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
