Thursday, April 23, 2009

tiny two party details

Here are the details of Elle's Tiny Two party including a free PDF download of some of the elements of the party (at the end of the post). This theme worked great for a 2-year-old birthday party, but could be used for so many other occasions.

[invitations]




I wanted "tiny" invitations so I designed the basic size and then created a coordinating envelope template. I cut the envelopes using my Silhouette (Silhouette Users: download the envelope template and mini party hat template from the Silhouette download site soon). I also embellished the invites with glossy accents to give them some texture and dimension - everything looks better with glossy accents or diamond glaze!

[decor]




I hung chinese lanterns with fishing wire above the dessert area. I couldn't find the exact color of teal blue I wanted so I purchased a white lantern and painted it with the food coloring I used for the frosting. It worked great and was simple...just add food coloring to some water in a bowl and paint with a foam brush.





I also printed out several sheets of the patterned paper I designed for the invitation envelopes in both a teal and pink color to use on a variety of decor elements including:
- wrapping around the mini water bottles (I wanted to add a white circle label printed with 2, but ran out of time)
- wrapping around the condiment bottles
- creating food place cards
- embellishing Elle's wrapped presents

[food]


I think the food was a key element in making the party feel truly tiny. We had tiny hamburgers, tiny hot dogs and tiny veggies along with tiny cupcakes and ice cream scoops. Elle also had a tiny-sized cake. My friend Heather baked all of the tiny rolls for the hamburgers and hot dogs (thanks Heather!). She also found the tiny hot dogs at a local Albertsons (Oscar Meyer brand), and I made small 2" hamburger patties. For the veggies, I used the small baby carrots (some are bigger than others - get the small snack size packs), cut up tiny celery sticks, and cut up small peppers from Costco and lucked out with mini cucumbers from Costco.

I also made the cupcakes with 2" paper souffle cups and placed the scoop of ice cream in a 3.25 oz. paper souffle cup with the wooden spoon inserted into the center. For Elle's cake and the cupcakes I embellished them with royal icing shapes and letters....just pipe the royal icing shapes onto a piece of parchment and let harden over night. I loved the small 2 that adorned the top of each cupcake.

[games and favors]



We had about 40 people at the party - 20 adults and 20 kids so I was a little nervous about keeping the kids entertained (ranging in age from 2 to 14). Luckily the weather was nice so the kids could go outside but I also had a variety of tiny games set out including a small kids table covered in freezer paper with crayons, markers and small animal toys to play with and mini games I found at the party store (mini bowling sets, mini uno cards, mini pool).

For the favors, I made tiny notepads of games for two - hangman, tic-tac-toe and the dot game. I put the notepads in a clear bag with a tiny marker and filled with fun-size candy.

Overall, I think the party was a success. Here is a PDF filled with some of the elements I used to make it happen including:

- tiny envelope template
- tiny party hat template
- patterned paper in teal and pink
- tiny game sheets you can cut out and turn into notepads

Enjoy!

(thanks to Heather and Laura for the pictures of the party!)

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

back to basics QK release


My "day" job is Director of Product Development for QuicKutz, Inc. We release new products every month designed for paper crafting and scrapbooking. Today is the launch of our "Back to Basics" themed release which includes a variety of die-cutting shapes and designs including the instant photo die used in the image above (which features the fantastic QK sales team). This release is especially versatile making it great for a variety of projects. Check out the whole release here.

Monday, April 20, 2009

tiny two


We just finished Elle's "Tiny Two" party and had a great time celebrating with friends and family. Her party was filled with all things tiny...

...tiny invitations
...tiny cupcakes
...tiny cake
...tiny ice cream scoops
...tiny hot dogs
...tiny hamburgers
...tiny veggies
...tiny games
...tiny party favors

I'm lucky enough to work with two great girls who took photos of the whole event (thanks Heather and Laura!). Watch this week for more details and how-tos of several aspects of the party - including some free downloads so you can have your own tiny party!

Here's a quick look at some photos from the party....(photos courtesy of Heather).






happy to elle



Today is Elle's birthday - or as she calls it "happy to Elle". I can't believe she's turning 2. It has gone by so quickly yet I can barely remember life without her. She has such a funny personality that makes our lives better and entertaining.

Tonight we're having a "tiny two" party to celebrate. Watch for more posts on the details from invitations to party decor to food. Her party has been my excuse to try a lot of the "creative" things I've been wanting to do.