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P&C Real Life Party: Fabulous Flower Birthday

>> Thursday, July 29, 2010

Katie, of Katie's Nesting Spot has the craftiest blog in town, it's no wonder she put together the most creative 4th birthday party using our Fabulous Flowers printable party! Just look at these party favors!

Here is what she had to say...

• • • • •

Beach Bucket Party Favors

ER's 4th birthday is this week and I've been busily working on her party decorations and party favors. We're having a Backyard Fun theme and earlier I shared the digital invitation I created. I planned on creating some more fun things with the same digital kit, but to be honest I'd been kind of procrastinating on getting started with that.


For once it paid off! Last week I found out I won a giveaway for three printable parties from Paper & Cake, on Kendra's blog My Insanity. Their Fabulous Flowers Printable Birthday Party coordinated perfectly with the colors of my original invitation and went well with the beach buckets I'd already purchased for party favors.





Each guest's name was painted on a shovel and bucket set I got for $1 each at Michaels. I used my Cricut to print their names out on contact paper, creating a stencil. Thanks to Tiff at Making the World Cuter, for that little tip!




Then I wrapped up some sidewalk chalk sticks in cellophane bags. It's all tied up with ribbon and the Food Party Labels from the Fabulous Flowers Printable Party, backed with cardstock. While they're meant to use with food, they are perfect for all sorts of labeling purposes.




It's easy to add your own description to and personalize for your party. See how I also used them as seals? Just changed the text and printed onto a full sheet of sticker paper. To cut down on time I punched these out with my 2 inch scalloped circle punch, but plan on investing in a circle 2 inch punch. I have two more awesome Paper & Cake printable parties, and I know a new punch would make assembly time fly by.

One of our party crafts, is to decorate a foam frame. I got a big package of summery themed self stick foamies and divided them up by how many guests we're having. I used to organized classroom party activities this way. The kids like getting their own little package and then there's no fighting over supplies. Plus it's easier for parent volunteers, who aren't always used to working with a bunch of eager kids. My friend is helping me with the crafts and I think she'll appreciate this a lot.




The Napkin Rings, Candle Wraps or Vase Wraps from the printable party, I used to wrap the bottles of bubbles included in the favor bucket. I had trouble getting all the sticky adhesive from the original labels off, even after soaking and using GooGone there was still residue. So I also wrapped them with paper from the dollar section at Target.




The last part of our coordinated favor is this adorable snack box! Also easy to customize, I added ER's name to the other side. We put a few of sweet treats in each and wrapped everything in a bag so nothing will fall out. You can get the snack box for free and see a tutorial on how to assemble it on Paper & Cake's blog.




Here it all is inside one of the 12 buckets I painted, along with a mini multi-colored pinwheel. I hope the kids love them! I'll share more of the Fabulous Flower Printable Party and how we used in, after we have the party. It's been a great time saver for me, giving me shortcuts to personalize ER's party and so easy to use.





UPDATE: Head on over to Katie's Nesting Spot to see photos of the birthday girl and her cupcakes!

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Inspiration Board: Magic Tree House

>> Wednesday, July 28, 2010

I've been thinking about hosting a Back-to-School party for my son and some friends before they start Second Grade. And since they've all been devouring the Magic Tree House books with their ever-more adept reading skills, I though the book series would make a great party theme.

Here's my Inspiration Board. I'm thinking of really simple invitations (maybe even using scanned book covers), and it might be fun to create tree houses out of popsicle sticks, but what other ideas do y'all have? Magic Tree House books take Jack and Annie all over time...so I could really do anything, but I don't want it to get muddled...Ideas? I know you've got some good ones!



top row: Magic Tree House quiz from Scholastic, Coolest Tree House Cake by Debbie Does Cakes, How hip would mom look dressed as a woodsy Morgan le Fay with this ensemble by Treehouse28?

second row: Tree House room from Kidtopolis, The first Magic Tree House Book by the prolific Mary Pope Osborne, Tree House Coloring Craft from Create-Play-Recycle   

third row: poster for the Tree House Concert Series by Howerton & White, The most amazing miniature tree house made by the even more amazing Camille at Mother Lode, and look at what our favorite gals at Chica and Jo did with the house kit from Oriental Trading!


And for my daughter (who will be starting Kindergarten in the fall), well, we will be hosting a little party with our very own Paper & Cake Back-to-School Printable Collection. It really is one of my favorites...if I do say so myself!

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Party Food: Chicken Salad

>> Tuesday, July 27, 2010

I've been craving Chicken Salad lately, and when a friend recently hosted an informal late afternoon potluck, I thought I'd try out something new - elegant, but not fussy Chicken Salad Bites on Multi-Grain Baguette.

Ingredients: 
  • 1 whole roasted chicken, cooled and shredded (if you buy a rotisserie chicken from your market, do not add salt later in the recipe)
  • 1/2 cup diced cucumber
  • 1/2 cup sliced celery
  • 1/4 cup minced red onion
  • 1 cup whole grapes, sliced in half
  • 1/3 cup roasted pepitas
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons honey mustard
  • salt & pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, minced
  • falt leaf parsley whole leaves (small ones are best)
  • sliced multi-grain skinny baguette


Prep your veggies: cut grapes in half; slice the cucumbers into 1/4 rounds, then cut each round into thirds and then thirds again crosswise for consistent cuts.




Slice celery stalks into thin lengthwise strips and then dice.




Evenly mince onion by cutting into it about 1/2" down both lengthwise and crosswise creating a grid, and then (turning the onion on its side) slicing downwards to cut super tiny, perfect minced onion! 




Add shredded chicken and pepitas to large mixing bowl. Add mayonnaise, buttermilk and honey mustard and mix thoroughly.




Top baguette slices with chicken salad and a small leaf of flat-leaf parsley. 




Serve at room temperature. Yummy!

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How To: Birthday Party Craft Favor

>> Monday, July 26, 2010

Here at Paper & Cake, we believe that party favors - especially kid's party favors - should not only be fabulous and functional, but also affordable and personal. Not always easy bills to fill, right? So how about an easy and inexpensive-to-make felt play mat that can be adapted to fit any party theme.



(These are so fast and easy to put together that last Christmas I whipped up 4 in about an
hour to give to my nieces and nephews to pass the time waiting for Santa)


Supplies:
  • felt in varying colors
  • 1/3 yard base fabric (corduroy, thick knit, flannel, etc... recommended)
  • thread
  • sewing machine

For this play mat, we chose to make a reversible design, with one side a Construction Zone and the other side, a seascape for a Pirate Adventure. They can also be made one-sided to coordinate with any party theme.



1. Cut out two large circles from your base fabric - use a large mixing bowl as a guide.




2. Lay our your design with organic shapes of felt. For the Pirate seascape, we have an island with a palm tree, a dock and a three-dimensional sea serpent. 




The sea serpent is made with small rectangular strips for the body, head and tail, stitched only at the ends so they pucker up slightly.




3. Using your sewing machine, stitch the individual items onto each base circle.




4. Right sides in, stitch both base circles together leaving a 2 1/2" opening to turn right-side out. (If making a one-sided mat just use plain fabric for the back)




5. Finish with a blind hem stitch.  You can also add a snap or velcro so the playmat can be folded.



Add a little pirate figure for a Pirate Party or a miniature Bulldozer for a Construction Party and you've got personal, hand-made, gorgeous party favors that your little guests will play with for a long time after the party's over!

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Winner! Day Five...

>> Sunday, July 25, 2010




We have a WINNER! Congratulations to Allison of Yarn Bug!

Please send us an email so we can get your gift in the mail, ASAP!



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Winner! Day Four...

>> Saturday, July 24, 2010

We have a WINNER! Congratulations to Yummy Mommy Mia and Daddy Al!

Please send us an email so we can get your gift in the mail, ASAP!



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Winner! Day Three...

>> Friday, July 23, 2010



We have a WINNER! Congratulations to Stacey L. of Memories in Bloom!

Please send us an email so we can get your gift in the mail, ASAP!



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Giveaway! Day Five...





Sniff sniff. This is it... your last day to enter our week long giveaway extravaganza. We are definitely feeling a little choked up. But not to worry, we have all made lifelong friends here, right?

We are giving away our last $50 gift certificate to Michaels craft store, (with locations in the US and Canada) AND your choice of one of our printable parties.

Did you even know that you could purchase cake decorating supplies at Michaels? What am I saying, of course you did. Frosted cupcakes never looked better when accessorized using our Gothic Halloween printable party. And while you are there, have a cup of coffee and a massage. Wait... that's not right. 


Gothic Halloween printable party + a stack of coordinating ribbon from Michaels


To win, you know the drill, just leave your comment on this post before midnight tonight (pacific standard time). You can also get up to two extra entries by referring friends who also leave a comment on the blog.

Good Luck!

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Giveaway! Day Four...

>> Thursday, July 22, 2010



Four. We can't believe it either. Yes, we are STILL celebrating the redesign on the blog, with you our trusty readers / followers / customers by giving away...


a $50 gift certificate to Michaels craft store (with locations in the US and Canada)
AND your choice of one of our printable parties


What can you buy at Michaels you ask? How about some beautiful ribbon to match our Retro Christmas Collection? And while you are there, pick up some glitter and glue, a new ruler, an xacto knife and a fancy bone folder.



 Retro Christmas Printable Party + a stack of coordinating ribbon from Michaels


To win, you know the drill, just leave your comment on this post before midnight tonight (pacific standard time). You can also get up to two extra entries by referring friends who also leave a comment on the blog.

Good Luck!

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Q and A: Printing and Ink

WOW! You have all been asking some great questions - we had no idea there would be so many questions! We will try to get to them all, but, I think for today we will try to answer your number one question - and that has to do with...

printing and ink

Well, let me give it to you straight... we have only tried 2 brands of ink jet printer, Epson and HP. HP wins for us hands down on quality and ink price. Kira did some research for everyone and here are her numbers, ready?




Printer:
The HP Photo Smart is a fairly middle of the road ink jet printer, you can pick one up for anywhere between $90 and $130 (we also use an HP DeskJet, that came free with our new computer).

HP PhotoSmart Ink:
black cartridge = $19.99 (according to manufacturer, prints an average of 660 pages)
color combo cartridge = $48.00 (according to manufacturer, prints an average of 350 pages)

Break down on a Printable Party for 8 guests:
Fabulous Flowers Birthday = 65 pages
Pirate Birthday = 62 pages
Gothic Halloween (with 20 lanterns) = 112 pages
Peace on Earth Christmas (with oodles of ornaments, centerpiece items, etc...) 99 pages

Total print at home party cost: (all approximate of course)
$0.18 per page for ink (based on manufacturers estimate - also, ink usage will vary from page to page)
$8.00 for expensive package of card stock
$14.95 for most expensive P&C printable party collection


Want a comparison? Here is what we could find:
Custom invitation from Tiny Prints: $21.40 + shipping for 10 invites
Paper pennant banner from Etsy: $28.00 + shipping (includes ribbon)
Paper Birthday crown from BabySakes.com: $13.50 + shipping
Cupcake decor from Meri Meri: $11.95 + shipping


Let me know if you need a translator for all of that! Also, be sure to check out our Facebook page for more answers to your questions.

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Giveaway! Day Three...

>> Wednesday, July 21, 2010





Could it be? A THIRD day of giving away a $50 gift card to Staples (for printable party supplies) AND your choice of any one of our printable parties?

Really?

Yup. and two more after this too. You might ask yourself, "why are Paper & Cake giving gift cards, day after day after day?" We say, "because, we appreciate you!".



our Back to School printable party + a laminating machine


Okay, back to the giveaway. By now you are a follower, and a fan, BUT, have you blogged? Have you referred tons of your friends? We will give you one extra entry for going above and beyond the call of commenting.

To enter, this time instead of telling us your favorite party, ask us a question. Anything having to do with how a printable party works, or something you don't understand, a reason maybe that is preventing you from using a printable party.

Good Luck!

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Winner! Day Two...





We have a WINNER! Congratulations to Meg of Morning Cup With Meg!

Please send us an email so we can get your gift in the mail, ASAP!




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Winner! Day One...

>> Tuesday, July 20, 2010


We have a WINNER! Congratulations to Stephanie of The Olive Tree!

Please send us an email so we can get your gift in the mail, ASAP!



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Giveaway! Day Two...






Need another chance to win? No problem! For day two of our week long giveaway event, we will give one lucky person...

a $50 gift certificate to Michaels craft store (with locations in the US and Canada)
AND your choice of one of our printable parties


What can you buy at Michaels you ask? Well, here is an idea, our Bon Appetit Printable Party comes with napkin rings that double as candle wraps. Make a big statement with your party decor by purchasing several candles (different sizes) and wrap them with the printed strips.

And while you are there, pick up your double sided tape, a 2 inch punch, some envelopes to mail your invitations in and some matching ribbon.

 
 
our Bon Appetit Printable Party + color coordinated scented pillar candles


To win, just leave your comment (with your contact information) on this post before midnight tonight (pacific standard time) with the name of your favorite party from our store. You can also get up to two extra entries by blogging about the giveaway, by referring a friend, or by becoming a fan on twitter, facebook and here on the blog.

Good Luck!

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Giveaway! Day One...

>> Monday, July 19, 2010



To commemorate the launching of our new blog, we thought, what better way (because we don't have a boat or a bottle of champagne to break over it) than with free stuff?

Today, we are giving away...

a $50 gift certificate to Staples office supply store
AND your choice of one of our printable parties


What can you buy at Staples you ask? Well, let me give you an idea of just what you can do. Our Pool Side printable party looks SENSATIONAL on glossy photo paper instead of regular card stock. And while you are there, pick up your double sided tape, a new pair of scissors a hole punch, et cetera.



our Pool Side printable party lantern + Kodak 8.5x11" sheets of photo paper


To win, just leave your comment on this post before midnight tonight (pacific standard time) with the name of your favorite party from our store. You can also get up to two extra entries by blogging about the giveaway, or by becoming a fan on twitter, facebook and here on the blog.

Good Luck!

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How To: Glitter Party Craft

>> Friday, July 16, 2010

Since we're all about party craftiness this week here at Paper & Cake, we thought we'd give you another easy way to spruce up your printable party decor... Glitter!

We're using our Deck the Halls Christmas Printable Collection, because nothing goes together like glitter and Christmas!

Supplies:

  • Paper & Cake Printable Party Collection (all of our collections can be embellished)
  • Glue Pen
  • Glitter (or flocking powder, sand, micro-beads, etc...)
  • Scissors




1. Print out the party item to which you'd like to add some extra sparkle. Cut it out using scissors or an xacto knife, before adding glitter. TIP: make sure to cover your work surface with a sheet of paper or a plastic place mat, to catch the stray glitter.




2. Using a glue pen (we use chisel tip for large areas and a ball-point tip for text), add glue to the area you want glittered, by tracing the design with the pen (it doesn't need to be perfect).





3. Dust the glued area with glitter.




4. Lift the sheet and gently shake off the excess glitter - do this over a plastic bowl so that the surplus can be reused.




5. Continue gluing and glittering small areas, one at a time, until all the areas you want to sparkle are complete. Let dry, and assemble the party item using double sided tape.


Christmas decoration pictured above, is part of our Deck the Halls Printable Party collection


Hope you are enjoying our tutorials this week... they have been part of our attempt at hinting to you what might be part of our "Giveaway Week" starting on Monday. See you then!

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How To: Halloween Party Craft Favor

>> Thursday, July 15, 2010

With Halloween right around the corner, and budget constraints already taking over, we're always looking for new and fun party favors that are inexpensive and easy to put together. One of our all time favorites, is soft stuffies or little pillows for our small guests to snuggle.

Using the full sheet illustrations available in our Trick or Treat Printable Halloween Party, here is a quick "How To" to get you going...

What You'll Need: 

  • Iron-On Transfer Paper for your Inkjet Color Printer
  • Dark Fabric (we've used felt, knits and cotton)
  • Batting
  • Scissors
  • Needle and Thread
  • Optional: Sequins and Seed Beads, Beading Needle
1. Print out your selected image onto iron on transfer paper




2. Cut the image out, fairly close to the outline or directly along the outline




3. Iron the image onto your dark fabric using tissue over the image. *follow the manufacturer's instructions on the iron-on transfer paper package. Also, note that different methods are required for white or dark fabric, so make sure you purchase the right kind of iron-on paper.




4. Cut out the transferred image, now adhered to the fabric, leaving a half inch seam allowance (or larger if your making a little pillow). Cut a second piece of fabric the same shape and size as the first (this is the backing).


5. Optional Step: Stitch on sequins (Click here for instructions).


6. With right sides together, stitch front and back pieces together - leaving about 2 inches open for stuffing. Stuff with soft batting. Blind stitch seam closed to finish.




7. And all for about $2.00 per cute stuffie.

 
Our Trick or Treat Collection has a Witch, Cat, Bat and Frankenstein
that would make a sweet selection of stuffies for little Costumed Guests!



Just a reminder...Week of Giveaways starts on Monday (July 19th)!

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