CARNIVAL / CIRCUS PARTY WEEK - FREE PRINTABLE INVITATION

Welcome to day one of our Carnival/Circus Party Celebration!!! First up for free download is the invitation, available here. The 5X7 invites print two-up on 8 1/2 X 11 cardstock. Simply print, cut and fill in the party details. Enjoy!

PAPERLESS POST

I know this may sound strange coming from a designer of party invitations, but sometimes I like to use online invite services. It's quick, easy and the designs have come such a long way. I figure, if I save a tree on the front end, I can go really crazy with the party accessories! There are still many times when I feel that a beautiful invitation that you can touch and feel and open up in person is definitely in order, but for those other times, my new favorite service is definitely Paperless Post.

One of the reasons that I love Paperless Post is that they do such a great job of making you feel like you're receiving an actual invite through the mail. There's an envelope addressed to the recipient, it opens up and out comes this beautiful, personal invite that you feel like you can reach out and touch. The "texture" of the paper is lovely and it all just seems very personal, which is no small feat for an email invite!

You must register to view all available designs, which is a bit of an annoyance. But with a huge variety of designs and endless combinations of paper, graphics and typeface, it is more than worth the minute it takes to register. Check it out here. I think you'll love it!

P.S. This is a completely unsolicited review. I assure you, Paperless Post has no knowledge of my existence on the planet.

GIRL, YOU ROCK!

I am so excited to share this amazingly fabulous Rocker Girl party with you! I worked on this party for the beautiful and talented Domenica of Proudest Monkey Photography and her adorable daughter Isabella and have been waiting on the edge of my seat to see photos of the big event! (I'm gushing, aren't I? Well, you're about to see why!)

invite front

invite back

The tone for every party is set with the invitation and these concert ticket invites hit the perfect note. Of course, having amazing photos of the birthday girl makes the design job a piece of cake!

Here is the beautiful Isabella - ready to rock the house!

Upon arrival, each guest was given VIP status with their backstage pass. We don't let just anyone into fab parties like this!

The awesome cake and cupcakes were made by Sugar Shack Cakes who never disappoint with their incredible creations.

Custom water bottles for the party guests because Rock Stars stay hydrated in style!

The birthday girl went eco-friendly and chose a custom, aluminum water bottle to match her party theme!

Dom thought of absolutely everything, including hanging concert posters of her little Rock Star all around the party scene (seen here in the background, printed at posterjack.ca.). Everyone needs a cool mom like Domenica, don't you think?

Each guest left with a rockin' cool gift bag stuffed to the brim with rockstar essentials...

...like a cd of the birthday girl's fave tunes, a pocket mirror to remind them that they ROCK not just on party day, but every day!

... and this super cool, super hero Rock Star cape (from Custom Kids etsy shop).

I think Isabella had a good day, don't you?!

For more of Domenica's beautiful photography, be sure to check out Proudest Monkey Photography. Prepare to be inspired!

PARTY GIRL

A sweet little party for a sweet little girl with matching invitations (not pictured), custom cupcake toppers, personalized water bottles and adorable hairclip party favors. 

And we can't forget the coordinating thank you notes. This is girly-girl style at its absolute best - sweet and fun!

ALL DOGS GO TO PARTIES

I suppose it's appropriate that I am consumed by the planning of my own daughter's birthday party as I start this blog - and I am. In a big, big way. So this week will be all about my youngest little girl, Peanut. (I know, I know. My other children, Pumpkin and Petunia, are represented so nicely in the name of my business, but Peanut was not yet a twinkle. Not to worry, I'll find a way to include her.)

Peanut is going to be two this Saturday and she is a little firecracker, to say the least. She has been speaking in full sentences and paragraphs since about 14 mos. and has even perfected a British accent (don't ask!). But the most important thing to know about Peanut in relation to her birthday party is that she loves dogs. So when thinking about a theme for her birthday party, having done just about every single theme you can think of, I was thrilled that her love of dogs fell very nicely into a theme that I have never done before. Something I could create from scratch! Because I'll do the Elmo birthday party if that is what my child really loves, but when I can do something different and still have it be all about the birthday girl (or boy), that is party planning nirvana.

So this week will be dedicated to executing plans for Peanut's Doggie Picnic birthday party on Saturday. I have a funny story about the printing of her invitation (pictured above, name and location changed to protect the innocent), but I'll save that for later in the week when I'll surely need a good laugh as I frantically try to pull this together all while entertaining three kids at the tail end of summer vacation. Wish me luck!