confetti by lexi

celebrating the past, present and future: 2014

with eight pieces of confetti sets released in 2014, it was really hard to choose a single favorite, but give me a hand is definitely up there. i continue to reach for it often to create cards for a variety of occasions! another major stand out this year would have to be participating in stamp-a-faire and creating the 1980s mini kit. So for today’s card, i decided to partner a couple of fun elements from the two.

my teenagers especially love this set because of the different hand signs, so i went with a teen inspired card and put the glasses from the 1980s kit into one of the hands. i love to stick things into the hands - a present, stamped money, real money (!), etc. the speech bubble and sentiment options make this a truly versatile set.

it also pairs well with other sentiments. this is a favorite from the set's original release. the variety of sleeves and jewelry included are fun to customize the hands and play around with.

and how about hands catching snow in this globe ornament? i couldn't resist!

and as silhouettes against a rubber cement resist painted sky for a fun make it monday appearance. as usual, you can see these and more on the pinterest board - so many good ideas by the design team too...

now that i have showcased how this product from the past has remained a classic, it's your turn to share your ideas for the future! stop by nichole's blog to share a new project you make with this product, or just share a creation that is somehow inspired by what i made. get crafting and enter today so you can be eligible for a fantastic prize! see you again tomorrow for 2015...

happy stamping!
:) lexi

invitation basics bonus post!

surprise, i'm back for another day! all new stamps will be available at 10:00 pm est tonight in the papertrey ink store. but first, i've had this birthday card idea floating around in my head all week and had to make it happen, especially after all of the invitations the last couple of days. the inspiration comes from the empty birchboxes i use for ink cube storage. have you seen them? the size is great and the patterns are always so cool. anyway, the september one has been in my peripheral vision begging to be turned into a card - so "candle confetti" came to life! a lot of color and a lot of random stamping. then i mimicked the black and white text on the box bottom for the sentiment, inlaying the happy die cut, popping up birthday on a strip of white. i think this would also make a fun stamped wrapping paper and tag a la my recent make it monday! i have so many ideas for these candles, so you will definitely see them again.

for those of you who are planning to make printed invitations in addition to cards, i also wanted to leave you with some of the rhymes i brainstormed to coordinate with the images. change the names and numbers for perfect personalization. most of these have to do with cake and candles, and some may need tweaking depending on the length of the honoree's name, but it's a start. i love thinking up new rhymes and jingles for invites - it's the kind of thing i mull over while driving, showering, or drifting off to sleep! as always, thanks so much for stopping by and leaving comments during the countdown. hopefully, i've helped you see how much you need this fun new birthday set...

and the dies that go with...

so, have you made your list for tonight? so much good stuff to choose from! if you're not sure yet, be sure to head over to nichole's blog for the complete product preview and links to the design team's release in review - they always push me over my spending limit, lol!

happy shopping!
:) lexi

shhh! don't blow it!

yay! we've made it to day five of the papertrey ink countdown to new stamps, and one more look at invitation basics. after sharing invitations for younger kids yesterday, i wanted to focus on the versatility of the images by sharing a few older invitations today, all three a combo of printing and stamping and fairly easy to mass produce...

first up, a surprise fortieth invitation for a woman in tropical teal, hawaiian shores, and aqua mist with gold accents. i printed the text on a narrow strip of cardstock and added balance with a die cut and stamped cake with candles and the reminder: shhh! don't blow it! (one of my favorite surprise party phrases, especially when paired with candles for the full pun effect!) a gold luxe foil paper with scribbled circles provides the base with an additional pop of gold in the cake plate, die cut from a scrap of luxe gold adhesive. clean and simple and elegant!

next, another surprise party, but this time for a fifty year old man. i had milestone birthdays in mind when i designed the set of five candles for the cake. on their own, they make a perfect focal point for a big birthday celebration - just stamp out a pattern with them like the one i did above in enchanted evening and stormy sea, and you have a perfect birthday themed invitation for every big decade. shhh! don't blow it! tucks in between the candles and the printed verse and calls attention to the surprise, while the square shape and colors set a manly tone. so many candles, so easy to stamp!

and, finally, i created a sweet sixteen invitation with sixteen candles. while the smaller candles are perfect for multiples of five, the larger versions of the candles can be stamped individually, enabling you to create a grid of candles for any age, as well as being able to stamp them in multiple colors and fill up more space. here i decided to stamp the candles in different colors in a grid of 4 x 4, leaving room for the wording off to the side. Sixteen candles, hip, hip, hooray! after printing and then stamping, i layered the white panel on a piece of patterned paper from betsy's shakers and sprinkles kit. clearly, i like these colors because i keep coming back to them. what will i do when the paper is gone?! although i ended on a "kinda" kid invite (don't tell the 16 year old!), i hope i've demonstrated that the images are not just for kids - there really are so many possibilities for invitations and cards alike! remember all new stamps go live in the papertrey ink store tomorrow night at 10:00 pm eastern time. until then, be sure to check out nichole's blog for the complete scoop and links - today is "invitation inspiration" group post day and i can't wait to see what everyone else did with invitation basics!!

happy hopping!
:) lexi

you're invited!

hello! it's day four of the papertrey ink november countdown to new stamps and a third look at my new set invitation basics. today i've created invitations... 

first up, balloons! what's a party without them, right? i chose a rainbow striped patterned paper from betsy's you are a masterpiece kit, added die cut balloons stamped in coordinating colors along with party time in white, one the new big basics dies, and finished it off with the fill-in party details from the by invitation stamp set. this follows the basic formula for many invites i make - a white panel layered on a frame-like background piece.

usually, my invitations are 5-1/2 x 8-1/2, but sometimes i like the smaller A2 size. here i decided to create a superhero invitation in the smaller size, using a background layer from the comic strip paper collection and the superhero silhouette as a cake topper on a two shades of blue cake. zap, bam, pow! almost anything can become a cake topper for a fun themed invitation!

and last, i created a combo stamped and printed invitation. i like to personalize invitations with fun rhymes that include the honoree's name and age, and printing is the best way to do that. once i plan out the images i'm using, i figure out the spacing and print the wording accordingly. here the white panel is 4 x 7, layered on a patterned page from betsy's shakers and sprinkles kit, cut to 5-1/2 x 8-1/2. i stamped the cake and candle die cuts in colors that matched the paper and adhered them to the empty space i left above the words. since this is a first birthday invitation, i used a single large candle to match the rhyme - cake and ice cream, one candle to blow! there's only one more countdown day left, so be sure to stop by again. and as always, don't forget to visit nichole's blog for all the scoop and links.

until tomorrow,
:) lexi

a little fire & a lot of ice

i still have one more "royal" post, but first i thought i'd share another frozen spin off - a fire & ice party. the birthday girl had attended the first frozen party, liked a lot of the activities and wanted to feature them at her party, but she wanted something a little less princess or movie driven. she was having a sleepover and also planned on roasting s'mores. brainstorm: frozen + fire pit = fire & ice!

it was a small party and the request was for a cool and simple invite, so i came up with a logo centered around fun font details and included her name and age in a phrase to create a short rhyme. the logo and rhyme together were also perfect for a door sign. like the one yesterday, this is scaled to full page size. for the party it was mounted on black foam core and hung with coordinating fire and ice curling ribbon.

with a logo that cool (or hot?!), we had to use it on the activity cards as well. since this was a small party of girls who could read and follow directions, they were going to be doing the activities mostly on their own, so i included directions with all of the precut and sorted materials.

as always, there were alternates during the planning phase. usually my invites are the size of a half sheet of card stock, but sometimes clients and i opt for the cuteness of a small quarter size invite. on the left is the same phrasing as the larger invite reworked on that smaller size, on the right is a different phrase option. one fun detail on all options that i like to include always is a fun rsvp or regrets prompt. for this theme: cold feet? haha!! feel the heat...

feel the chill!
:) lexi

 

ice princess on skates

the popularity of frozen means a second day of the ice princess theme. this time the request was for frozen on skates. with the light, bright version from yesterday as my starting point and the request for a skate shaped invite, i got to work on a fun new twist on the original, adding in pink for extra pop. roller skates? you might be wondering. well, it was a local order and this is the south. but these could easily be turned into ice skates if you have the right venue for that!

i love requests for shape invites. when i originally created these, i didn't own the silhouette cameo yet, so i hand cut them. i have a steady hand, lots of practice, and i enjoy repetitive work in front of the tv, so it's not too bad. but i cut this one today using the silhouette pixscan and it's so awesome. and perfect all the way around. i guess i'll just watch the tv while i feed the machine now! anyway, the clients also loved the idea of real ribbon lacing and jewels on the wheels. special cuts, embellishments, and bling - all of my faves!

as with my other ensembles, there was a personalized favor tag, complete with fun puns. and warm hugs!

and how about a little something to put in the favor bag? i purchased a large bag of magic snow powder and measured out small quantities in little zip bags to add to a few other frozen goodies the clients had found. a coordinating label with olaf giving directions was a must!

and finally, i did have a flat option as a back up. this could also be used as a thank you note as is, or scaled down for a personalized fold over note like others i've posted. lots of rollin' and chillin' possibilities!

hip, hip, hooray!
:) lexi

ice princess

it wouldn't be princess week without the very popular "new" ice princess and all things frozen. i was asked to work on this party before i'd actually seen the movie. with older girls, it just wasn't on the immediate must see list, but i found a way to watch it and fell in love!

i followed a tutorial on how to create the ice block look of the logo, added snowflakes and a drift for cute olaf, and came up with a fun phrase for the birthday girl's snow themed party. complete with a snow machine, i should add - because we don't get that here naturally, even in january!

the artwork for the invite was also perfect for a welcome sign. what you see here is scaled to a full paper size, with a welcome phrase in place of the invite rhyme. for the party, this was mounted on a small piece of light blue foam core and hung with curing ribbon on the front door. i do this a lot with images from many of my invitations - it adds a festive personalized touch to the entry. 

this party had a lot of activities for the girls to complete, so signs for the stations were a must! directions on the back help if the age group can read or if they have parents completing the crafts with them. i was rotating among the tables getting kids started and assisting where needed.

water bottle wraps are also a fun touch. especially these - melted snow, lol!! we chose to use regular labels and not ice them. room temperature in january is fine and we wanted to line them up for display. but there are water resistant labels that can be iced if needed. i also used the same label size and design for the favor bags, with a "thanks for coming" phrase from the princess. the design would also work perfectly for food cards and thank you notes like some of the previous parties. coordination all the way!

of course i had options at the design phase - i like options! the ice block look worked best on dark blue, but light, bright and white are great for this theme as well. in the end, we used a mix of both, but all of one look or the other would be easy to accomplish if that is preferred.

and how about adding your own ice princess to the invite? so cute!! these were ideas for another client who's daughter had been elsa for halloween. i have photoshopped kids for several different invitations over the years and love trying to come up with a design to fit them into. like i said before, i love a challenge - and it's so fun to let it go!!

warm hugs!
:) lexi

little mermaid princess

hello! i'm back from spring break. it was our first big college visit trip and, while very informative, two schools a day was all go, go, go! luckily i had the weekend to give in to exhaustion, but now it's time to jump back into the swing of things including the continuation of princess week. today is all about that mermaid princess we know and love. the request was for little mermaid under the sea, but again, not so much disney. 

the client really liked the hint of a mermaid, focusing on the tail. she had seen similar cut out versions on glitter paper, but preferred a less expensive printed only option. so i ran with the graphic look and created a fun dotted pattern in ocean blues. the addition of red to highlight the special birthday girl portion of the rhyme and a yellow starfish embellishing the fin add just the right pop and complete a color trio that will be perfect to repeat in party decor.

once the invite was established, i had fun with a few coordinating party papers. different sea life, same white on pattern graphic look with a pop of color. first up, starfish menu cards. there are so many fun mermaid food options!

next, a fin-tastic party favor tag. or maybe it could say hugs & fishes - i love a fun pun!!

and finally, personalized shell notes, complete with a lounging mermaid. the hair color can be changed to match the birthday girl if wanted and the red moved to the name. or the mermaid can be used for a more mermaid centered invite. maybe some yellow starfish hair embellishments or party decorations? so many possibilities for this fin-tastic ensemble! how fun would it be to add more sea life and create a birthday banner? challenge me!

splish, splash!
:) lexi

princess from a far off land

today our princess is from a far off land. the request was for aladdin-inspired with a fun punch of color based on decorations they were planning to use. aladdin, but not too disney. i love using unusual color combinations, so this was really fun for me.

first up, the invitation. key ingredients in addition to fun color are pattern, cool shapes, jewels, and of course, a magic lamp and genie wishes.

a matching return address label is easy and eye catching. this is the first opportunity you have to set the scene, and little details like this are so fun - even before the envelope is opened!

similarly, if you're giving a party favor, a coordinating bag tag (or sticker) is another detail that really adds to the overall party design. and here's proof that party favors don't have to be over the top. how perfect and theme specific is this little bag of candy treasure?!

and finally, you can finish it all up with a matching note to say thanks when all is said and done. this one is a personalized fold over note, but like i mentioned yesterday, a fill in the blank version would be easy to create with the various design elements.

speaking of design elements, here is a look at several variations that i came up with along the way with the different pieces and parts. i can easily go crazy with options! some customers like picking and choosing, while others only want one or two fairly perfected choices. i like it both ways. clearly i was having fun with the details on this design. any one of them would be a great invitation, depending on how much color you want or what you want the focus to be. in fact, colors can be swapped around or changed completely to match your vision, too.

your wish is my command!
:) lexi

classic princess

today's princess invitation is all about my go to cinderella images. a glass slipper presented on a royal pillow with a magic wand - classic princess all the way. like the castle shape yesterday, a special cut edge is a detail that sets an invitation apart from others. the frame i chose for this one was a perfect way to include more color and add a fun touch of fancy. again, there are many options for phrases and fonts, depending on exactly what kind of royal princess party you're hosting. these are similar to yesterday's invite, but i've used many others over the years.

it's always fun to have matching stationery for thank you notes. here i used the same images for personalized fold over note cards. but i could also design them into the popular fill in the blank thank you note. once created, i use these images together or separately for a variety of things depending on the requests of the customer. for this party, i also created stickers for the favor bags, using only the wand and a simple thank you phrase. but, really, the sky's the limit - signage, food cards, water wraps, cupcake toppers, bag tags, t-shirt transfers, etc. i'm always game to try something new...

bibbidi bobbodi boo!
:) lexi

hear ye! hear ye! double take

i thought i'd try to continue my blogging streak by finally photographing and posting some of the invitations sitting in my share folder. and since several are princess related, i think i'll start with those and dub this "princess week" in hopes of following through! first up is a more blinged out and personalized version of an original simple castle cutout. the request was to start with the same basic invite, but add glitter and child-like drawings of princesses to match the girls, including the specific length of their cute red hair!

like the original, drop the drawbridge to reveal the party details. there is plenty of room for a variety of princess party phrase options, and lots of ways to decorate the castle to personalize it further. no matter what color or wording you go with, the cutout and drawbridge are really fun details for any sweet little princess - or prince or knight with a quick change of color and costume!

royally yours,
:) lexi

i scream, you scream...

we all scream for ice cream! happy national ice cream day! i barely made it, but did you know that, while today is national ice cream day, the whole month of july is national ice cream month? so let the celebration continue! i pulled together a collage of some of my favorite ice cream projects. ice cream is very inspiring...

i've posted the green/boy version of this invite before, but i never got around to sharing the pink version, so here it is up close, with sweet wording for a special one year old. ice cream is always a good party theme - change the flavor, change the phrase - this invite is easy to personalize!

of course, there was a matching cake just like for the green one. don't worry, ice cream was served, too!

another fun favorite is ice cream cone cupcakes. no actual ice cream here - but it was a hit for my daughter's birthday snack way back when and we got a few double takes as we walked them in!

moving on to the calorie free variety. we went through a heavy painting phase several years ago, which led to a fun gallery wall in my studio. the wall has filled out quite a bit since the original post, but the ice cream cone is still a definite fave!

and last, but not least, i can't forget to mention comfort food and comfort food additions, companion stamp sets highlighting the perfect pint, with a bowl and spoon to serve it up, and some fun and comforting sayings! you can see more fun cards on pinterest here and here. i'm sure i've missed a sweet project or two, but this is a start! and remember it's not just a day, it's the whole month...

yum!
:) lexi

fiesta time!

happy cinco de mayo! i thought i'd go through my stacks to find a few fiesta inspired invitations. first up, a cactus shaped invite. it's her birthday and she's excited, to a mexican fiesta you're invited!

next, how about maracas and margaritas and a pop of color? this time for a surprise birthday. ay, caramba! no time for siesta, for this night, we fiesta!

and last, spicy margaritas with jalapeño and lime. an engagement party fiesta style, before the bride and groom walk down the aisle. when in doubt, a fiesta fantastico is the way to go!

:) lexi

 

happy earth day!

earth day is all the buzz today, so i thought i'd pop in quickly to share a cute earthy invite and stationary set from the stacks. this is one i created a few years ago for a party at a local discovery garden complete with a worm dig and a watering can fountain. it would also be great for a bug or garden themed party at home and could easily be created in brighter colors for a bug-loving girl. actually, two plus years later, i can think of lots of fun possible revisions! it's been a while since i posted invitations, but i really need to make better progress on getting some of my old faves up here. one up, so many more to go!

back to work...
:) lexi

happy halloween birthday!

for my last printed confetti post this week (the countdown to new stamps starts tomorrow!), i have two versions of a halloween birthday invite from a few years ago. i posted the monster cakes party activity at the time, but it was after halloween, so i never posted these. luckily, halloween colors are pretty set and ghosts are always in style! above, we have tradition orange and black, with a white ghost magically mixing a bubbly green potion. and below, a little purple and black, with transparent green ghosts and a random scattering of stars. 

i have a bit of a soft spot for purple and green for halloween because orange and black are everywhere, but i still like the traditional too - when it comes to halloween, i love it all, really! anyway, as with most personalized invitation orders, i really have fun coming up with words and verses like the two options above. a rhyming dictionary that i've had since i began teaching comes in very handy at times. and whenever it works, i like to add a creative theme inspired rsvp as well. got a halloween birthday or just want to throw a ghoulish bash? let me know and we'll scare up something fun together!

:) lexi

heave ho, me hearties...

a pirate bounce house! as promised, i have another october invitation from the stack. this one was from last october, and while pirates are a great theme for halloween as i showed yesterday, this one was for a birthday and could be used any time of year. again, this was a fun request to get. the party was to take place at an inflatable playground and the birthday boy wanted a pirate theme, so a pirate bounce house it had to be, right?

bounce, bounce, me hearties!
:) lexi

chart yer course if ye dare!

before i get on a christmas in october streak for the stamp release countdown beginning later this week, i wanted to share a few october specific invitations. first up, an oldie with a twist. my pirate map invitations (great in a bottle too!) have long been one of my most requested designs. so when someone asked if i could give the map a halloween makeover, i was all over it. it's always nice to repeat invitations, but it's even more fun to recreate one with new touches. a little more orange and black, a ghost here, a jack o' lantern there, and of course a full skeleton along the way. don't you want to have a pirate halloween party now?!

arrrrrr!
:) lexi

a mad hatter's tea

surprise! i have a second post in one week and it's not even a countdown to new stamps. i've been trying to find time to photograph this party ensemble and finally made it happen. the party was in the middle of crazy august, on stamp-a-faire day actually. which is partly why august was crazy, i guess. anyway, my sister in law chose an alice in wonderland mad hatter's tea party theme for my niece's birthday (or un-birthday since it was a few weeks after) and asked me to create, so create i did...

i went with bright colors and black and white for a whimsical wonderland feel. i had so much fun pulling together all the details - tea and cake with drink me! and eat me! tags, a pocket watch and mad hatter's hat, and of course the 4 of hearts to note the birthday girl's age!

i even created a coordinating return address sticker to set the stage - open me!

matching party favor tags...

and personalized thank you notes were also a must!

and of course, there was a mad hatter's cake as well. it was the very merriest un-birthday ever...

cheers!
:) lexi

flashback friday :: red, white, and blue

today i am flashing back to two red, white, and blue invites from the archives. in fact, both of these actually predate the blog! the theme is not only timely (happy fourth!), it's timeless. before you start thinking that you have to wait a year to use either of these ideas, take a look at the dates. each is a different take on red, white, and blue for pool parties after the fourth of july, taking advantage of post-holiday party store sales for decor and favors. pretty smart! above, we have surfin' usa, with a red, white, and blue surfboard. the board is dry embossed and painted with a light shimmer paint to add texture and make it pop. even now, ten years later, this is one of my favorites!

and here, we have a great american cookout. again, a pool-worthy theme that is made perfectly complete with red, white, and blue decorations left over from the fourth. for this one, we went with a stars and stripes design and a torn paper technique, but the same theme could be used with a variety of images and layouts - all in patriotic colors of course.

the graphic stars and stripes design lent itself well to being mailed in vellum envelopes, with the address handwritten in black sharpie right over the star peeking through from the back of the invite. it's always fun to receive something a little different in the mail! i hope you had a happy fourth of july today - mine was a little quiet with the girls still away at camp, but we headed to the pool for a little while anyway...

cheers to the red, white, and blue!
:) lexi

suit up & zoom on over!

it's been a while since i posted an invitation. i have so many to share! but i like to wait until after the party, and by then, i'm usually on to the next thing. this one has been sitting in the stack for a while - 2 years! i finally photographed it for superhero day last month, but then was too busy getting product out the door to post that week and now here we are! the request was for a girl superhero party. birthday bea specifically wanted a superhero party because she wanted to dress up in a batgirl or supergirl costume. my original plan was to draw my own versions of batgirl and supergirl on top of the building. as usual, i started with google to refresh my memory, look at costumes, colors, etc. and i came across mike maihack's batgirl & supergirl fan comics. i love his take on colors and costume details, but, best of all, in the first frame i came across, supergirl spoke my little friend's sentiments exactly! he said it was ok that i use the image and the invite was complete, with a billboard instead of the characters themselves.

the billboard idea worked perfectly on the matching cake as well...

double sided, sitting on top of the cake, with a city skyline to match the invite all the way around. boom! pow! super sweet! i'm with supergirl. it really is all about the costumes!!

:) lexi