{Crafting} Child's Birthday Invitations

Despite the fact that I live in the Midwest and am nearly 30, I do not have any children. The Chemist and I are fine with this for now, and do plan to have children after we are married next year, but I still enjoy spending time with my friends and their children. Call it practice, call it "birth control," call it whatever you like, there's always something to be learned from seeing your peers with kids.

My favorite kids in the world belong to my dear friend Jolene. They are Max, age 5; Grace, 26 months; and James, 6 weeks. Max's 6th birthday is in April, so Jolene and I are planning his birthday party at my new house, since they do not have a yard in their new home in the city.

Today, I began the preliminary planning and crafting for the occasion. I LOVE hosting parties, and making invitations and decorations myself. It enables me to bypass the conventional cartoon themes and try something a little more interesting (and palatable). For Max's birthday, I'm trying out an owl theme, done in brown, lime green, teal and golden orange. A little retro but a lot of fun. The sample invitation is shown below.

Here's how it's made:

-I used pre-folded cards from a craft store in a neutral palate of colors that fits with the theme; it's easier to find envelopes that fit if you buy pre-folded cards, but the style options are more limited, so it's just as easy to cut and score your own cards to fit existing envelops if you're so inclined.

-The stamps were purchased cheaply as a set (for around $3), and were arranged without the wording (the "guess who" comes later) on a large clear stamping block and lime green chalk-ink was used, which gives the stamp image more texture, on matte, flat brown paper. I also immediately put flocking on the still-wet image, in a tone that matched the underlying ink, so it's less noticeable if the flocking accidentally rubs off.

-The wording was applied to a separate stamping block, and this time I used a turquoise blue ink, again in a matte chalk texture.

-Inside, I used small brads in a faux oil-rubbed bronze finish to tack a strip of ribbon to the top, just for a bit of interest. I like this detail, because it provides some texture without making the invitation so thick that it requires exorbitant postage.

-For the text of the invitation, I used a stamp that allows me to fill in the details of the invitation. I used a chocolate brown pigment ink pad, which has a longer drying time that enabled me to apply a clear embossing powder, one specifically designed for this kind of detail and text. After using the heat gun on the powder, the embossed finish gave the stamped surfaces a nice, glossy, raised texture that will not blend in too much with the written text to be added later.

-All paper was cut with decorative shears with a "postage" pattern. They're an easy way to dress up the appearance of the paper, and they camouflage any uneven or skewed edges. They're readily available at craft stores, and come in a variety of patterns; not just "pinking" shears anymore!

The other half of the inside of the invitation will have another owl of a different design, with more details about the event. But that will come later.

I'm still working on more additions to this theme, so we'll see what I come up with as we get closer to April.

Signed,

Majin, MD