"parties" news and stories

Happy Repeal Day! As I'm sure you know, today is the 75th Anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition. For folks in my bizz, winemakers, brewers, and distillers; it's a big holiday. I heard that some of my local bars will be celebrating, although I wish I could make it to some of the big parties I've heard about.

The other day I got an email from Natalie Bovis-Nelsen, The Liquid Muse, a mixologist and booze blogger, about Repeal Day Parties around the country. I thought I'd like to share it with you. Then I did a little research on other party announcements. I read on Marketwatch that Dewar's is having Repeal Day Parties all over the country. The Business Sheet has some info about parties, and ProhibitionRepeal.com has a list of real Prohibition Era Speakeasies where you can celebrate.

Do you know of any Repeal Day Parties in your area?

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"Pick Your Nose" is probably not a headline you expected to see on Slashfood. Well. There's a first time for everything.

These are 12 ounce paper cups with various noses on them. Finally, you can pick your friends' noses. I know you've wanted to. A pack of 24 is $9.95, aka way cheaper than plastic surgery.*

As for clipping your friends' nose-hairs, we're still working on that.

*also somewhat less effective.

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Just so you know, we're already in Week Four of Martha Stewart's eight-week Halloween Party preparation countdown, so if you're not already working on your indoor decorations, it's time to get crackin'! The Martha has a slew of guides to spook-ify your house - papier-mache jack-o-lanterns, candy wreathes, paper mice, and Gothic black paper curtains. She's even provided a helpful weekly shopping list, with price breakdowns. Eight-inch round wire wreath frames and protective gloves: A Good Thing.

Next week Martha will hit outdoor decor; the week after that is all about candy crafts - papier-mache candy globes with jack-o-lantern faces, candy headstones, Halloween crackers, and boiling "candy cauldrons." I'm personally psyched about Week Two, which means licorice-filled "invisible pops." But I won't get ahead of schedule. I have a feeling Martha wouldn't like that.

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Getting together for dinner and a movie can be one of the most prosaic (Domino's and Blockbuster) of gatherings. But it can become something significantly more special if the food and the visuals connect.

When I was a broke, just-outta-high school teen, my roommates and I would host Godfather parties, for which we'd make a lot of pasta, get some jugs of cheap wine and follow the rule of shouting "Godfather!" then clinking and drinking every time someone got whacked.

There was a "cases of champagne and little black dresses" Breakfast at Tiffany's birthday party, but the master of the art was my great friend Mr. Diva, who threw annual, movie-themed award show parties, paying homage to Picnic (fried chicken) or Blue Velvet (cherry pie and PBR).

You could simply rip open your bags of chips and throw them on the coffee table for your guests, but serving them in bowls and platters makes your get-together feel more like a party. Serving them in football-shaped servingware makes your party feel like you put some thought into it for the Super Bowl. We came across these ceramic football-shaped bowls, serving dishes, and platter while surfing on Amazon.com:

Touchdown Snack Bowl - Serve tortilla chips, potato chips, popcorn, and other snacks out of the microwave- and dishwasher-safe Touchdown Bowl, very appropriately shaped like a football. I love that the bowl's rim has "Tight End" on it. Available on Amazon.com for $19.99.

Touchdown Serving Dish Set - For smaller snacks like nuts, olives or dried fruit (but really, why would you serve dried fruit at a Super Bowl party?!?!) the Touchdown Serving Dish set is perfect. We'll go with nuts and serve roasted salted peanuts in one, pistachios in another, and seasoned almonds in the last. Available on Amazon.com for $19.99.

Touchdown Serving Platter - Pile chicken wings, taquitos, or other hot snacks on the Touchdown Serving Platter. Available from Amazon.com for $24.99.