Back in January I threw a little shower for a friend and her little boy that was soon to arrive.  I started out thinking vintage circus and then ended up loving the colors I found at Target so much that is went full blown regular crazy colorful circus.  The food was simple…salads, breads, and fruit…and then for the fun table…fun sodas, popcorn, peanuts, candy sticks, animal cookies, cupcakes, and colorful assorted candies.  I threw some fabric I had on hand over the table in fun bright colors, put up a banner I had previously made in bright fabrics, grabbed some balloons, and we had a party!

If you are throwing a party ALWAYS check your local target $1 bins.  I find more stuff in there!  I actually check them every time I go…not just when I’m throwing a party.  Many times the treasures I find in ther become a party later.

Once again, because I was actually hosting the party, pictures took a back seat…so I didn;t get as many as I would have liked, but her are a few…

The favors I made up were celophane bags full of homemade candy popcorn.  It was SO easy to make and tasted yummy.  I simply popped popcorn and then melted those candy melts that you can buy at your local craft store and tossed the popcorn in it.  It made the popcorn all kinds of bright colors and looked fun.  I’ll put the printables up soon for the invitation and the favors, etc. 

Have a great day!
-tammy

It seems like I’ve been on a baby shower throwing streak lately.  With each one I’ve been creating custom invitations and party supplies (tags, favor ideas, placecards, thank you cards etc.) to go with each party.  I realized today as I was planning the next shower…theme: VINTAGE CIRCUS, that maybe you might like to use these too!   I’m going to start making these available through my etsy store at some time in the future, but for now I’ll take orders through the blog as I release each one.   Each set will include:

-a personalized printable invitation

-2″ circle tags to make cupcake toppers, tags, labels etc. (2 different designs)

-thank you tags

-placecards/blank food label tags

Here’s a little sneak at the VINTAGE CIRCUS line.  Let me know what you think and I’ll pick a winner to send the files to so you can use them for your next party!

All you need is a printer and a 2″ circle or scallop punch and you have yourself a fun, custom party!!

If you’re interested in purchasing, the cost for this set is $20.  You can print as many of each as you’d like.  Send me an email with the invitation info you would like printed and I’ll create your custom invite for you and send you a preview with your paypal invoice. 

Have a great day!

-t

Another friend re-created my computer generated garland in real life for decor over the food table and you can make one too!  Here’s what you’ll need:

8 sheets of pink cardstock in different shades of pink

2 sheets of grey/silver cardstock

a sewing machine

a few cups in different sizes

draw different sized circles out on your pink and silver cardstock using your cups.  cut them out.  using your sewing machine and a running stitch, sew the circles in a continuous line leaving a few stitches in between each circle.  You can literally have this done in a matter of minutes!

Here are a few photos from the evening:

I made a few food labels in photoshop, and cut them into circles.  My favorite (and the easiest) treats were the white choclate fudge covered oreos.  I made them fit into the theme by buying XL circle sprinkles, picking out the pink ones and then melting a few white chocolate chips to help “glue” them to the top of each cookie.  All the foods were mini sizes and we served everything in silver or white serving trays.   My super talented friend made cute vases with pink polka dot ribbons and hot pink flowers, as well as sugar cookies on sticks, decorated with pink sprinkles for the favors.  I hope these simple ideas get your creative juices flowing for your next party!

have a great day!

-t

You know me, when somebody says party my brain goes into overdrive!!   When planning a party I always think about a theme first.  Whether that theme is a color palette or a style doesn’t matter….just something that makes bringing everything else together easier.  I immediately thought of a vintage baby boy theme since I have some cool vintage glass plates and cups that I have been DYING to have an excuse to use, so this was perfect!   You can find them pretty easily at most antique stores.

I found this cute little shop online, Pretty Little Studio, that makes the most adorable vintage baby flashcards and all kinds of fun stuff.  I had her custom make some invitations for me and I think they turned out SO cute!!

We served simple breakfast foods that were yummy…a parfait bar with yogurt, fresh berries and granola, bite sized cinnamon rolls and other pastries, and a yummy drink.  To go along with the theme I made a little label for each food item

I just made them in photoshop and printed them out on cute scrapbook paper.  I also made one for the gift table:

Now my favorite part…the favors!!   John thinks I’m crazy because I spend hours making things like this, but this is honestly the most fun part for me.   These are very easy and inexpensive to make, but they are time consuming.  If you have the time and love to be crafty then these are perfect for you!

to make the giant cookies find the recipe here

for the bags you will need:

a roll of parchment paper

thread

a sewing machine

ribbon

a hole punch

pinking shears

any deocrations you want for the bags

Cut parchment paper into 6.5×14″ strips.  fold in half and stitch the sides up using a colorful thread and a zig-zag stitch.   trim off the excess on the sides with the pinking shears.  slip a cookie into the pouch.  fold the top of the bag over and punch two holes at the top about an inch apart.  feed the ribbon through the holes and tie into a bow on the front sideof your bag.  decorate as you like.

like I said, pretty easy, just time consuming but I think the result is WELL worth it!

It’s easy to do this for any shower boy or girl, or even if you don’t know what it is just make a mix of boy and girl vintage tags!   It would also be cute for a little girl’s birthday party if you played some vintage games and added a few more decorations and changed the food a bit!

Hopefully that gets your creative juices flowing for your next party!

Have a great day!
-t

How about having the supplies on hand and making it baby shower activity? Let each of the guests create their own unique onesie for the mom to be.

I’m always looking for fun and unique gift ideas and I think these are perfect!! Just a warning though, if you show up with a couple of these at the next shower, be prepared to be invited to many more!!!

Check out the tutorial on the American Crafts blog.

Happy Crafting!

-t

I am feeling inspired.  It’s been a while since I threw a little shindig and I’m kind of getting the hankering for one now…especially after seeing this over at Amorology Weddings.  I secretly want to be a wedding/party planner when I grow up.   I LOVE looking at wedding blogs for inspiration.  So many of the ideas can be transformed to everyday use– it’s great!  Check out the photos from this turquoise and lemon drop inspired wedding and tell me you aren’t in the mood to host a little garden party…

The color pallette was AMAZING!!!!

Love, love love the idea of the lemon drops holding up the place cards…SO cute!!!

Remember when I found these yummy vintage blue glasses at HG a few months ago???  Well, I’m thinking those combined with the millions of lemons from my parents backyard and we’ve got a party!!

Thanks for the inspiration Heather!  If you’re looking for some more great paty ideas check out Amorology Weddings.

Have a great day!

-t