No hiding camouflage’s popularity for parties

  • Herald staff
  • Friday, November 23, 2012 12:35pm
  • LifeEverett

Attention, troops!

It’s no longer a threat to national security to reveal that military has gone mainstream.

Camo colors can be seen everywhere. And camouflage does go with everything.

Whether it’s paramilitary party decorations or women’s panties, check out the Camo Diva website www.camodivas.com. You can find camouflage clothes for your kid or tuxedo jackets for your wedding.

At the Fine Tuxedos website, www.finetuxedos.com, they offer a “full camo ensemble” with tuxedos that you could “proudly wear in a tree stand” or down the aisle.

Is it that camo is cool — Cabela’s parking lot is full all the time for a reason, right? — or is it that we’ve got military on the mind lately?

The last U.S. troops left Iraq just about a year ago. The death of Osama bin Laden by our Navy Seals in May is still fresh on our minds.

And troops in Afghanistan may start heading home soon.

We can’t escape the military in the news, and their colors have bled into our everyday lives.

Whatever the reason, camo is hotter than Kuwait in the summer.

So celebrate camo.

Dismissed.

Party camo-style

• Camo ribbon tied in a bow: $5.95

• Camo wrapping paper: $2.95

• Camo paper tablecloth: $3.45

• 7-inch camo paper plates: 8 for $1.75

• 2-ply camo paper napkins: 8 for $2.18

• 9-oz camo cups: 8 for $1.88

• Camo baking cups with star decorations: 24 for $2.29

Deploy goodies

Planning a paramilitary party for a group of camo-loving kids? Then why not get camo-creative?

Go to a party store such as Party @ Display &Costume at 5200 Evergreen Way, Everett, and gear up with camo-themed items.

You don’t even need an actual bag for the goodie bag. Take a 21-by-21-inch camo bandanna ($2.79) and tie it like you would a cloth sack you might take into the field. Inside the tied bandanna you can put a military-style dogtag or two (12 dogtags for $7.50), a camo-colored pencil or two (12 camo pencils, $4) for taking field notes, and some field rations (chocolate works almost all the time.)

Now the platoon is ready to deploy to party central.

Roger that.

Operation cupcake

OK. You’ve bought the camo decorations. Set up the obstacle course for the ultimate Nerf blaster war. Made sure the troops all dressed in their matching paramilitary pants and vests. What’s left, soldier?

It’s time for Operation Cupcake.

Now you don’t want to be demoted to lame Mommy or Daddy by offering regular vanilla or chocolate cupcakes. So why not keep with that whole military theme and make camouflage cupcakes? The recipe we picked from the Crafty Mama blog are easy enough so that you won’t be in the mess hall all night and — forgive us, boys — they sure are pretty.

Green, white and brown never looked so sweet.

Here’s how to make the camouflage cupcakes:

Camo cupcakes

2 cake mix boxes, one chocolate, one white

Make the the two mixes as instructed on the boxes and divide the batter into 4 bowls:

1. White batter.

2. White batter with green food coloring and a dash of chocolate batter.

3. Equal parts chocolate and white batter.

4. Chocolate batter.

Mix each batter until you get the colors you want.

Line a cupcake tin with paper liners.

For the batter, you can either use spoons and dump little blobs of each color into each cupcake liner, or you can get fancy and use pastry bags to fill the tins. It makes it a little easier.

Drop a bunch of blobs in each liner until they’re all about 3/4 full.

Bake according to the directions on the box.

Once done, pop them out of the tins so they can start cooling.

Buttercream frosting

3 cups powdered sugar

1 cup salted butter (2 sticks)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dash of heavy whipping cream (or milk or half-and-half)

Start by softening the butter, then add butter to a mixer with a whisk attachment. You can also use a hand mixer. Mix on low for 30 seconds.

Then incorporate the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time.

Once the powdered sugar is incorporated, turn the mixer on a high and whip the mixture for about 3 minutes. It should now be light and fluffy.

Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and add the vanilla. Whip for another minute.

Taste test for smoothness and flavor, and add a small dash of cream at this point. Whip it another minute and taste it again.

Divvy up the icing into 3 bowls. Keep one batch white. Carefully add a little green food coloring to the other bowl and a bit of cocoa powder until it’s the desired color.

Add cocoa powder in the last bowl to get the desired brown color.

For the fancy swirled icing, fill 3 pastry bags with its own color of icing. Put all 3 bags into 1 larger bag with a star tip. Pipe a swirl onto each cupcake and you’re done.

The Crafty Mama Blog

Now for a DIY net

Whether you’re a hunter looking for a disguise or a parent planning the ultimate paramilitary party obstacle course, you might want to deploy a camouflage net.

Sure, you can buy one. But wouldn’t you rather show off your crafty survival skills to your kids and make one? This step-by-step method from eHow.com requires no precision so it’s a perfect craft project for the whole family. You’ll need three things:

• Shrimp net (available at marine stores)

• Unscented laundry soap

• Dark green burlap

First: Wash the shrimp net in the detergent, probably more than once. Shrimp nets are durable and will last longer than a traditional net.

Second: Cut the net to the size needed.

Third: Cut the burlap into bow-tie strips; they do not need to be the same size.

Four: Tie the strips onto the net with the knot in the center of the strip. Cover the net but leave random spaces and bunches.

The net should resemble a pile of leaves when finished.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Sarah Jean Muncey-Gordon puts on some BITCHSTIX lip oil at Bandbox Beauty Supply on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Langley, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Bandbox Beauty was made for Whidbey Island locals, by an island local

Founder Sarah Muncey-Gordon said Langley is in a renaissance, and she’s proud to be a part of it.

A stroll on Rome's ancient Appian Way is a kind of time travel. (Cameron Hewitt)
Rick Steves on the Appian Way, Rome’s ancient superhighway

Twenty-nine highways fanned out from Rome, but this one was the first and remains the most legendary.

Byrds co-founder Roger McGuinn, seen here in 2013, will perform April 20 in Edmonds. (Associated Press)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

R0ck ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer Roger McGuinn, frontman of The Byrds, plans a gig in Edmonds in April.

Mother giving in to the manipulation her daughter fake crying for candy
Can children be bribed into good behavior?

Only in the short term. What we want to do is promote good habits over the course of the child’s life.

Speech Bubble Puzzle and Discussion
When conflict flares, keep calm and stand your ground

Most adults don’t like dissension. They avoid it, try to get around it, under it, or over it.

The colorful Nyhavn neighborhood is the place to moor on a sunny day in Copenhagen. (Cameron Hewitt)
Rick Steves: Embrace hygge and save cash in Copenhagen

Where else would Hans Christian Andersen, a mermaid statue and lovingly decorated open-face sandwiches be the icons of a major capital?

Last Call is a festured artist at the 2024 DeMiero Jazz Festival: in Edmonds. (Photo provided by DeMiero Jazz Festival)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Jazz ensemble Last Call is one of the featured artists at the DeMiero Jazz Festival on March 7-9 in Edmonds.

Kim Helleren
Local children’s author to read at Edmonds Bookshop

Kim Helleren will read from one of her books for kids at the next monthly Story Time at Edmonds Bookshop on March 29.

Chris Elliott
Lyft surprises traveler with a $150 cleaning charge

Jared Hakimi finds a $150 charge on his credit card after a Lyft ride. Is that allowed? And will the charge stick?

Inside Elle Marie Hair Studio in Smokey Point. (Provided by Acacia Delzer)
The best hair salon in Snohomish County

You voted, we tallied. Here are the results.

The 2024 Kia EV9 electric SUV has room for up to six or seven passengers, depending on seat configuration. (Photo provided by Kia)
Kia’s all-new EV9 electric SUV occupies rarified air

Roomy three-row electric SUVs priced below 60 grand are scarce.

2023 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE Premium AWD (Photo provided by Toyota)
2023 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE Premium AWD

The compact SUV electric vehicle offers customers the ultimate flexibility for getting around town in zero emission EV mode or road-tripping in hybrid mode with a range of 440 miles and 42 mile per gallon fuel economy.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.