Nautical Chic Baby Shower

I call this shower Nautical Chic. This was a small baby shower for the parents to be second child. The mother was over the big fluffy baby showers and wanted something sophisticated. We ordered her favorite food from Maggiano's and centered the shower around a nautical theme. The favors were Nautical crystal wine stoppers.

"My Winter Love" First Birthday

First Birthday's are always exciting for new parents. Some parents keep it small and some go very big. I thought about my son's birthday party from the moment he was born. I knew I wanted it to be unique and memorable. So I came up with the theme, "My Winter Love". Since my son was born in February and close to Valentines day, I incorporated these elements into the party. The favors were heart shaped cookie cutters that stated, "Please remember the sweetness and love of Bailey's first Birthday". Also, the guest filled mesh bags with red and blue candy from Bulk Foods and Elegant Sweets(the perfect lollipops). For Entertainment, I got a great Caricature Artist and the parents got to take home great pictures of their children. I wanted it to also be comfortable and fun for my son. This is why I followed these tips;

1) Keep it simple

2) If there are lots of babies...limit the entertainment. Clowns can be scary and a 1 year old won't be interested. Bringing some toys that is familiar to your baby is all they need. You may want some balloons or something for the babies to hold/play with, but remember that you have to be careful with balloons.

3) Cake; you can get a beautiful cake for $500 made-to-order or you can bake your own for about $30. A 1 yr old won't care and older kids LOVE to help out, so if you have an older child they could help out getting the cake ready.

4) Go for things like:dancing (dance & freeze game)pinata pass the parcel musical chairs (if there are lots of adults, get them to play too!). Also craft activities can be fun for the group.

5) Time: Plan the party at your child's best time of day. It's important not to put the party before your child's nap time, during or immediately after. This will cause a cranky birthday baby.

6) Food: if you plan a mid-afternoon party then just snacks are needed. chips, veg & dip, fresh fruit, pretzels etc.

Chocolate Fondue

Chocolate Fondue Fountains are not just for weddings. Over the pass year we have used them at baby showers and kids birthday parties. The guest love them and they taste good too. Through the search for great colored chocolate fondue we found fantastic fondue at Sir Chocolate. They boast " convenient microwaveable pouches that are simple to use, easy to heat and require no added oil! Colored chocolate fountain fondue is the HOTTEST trend to hit the chocolate industry to date. Their custom colored chocolate comes pre-mixed and ready to serve. NO MORE MESSY DYES!" You have to check out the site.

Dr. Seuss First Birthday

Every child loves Dr. Seuss books. I did this party complete with a fishing game, stuffed Dr. Seuss animals as prizes to win and Dr. Seuss who read stories to the kids. The cake was classically shaped as a book and the birthday girl came as Cindy Lou Who. What a fun theme!

Fairy Princess Birthday Party

Little girls love to be princesses. So what better party than a Fairy Princess Party complete with girls dressed in Fairy wings, halo's and wands and boys dressed as knights with swords and shields. Creating this party was fun and magical! One of my favorite sites also has a great Fairy Party for viewing. Check out Hostess with the Mostess Enchanted Fairy Party.

Unique Baby Shower Themes

Babies are the joy of life. Now this coming from me seems like a oxymoron. I never thought that I would be the one that could be a mother, but when it happened it was my greatest accomplishment. Now one of the best things about having a baby is the shower prior to. The decorations and themes are endless. Here are some of the unique baby shower themes that we have had the pleasure of working on.

Theme: Mad Hatter Baby Shower

The Mad Hatter theme was complete with Croquet, mad hatter tea sets and all the desserts you can eat. We decorated the ceiling with colorful lanterns, and fabric panels purchased from Ikea. The food table was decorated with grass to give the feel of eating outside just as Alice did.

Theme: Sweetheart Baby Shower

The sweetheart baby shower was decorated in chocolate, fuchsia and pink. We found heart shaped candy for the buffet complete with heart shaped lollipops. The tables included fresh flower centerpieces in pink vases, brown linens with a sparkle fuchsia overlay and pink crystals.

Theme:Twin Garden Shower with

Fireflies(boy) & Butterflies(girl)

For the boy side of the shower we adorned the candy buffet with blue and white candy, blue butterflies and fireflies. The girl side included all pink butterflies and pink and white candy.

Each table was alternated in Pink and Blue Satin Table linens topped with flower boxes and topiaries with blue or pink ribbon, butterflies and fireflies. From the ceiling hung large butterflies, fireflies, umbrella's and paper lanterns all in the colors of Pink and Blue.

Spa Birthday Party

Little girls love to be pampered and primped just like their mothers. Remember, imitation is the best form of flattery. This was a spa party that was done for a special 9 year old. She was excited and could not ask for a better party. Check out more pictures on flickr

Weddings

Well since it's wedding season, why not look at some great inspiration for weddings. Personally, I think the best wedding season is in the fall when I was married. But to each its own. My roommate from college has found her perfect mate and is getting married in May. I am so excited for her! If your in the mood for a true love story, check out her wedding site.

Last year I completed a great wedding for Iazia and Chris. I made everything from the menus to the program to double as fans. The pictures are posted below.

Do it Yourself Invitations

Ever go on the internet searching for invitations that would complete the vision of your party? Well I have been through them all. After feeling lost and not fufilled, I decided to create my own invitations. Now I'm no graphic designer, so Clip art and Microsoft Word became my best friend. As long as you are developing for personal reasons, you should be ok with the copyright laws. Below are some of invitations that I have made.

Safari Adventure

"The Invitation" that I made with the help of Microsoft Word

Safari Birthday Boy

Kids Parties are my passion. I recently completed another fabulous party for my son's 3rd Birthday(seen above). When the kids first arrived they were STOPPED at the "Passport Check In" station where they received pre-made passports and a Serengeti Agenda.

The kids then moved to the dress up station where they "Became a Jungle Animal". The kids received costumes and then got their face painted into an animal. Even the adults got involved. They loved that they were able to keep the costumes.

After the kids were dressed, they visited the "Serengeti National Park"and took pictures with the Lion and Elephant

Next the kids went to "See the Monkey's". Here they created Monkey visors and Monkey finger puppets.

Then the kids and parents "Enjoyed an African Feast" at the jungle table. The Feast included;
Safari Sandwiches - peanut butter and jelly sandwiches Jungle Sandwiches - turkey and cheese on wheat bread
Animal Spotted Pizza-pepperoni pizza/cheese available for all you non-spotted lovers.
Snake Eggs- seedless grapes
Croc Teeth: apple slices
Dried Ants - plain raisins
Beetle Wings-potato chips Creepy Crawly Bugs - gummy worms
Jungle Juice-fruit juice

The kids then participated in the "Reptilian Hunt"
I put all kinds of interesting reptiles, from crocodiles to snakes all around the room and the kids went for a hunt to find as many as possible to fill up goody bags.

After the Reptile Hunt, the kids enjoyed "Safari Cake" made by Cakes Plus in Laurel, Maryland

For the Take home gift. I gave out "Safari Backpacks" filled with anything I could find that had animals on it.

Check out more pictures of Bailey's Safari Adventure on Flickr.

Sweet Sixteen

Sweet Sixteen celebrations are all the rage. Ever since MTV came into our homes with fabulous parties, teenagers everywhere have gone over the top. But sweet sixteens are not just for teenagers, the young at heart have caught on as well. Check out the Sweet Sixteen X 2 party that I did for a fantastic client. It was an upscale 70's theme complete with pink and silver disco balls. Now it wouldn't be a party without a cake and cake designers are catching on this this trend as well. Check out a Sweet Sixteen the Sequel created by one of my favorite cake designers, Pink cake box.

Circus Birthday Party

Come One, Come All to a Circus Birthday Party. For a couple of months we have been developing a Circus party for 2 special children. Here are the invitations that were created with the help of Microsoft Word. The invitations will be mailed in a box mailer from Paper-source.com. It will include a clown nose and a clown lollipop as pictured. The event is scheduled for May. I can't wait to post the pictures.

Extraordinary Big Balloons

It was love at first site. These put the extraordinary in ordinary party decorations. I had to find a place for them at my son's party. You will see a lot more of them. Especially at the Circus Birthday Party! Check out how my favorite Candy Buffet Designer, Amy Atlas used the balloons in her Bridal Brunch Dessert Table. I have to try this also! They are located at balloonsuppliers.com

Candy Buffets

For the last 3 years I have been doing candy buffets. I try to do something new every time. I am currently working on a candy buffet for the theme: A Ray of Sunshine. It's for a baby shower. The parents wanted to keep the gender of the baby a surprise. As much as I love this, it makes it that much harder to come up with great themes. But I think this one will be great. Look for the Ray of Sunshine Shower to be posted in June.