girl. Inspired.

travel, food, design

  • TRAVEL
  • FOOD
    • Breakfast
    • Breads
    • Main Course
    • Desserts
    • Drinks
    • Soups|Salads|Side Dishes
    • Sauces|Dips|Salad Dressings
    • Cake Decorating
      • Inspiration and Ideas
      • Tips and Tutorials
  • Design
    • Craft/DIY
    • Sewing
      • Patterns and Tutorials
      • Pattern and Product Reviews
      • Sewing Ideas and Inspiration
    • Parties
  • Shop
  • Blog
  • About
    • Privacy Policy
  • Subscribe

A Gymnastics Birthday Party

January 13, 2013 by girlinspired 14 Comments

Grace celebrated her fifth birthday last week and it was the first party that we’ve done for the girls away from home.  I have had so much fun planning the girls’ birthday parties for the last seven years, so it was an adjustment (though not a surprise) when Grace asked that her party be at a local gymnastics center.  She’s a no-muss, no-fuss, all-action, all-the-time kind of girl.  She can skip the decorations and fluff – and that’s exactly what she told me.  “Mommy, I want my birthday party at the gymnastics place, and I don’t want any decorations.”  And it went on further….”I don’t want you to spend any time making decorations because I just want you to play with me.”  Dagger to the heart. 

I need you to understand how hard I work to make sure that my creative time doesn’t impede on quality time with my girls.  I mostly craft after the kids are in bed or on the days that the girls spend playing over at Grammy’s house.  On occasion, I’ll pull out a project in the daytime if the girls are all occupied upstairs playing together.  So, when Grace threw this request at me, it really triggered my mom guilt/panic. 

But, we went with it.  I planned absolutely nothing for her party except for reserving the gym and inviting a few children.  It was such a relief to celebrate the holidays without worrying about the looming birthday party that was upcoming. 

I held off from the planning until four days before the party.  I went to the craft store to get some fabric for another project and came across the cutest little mason jars.  I hadn’t figured out the cupcakes for the party, so I jumped on the chance to make something cutesy and crafty without breaking the “no decorations” rule.  Grace did specify “red” as her preferred party color, so that was helpful.

I also picked up some polka dotted oilcloth for the party table and some washi tape to stick on anything I could…..and then I found some great metallic dancewear fabric, knowing that there was no way Grace would turn down a new leotard.  In fact, she kind of went crazy for it when I made it. 

I made some little labels for the drink bottles with the guests’ names, and added a little clipart for labels to top the cupcake jars and treat bags.  I cut out larger labels and added some die cut letters for a banner.  And that’s about it. 

The party was awesome and EASY!!!  I spent very little on new supplies.  I packed everything I needed into a single tupperware bin in about 15 minutes.  I didn’t have to clean my house or panic about timing.  We loaded the bin of supplies and the kids up in the car, went and picked up balloons and some pizza and we were party ready!  And the only crafting time I put in was (when Grace wasn’t watching) at night and on my babysitting day.  Everyone was happy and the birthday girl had a smashingly good time. 

Filed Under: Crafting, Parties, Sewing, Sewing Ideas and Inspiration Tagged With: birthday, cupcakes, girl clothes, party, party decor, party inspiration

A Birthday with Sprinkles

June 7, 2012 by girlinspired 9 Comments

 Addison woke up this morning and crawled into our bed to snuggle while drinking her milk.  She matter-of-factly announced “I don’t feel like a baby. Yep, I feel like a big girl.”  My baby turned three today.  
We spoiled her with all the sprinkles we could find and she entertained us with her sweet, silly antics.  It’s bittersweet, this birthday.  Three just seems so big.  Especially with her, always running after her sisters, thrilled with their hand-me-downs, so happy to be one of them.  We did a little dessert and presents number after dinner tonight and will have a more official “birthday party” with some friends in a few weeks.  Ice cream sundae stations and ice cream cone cupcakes have been all over the internet, but this setup was a first for my family.  
The girls were beyond elated; an easy setup with super fun visual impact.  The interactive part of decorating your own “ice cream cones” and ice cream sundaes makes for a most entertaining time. 
 It’s getting late and we’re off to the last day of school tomorrow, so I’ll save some additional thoughts for another time…
happy happy birthday, my baby girl!

Filed Under: Family Stories, Parties Tagged With: birthday, cupcakes, family stories, ice cream, party inspiration, sweet treats

Silk and Chocolate Easter Collection

March 20, 2012 by girlinspired 16 Comments

 This week’s collection is luxurious and indulgent.  It’s impractical and irresistable.  Dark chocolate molded bunnies, a white silk toddler dress, chocolate cupcakes with white fondant decoration, brown eggs with love notes inside, white tulips . . .  I love it.  LOVE it.

 I picked up some plastic Easter molds and used chocolate easy melts to make solid bunnies, white candy lambs, and cute, little chickies.  Have you used these molds before?  I’ll show you how easy it is, this week.
 This dress is just, well, the most beautiful little thing I’ve ever made.  I’m sure there are plenty of you shaking your head at me with my dry clean only, all white, toddler dress.  But….if you saw it in person, you might just admit that its gorgeousness trumps all practical rationale for why one shouldn’t make a child’s dress from white silk.  I’ll tell you more about it this week. 
I’ve seen this note in an egg trick before.  But I forgot about it.  That’s the beauty of Pinterest.  I rediscovered it last week and it fit perfectly into my theme this week. 
I don’t really think you can have an Easter collection without tulips, do you?  They so gracefully say “spring.”  I’m trying to force a pile of daffodils in my kitchen, since I didn’t plant the bag of bulbs in the fall.  So far, I have one cheery, yellow flower.  Do you have a favorite spring flower?
In the works for this week:  the dress details and brooch tutorial, cupcake decorating with fondant and molded chocolates/candies, and the fun note-in-an-egg craft!  
So, tell me…do you support impracticality in the name of beauty?  

Filed Under: Easter, Holiday Inspiration Tagged With: cupcakes, dresses, Easter, fabric, flowers, holiday decor, party inspiration

Circus Party Hat How-To

March 14, 2012 by girlinspired 5 Comments

Party hats add just an extra bit of fun to any celebration.  You can make one in a matter of minutes.  
Gather some supplies.  I like to look through my ribbons, paper, and doo-dads, and grab everything within my color scheme.  Then, I can choose which items to use and which to scrap as the hat comes together.  Following the Party Hats 101 instructions, cover your party hat with heavy cardstock and a ruffled strip of fabric.  Add a bow by cutting a 5 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ piece of fabric – fold it in half and stitch around each side and across the bottom, leaving an opening in the bottom center for turning.  Turn and press the triangle.  Then, fold it into a bow and wrap a small piece of ribbon around the center, hot gluing to secure it in the back.  Hot glue the bow onto the ruffle in the center front of the hat.  All set! 
Also, a quick picture run through for making a cute, ticket display stand for cupcakes or a cake or whatever:
Other posts for Vintage Circus Party include:
Vintage Circus Party – Inspiration
Circus Stripe Party Cake
Shirred Circus Dress
Circus Party Shopping Guide
Comments on all posts this week will be entered for a chance to win a little box of circus fun – hat, definitely included!

Filed Under: Crafting, Parties Tagged With: circus, crafts, DIY, party decor, party hats, party inspiration

Vintage Circus Party – Inspiration and Giveaway

March 12, 2012 by girlinspired 42 Comments

We’re going to do something new around here, okay?  If you’ve been reading along, you know I love a good celebration.  And you know I love to dabble in a whole lot of everything artsy craftsy.  My need to get elbow deep in frosting, fabric, and paper on a more regular basis has sparked the foundation for a new direction here at girl. Inspired.  – Party Inspiration!  Beginning today, I am going to be crafting up celebrations to share with you.  I will put together a “look” centered around a theme, and then throughout the week, I’ll show you how to create many of the components of that look.  Sound good?  Exciting?  Okay, then, here we go.  First up…..a Vintage Circus Party – I couldn’t resist.
Glass Bottles with Red Striped Straws and Ribbon/Ticket Ties

This party grouping includes:

  • Colorful Striped, Three-Layer Cake with Fluffy Whipped Icing
  • Glass Beverage Bottles with Ribbons and Tickets – the tickets would be great for writing party guests’ names and they look super fun, too!
  • Wooden Dowels with knots of colorful ribbons pinned to the top make quick and festive table decorations
  • Cupcakes with a big swirl of fluffy icing and “cake pop” style cherries on top
  • A Ruffled Party Hat to coordinate with the party theme and dress
  • The Party Dress (here, a size 12-18 months) in a vintage-inspired blue floral bodice and yellow and white striped skirt, detailed with a rolled edge on the neck and sleeves, shirring around the neck and waist, and white pom detailing on the hem.
  • Bright, red polka dot bags of Popcorn
  • A Big Roll of Tickets
Circus Striped Cake
 
Quick Shirred Circus Dress
Ruffled Party Hat

 

Over the next week, I’ll be sharing the how-to on the dress, hat, and the cake, as well as details on the fabric and where you can buy some of the party supplies I included.
 

Other posts for the Vintage Circus Party include:

Circus Stripe Party Cake
Circus Hat How-To
Shirred Circus Dress

Filed Under: Parties Tagged With: circus, party hats, party inspiration

About Stef
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Search Older Posts

Sharing Policy

It is my hope that you will find inspiration on the Girl. Inspired. blog. All photos are copyright protected by Girl. Inspired. If you wish to share something that you have seen here, I am absolutely thrilled! Please use only one picture with a direct link back to the project you are referencing. Thank you so much for your understanding!

Privacy Policy

What are You Looking For?

Search by Category

Copyright © 2021 · Foodie Child Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress

This site uses cookies: Find out more.