Party | Lil Blue Boo

Hand Stamped Party and Table Decor

June 5, 2013 By Ashley Hackshaw 1 Comment

In the new issue of Moyo Magazine I wrote a column about DIY Party Decor:

…..a few photos were used from the projects below but I thought I’d share some additional photos that are centered around DIY stamping! It’s very easy to carve your own stamp…and depending on the theme of your party or gathering a single stamp can carry all the way through:

Add tiny accents (dots, stars, hearts etc) with a smaller stamp made from a pencil eraser:

For these invitations I printed out the “Home Sweet Home” on regular card stock, rounded the corners of each invite and added the stamp:

Roll some fabric paint onto a paper plate and use it to stamp your table cloth and napkins:

Having a wine tasting? Stamp a few old book pages with a hand carved stamp:

I wrote an article on wine-themed decor over at Parade:

Also wine themed: tese wine cork stamps….cut one in half and they double as place card holders! (View the tutorial here)

Here are basic stamp carving supplies you might need:

1. Linoleum Cutter Set

2. Ranger Archival Ink Stamp Pad

3. Speedball 4″ Brayer

4. Folk Art Paint Best Selling Colors

5. Speedball Speedycut Blocks

Filed Under: Home and Garden, Home Decor, Party, Printing/Stenciling, Supplies, Things I've Made, Tutorial, Uncategorized

Pretty Party Table Decor

May 18, 2013 By Ashley Hackshaw 6 Comments

Today I went to a surprise luncheon/party for my mother-in-law’s 60th birthday. My sister-in-law Jen (“TT”) planned the entire event so I showed up early to take some photos because I knew the table would be amazing. Her tables are always amazing!

I loved the coral, gold and chevron accents. The party favors were little inspiration rocks and the card read: Thanks for being my mother’s rock.

My sister-in-law Carolyn, me, mother-in-law Gale and sister-in-law “TT”:

I love that TT’s dress even matched the party decor….adorable as always:

Here’s another beautiful table she did:

Filed Under: Party, Photography, Uncategorized

Cinco de Mayo Party Ideas

May 1, 2013 By Lisa Leave a Comment

Cinco de Mayo Party Ideas via lilblueboo.com

Happy May 1st! Cinco de Mayo is this weekend and we have rounded up some awesome ideas for party decor, food, drinks and activities!

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DIY Pinata Cake via Handmade Charlotte.

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Filed Under: Holidays, Party, Party Printables, Roundup Tagged With: cinco de mayo, holiday, party, party decor, party favor ideas, party food, party ideas, party printables

Top 10 Party Tips and Behind the Scenes

February 14, 2013 By Ashley Hackshaw 12 Comments

Behind the Scenes: A Beauty Salon Glam Birthday Party with Mini Doll Salon via lilblueboo.com

Here’s the behind the scenes from Boo’s party and some of my tips for preparing a similar party….or any party for that matter! You can see the full original Party Post with all the pretty photos here.

The decor was actually pretty simple.

I like to set up one main food and treat table that is the backdrop of the party…..hanging different types of poms. I bought the pink tissue poms this year but the rest of the poms are from past parties. The lanterns are great because they are large and fold flat easily. I just recycle them all and repaint them if necessary. Spray paint is a great way to get all decor to match perfectly!

I have a sun problem on our patio for early parties….so last year I bought 2 bolts of 108″ muslin to cover the entire patio and block out the sun! We hang it from the roof (a few gallon jugs filled with water are great to keep it in place if you have a flat patio…..other wise a few nails can keep it up)….it folds up easily for storage too. The best part is that I can pin bunting and other party decor to it…..and you can create a great backdrop for photos.

I always buy generic type items that can be reused year after year. I also look for items that can be packed away easily in a large bin. I just re-spraypaint items to match the new theme. I have large white bowls and platters that can be used with any theme. I use large paper mache nesting boxes and hat boxes to add height to the tables (just re-spraypaint them!)

Filed Under: Birthday, Holidays, Party, Party Printables, photo props, Random Tips, Tutorial Tagged With: birthday, birthday party, party, party decor, party ideas, party planning, printables

A Beauty Salon Glam Birthday Party with Mini Doll Salon

February 13, 2013 By Ashley Hackshaw 25 Comments

I can’t believe Boo is six years old!!! First off, I want to put a disclaimer on this post to admit that this party is just a little over the top. I’m not really a party planner…..I don’t entertain a lot…..so Boo’s yearly birthday party is something I really love putting energy into. Boo knows that while the party is centered around her…..it’s also about bringing our friends together, entertaining them and sending them home with some fun handmade swag. She also knows that I reserve the right at any time to decide not to throw a party, serve $5 pizza and stick a candle in it! I love coming up with cute ideas and sharing them with you…..and there are many ways to make a wonderful fun party with only a few elements from this post!

Boo wanted an American Girl themed party (shocker) so we talked about doing something interactive with lots of activities that her friends of all ages would enjoy and came up with the Beauty Salon theme….complete with American Girl-sized doll salon. I always borrow, recycle and improvise for parties and all of that will come in the “behind the scenes” post to follow this one. I will say one thing about this party…..the doll salon was a TOTAL hit. I was actually surprised…..but the girls had so much fun putting capes on their dolls and primping and fixing their hair. It was totally adorable and definitely something I’ll put together more often for playdates!

So here we go! I had a vision of what I wanted in my head for the graphics and Stephanie Corfee brought it all to life with her graphic design! It turned out so amazingly cute that I convinced her to offer it to everyone as a printable in the shop complete with extra graphics to make it fully “do-it-yourself” customizable.

Just a note: we called it a “DOLL” salon party…..and invited Boo’s friends to bring any favorite doll for the salon…..because not everyone has an American Girl (Boo’s only had one for 2 months). A few friends brought extra American Girl dolls too for those girls that didn’t have one.

Oh my….the day before the party the wind in the desert was over 30 miles an hour! I couldn’t set anything up until the morning of the party!

Filed Under: American Girl, Birthday, Children's Clothes, Contributing Authors, Digital Graphic Projects, doll clothes, Gifts, Graphics, Holidays, Kids Projects, Lil Blue Boo Digital, Party, Party Printables, photo props, Photography, Photos, Printables, Stephanie Corfee, Stephanie Corfee, Things I've Made, Tutorial, Uncategorized Tagged With: american girl, birthday party, party, party printables, salon party

Party in a Box: A Birthday Lunch

February 7, 2013 By Ashley Hackshaw 25 Comments

I asked Boo what her teacher usually does for kids’ birthdays in her class…thinking I should do something.

Boo’s reply: Oh nothing. She just sings Happy Birthday.

Well that’s easy.

Then yesterday her teacher said: I asked Boo what her mother usually does for the class for her birthday and she said you usually don’t do anything.

I told her teacher we had both been thrown under the bus. But maybe Boo didn’t want us to do anything for her?

We finally talked Boo into doing ice cream cups for the class…..because she should take advantage of the fact the she gets to choose the treat this time!

Why? Because Boo does not like any of the following:

chocolate cake
brownies
chocolate ice cream
…..anything chocolate.

She also doesn’t like:

sprinkles
soda
most candy.

Strange I know. That means she usually doesn’t eat anything that the other kids bring to school to celebrate.

So today is Boo’s 6th birthday. I had scraps left over from wrapping her presents last night so I used them to wrap up her lunch box items this morning. I made a ton of confetti (which I’m sure the teacher will love) using a butterfly shaped hole punch. I also included a party straw and wrapped her bottled water with a decorative label….her own personal party pack as she eats at her desk today:

Party in a Box:

I didn’t wrap them that well……very loose and easy to rip apart. I didn’t want her struggling to open it all if she was hungry!

Oh, and vanilla ice cream cups are being delivered for a special treat at lunchtime.

We are having a little party for her this weekend. Can’t wait to start sharing all the things I made for it……

Last year was the Krispy Kreme Donut Party.…

……any guesses as to this year’s theme?

Filed Under: Birthday, Party, Uncategorized

Kid Friendly Super Bowl Party Ideas

January 30, 2013 By Ashley Hackshaw 4 Comments

kid friendly super bowl party ideas via lilblueboo.com

Click “continue reading” below to see the gallery and links:

Filed Under: Babble Roundup, Kids Projects, Party, Roundup Tagged With: party, party food, party ideas

The Gift of Journaling (DIY Journal Kit and Artwork Download)

December 5, 2012 By Ashley Hackshaw 71 Comments

I wanted to do a version of the DIY Art Kit but for a “journal” version so that it could be used for gifts. My artist friend Stephanie Corfee was so helpful in making the free artwork download for it. She made the large labels and small labels for labeling all the contents! CONTINUE READING

Filed Under: Art Journaling, Birthday, Christmas, Contributing Authors, Gifts, Graphics, Holidays, Image Transfer, Inspiration, Journaling, Kids Projects, Party, Photos, Printables, Printing/Stenciling, Stephanie Corfee, The Lil Journal Project, Things I've Made, Toys and Accessories, Tutorial, Uncategorized Tagged With: the lil journal project

Glue Gun Cabochons

November 13, 2012 By Ashley Hackshaw 24 Comments

Do you have any of these little silicon molds that you use with resin and clay? The one below is one of my favorites…. CONTINUE READING

Filed Under: Birthday, Charms and Trinkets, Christmas, Embellishing, Gifts, Hair Accessory, Holidays, Jewelry, Kids Projects, Painting, Party, photo props, Supplies, Things I've Made, Toys and Accessories, Tutorial, Uncategorized

Turning Old Books and Papers into Doilies

November 11, 2012 By Ashley Hackshaw 11 Comments

I recently had the chance to try out a new product that Martha Stewart Crafts is introducing…..the Circle Edge Punch! Martha Stewart will be on HSN on Nov. 13 to launch the Circle Edge Punch. You can’t buy it in stores so make sure to check out the information after the tutorial on where to purchase! I think it’s a great product if you want to make your own custom doilies and with little effort! CONTINUE READING