Favorite Vender Shout Out: Create UR Plate August 27, 2015

When I was at the BASH Conference in January, I saw the coolest personalized plates. I thought to myself, what a neat idea. Anyways, one thing leads to another and before you know it, I’m on the phone with Create UR Plate and I’m one of their featured artists. If you are looking for a unique personalized touch for an upcoming event, I can’t recommend them highly enough. And… if you happened to have a Baptism, Christening, Communion or Dedication, then you are in luck because many of the designs in my shop can have matching plate clings.

So, here are some photos from my daughter’s 8th birthday party and yes, these clings are available on Create UR Plate. Don’t you think the plates made the tables cape look fantastic? We even had plates with each guest’s name. This is perfect if you want to assign seating at your party. So much cooler than place setting cards. I put the personalized plates on top of square melamine plates that I found at Target to get a fun layered look.

Photo credit: Danielle of All Things Great and Small Photography, based out of Pace, Florida.

Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or e-mail me at apartystudio@gmail.com if you have questions. I love hearing from you guys. And if you’re interested in the panda birthday party, I will be adding the printables to my Etsy store shortly.

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Easy bite size dessert idea: rose-lemon cake bites recipe August 23, 2015

My daughter, Aubrie, recently had her 8th birthday party. She wanted a panda theme and of course, I was thrilled to style this party because I think that’s such an adorable theme. So, one of the first things that I decided that I wanted on the dessert table was some sort of cute bite sized dessert to be served on Chinese soup spoons. So, I scoured the internet and Pinterest looking for a recipe and ideas. I couldn’t find anything that looked cute or sounded tasty. I called my mum and she suggested angel food cake or pound cake because all I’d have to do is cut it into cubes. When planning a dessert table, it is always best to keep things simple and not too time consuming. I looked through my pantry and came up with this awesome and delicious dessert. Here’s the recipe!

Ingredients

lemon pound cake (store brought)

rose jelly/jam

heavy whipping cream

granulated sugar (optional)

fresh raspberries

fresh mint leaves

Directions

Cut the pound cake into cubes. I purchased the pound cake from my local Publix grocery store and it was pre sliced which made cubing it even easier.

Use an electric whisk to beat the whipping cream till it’s fluffy and thick. You can add a teaspoon of sugar if you’d like it to be sweet.

Set out your Chinese soup spoons and put a small dollop of the rose jam on each spoon. If you can’t find rose jam then you can use any flavor you have in the house. I found rose jam at an International Store when I was visiting Orlando and it was imported from Turkey (Sera Magic Garden Gül Receli).

Place a pound cake cube on the jam. Then add a dollop of cream, a raspberry and a mint leaf.

I found adorable little panda bento sticks on Amazon so I added those for a fun touch. A pack of eight sticks was less than $5.

TIPS

I grow mint (as well as basil) in pots. It is one of the easiest herbs to grow and you can add it to lemonade or water for a fun twist. If you buy it fresh from the supermarket, consider placing it in water for the roots to grow and then plant in the garden or a pot.

Remember to keep your portions small. The idea is to be able to eat this in one mouthful.

VARIATIONS

Brownies with whipped cream and add a fresh cherry

Lemon pound cake sitting on blueberry jam with whipped cream and fresh blueberries

White chocolate ‘blondies’ with strawberry jam and fresh strawberries

Photo credit: Danielle of All Things Great and Small Photography, based out of Pace, Florida.

Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or e-mail me at apartystudio@gmail.com if you have questions. I love hearing from you guys. And if you’re interested in the panda birthday party, I will be adding the printables to my Etsy store shortly.

Anna’s 3rd Birthday Party: Minnie Mouse! October 16, 2012

Here are photos from Anna’s third birthday party. This little girl is crazy about Minnie Mouse! Her mum went with store brought party decorations- plates, banner, tablecloth, favor bags, etc- from Party City. She mixed these up with a few key personalized items- hang tags, water bottle wrappers and a welcome sign. The super cute cake was made by the very talented Alaina from Sissy’s Sweets. She even made the top tier gluten free. Alaina lives in my local area (Pensacola, Florida) so guess who I’ll be contacting for my son’s birthday party in May? Follow her Facebook page here. Enjoy the party photos! 

 

If you are planning a Minnie Mouse birthday party, check out this hot pink and zebra print party! Also, I have a couple Mickey Mouse parties here and here!

You can contact me via e-mail at apartystudio@gmail.com or follow me on Twitter or Facebook.

First Birthday: Ella is As Sweet As Apple Pie! October 5, 2012

 

 

I loved creating this new collection- Sweet as Apple Pie– for my friend Courtney’s daughter, Ella who turned one this month. Courtney held the party at her parents house in Texas… the location- with huge live oak tree- was perfect for this theme! Courtney told me she wanted lots of patterns and prints incorporated into the design and of course an apple motif. She wanted to mix pinks, red, green, yellow and teal. I love playing with color and creating fun patterns so I really enjoyed designing this collection. In case you were wondering, Courtney used Riley Blake fabric- Apple of My Eye– to create the gorgeous tablecloth. She even made the party hat for Ella. Very impressive, Courtney.

Food wise, Courtney offered a selection of fruit pies and also cupcakes. She had apple cake pops and of course apple cookies. She displayed these in wooden buckets and I love how she incorporated the scales. I especially love the Ella bunting that Courtney made out of natural burlap. She used a couple red and white paper straws on either end and attached the pennants to twine using red mini clothes pegs. By adding this banner to the apple pie, it reinforced the theme of the party, As Sweet As Apple Pie. The sign on the pie table read featured a quote by E. Somerset Maugham (an English novelist and playwright): The essence of the beautiful is unity in variety.

If you have a first birthday party coming up, you may want to consider creating a photo banner featuring a photo from every month of your baby’s life. This makes a wonderful keepsake and also lets your guests see how much your baby’s grown and the changes each month brought. Courtney asked me for apple signs- month one, month two, month three, etc. You could easily do something similar. She simply attached the signs to the photos using fabric covered clothes pegs. Alternatively, you could use alligator clips that you line with ribbon.

 

 

Courtney- thank you so much for sharing photos from Ella’s birthday party. It looks like the party girl had an amazing time and you certainly did an incredible job with all the details of this party. Happy 1st Birthday to your sweetie pie. The Sweet as Apple Pie collection is now available in my Etsy store.

 

Please follow me on Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook. If you have any questions, please leave a comment below or e-mail me at apartystudio@gmail.com

Bryntleigh’s Minnie Mouse Birthday Party! May 17, 2012

I met a local photographer, Christie (of Christie Griffin Photography) a few months back when I took my kids to a first birthday party. Christie was there photographing the party and capturing all the magical moments. I was thrilled when she contacted me last month about designing her granddaughter’s first birthday party. She wanted a Minnie Mouse theme and asked for zebra print and hot pink! I think everything turned out amazing- the photos speak for themselves! Christie- thank you for sharing photos of Bryntleigh’s first birthday party. I’m sure that she had a wonderful day.

If you live in the Pensacola area and have a party, you should contact Christie about photographing the event. It is so nice to be able to relax and take care of hostess things at the party instead of panicking/trying to capture each moment on the camera. Christie can be reached via e-mail at: christie.griffinphotograpghy@yahoo.com You can also check out her Facebook page.

Chloe’s 4th Birthday Party May 12, 2012

I had the pleasure of designing a Little Knights’ Tournament for Thomas back in September and so I was thrilled when his mom asked me to design a bright colorful collection for her daughter Chloe. Mom Brigitte asked for bright colors- hot pink, apple green and bright orange. Have I ever mentioned how much I love bright colors? Needless to say, I was very excited to design this party printable collection.

Here are the cupcake toppers… featuring Chloe’s photograph, her age and name! When I design cupcake toppers, they are always square. The client can then choose to either keep them square or punch them with a 2 inch circle punch or scalloped circle punch. I think the mixture of the two- some square and some scalloped- looks really cute. What do you think?

Brigitte also asked me for popcorn cones. I’ve had a few clients ask for these recently so I am going to start offering them in my Etsy store as an option when you purchase a full collection. Other party food included cute ice cream cones filled with melon and sandwiches cut into hearts and flowers.

Check out the other party decorations- the gorgeous tissue pompoms, the Happy Birthday banners and the welcome sign to greet guests when they first arrive!

I love the favor bags that Brigitte made… they are super adorable!

Thank you so much Brigitte for sharing Chloe’s birthday party photos! It looks like a super cute party and I’m sure the birthday girl had a blast on her special day. Happy 4th Birthday Chloe!

The invites are now available in my Etsy store as well as water bottle wrappers, the cupcake toppers, the hang tags, and happy birthday banner!

Pink Lemonade Birthday Party April 11, 2012

I created the Pink Lemonade collection last summer and I still totally love the mixture of the pinks, yellow and the black trim. I’ve had requests though for a softer look… just light pinks, yellows and white. What do you think? Here are the invites currently available in my Etsy store for this party collection.

Here is the invite in the soft colors- pinks, yellows and white. I really love the look of this and my lovely client Julia gave me permission to use her daughter’s photograph on the mock invite in the Etsy store. I love how Julia posed her precious daughter with a bunch of lemons for the photograph.

I also recently added an invitation that has an option for two photographs. This is perfect if you have twins or couldn’t pick just one photograph for your invitation!

Just this week, my client Lacey ordered the invite (style three in the soft colors, shown above) for her daughter Parker’s 5th birthday and requested no text. Have a look at the magic she worked on with the invite! It just goes to show that thinking outside the box (pun intended) really pays off. I love it! And isn’t her daughter simply gorgeous?

Thank you so much Lacey and Julia for allowing me to share your invites! I hope your daughters have the best birthday ever!

If you are thinking of doing a pink lemonade theme for an upcoming party, be sure to check out my Pinterest board.

Wild About Animals Birthday Party! January 18, 2012

I was super excited when my good friend contacted me to design a party collection for her daughter’s second birthday. Little Jameson is crazy about wild animals and loves the movie Madagascar. Her mom Kathleen wanted to embrace her daughter’s passion for wild animals. She wanted a bright, colorful collection that featured yellow and tiffany blue! That is a great color combination.

Since I’d actually already started an animal collection, I made a few tweaks, consulted a lot with Kathleen and the end result is gorgeous! Here are a few photos from the birthday party. I love the polka dot cupcakes!

 

Take a look at these adorable thank you cards:

Thank you so much Kathleen for sending me party pictures. I love seeing how everything turns out! And if you are interested in this collection, please see the individual items in my Etsy store:

 

 

 

 

If you want an entire set or need something that isn’t listed in the store, then please shoot me an e-mail at: apartystudio@gmail.com. Also, don’t forget to like my Facebook page because I’ll often post new collections there first as well as sneak peeks!

Anna’s Mickey Mouse Party! November 16, 2011

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, I have lots of party photos from clients to share with you all… I am slowly catching up. The party I’m sharing with you today was thrown by my next door neighbour, Danielle. Her daughter, Anna, is obsessed with Mickey Mouse. Yes, you read that correctly- she loves Mickey. I think she really likes Minnie too but is totally in love with Mickey and has several soft Mickey dolls that she takes everywhere with her. So, it was a no brainer for Danielle when it came to choosing a party theme.

Danielle decided to stick to a very simple red and white color scheme. She maintained these colors throughout the party decoration and I have to tell you that this simplicity was stunning and made the Mickey party girly. For the cupcake stand, Danielle wrapped two rectangular boxes- one in red paper and the other in white. The water bottle wrappers have Mickey’s silhouette and the number two in one of his ears.

Of course, Danielle had a welcome sign on her front door! She had two banners. One above the door said Happy Birthday and the one across the front of the dessert table said Anna is Two.  She gave out goody bags contained homemade gluten-free Mickey Mouse cookies.

 

Danielle made a gluten free birthday cake using the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Cake Pan from Wilton. This cake pan is available online from Amazon and other retailers. Danielle used the Wilton Mickey Mouse Cookie Cutter Set and that is also available from Amazon. She used royal icing for the cookies since this hardens unlike buttercream or whipped frosting.

 

Finally, I have to share a couple pics of the adorable birthday girl! Isn’t she such a cutie pie? And of course, her outfit is just precious. I’m also going to include a couple photos of my 16 month old son, Asher, looking very proud in his Mickey Mouse t-shirt!

If you are throwing a Mickey Mouse birthday party and need more inspiration, check out the previous posts, here and here! if you would like to purchase the Mickey Mouse collection, please contact me and I can set up a reserve listing in my Etsy store. My e-mail address is apartystudio@gmail.com and remember that you can follow my Facebook page or Twitter!

Surprise 60th Birthday Party September 18, 2011

Shhh…. don’t let the cat out the bag!!!

I had such fun designing this party collection for my client Heather. She was throwing a surprise 60th birthday party for a family friend. The birthday gal loves bling and cats and Heather knew from the get go that the color scheme had to avoid pink. We came up with a black and white classic look with a splash of aqua as an accent color and a sophisticated cat silhouette. The printable collection is both elegant and whimsical.

I was so happy when Heather sent me photos from the party (as well as some great party tips)! You can see how much love and attention to detail went into this celebration and I’m sure that Jann was completely overwhelmed!

Here are photos of the candy buffet! I especially love the rock candy which Heather ordered online from Bulk Foods. She brought the assorted color rock candy on swizzle sticks but the website also has individual colors that you can purchase if you are doing a more monochromatic party. At $13.50 for 80 sticks, these are a real bargain!

Heather also styled a gorgeous dessert buffet table. She made almost all of the food on the dessert table (very talented lady… I am impressed) but her secret weapon is Little Debbie snack cakes. These are the pretty white squares in front of the cake!  They cost one dollar per box so she brought two boxes, unwrapped each treat and set them on a pretty plate. Genius!

Wanna create a decadent dessert table at your next event?

Cake pops– Heather learnt how to make these from Bakerealla. I have made cake balls before (the same thing, just simpler since there’s no lollipop stick) and they are not that easy! Patience and practice goes a long way. One day, I will share the pictures of the cake balls I made along with a tutorial! If you plan on doing these for a party, definitely make a test batch a week or so before hand.

Chocolate covered Oreos– Here’s a simple to follow tutorial. I love these and I bet they taste amazing, too.

Cake– Gloria’s Treats has a great tutorial on technique for the ombre style icing.

Here’s a party tip from Heather that I think is really sweet and special:

One thing that I started doing when my daughter had her first party is purchasing a story book that goes along with the theme of the party.  That becomes the guest book and everyone writes a message in the cover. It’s become tradition in our home…every party gets a story book as the guest book.  My children love it and we have awesome story books that we read all the time, we can remember what theme they had for each birthday (which is fun to look back and remember what they were into that year), and we have really lovely messages written in the inside cover.  We always read the messages before the story and reminisce about their special party and talk about all of the people who love them enough to celebrate with them.  I hope they will be able to pass them on to their own kids one day (I’m sentimental about stuff like that).  We ended up getting a kitty themed book for Jann.  She is a teacher and will love reading it to her class, I’m sure.

I love that on this table (above), Heather also include a framed copy of the party invite. Since it was a surprise party, Jann never got to see the invite so this was another thoughtful idea.  

One of the nice things about keeping a very simple color scheme is that finding paperware to match is a breeze! Heather found the polka dot napkins and the paper plates at Target. She also brought aqua (with white polka dot) wrapping paper and used that as a table runner to contrast against the tablecloth. Notice how she used a black tablecloth for the dessert table and a white one for the candy buffet? This adds a touch of whimsy!

One last mention about this party’s decoration… don’t you just love the pretty flower arrangements and the paper pompoms? The pompoms add drama and are a wonderful way to decorate a large party space. In this case, she used the tissue pompoms both inside and outside, helping the party flows seamlessly from one party space to the next. I couple months back, I posted a tutorial on putting these gems together! 

Thank you so much Heather for sharing these wonderful photos and giving us so many party styling ideas! Wanna see even more party pictures? Take a look at the post on Catch My Party!