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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4th Lalaloopsy Birthday Birthday Party! September 15, 2012

I often get questions on my Facebook page and recently Jennifer contacted me regarding a blog post. She saw the Lalaloopsy party photos that Faith’s mom had sent me a while back. She asked me for tips on making ribbon wreaths. I’ve never made a ribbon wreath. I think they are utterly gorgeous and one day, when I have time, I do plan on testing my craftiness and I will make my daughter a cute ribbon wreath.

So, I let Jennifer know that there are some nice tutorials online, such as this one: http://lilpartyanimals.blogspot.com/2012/06/ribbon-wreath-tutorial.html Pick your ribbon colors and then add some mini Lalaloopsy dolls. Et voila! Jennifer raised a good point though- after the party, she planned on hanging the wreath in her daughter’s bedroom. The tutorial online used pins to hold each ribbon loop in place. Little kids + pins= not a good combination. Here’s what Jennifer said about making the wreath:

I used a wire floral frame, wrapped it in ribbon (this is what your are going to stitch the loops too), use whatever you like your only going to see it from the back so if it is going on the wall it really doesn’t matter, but if you are putting it on a door with a window, you may want it to look nice.  Then I cut all the ribbon to make the loops between 3 and 4 inches, and stitched the loops onto the frame.  I tried premaking the loops and then stitching them but it was much easier just to do it right on the frame that way you could manipulate the ribbon how you wanted it. Once all that was done, I added the buttons and the dolls.  I just looped thread around the necks of the dolls so you couldn’t see the thread and I did it very loose,  so that  could take them off easily for when my daughter wanted to play with them.  I can add more buttons or just leave it, but it is completly safe to put in her room for a decoration.

 

 

Here’s the cake that she made for her daughter’s 4th birthday party. She made strawberry cake because it had to be pink and she used vanilla buttercream frosting. For the buttons on the cake, you can make them out of fondant, but these were sugar and ordered through Sweet Estelle’s Baking Supply. Jennifer said that the kids loved the sugar buttons.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you so much Jennifer for sharing the party photos with us and giving us great advice on making a ribbon wreath!

Tutorial: Hand-tied banner May 17, 2011

I love the look of the hand-tied banner and I love that it can be so versatile! You can print the letters on squares or circles, make these big or small to determine the length of your banner, use lots of ribbon colors, etc. The digital happy birthday banners in my shop are very popular and I think that is because they add a lot of impact to the party decorations.

Here is a step-by-step guide to show you how to put these banners together. For this tutorial I have used the banner from the Sailboat collection to spell out the name Asher. A name can be added to any of the digital collections for an additional $5 (up to 10 letters).  The grosgrain ribbon is orange, spring moss (green), blue and lemonade.

The first thing you’ll want to do is get your supplies together:

Paper slicer

Black card stock

3/8 inch grosgrain ribbon

Good quality scissors

Adhesive (photo splits)

Printed banner sheets

Cutting mat or ruler

Hole punch

If you want rounded corners then it helps to have a corner-round punch. This isn’t essential though. The banner looks great with 90 degree corners or you could always do the rounded corners by hand using your scissors.

Tools you'll need

Cut your grosgrain ribbon to 8 3/4 inches. If you plan on using the banner for years to come, then you’ll want to treat the ends of your ribbon to prevent them from fraying- either pick up some Fray Check at the craft store or burn the ends.

Cut the ribbon to 8 3/4 inches

When you print your banner sheets, it is important to have your printer set to high/good quality (not draft!) and also use bright white heavy paper. I like to use 110 lb card stock. This is available at office supply stores such as Staples or Office Depot.
Use your paper slicer to cut the printed sheets into squares.

Cut into squares

Square letters

Once you’ve cut all the letters into squares, you can round the corners. Of course, this is totally optional and depends on the look you are wanting!

Use punch to round the corners

Choose square or 90 degree corners

Rounded corners

The next step is to cut your black card stock into 5 1/2 inch squares. You’ll be backing the letter squares onto this card stock. It is important to back to the letter squares so that your banner will be sturdy. If you rounded the corners for your letter squares then you’ll want to do this again for the black card stock squares.

Black card stock squares

Apply adhesive to the back of the letter squares. When you stick the letter square on your black square, make sure it is in the center so that you have a nice even border all the way around.

Apply adhesive

Stick letter in the center

Back all the letters

Now you are ready to punch holes in the corners of the squares. Make sure the holes on each side are uniform- you want the holes to be the same distance from the top of the card stock and from the sides. I like to spend a couple minutes making a hole template.

Make hole template

Once you’ve made your template, you need to mark where your left and right holes are going to be located. Do this by marking the letter squares on each side as show in the photos.

Hole template

Mark left hole mark

Move template to the right

Mark right hole

Punch holes

Now that all your holes are punch, you can start the fun part- pulling the ribbon between the holes of two adjoining letters and knotting the ribbon!

Thread ribbon through holes

Knot ribbon

When you knot the ribbon, make sure it is not too tight or that the letter square are overlapping. You need the knots to be somewhat loose so that you can fold your finished banner.

Continue to tie all the ribbon together.

Tie all the ribbon

When you get to the end letters (in this case, a sailboat and the letter R), you want your ribbon to be longer. The length of this ribbon will depend on what you’ll be tying the ribbon to. The banners I make have between 24 and 30 inches of ribbon at the ends.

End ribbon

Tie ribbon to the letter square

Et voila! Your banner is finished and ready to display!

Finished banner

When you are not using the banner, you can fold it (like an accordion) and use the long end ribbons to hold it together.

Fold banner when not in use

If you are feeling less than crafty then check out the ready-to-ship banners that I have in the store or contact me and I can print, cut, back, glue and hand-tie one of the digital banners for you!

Superheroes and Princesses! May 16, 2011

A couple weeks ago I was contacted by Amy. She asked me to revise the Comic Book Superhero collection that I have posted in my Etsy store to make it appropriate for her twin’s birthday party. Steven and Kaitlyn were going to be celebrating their third birthday party and the theme of their party was Superheroes and Princesses! How fun is that? To keep the flow of bright, saturated colors in the existing collection, I added a touch of hot pink. I also revised the party sign to read: Welcome Superheroes and Princesses! No Villains Allowed!

Take a look at the photos Amy sent me from the party! Everything came out looking amazing! Thank you so much for sharing.

Water wrappers

I love how Amy propped up the welcome sign in the middle of the table, against the rock candy. By the way, if you are planning on doing something similar, check out Oriental Trading. That is where she found the colorful rock candy and the superhero gummy fun packs! She also had pop rocks which looked like kryptonite!

Welcome sign

Superheroes and Princesses

In the front, you can see the custom chocolate bar wrappers- hot pink and royal blue! Isn’t it gorgeous? As party favors, Amy made all the kiddos capes with their initial on the back! I bet they came out SUPER cute (pun intended).

There are a few of the other items in the Comic Book Superhero collection.

Invitation

Personalized cupcake toppers

Starbursts

If you are planning a Superhero birthday party then check out the full collection in my Etsy store. I offer a package- everything you’ll need to throw a fabulous party- for only $45.

Collection

Collection

for a rainbow of a good time… check the taste test! May 14, 2011

I am so excited that one of the items in my Etsy store made the Etsy front page! I woke up this morning to lots of activity in the store and I’m sure that is why! Thank you so much waterwaif for including my pinwheel wands in your gorgeous colorful treasury.

for a rainbow of a good time... check the taste test!

Pinwheel wands make wonderful party favors. Adults and children love them and they are so bright and colorful that they can double up as party decorations! Here’s the info on the pinwheel wands:

Glitter pinwheel wands

Set of 12 large twirlable pinwheel wands! These add a fun touch to any party or decoration! This listing is for 12 beautiful large pinwheel wands, made using gorgeous glitter cardstock. The wingspan is about 8 inches wide and the wand is 12 inches long. They actually spin too! They are made from heavy paper so they will not spin when blown but they are twirlable!

You choose the color! I have 20 colors for you to choose from (see picture). You can have up to 4 of each color. Or, choose 12 different colors- the choice is yours! The pinwheels in the pictures are examples only. I will custom make your pinwheels in the colors you choose.

In the message to sender, please indicate:
1) your glitter cardstock color
2) the star-flower color (either brown or black). If you do not specify a color for the star-flower, I will use black.

For the glitter cardstock color you can choose from:
1 Emerald Green
2 Turquoise
3 Sage Green
4 Apple Green
5 Seamist
6 Blue
7 Dark Blue
8 Lilac
9 Dark Pink
10 Light Pink
11 Baby blue
12 Cream
13 Red
14 Coral
15 Orange
16 Peach
17 Golden Yellow
18 Yellow
19 Black
20 White

Glitter paper

Pinwheel wands

These pinwheels are not toys and are not suitable for children under the age of 13. They are for decorative uses only. Perfect for wedding decor, birthday parties, party favors, and baby showers.

I will ship the pinwheels via USPS First Class within 3 days of payment.

Pink Lemonade Party Collection! April 20, 2011

Summer is around the corner and that means parties outside! Hooray for sunshine- and pink lemonade! Here are some handmade items to help kick off your party in style. And of course, a drink recipe for the adults!

All beautiful parties start with gorgeous theme-setting invitations:

Pink lemonade invite

Pink lemonade invite

Pretty striped straws!

Pink and white straws

Serve your drinks in these cute daisy mason jars.

Daisy mason jars

Pretty yellow cupcake wrappers.

Yellow cupcake wrappers

And cupcake toppers add a sweet touch! These are digital files so you print your own. Print as many as you need.

Cupcake toppers

Mini jams for party favors for the adult. These jams are amazing and dasweetzpot make any flavor so think outside the box. Watermelon jam? Yep, they can do that!

Mini jam

Lemon felt favor bag. Fill this with candy (lemon drops anyone) for the kids!

Lemon felt bag

Chocolate covered oreos… mmmm…. delicious!

Chocolate covered oreos

An outfit for the party girl!

Yellow and pink tutu

And a special drink recipe for the grown ups…  *wink*

Sparkling punch

Prep: 5 min., Chill: 1 hr. For a sweeter finish, substitute ginger ale for club soda.

Ingredients

• 1 (12-oz.) can frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
• 4 cups white cranberry juice cocktail
• 1 qt. club soda, chilled
• Garnish: fresh mint sprigs

Preparation

1. Stir together lemonade concentrate and cranberry juice cocktail in a large pitcher. Cover and chill at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours. Stir in club soda just before serving. Garnish, if desired.

Champagne Punch: Substitute 1 (750-milliliter) bottle extra-dry Champagne or sparkling wine and 1/4 cup orange liqueur for club soda; proceed with recipe as directed.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used Cointreau for orange liqueur.

Recipe from: Southern Living JUNE 2008

Sailboat Party Collection and Free Printables! April 13, 2011

As you probably know, I have been working on launching digital party invites and party supplies. I have a few collections available now at my Etsy store and I will be adding more over the next few weeks! I love digital party invites because you can print as many as you need or you can simply attach the file to an e-mail and send it out that way.

The digital party decorations are fantastic too because they are totally customized and personalized. Love the race car collection but need it for a girl? Not a problem since it is digital and I created the artwork, I can change the colors! Perfect!

For my son, Asher’s first birthday, I wanted a theme that embraced the beauty of New England and the gorgeous view we get to enjoy everyday from our home in Jamestown, Rhode Island. I wanted his invite and birthday colors to be soft and muted, like the landscape we have been seeing this winter. There’ll be plenty of other birthdays with bright, vibrant colors. For now, I get to choose his theme and the palate of his party! Here is the color board:

Sailboat collection color board

And here is the invitation!

 

Invitation

And of course, the rest of the party decorations:

Cupcake toppers

Party favor tags

Happy birthday banner: HA

Happy birthday banner: PP

Happy birthday banner: Y

Welcome door sign

Water bottle wrap

In my Etsy shop, I offer all the individual pieces. I also have the full range available– a fantastic deal at only $45. The full collection includes:

• 5” x 7” invite
• Happy Birthday banner: 5” x 5” square letter panels
• 2” party circles: thank you, anchor, age, happy birthday name
• 4” party circles: make signs and cake toppers
• 7.5” x 10” welcome party sign
• 4” x 6” thank you note cards
• 4.5” x  3.5” set of 4 blank labels
• Water bottle wraps

To celebrate the launch of the sailboat party collection, here are a couple FREE printables for you!

Classic Girl Collection! April 1, 2011

New in my Etsy shop is the Classic Girl Collection! These are fantastic because you can have them personalized with your child’s name, age and photograph!  When you send me your child’s photograph, I will do basic photo editing such as cropping and turning the picture into black and white, at no additional cost! I love the bright colors in this collection and the stripe/polka dot combination is SO MUCH FUN for any age!

Check out this darling invite:

Classic Girl collection- invitation

The invite measures 5″x7″ and you can either print at home on heavy, bright white card stock or upload it to an internet digital photo service to get printed. If you have it printed on photo paper, then make sure you choose the matte finish. This will look less photography and will not show fingerprint!

And of course, you know how much I love “welcome to the party” door signs. I they are a great way to get the party theme started as soon as your guest reach the front door! I can do additional personalizing to these signs (such as “take your shoes off and step inside” or “the party is in the back garden”). Here’s the one that comes with the Classic Girl collection:

Classic Girl collection- door sign

Your little girl will love seeing her photograph on the party decorations! The rest of the collection comprises of a Happy Birthday banner, cupcake toppers and thank you tags/circles!

Classic Girl collection- birthday banner

Classic Girl collection- cupcake toppers

Classic Girl collection- thank you tags

Remember the notecards with belly bands that I made for the Classic Boy collection? Well, I am of course offering the girl version! These are great to print and use as stationary for your little girl! Also, after the party, you can use them as thank you note cards. Since you print them yourself, you can make as few or as many as you need! The notecards are sized to 4″x 6″ so that you will get two per sheet of paper.

Classic Girl collection- note cards

Party “Welcome” Door Signs March 29, 2011

I am so happy to have mailed off some fun party decorations and invites to Tisha this morning! She is having a joint birthday party with her husband. In fact their wedding anniversary’s sandwiched in between the two birthdays so they really do have a lot to celebrate! I enjoyed working with her on the invites and am thrilled with the final product. The invites are 5 inches by 7 inches and have a bright white card stock overlay. The overlay is tied to the card with about 8 inches of grosgrain ribbon which are cut on a diagonal. I printed their return address on the envelopes so all she has to do is address them.

Invites

The invites match the Happy Birthday banner which I had listed in my Etsy shop. I do have more of this amazing card stock so keep an eye on my shop… I may just have to make another one of these. I love that the colors are bright. Also, some of the paper in this collection has glitter, too.

Happy birthday banner

 

Happy birthday banner

As a special treat for the birthday gal (and guy!), I made a welcome door sign for them to hang on their front door. This is a fun way to create a party atmosphere from the moment people enter the house.

Party door sign

 

Party door sign

I really like making welcome signs for parties. I think they are really fun and add  a nice touch. I sell print your own door signs in my Etsy store. The one below is part of the sailboat collection. I love making party collections and think it is really fun to have matching invites, cupcake toppers, party circles, etc.

Sailboat party door sign

Sailboat printable door sign

 

 

Tutorial: Note cards with belly band March 28, 2011

I am so happy to now offer printable note cards in my Etsy store. I’ve been wanting to branch out to the print-your-own party supplies for a while now and have had a lot of fun creating some incredible collections. The pattern in the photos of this tutorial is from the Classic Boy collection. There are invites, birthday banner, cupcake toppers and thank you tags available in this collection.

I can custom make these note cards in any color and font! They are make fabulous gifts and also make excellent thank you cards after a birthday party. Here’s how to put these together. Of course the first thing you’ll have to do is print the file that I e-mail you after your purchase 😉 It is best to use heavy bright white paper (ideally 110 lb). This is available from Staples or most craft stores.

1. Use a paper cutter to trim the paper. Each sheet of paper will give you two note cards that measure 4 inches x 6 inches. It is easiest to cut the belly bands first. Then, trim each side.

Cut the belly bands

Belly Band

Trim the sides

Trim the top and bottom of cards

2. Your printer may not be able to print all the way to the edge. So, if you have a white margin on either side of the belly bands, trim these off with scissors.

Trim belly band

3. Use a corner-rounder punch in the corners. If you don’t have one, you can use scissors for this part. I highly recommend getting a punch though, especially if you are doing a lot of the note cards!

Round-corner punch

Round corners with scissors

4. Fold the belly band about ¼ of the way up.

Fold belly band

Crease

5. Now, put the crease over the note card. Turn the card over and do the second fold/crease on the belly band.

Align crease on edge of note card

Back of card

Back

6. Et voila! Your beautiful note cards are finished.

Note card with belly band