Will's birthday invites are DONE!

My son is 10 months old and plans for his Wild Wild West first birthday party are in full swing! I have actually been planning since he was born (ok, ok...before I even had him, I had the theme). I am SO excited!! Can you tell?!?!!??

I finally finished the invites...and here they are!

I'm using lots of the blue, red, black and brown. The envelopes are white with a red liner.

Much much more to come!!! Things I'm working on this week: the menu! I've got to solidify what exactly we're having. Since it's a lunch time party, and it is in November (yay fall!), we're having chili and corn chowder for the main dishes. For the desert, there will be a rice crispy bar. I'll make all the rice crispy treats the night before, cut them into squares, and put them on a lollipop sticks. The idea is to drizzle caramel, chocolate or peanut butter on them then dip them into various toppings (crushed oreos, snickers, heath bar, and a few others). Doesn't that sound delicious!! Of course, we'll have birthday cake too! So, I've got to get a list together of all the sides we need, and maybe appetizer items, too. AND, I've got to do a menu sign that coordinates with the invitations...When I get that done, I'll post it!

And here are some recent Will pics! This is what I see when I get him up from naps...so sweet!

Look at that adorable smile! I can't believe he's almost a year old!

Mustache baby shower goodies!

My friend Jessica Smith asked me to do the paper goods for a baby shower she was hosting! It was a double baby shower and both women were having boys...it was the second baby for both as well. She wanted it to be fun and relaxed. Here's what we came up with...

Let's start with the invitations. The theme was "Little Mr. Men" using mustaches and lots of boy colors, blue and red! I was so excited about these, and thought they turned out cute! I did an envelope liner in a red houndstooth...I actually used a few different red and white patterns; stripes, polka dots, houndstooth. Jessica also wanted to include an insert with a wish list for each mommy...you can see this in the second picture!

These were the cupcake toppers I did. I attached these toppers to simple popsicle sticks.

Water bottle covers! So easy to do and makes you event look so personal and adorable!

I also did a banner for the shower as well, but didn't get a picture of it :( It said "Little Misters"....you'll just have to take my word for it that it was super cute!

For any event, I am happy to do the invites, and actually mail them out for you as well. All I need is the addresses in spreadsheet form. This is a huge time saver plus saves shipping costs of me mailing the invites to you!

I've also done a Tinkerbell birthday party recently, and I'm working on a Lego party now!! So excited!!

Britt

Awesome Mondays-Garnish

Marvelous Finds Monday's have begun! I've found so many cool things lately that I've decided to share all my finds with you! I'm the type to find something I LOVE then figure out a way that I can use it to fit my lifestyle....ha...much to my husbands dismay, they usually cost money :) But, what's a little cash in the big scheme of things when it gives me such gratification to express the artist in me? Everyone needs a creative outlet, and paper related stuff happens to be mine! I LOVE it! I guess it's the idea that anything is possible and you're only limited by your imagination....wait, is this an exerpt from a high school graduation speech...oh how I would like to return to those days...I digress... ok, ok! Back to topic...I'm so excited to share my finds, so here's the first one.

The website is www.thinkgarnish.com When you go there, it says "Garnish" at the top. They sell to go containers, boxes, straws (straws, you say? These are most unusual straws and I promise you'll love them) and so many more items that sound completely boring! But, when you apply a little imagination, you can create the most fun party, family gathering, wedding, or whatever you are hosting. I'm convinced that the lovely things in life are so because of the details. Making the mundane spectacular is just 20 minutes, some simple supplies, and some trial and error away. Example, instead of serving lemonade in a typical glass/cup...

BORING.....

Why not serve it in a mason jar with a red and white striped straw? And to top it off, tie cute little tags on them with twine (sold on thinkgarnish in several colors)!

The straws...you have to imagine them in the glass with the lemonade...oh so cute! You can find these straws on www.thinkgarnish.com in several colors!

What's great is that you can find vintage mason jars at flea markets and antique stores for pretty cheap!

Some other ideas...

Just imagine.....It's two weeks before your wedding and suddenly you remember that out of the 200 people coming to your wedding, 25 little noise makers (aka your lovely little cousins/friends kids/etc) will be at the wedding and reception. You know they will be all wound up after sitting through a 20 minute wedding ceremony just looking for an opportunity to make your wedding memorable if you know what I mean...ha! Well, there is a solution!

Set up a kids table! All of the items above can be ordered off of thinkgarnish. Craft paper sold in rolls like wrapping paper to cover the table. Provide crayons, markers, whatever you have for them to color with. Also, you can find wedding related printouts in black and white that are designed to be printed and colored in....or better yet, you can make your own! Place whatever you like in the middle of the table for decoration....candy in cones like they have above, flowers, maybe even a few "dress up" items like a cowboy hat, a princess crown, ya know...just cute little things that will make the wedding experience a fun one for them! I mean, that's really what it's all about. You want ALL your guests to have fun! And we all know that caterers charge you out the @#^$% per person...so why not plan ahead (and have your bestest friend help you out with this) and put together "kids meals". Surely a PB&J, a bag of Lays, and a cookie (with your wedding label of course) made just for them will make any kids day, right? Not to mention, it will save you a pretty penny in food costs! Putting their name on them is a little difficult if you have a ton of kids, but you can put something else fun on the outside...use your imagination!

I love making food for folks, and I've gotten to do a lot of it lately b/c of all the precious babies that have come along! What a great way to present your labor of love to your friend/coworker/whatever. I can attest that the LAST thing you want to do is cook during those first few weeks with your baby.

Who's up for a picnic?? The larger containers can be used for so many other things...out of town packages for wedding guests. How awesome to check in to your hotel and have this given to you...it's like giving your guests a virtual hug!

Wow...endless possibilities....please go to their website for more great ideas! I think you'll find that these items are very inexpensive and worth displaying once you've put your special touch on them! Of course, if you need any assistance in creating, please let me help...I LIVE for this stuff!

Happy creating!

Some new things...

Hello all!! I've been very busy with a sick baby :( BUT, I have had the pleasure of making some invites and favor tags for some friends that I would like to show you... See below!

My friend Jessica wanted me to make favor tags for her daughter Camille's first birthday! She ordered chinese style take out boxes to use for her favors and needed a little something for the front saying thank you. I couldn't quite figure out how to get the pictures from her facebook to my blog, so here's the link to one of the pictures of the boxes!

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=558699550939&set=a.558699471099.2069385.147801674&theater

This is for a St. Patrick's Day themed party! As you can see they called it a "pub night"...what a fun way to celebrate! Well, I made the invites and mailed them for the client. So, I also made return address labels with their address on them.

The address labels...

I've also been working on some more baby stuff. I found these great "baby update" cards and want to do some of my own. And, I'm making some month by month cards to use when I take Will's monthly picture with his gigantic bear! Stay tuned!!!!

Invites for Kate

Kate-see the images below for a few examples to choose from. The carriage stamp below would look cute at the top if you decide to nix the horse idea. Let me know which you like the best!

This one needs a little explaining...I liked this idea, but my cut outs were a little big to fit at the top of the invite. But, if you like the idea of this one, I can cut out the scallop and the circle in a smaller size using my cricut. I didn't want to get it out while Will was asleep :) Once the shapes are smaller, this will look much better!

This is actually only half of a stamp...I thought the whole thing made it look too western, but just using the half was a nice touch.

One more thing...If you think this is too much info on the invitation, I can make a separate enclosure card that will go in the envelope with some of the info on it. Perhaps the registry and RSVP info?