Currently viewing the category:
"parties"
Right before going on vacation, we celebrated my twins’ 7th birthday! We opted to have their birthday right at home. Yikes! Daughter wanted to have a “Color Me Mine” party and son wanted to have a Game Truck. So that is just what we did!
::Decorations
paper streamers and dot garlands
Love how they turned out! All worth getting up at 5am to start decorating. I only had 2 hours to decorate so I made sure not to do too many rows. Something to keep in mind if you end up using paper streamers to decorate…I was very cautious to not have the streamers twist but at the end, due to the wind, they got twisted anyways! Live and learn!
multi-color dot garland and a bunting from Minted
Loved the bunting! and it saved me time from making one! All pluses, in my book.
:: Activities
Painting
Water Balloon Toss
Cookie Decorating
Filling Goodie Bags
and seriously, the most fun I have seen my kids have…the Game Truck!
I tell my twins this every year and I truly mean it at the time…this will be their last big birthday party! 
I miscalculated the timing of the activities (and for future reference, it does NOT take 6-7 year olds an hour to paint…it takes the boys 10-15 min! and the girls 15-20 min!!!) and got a bit stressed (b/c that’s what people who have OCD tend to do. haha) but the most important thing this was that my kids had a great time! Everyone left the party pooped including the chaperones (yes, this crazy mama made the party drop off only!!!). I am glad 7 is here but seriously, can anyone tell me how I can slow down time?
Hope you are having a wonderful Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!
big sis
My dear friend is due with her first child in June, and my girlfriends and I threw her a shower at a modern tea lounge called Tranquil Tea Lounge. Her wedding colors were fuchsia and gray, so we decided to keep that theme going when we heard that she was doing her nursery in pink and gray.
We had mini diaper cakes and floral centerpieces for the tables.
The father-to-be asked his friend who owns Sweet Ladera candy shop to create a pink and gray candy station, and it turned out so pretty! It was an awesome focal point, and guests were happy to take the candy home as their favor.
Gen from Sweet Ladera also made a banner to match her candy tags. Everything turned out great!
Here’s a close up of the candy. The Pop Rocks and Taffy were my fave!
The cake was from Beverly’s Best, and the L’Occitane Soaps were prizes for the baby shower games.
This Sweet Clementine bunting banner was from my previous post. Thanks again Minted! It was a nice backdrop for our photos.
-lil sis
We were ecstatic when Minted reached out to us to try out some items from their new line of party décor. I’ve always loved their birthday invitations and their Christmas cards, so when I heard they came out with decorations, I knew I would love it too!
It was perfect timing because my girlfriends and I were throwing a baby shower for my girlfriend, and big sis was busy getting birthday decorations ready for her twins as you can see here, here, and here.
The baby shower was a pink and gray theme, so I was on the lookout for something in that color scheme. I couldn’t find an exact match, but I came across the Sweet Clementine Bunting Banner that was too cute to pass up.
The baby shower was held at Tranquil Tea Lounge in OC, and it has more of a modern feel. We wanted to go with basic decorations like flower centerpieces and mini diaper cakes.
More pictures of the shower to follow in a separate post. The Sweet Clementine “Baby Lia” Bunting Banner was hung on a wall that was going to be dedicated for the picture area. My girlfriends and I didn’t realize it was hanging on a reflecting glass wall, so the photographer had to take more angle shots than anything.
(me and mommy-to-be)
Still, it came out super cute, and it was a great addition to the decor! The mommy-to-me made sure I wrapped it up for her so she could hang it perhaps in her nursery?!
Minted makes the entire process easy – you pick your banner design, personalize it to what you want to say (16 flags are included which means a space counts as one flag), and you get to even choose the background paper for $28. If what you want to say ends up being more than 16 flags, no worries because you can add more flags at an additional charge.
It would have been perfect if they allowed mixing and matching from all the background papers in their entire selection especially in my case because I had a specific color theme to follow. Plus they have so many adorable choices to choose from! It would have been cute to mix some papers from the Sweet Clementine bunting and the Guapa Bunting.
Love how their fonts are classic and not too cutesy!
Big sis’ birthday party for her twins was a colorful theme, and she transformed her patio into this…
Picture from Instagram (follow @lilsprinkles)
It was a really pretty setting, and the kids sat under the patio for their Color Me Mine party and cookie decorating activity.
This Up Up and Away Minted Banner totally worked with her theme. She hung the banner in the front of the house and incorporated her dot garland too.
These banners are made of sturdy Minted signature paper, so we are definitely going to save the Happy Birthday banner for another party The banners came with brown twine, but I opted to loop the baby shower banner with white cording I had in my stash to match the colors of the banner. In addition to banners, they have loads of other party items from confetti, cupcake toppers, personalized signs, pinwheels, etc.
I’m already scheming up ideas for the girl’s 3rd and 5th birthday party, and my oldest requested a Rapunzel party. Purple, gold, and princess-y…I think that can be done. There’s a package from Minted called Princess Crown Party Décor that just might work!
All I need is a real rented Rapunzel and Flynn Rider to show up at the party, and I’m good to go!
-lil sis
***We were not offered compensation for this post and all opinions are our own***
A party favor bag to hand to each child is a must in my book. It’s a nice way to say “thanks for coming to celebrate with us”. Plus and this is a BIG plus, most children expect something! haha! We once left a party empty-handed and my daughter was SO confused…never mind they fed us and entertained us, she didn’t understand why she was not given a favor (granted, she was 3 or 4 at the time).
The dilemma is always do I just buy them or do I personalize them by making them? I’ve done both but always have the need to decorate the paper ones still! Sheesh! What’s wrong with me?! So, I decided the week of the party that they would be made! My twins were sweet enough to let me use fabric I had stashed away instead of making another trip to the fabric store.
So this is where it pays off to buy fabric by the bolt
I measured the widest party treats and added a few inches on the sides for the bag. For the length, take your longest treat and add 5 inches extra to the height of your bag. My bag measured 7 x 9 inches.
MATERIALS:
- Sewing Machine
-
Fabric
- Pinking Shears
- Grosgrain Ribbon to match your fabric
- Marking Pen
HOW TO:
1. Cut 2 pieces of your fabric using your pinking shears, which will minimize the fraying. Mine measured 7.5 x 9.5.
2. Cut a piece of ribbon; ribbon should go around the bag and be long enough to tie into a bow. Mine measured 20.5 inches.
3. Pin the ribbon at the center of the bag, approximately 4 inches from the top. I realized after the kids had packed up their goodies, that the top was too short and slipping out of the ties. This measurement will ensure that you have enough fabric above the ribbon so that it will not slip out.
3. Mark with your disappearing ink where you will stitch up the ribbon. I just eyeballed the center and spaced the stitches 3/4 of an inch apart.
zig zag stitch or
straight stitch
4. Pin wrong sides together and sew the two sides and bottom using 1/4 seam allowance.
5. Clip the corner and turn the bag inside out.
completed bag!
bag filled with party favors!
big sis
for the twins’ 7th birthday is coming along.
I’ve got the dot garlands stitched up and ready to go!
via Instagram (@lilsprinkles)
And I’m almost done sewing up the party favor bags. I contemplated buying some but at a $1 per bag, I could not justify it! I got extra lucky because my twins didn’t mind me using fabric I had on hand. It all makes sense…why I buy bolts of fabric, that is.
Here’s a twist on the traditional drawstring bags that I made here. I’m hoping to get a tutorial up as soon as I finish whipping them up. They are so much quicker than drawstring pouches!
So that’s what I’ve been up to. I am fighting a cold and I’m not sure if it has to do with this crazy weather we are having in SoCal or if it’s all the prepping/planning that’s breaking down my immune system. I’ve got lots to do still and am making a mental note that having parties at home (for me) is not such a good idea. haha! For some reason, I can’t just do a “normal kid’s party”. I feel the need to go above and beyond and for that, my body is paying for it. I’m sure that going to Hawaii (for the 1st time as a family of 5) just 3 days following the bday party is not really helping the stress level, huh? This vaca couldn’t come soon enough. I hope to check in before I check in to paradise Hope you have a happy Wednesday. Thanks for stopping by!
big sis
I knew immediately when I saw this
from here
that this is how I am going to decorate the twins’ 7th birthday party. Isn’t it so purty?! It’s tough trying to come up with a unisex theme especially when my son is very much a boy and my daughter is such a girlie girl. My only concern is that this decoration is going to be hung on my patio in the backyard and if it took 2 people 4 hours to set this up, how will 1 person do it in 1 hour (the time I allotted for decorations on the day of)?!?! that is the question…sigh…So my next thought is to set it up at night but then I’ll risk the morning dew possible ruining it. The things I ponder…
This is the 2nd birthday party we are having at our house and I’m making it a drop off only party. Yikes! I’m a lil scared but I’m trying to cover all my bases to make sure the kids are not bored and running amuck in my house
So the invites are almost done and then I’ll be ready to go into full-blown party planning mode. It’s gonna be a stressful time indeed…with the party, teacher appreciation week, Mother’s day, and our big vacation coming up…all occurring in a matter of a 10 day span. I see loads of checklists in my near future!
I have finally got all the dollies up in the shop and will be pulling down the custom doll listings until about June-July. Thanks for stopping by!
big sis
So remember a LONG time ago when I made these?
Well, I had been meaning to make a template and then realized I had no idea how to do so! But with so many inquiries on the template, I did some researching and figured it out…I think
Here is the template:
MATERIALS:
2. Bone Folder
4. Scissors
5. Xacto Knife
6. Cutting Mat
7. Glue
8. 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 Black Square Envelopes
(for Minnie Mouse invites)
10. White thread and needle (for Minnie’s bows)
HOW TO:
1. Download the PDF here and print it out on your white 8.5 by 11 cardstock.
2. Cut out the outline of the head. This will be your template.
3. On your cutting mat, take your template and using your bone folder, score it on to your black cardstock. If you use a 12 by 12 size, you will be able to cut out 2 heads per sheet. Cut out the heads with your scissors. I used my Xacto knife to make cleaner cuts where the ears meet the top of the head.
4. After you’ve cut out all the heads, cut out the inner white circle. Create your invitation wording on Word and play around with it until it is to your liking and fits in the circle. This will take some trial and error. Now, how will you know if it fits? My method…I hold up the wording printout and hold my inner white circle over it. The goal is to have all your wording fit within the parameters of the circle.
5. Print out the invitation wording on your 8.5 by 11 white cardstock. Trace or score and then cut out the inner circles.
6. Adhere them to the head. And there’s your Mickey invite!
7. If you would like to create Minnie invites, make bows out of your polka dot fabric and adhere them on the top of the white circle. You can try using glue but I wasn’t sure if they’d stick so I sewed mine by hand.
Enjoy!
big sis
The baby shower was beautiful. I was a little helper behind the scenes of this gorgeous shower executed by the mommy-to-be’s sister who happens to be an event planner, Petite Productions. I wish I had official pics to show you versus the ones taken with my iphone.
The colors of the shower were mint/celadon, champagne, and dusty pink. It was a very feminine and girly shower. Look at those chair covers! Never seen anything like that before.
Some of the helpers brought our children, and they got to sit at the kid’s table…which looked equally as beautiful as the grown up’s table. They got their own Hello Kitty notepad, crayons, and stickers to keep them busy throughout the shower.
How cute are those chair covers!!! I got to take home that flower center piece…hehe sorry L if you’re reading this.
Another pic of the room. See the back table – it was a Make your own perfume station for the guest favors. Who thinks of these ideas??? It was a hit! I didn’t get to take a pic of the food, but there was a crepe station outside from Crepes Bonaparte. Delicious savory and sweet crepes + a bellini station. Alcohol at a baby shower…that’s my kind of shower!
The sign in table
And lastly, to my dear friend that I met freshman year of college in Humanities class…love you and can’t wait to meet Baby A!!!! xo
-lil sis
Just wanted to wish everyone a happy halloween! I saw this on Pinterest and decided to make some for the twins’ classmates. So glad that they are of age where I can put them to work!
They put together all 60 of them!
Have a safe one!
big sis
Never worked with it until prepping for baby girl’s birthday party. Why didn’t anyone tell me how great it is?!
So not only did I use it to cover the composition books, but I also used it to affix the thank you tags on the favor bags. In the past, I would use [...]
Never worked with it until prepping for baby girl’s birthday party. Why didn’t anyone tell me how great it is?!
So not only did I use it to cover the composition books, but I also used it to affix the thank you tags on the favor bags. In the past, I would use full sheet sticker labels and run them through my computer but at $10-15 a box, they are not cheap. I always have a stash of cardstock available so I printed up thank you tags, cut them out, applied mod podge, and affixed them to the bags.
Now, what else could I mod podge???
big sis
Connect with us!
Printables
