Hostess with the Mostess®
Pink & turquoise is one of my favorite color combinations lately… and playing it up with festive party bunting and really cool furniture pieces make it that much more fun (how cute is that yellow table and painted high chair)! New mommy, creative crafter and brilliant photographer Erin (of Erin Harris Photography) planned a Pretty Bunting Themed First Birthday for her sweet little one. The handcrafted treats, adorable invitation, polaroid portraits and more homemade details are the icing on the cake for Cecilia’s big day!
PARTY HIGHLIGHTS to look out for:
– Polka Dot “ONE” Water Bottle Wraps, Pink Lemonade in Mason Jars & Chevron Food Labels
– Bunting Pattern Cake and Ombre Pink Smash Cake
– Present Opening Area Canopy, Patterned “Happy Birthday” Banner and Pink & White Flowers
– First Birthday Party Hat + Turquoise Painted High Chair
– Photo Bunting Framed Backdrop and Ribbon & Lace Front Door Garland
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PARTY DETAILS, as told by Erin…
:
I’ve literally been planning this birthday party in my mind forever. I mean I guess it just seems like forever… but it has been at least six months. I bought the cute little patterned bunting on etsy back in January and that became the inspiration for the party’s theme and color palette. I pulled in the pinks, turquoise and fuschia from the bunting and added bold stripes and polka dots (my favorite) when I designed the invitations in photoshop. Of course, I also perused some of my favorite blogs for further inspiration and shopped the internet for some deals on details like the turquoise striped paper straws and the bell mason jars from which little party guests sipped pink lemonade.
However, the best part is, most of the details, such as the invitations, door and wall banners, chalkboard, food and drink labels, pom pom poofs, cake toppers and pennant toothpicks were handmade by me. I had the most fun making the party hats for all three kids, but put extra love and attention into Cecilia’s. All it took was a little paper, some ribbon and fabric and a glue gun… and Voila! I am in LOVE with that hat. Too bad she only gets to wear it once. My friend, Elaine sent me a template, which was the perfect fit for their little heads.
Of course, my favorite detail of all, however, are the giant empty frames with strings of “polaroids” dangling from tiny clothespins. To make those beauties, I scoured the local consignment shop for weeks for old framed paintings on the cheap. Then I popped out the old paintings and painted the frames white. I used one for the chalkboard and the other two for my photo display, because of course, no party is complete without a photo display. Next I got glue gun happy with twine and buttons to make my display complete. They are the star of the show. Don’t you think? Well, actually, Cecilia was, but you know what I mean. Needless to say, after this party, I have a new found love for my glue gun.
The chocolate covered pretzels and cake pops I made myself and I bought the brownie bites and just added the cherry vanilla frosting and pennant toothpicks. The cake and cupcakes were from my usual old faithful Metro Market. The inspiration for the cake came from this one, and its certainly not quite as fancy but I don’t pay a fortune for my cakes so I thought they did a really nice job.
I found the old wooden high chair at a garage sale for $5 and I painted it pale turquoise. Perfect for reuse as a photography prop.
Oh. I almost forgot that I found Cece’s birthday dress on clearance for $5.50 (hooray for Target!) and just added the little pink and fuschia flowers to the front of it. You can buy the canopy net at IKEA for $20 but I lucked out and found it at a garage sale for $2.50. I thought it would be really fun to hang from a tree out back and have her open her presents underneath it. When we set up for the party it was kind of gloomy outside, so I set it up inside instead.
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VENDOR CREDITS & RESOURCES:
– Styling, Design, Crafting, Printables, Photography, Frames, Chalkboard, Party Hats, Tissue Poofs, Banners, Invitations: Erin Harris Photography
– Bunting Banner: Starlit Nest Gifts
– Polka Dot Garland: Fanciful Chaos
– White Dress: Target
– Ruffled Romper: Peonies and Willow Trees
– Pink Flower Headband: Posh Peanut Kids
– Cakes, Flowers: Metro Market
– Bell Mason Jars: Amazon Prime
– Paper Straws: Amazon Prime
– White Cake Stand, Turquoise Cake Stand and Cupcake Stand: Amazon Prime
– Patterned Clothespins, Patterned Paper for Hats and top of cake, Ribbons, Twine, Buttons and Burlap for banners and decor: Michaels
Hostess with the Mostess®