of our apartments at 1st Lake Properties are spacious and modern, but we know how easy it is for your space to feel more stuffed than a turkey when hosting friends and family.
That’s why we’ve put together a list of tips for spatial optimization during the holidays. Read on to learn our favorite hosting hacks!
Thinking vertically is one of our best tips for Thanksgiving. Maximize space on the dinner table by using tiered plates to hold appetizers and desserts.
This trick even works for the turkey, too: carve it ahead of time and separate white meat, dark meat, and legs on a three-tier display.
If your dining table won’t accommodate all of your guests, use other flat surfaces as well. Consoles, sofa tables, and nightstands can all work as alternate eating spaces or food displays. This allows you to create intimate areas throughout your space instead of cramming your guests into one giant table.
Folding tables and chairs from a party rental store can also help you maximize space on a small budget. Whatever you choose, drape coordinating linens over mismatched tables to transform them into a cohesive unit.
We get so used to seeing our stuff in the same place, it’s easy to forget it’s not bolted down! Rearranging furniture is a fun, free, and instant way to transform your home at any time of year, but during the holidays it can be a space-saving trick.
Push couches against the wall or move them to a different room altogether during dinner. Other rooms in your apartment can serve as temporary storage units, leaving you maximum space for entertaining.
Your ironing board works great for extra counter space, and a spare side chair positioned near the front door is ideal for letting guests set down their purses and bags when they come in. These two tricks help free up space and make the most of precious square footage at the same time.
A nice, cool space with proper air circulation will ensure that your guests are comfortable, even if your apartment is a little bit crowded.
Smaller apartments can heat up quickly with the oven going and extra guests mingling about. Keep everyone happy by being mindful of the A/C — turn it down a few notches and adjust accordingly throughout the evening!
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So, it’s the day after Thanksgiving and you have a fridge full of leftovers: Don’t throw it out! Luckily, a lot of cooking magazines and lifestyle websites have taken action against pitching Thanksgiving’s tastiest dishes. They’ve come up with a multitude of clever and delicious recipes for your leftovers, so you can finish off your whole feast, pocket some spending money, and save from wasting perfectly good food this year.
Here are some of our favorite ways to reuse your Thanksgiving meal leftovers.
Shepherd’s Pie is a delicious, flavorful dish that will make use of your leftover turkey and potatoes. Check out Baked by Rachel’s recipe here.
Do you still have a lot of turkey left? Shred it and use it in Bon Appetit’s Turkey and Mushroom Risotto recipe. The dish’s gravy is filled with the delicious flavors of mushrooms, onions, parmesan cheese, and parsley. It’s a warming winner for a cold weather dinner.
It might even be worth cooking more sweet potatoes than needed if it means making this sweet single-serve dish after the big day is over. Country Living’s Sweet Potato Spoon Bread with Caramel-Pecan Topping is our favorite way to treat yourself after hosting the holiday at your 1st Lake home. You deserve to celebrate a successful Thanksgiving Day with the help of cinnamon, sugar, caramel, and pecans. Trust us.
On a simpler note than most of the recipe’s we’ve listed so far, sometimes you just want a quick but exciting meal made from your decadent leftovers. Delish’s Turkey & Rice soup is your answer.
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1st Lake Properties | P. O. Box 73709 | Metairie, LA 70033 | info@1stlake.com
