French Themed Party

Recently a co-worker friend of mine threw her daughter a French themed birthday party. She asked me one question about the party & after that you know I was ALL over it! It certainly helped that the birthday girl was a fellow Audrey Hepburn fan, too :)

I knew there was a budget and so one of the first things I did was Google "French themed birthdays". There are so many great ideas out there to choose from. So, I stuck with the images because I knew framing some of them would make for a very inexpensive project. The right images and phrases made the party look a more Parisian and saved some major $$. Below are a couple of the images that I came up with:

This is one way to make any baked goods look cute :)

http://frostedeventsblog.com/2010/03/18/parties-and-pretties-la-petite-boulangerie-first-birthday-party

Laura's inspiration for the French theme began with her love of all things Eiffle Tower. So the pic above was just too cute not to frame. Plus, she can keep it up in her room.

http://www.sweetestbirthday.com/sweet-sixteen-themes/paris-themed-sweet-16-party

I also encouraged the mom to get some black and white fabric to use as a tablecloth. Once the party was over she could use the fabric to make a pillow, curtains, etc. for Laura's room. This is another very inexpensive way to add some pattern and fun to an event knowing that you can use the item later. On top of the fabric she used all black frames to place the fun French phrases in. Wendy had quite a few old frames sitting around that she spray painted black to give them some new life - so now she even has some frames she can use in her house or Laura can keep them for her room.

CurlyGirl

I love Curly Girl Designs, but I especially love this:


You can expect more of these designs posted on the blog in the future! I just love the cute little sayings and how they can apply to almost everyone in one way or another <3

Fun Shower Idea

I love finding new uses for everyday things. I saw this on a blog and thought it was too cute. It would be so perfect for a kitchen shower!
(Especially if the bride has registered for a cookie sheet, and could take it home with her.)

Sweet Child O'Mine

Oh. My. Goodness.
One more reason to love facebook – I now get to see all of the beautiful baby nurseries that my friends have put together. And let me tell ya – I have some creative friends! I am loving all of the dressers turned into changing tables, the gorgeous armoires, the beautiful color combos and how fabulously personal each one looks. I also love the photogs who do the "home" session so you can see sweet pics of the nurseries. There is one that I know Stephanie and I both can't stop talking about. The muted ruffles against a jewel tone wall for a little girl - ahhh! soo cute!!

While perusing the web I found the amazing website http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/home-tours. This site covers many topics but just so happended to feature one of my favorite things - baby nurseries. I found some fun, personal, and beautiful baby rooms.
There is something so sweet and innocent about a room that eager soon-to-be parents spend so much time focusing on to make sure it's perfect for their newest family member. So much love, joy, & attention go into creating an atmosphere for learning & growing for a child you haven't even met yet.

So sweet!

I I really like the crisp feel of the white dresser with the bright yellow changing pad. Also, notice the cute yellow bucket filled with items you need while changing. Smart!

I love the black & white - timeless!

One thing I adore is a dresser used as a changing table. To me - it doesn't get any more practical than that. You take a dresser that the child can use for a very long time and add a changing table and it becomes the most practical piece of furniture in the room. Then when you don't need the changing pad anymore you remove it only to add other things that work better. I would think too, that as the child learns to walk & is getting into everything having a changing pad
& a few changing items would be less of a distraction from any chords or anything heavy they could pull down that could be potentially harmful. I think it's important to have a changing area for babies because it seems like it would help with structure. You go to the same place each time to have your diaper or your clothes changed. I could be crazy, but it sounds good to me :)

Another favorite of mine - bookcases in your child's room. Reading should always be an important part of your routine, so why not show it off in a really cute way? It can also be used to hold baskets with necessary items, toys, and many other things. Again, another piece you can keep for a long time and personalize as your child gets older.

A great place to store blankets, toys, baskets, books - gotta love a good bookcase!

stripes - love 'em!

I want this room in my house. Plain and simple.

I REALLY want the big monogram pillow!
And the mirror.

Oh, and the collage of pictures, too.

I mean - why didn't I think of this years ago?!