Friday, February 28, 2014

ARI'S ANIMAL THEMED PARTY: PART 2

I wanted to share all of my DIY's with you from Ari's animal themed birthday party. These ideas are pretty simple and easy, but when you put them all together, it looks sort of impressive (if I do say so myself!).

PAINTED PLASTIC ANIMALS
These little dudes were my biggest project. I collected tons of plastic animals from craft stores and dollar stores and spray painted them solid colors to make the look more cohesive and modern. The easiest way I found to paint the animals was to put packing tape sticky side up on a piece of cardboard (see below) and spray paint from every angle. They take a while to dry and require multiple coats, so plan ahead!

PARTY HATS
I LOVE how the party hats turned out! First unfold a store-bought party hat and trace it onto black paper. Cut it out a little larger than the traced line you made. Put the hat back together and tape the black paper around the hat. I cut the plastic animals in half and used a hot glue gun to secure each half to the front and back of the hat. For the pompom on top, I fringed some white crepe paper and glued it into seam of the hat.

ANIMAL CUTLERY
I have to say, the animal cutlery was the biggest hit with everyone, but these were so. time. consuming. Use fine sand paper and sand off the finish on the forks where the animal will go. Make sure there's no spray paint on the middle of the animals, in other words, spray paint the animals first before cutting. Use Gorilla Wood Glue (super glue and hot glue does not work!) and hold on to these suckers until the glue dries. This will take about 3-5 minutes PER fork. But I mean... look how cute they turned out! 

DIY FRINGY TOPPERS
Once you get the hang of it, they're super fast and easy. Use these for drink stirrers or cake toppers or whatever! These pretties brighten up any party.

PHOTO BOOTH
Time consuming? Yes. Easy? Ridiculously. 
All you need is a roll of butcher paper or bulletin board paper, craft paint, and a wine cork. For the photo booth backdrop, I measured neurotically so the dots would be even, but for the tablecloth below, I stamped randomly.
 More cork stamping! Paper mache letters hung on the door. 

CHALKBOARD TRAYS
I bought inexpensive silver plastic trays and spray painted the boarder with the same paint I used on the animals. When dry, paint the center with two layers of chalkboard paint. Easy!

For Part 1 of Ari's animal themed party pictures click HERE

Part 3 HERE
Party Favors / Games for the kiddos / Details

-L


Thursday, February 27, 2014

ARI'S ANIMAL THEMED PARTY: PART 1

Today's #TBT party series features Ari's 2nd birthday. At two, Ari was obsessed with going to the zoo, so I went with a "Party Animal" theme and made it modern with solid, bright colors. Everything I did was DIY- you can totally pull this off if you have the time and plan ahead!
My talented twin sister, Ellie, of Aunt Ellie's Sweet Treats, made her famous gourmet rice krispie treats Campfire Crispies and cut them out in animal shapes. These. Are. Amazing. If you've never tried, you're missin' out on life, my friend. Order HERE. You deserve it.
DIY chalkboard trays tutorial HERE / Spoons by Shop Sweet Lulu
DIY fringy toppers tutorial HERE / Baking cups by Shop Sweet Lulu
Remember those yummy frosted animal cookies you ate as a kid? I made them out of sugar cookies, tinted frosting, and sprinkles. 
Not gonna lie... these bad boys took me a loooong time. But worth it right? Tutorial HERE.
'cause it's a camel.. get it?
Nana Lou's famous punch (for adults!). This zookeeper needed three one after all this DIY-ing!
Yep, that's me enjoying zookeeper punch. 
I made teeny little party hats for these fellas.
Animal canister DIY - fill with animal food: goldfish, teddy grahams, and animal crackers
I took a picture of Ari every month - well worth torture! See all three years HERE.
PHOTO BOOTH
Photo booth backdrop and party hat tutorial HERE
I absolutely adore this picture! Lauren and Piper, Ari and me, Amara and Jenni. Obviously our kids are super photogenic.
Homemade funfetti cake! Mmmm... Topped with spray-painted animals of course.

Part 2 of Ari's Animal Theme Birthday Party click HERE: DIY's
Part 3 click HERE: Party favors, games for the kiddos, details

-L



Tuesday, February 25, 2014

WHAT I WORE

Today, I got out and had lunch with a dear friend and did a little prep shopping before we leave this week to fly out to see my husbaaaaaaaand!!!! I am a little excited as it has been two weeks! Miss that guy.

jeans / t-shirt / jacket (sold out, but similar here ) / necklace (sold out, but loving this and this) / booties

Spring seems to be nudging its way in around here, which I gladly welcome. However, I am going to miss wearing my (faux) leather jacket a little bit. It is just a winter piece for me (mind games), but I may need to find a pretty tan or pale pink one to sport in the springtime. I paired it with a simple T and my new Joe's jeans that I am absolutely in. love. with. They feel like leggings....truly. I haven't splurged on a pair of jeans since being preggers with Amara. I guess I just kept waiting for my body to get "back to normal"...HA! It is as back to normal as its going to get, so my hubby let me indulge a little. I needed a pair that give this flat butt a little oomph (Lord help it), stay up when I am on the go, and don't cut into my gut hips. 

This is a great day OR night look. I threw on one of my favorite tassel necklaces for a little sparkle along with my absolute favorite pair of ankle boots ( from Target ya'll!!!). I feel like I could walk all day in them. Super comfy look, but still put together. 





lip color: I am wearing Flower Beauty's coral floret
Photo cred: Mardi Wallace 

Hope you all are enjoying your Tuesday! 
xoxo
-Jenni
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