First Birthday Carnival

May 30, 2017January 10, 2018 | mel@apeaceofcreativity.com

Invite design by my super talented husband!

Our boys are ONE! The night before the big party, I was prepping and thinking how first birthdays are kind of silly. The boys are too young to remember and yet the first birthday party is such a big deal. I came to realize that this party was in part for our boys, but more so for all the close people in our lives. And of course for us to celebrate having made it through the newborn and infant stages!

Chase and Caden have completely different personalities. The inspiration for the party came from that difference. We always thought that Chase had very gentleman-like qualities. He is quiet, observant and plays independently. Caden always reminds us of a king. He sits up very straight and almost looks down his nose at others! And he loves when he is the center of attention. Little Man Chase and King Cades became the theme of the party and to make it even more fun, we made it a carnival!

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Color palette: dark and light blues with gold and silver metallics. I wanted to combine top hats and mustaches with crowns and sparkly golds.

My husband and I are big kids ourselves, so when we throw a birthday party for our kids, the fun is for the adults too. As soon as the guests entered, they grabbed a crown and a ‘stache.

My little crepe paper buntings draped the top of every window and sliding door. It was such a simple DIY and I love anything that can be stapled!

TIP: I keep hooks over the slider all year round. They come in handy for holidays and parties.

Over the fireplace, I made a super full but still really easy crepe paper banner. TIP: Did you know that you don’t need any tape or glue with crepe paper tassels? Twist it and it holds!

TIP: Always, always, always try to make decorations that can be re-purposed for another celebration. This paper straw banner was from my daughter’s party earlier this year. I just added some metallic fringe to the ends.

One of my favorite parts of a first birthday party is seeing all of the monthly photos together. For King Caden’s banner, I chose very royal, metallic and bold prints. The shape of the bunting also gave it a medieval feel.

For Little Man Chase’s banner, I chose muted colors and prints that reminded me of a business shirt. The shape of his bunting looked like a tie.

To label each photo with the month, I gave them mini construction paper top hats and crowns and wrote the number on them.

You have probably heard me say over and over that I am not a baker. I wish I was but I’m not. Thank goodness for my amazing market bakery.

I told them exactly what I wanted and they gave it to me and they were delicious.

Ten minutes on the Cricut machine and I had the cutest little crown and ‘stache cupcake toppers!

For the outside decor, I wanted to keep it fairly simple as all of the games would be outside too. Flowy crepe paper hung from the trees,

dollar store white and blue table clothes mimicked a circus tent around the patio,

and one of my favorite DIY decorations, punch ball balloons! TIP: Those huge balloons are so festive and this is a great way to have them minus the helium. The reason they work so well is because they have elastic on top to hang and a place to tie a tassel on, on the bottom!

The games were spread out on the lawn. All homemade and classic carnival fun. I knew not only would the kids enjoy them but the adults would too.

If you don’t know already, I am the oldest of 16 cousins, I think it’s 16, haha. My mom has 5 sisters. So we have a BIG family. They all came to help with the party and even manned the games and gave out tickets.

Ping pong toss was the first game I thought of, it is my fav! There’s something so satisfying when that ball clinks around on the glasses and then falls in! It was fairly easy to make, the backboard took some brain power and effort.

Can toss was another game that was super easy to put together. We saved our cans and I wrapped them in fun paper, ordered some bean bags and that was it!

Tic tac toe was a little more challenging to make but I ended up finding the perfect square cardboard box, which was not easy to find. I cut the dividers out of foam core and covered them in wrapping paper.

Maybe the simplest game to put together but one of the hardest to play was ring toss.

The highlight of the games was the prize table where you could turn in your tickets for all of these goodies!

Okay, I lied. The highlight was the cotton candy machine. Everyone wanted to try it but my cousin Kathy is now named Queen of the Cotton Candy. She was determined to master it and I think she did!

The kiddos loved it!

What’s a carnival without popcorn? These mini popcorn containers were adorable. We popped bags and bags of microwave popcorn and my uncle handed them out to the crowd.

I think the highlight of my boys day though was definitely the cake. They were SO tired at this point but they were such troopers. I barely saw them as they were passed from friend to family to friend. They definitely stole the show.

Having twins is no joke, and add in other siblings and you have a very full life; full of every emotion, activity and feeling that you can think of. Our friends and family have supported us from the beginning and our parents have been there for us more times than we can count. This party was for them and I hope they enjoyed every minute of it.

Inspired Peace

Mini crepe paper buntings at Hawaiian inspired first birthday party!

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Guest Peace: Cakes & Cookies

June 26, 2016April 21, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

Tiffany is a full time working mom of 3 amazing kids ranging from 8 months to almost 8 years old. She has loved cooking and baking since she was a kid. After completing her master’s degree in business, she was still drawn to cooking and baking and decided to attend culinary school. Tiffany had her first child towards the end of her culinary education and since then making treats for family and friends has been her culinary outlet.

I started dabbling in cake and cookie decorating when my oldest son turned 3. I had very specific ideas of how I wanted the kid’s birthday cakes and treats to look which made the ones I purchased pretty pricey.

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As I decorate my treats my older kids often sit at the table and work on their own creations. They usually end up using the extra fondant like play dough which gets messy but it is fun quality time.

Most of my designs are based on what the client requests. And by clients I mean my kids, nieces, nephews and close family friends.

One of my latest projects was a doll cake for my niece. She knew exactly what she wanted and gave me detailed instructions. It was so much fun.

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The typical design process starts with the client telling me the theme of the cake. Then together we look at pictures so that I am sure to include important details. Once that is done I sketch out a rough drawing of the cake and create a game plan on how to accomplish the design. With the exception of the dolls, I try to keep everything edible.

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Larger figurines on my cakes are made out of rice krispy treats. What’s the point if you can’t eat it, right? If krispy treats do not work I use extra cake or even cookies to get the job done.

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Taste was also a huge factor in how I wanted to make my cakes and cookies. I was never a huge fan of fondant until I happened across a recipe for marshmallow fondant. What a game changer! Delicious and I could make all sorts of fun design with it.

For the cookies, I use candy melts for the simple designs. Candy melts on sugar cookies are wonderful! There are times when royal icing is necessary though. I try to keep the designs simple so that the cookies do not need extended drying times. There is nothing tasty about a dry cookie.

My fondest memories are cooking and baking with my grandma over the weekends. It was never anything particularly fancy but my grandma had a way of making the simplest things amazing. Now as a mom of 3 I want to create similar memories with my kids.

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Mermaid Princess Party

June 21, 2016April 21, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

While I was (very) pregnant with the twins, my best friend’s daughter was turning 3 and having a mermaid party. I really wanted to help even though I could barely walk through the store at the time! I didn’t know what I was going to make at first but I knew that I would use whatever I could find at the dollar store in one trip.

Looking for anything mermaid or princess, I decided to pull together some centerpieces.My daughter and a I spent some quality art time together dipping shells in fuschia, aqua, and green glitter…

and we carefully placed them in the bowls on top of the glass beads with the mini tiara combs.I wrapped jeweled ribbon around the top of the bowl and glued small styrofoam balls to look like pearls.After everything was done, each centerpiece probably cost about $3 a piece. Such a steal and perfect for the mermaid princess’ special day!I had some leftover shells and pearls. How cute are these for some table confetti?

For more mermaid princess crafts, check out these tiaras and wands!

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A Birthday to “Lava”

April 3, 2016April 21, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

Our little girl turned 3 last month. How time flies! One of her favorite movies is the Pixar animated short, Lava, about a Hawaiian volcano looking for love. It was the perfect theme for her birthday party.

As the guests arrived, Lele, the volcano’s love greeted them with a lei. The paper umbrella wreath found a home on the front door with a pink ribbon. The backyard was where most of the party would take place.

Simple colored glass vases doubled as centerpiece as well as holding down colorful napkins on the picnic table.

The same leis that greeted guests at the front door were strung together and hung under the pergola for some eye popping color. Fake, tropical leaves were stapled onto a rope and hung from the eaves of the house. Paper lanterns and honeycombs were hung from the trees. Both the tropical leaves, lanterns and honeycombs were from previous events I had planned. Holding on to certain decorations can come in handy.
For the kiddies, there was a plastic pool with balls and another splash pool with water.
Uku’s Fishing Hole let them catch colorful fishes of their choice. And a sandy treasure hunt let them dig for gold coins, jeweled rings and beaded necklaces. Any gummy fan would have loved the favors: gummy fruits and ribbon skewers! One of the best parts of the party was six layer rainbow and M&M cake grandma made. Our daughter had a blast as you can tell from this photo!

See her 2nd birthday party here!

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A Hot Air Balloon First Birthday

September 28, 2015April 12, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

When my sister-in-law told me she wanted my nephew’s first birthday theme to be “Growing UP, UP, UP”, I was super excited. The possibilities with hot air balloons seemed endless. To start the process, I gave her a selection of color palettes and asked her to pick her favorite. I find that this is the best place to start. When you begin an event, you most always have an idea of a few colors you would like to use, but finding coordinated hues can be difficult. That is where searching color palettes online comes in handy and you can base the entire event off of an inspired palette.

For invitations, I like to incorporate a 3D aspect using foamy double-sided tape. In this case, I found mismatched prints that went with the theme and cut out number ones. Pair with red envelopes and they are ready to send! The other item that I was in charge of was the Happy Birthday banner. Using the same font from the invitations, I printed and cut out letter stencils on cardstock. Those stencils were used on a thick, red scrapbook paper.
For the bunting, I cut letter-sized, brown, kraft colored paper in half and created another stencil to cut out the triangular shape from the bottom. Punch two holes on the top and string! To add more color and make it a little more dynamic, I picked out 3 coordinating prints and 3 solid papers in the same colors. Having the color palette on my phone made it easy to make sure I was picking out the correct shades at the store.
Spray adhesive really worked best on this project as the craft glue was creating wrinkles in the paper. The party was at a beautiful park in the neighborhood. To separate each word on the banner, I used the extra invitations and as a finishing touch, added some red, burlap ribbons.
My sister-in-law created this adorable banner of all of the monthly photos using scrapbook paper and string to attach and decorate the baskets. In a stroke of luck, Oriental Trading Co. had these paper lantern, hot air balloons in the exact colors we needed. They really added to the space and were super easy to assemble and take down.
It was a beautiful day only made better by celebrating the very first birthday of the sweetest little nephew.

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Mammoth Love

September 14, 2015April 12, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

About a month ago, my awesome family so graciously let us and our good friends use their condo in Mammoth Lakes, California. We wanted to do something to thank them as we had such a wonderful time there. Decorating for your home is a hard enough feat never mind decorating for your vacation home. As I love the challenge of interior design, I thought that some custom made, Mammoth inspired pieces would be a welcomed addition.

If you are familiar with Mammoth, this symbol should also be familiar to you.

Using the same technique as my personalized pillows, I added on the Mammoth logo and a green heart to a pillow I found that matches their couch.

During our time there, my husband and I went on a mini excursion to capture the beauty and nature among the grounds of their condo complex in photos. I picked out these IKEA frames, a personal favorite, in this very rich but modern brown.

We picked out a handful of photos to have printed and put them in the frames. These days, it is so easy to take photos with our phones always handy, but don’t forget to take the time to print some of them. You really can’t see all of the detail on your devices and I think you will be surprised at how much better they look printed.

While my husband took photos with his DSLR, I took the one of Lake Mary with my iPhone 6 and was amazed at the quality of the 8×10 print. Here are some of our favorite shots.

Mammoth Love

I was so excited to give these to my family because I know how much they absolutely love their home in Mammoth and I hope these gifts represent that love for them!

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Birthday Wish Book

August 3, 2015April 10, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

A couple of posts ago, I told you about my Mom’s 60th Birthday in Vegas. At the brunch, I asked family and friends to write a quick birthday note for her, a memory, a birthday wish, or something they appreciate.

I found this collection of scrapbook supplies online. Finding collections makes the process that much easier in that the decorative pieces and paper are already cohesive and coordinating. I only added in a few more prints of paper that I thought would go with the existing prints.

My best friend and Guest Peace blogger, Lauren, is a talented quilter and inspires me to want to try it. However, I am not a huge fan of sewing on a machine, so I thought I would try my hands at some paper quilting. This simple heart took a lot more brain power than I expected in trying to…make the pieces exact squares…with the right angles…to then create a heart the size I needed. This small part of my project was a testament to how crafting very much uses both sides of your brain!

With the included stickers and letters of the collection, my paper quilting became part of the front, back and spine of my birthday wish book. To try something a little different than the 6×6 or 12×12 scrapbook, I went with a half letter sized, three ringed binder with an already existing pink flower pattern. Now to begin with the birthday notes. I thought about documenting my process in how I mounted and decorated each note, but really, this was my process in a nutshell: crafting chaos.
As you can see, we are a close immediate and extended family. Sometimes, it is easy to carry on in our busy lives and assume that our family knows that we love and appreciate them. I have found that even when you know you are loved and appreciated, it still means so much to actually hear or read it every now and then. To everyone that contributed a note, my mom loved her book. And the thing is, it could have been words on scrap paper and I think she still would have still loved it because it was more about what you all said than what it looked like.

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GUEST PEACE: A Pineapple & Flamingo 30th

July 27, 2015April 10, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

The last few months have been full of milestones here on A Peace of Creativity with a Kickstarter launch, the arrival of Mel’s niece, and her mom’s 60^th birthday. Today I’m sharing another milestone – my little sister’s flamingo-and-pineapple-themed 30^th birthday.

The decorations were a mix of DIY projects and curated discount store finds, but the hit of the party was definitely the pineapple made of gerbera daisies from my florist friend at Westwood Flower Garden.

From the beginning, I knew I wanted to keep the color palette limited to bright pink, green and yellow with touches of gold.

I like hitting a few different discount stores when planning parties, especially if it’s a seasonal event. These awesome flamingo goblets and “sunglasses” were $0.99 and I couldn’t pass them up. Just remember that if you’re really sticking to a theme, don’t try to justify things that only sort of fit your vision just because they’re so inexpensive – in the end you’ll end up with pieces you don’t really love and they’ll detract from what you’re trying to accomplish. I had to remind myself that pineapples and flamingos aren’t the same as luaus quite a few times No matter how cute those coconuts were, they didn’t fit this time around!

My favorite project was making the cupcake toppers – they served the dual purpose of bringing in more pineapple decor and adding a homemade touch.

To make them, I scanned a hand-drawn picture and added a circular border (using PowerPoint, believe it or not!) and then used the same size circular border with letters to spell out a message. I printed it all on glossy photo paper, cut out the circles, and used a circle punch to cut slightly larger circles from sparkly scrapbook paper. A little bit of glue, paired with a toothpick secured with washi tape, and they were done!

The perfect way to relay a birthday wish! As an added sentimental touch, I displayed the cupcakes on a tray that my dad made many years ago.

A party in my family is never complete without fabric bunting. I found pineapple fabric and selected other coordinating prints, folded all the fabric so I could cut out triangles with the flat side on the fold, sewed a seam about ¼” from the fold, and then strung them on string across the patio.

I spent most of the morning setting up the yard, but if you were in the Los Angeles area on July 18, you know what happened – rain! At least my tassel garland stood up to it!

The garland is fairly quick to make and so easy to customize in the colors of your party. I folded each sheet in half and cut strips starting from the bottom edge and stopping about 2-3” from the fold so then when unfolded, there was a solid strip down the center.

Starting on one side, roll or fold the tissue paper into a tube and then twist the center (the way you would wring out a towel).

Fold it in half and then twist the top so it forms a loop. At that point you can string them on rope or twine using knots to keep them in place; I’ve also seen people use glue to keep them evenly spaced.

My sister’s favorite fruit is watermelon…which just so happens to be the same color as flamingos. A flamingo-shaped cookie cutter was the perfect way to add another personalized touch.

Pineapple extract added an unexpected surprise to my mom’s homemade butter cookies.

We were all a little disappointed that we couldn’t join these guys in the pool (I think one of them took it all a little too seriously!)

But, the most important part was that we all made the best of the situation and my sister had a great 30^th birthday!

Lauren and I have been best friends for over 20 years and she is my “go to” person for any and all things crafty. Her technical mind mixed with a love of design makes for a beautiful and easy execution of whatever she decides to create.

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Bringing in the 60’s in Vegas!

July 20, 2015April 10, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

My mom turned 60 this year! She loves the slots, so my dad planned a birthday brunch for her with friends and family at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

I wanted to incorporate Vegas decor but red, black and white didn’t really feel like my mom. These pastel, sparkle papers were much more her style.

My mom and auntie. Weren’t they the cutest?

After hunting down old photos with the help of family, I had a collection of four different “eras” of her life: childhood, dating dad, being a mom, being a grandma. I found table tent cards online and decorated the front and back for centerpieces.

My sister ordered the most delicious cookie favors from Milk Jar in Los Angeles and drove them to Vegas. I think there was a mixture of 15 different flavors in this box! Other than the cookies themselves, I was most impressed by their presentation and the gold foil letterpress card.

“Nancy” confetti and chocolate, silver half dollars were sprinkled all over the brunch tables.

A birthday is never complete without a tiara and Mardi Gras beads!

My mom never wants much for herself and so I thought words of appreciation, memories and birthday wishes from friends and family would mean a lot to her. Working on getting these together now and I will share the compilation of all these notes on a later post!

My talented sister, Sara, surprised our mom with a family portrait she drew. Needless to say, I’ve never seen my mom more in awe than when she opened this gift!

Working on all of the photos and seeing all of the words and wishes for my mom really shows what a remarkable, selfless and beautiful life she has lived, 60 years young. My mom loves with all her heart and is one of the main reasons us kids have such a great life. I hope she felt honored, appreciated and loved on this special day. It was a party to remember!

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Framing a Milestone

May 26, 2015April 5, 2017 | A Peace of Creativity

Greeting cards…from birthdays, from showers, from graduations, stacked high in boxes, in the closet, in the garage, or not. Maybe they collect for a day or so and then find themselves in the trash bin. Yes, we have all done it with maybe just a little bit of guilt, or not.

The first Milestone Frame I ever did was after our wedding. This project lent itself nicely to this time as we had just celebrated a major moment in our lives and were beginning to build our home. The same goes for baby showers and first birthdays as the parents I know are always looking for ways to decorate the walls of the nursery. This current project is from the cards from Julie’s baby shower.
After gathering all of the cards from the occasion, I used a heart shaped punch to highlight certain pictures or patterns that I thought were interesting and in this case, cute! Sometimes, I find entire pieces of a card to incorporate, like the letters, the bear, and the duckie.
The best part about getting a card is the message inside. Before closing up the back, I wanted to make sure to preserve and include these well wishes.

In this piece, the hearts took a very organic shape around the letters. In others, I have used a more structured form. On a side note, my favorite place to buy frames is IKEA. This is the Viserum, but I also love the Ribba and the Sondrum. The frames are classy, modern, come with matte board and are unbeatable in price!

For my nephew’s room from the baby shower.

As a gift or something you do for yourself, with happy occasions or even ones with grief, these Milestone Frames can serve as a constant reminder of all the love and support around you.

INSPIRED PEACE

Milestone Frame by April!

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