Christmas Wishes

Merry Christmas from the Kutter Family!

Holiday Party Invitations with a side of Anxiety

Hi friends.

It's Monday. It's going to be pitch black outside when I leave work today. And it's November. Blech.

While I'm not excited about adapting to daylight savings, I am looking forward to the holidays.

Yes, it's true, I'm part of the rest of the female population...sporting an infinity scarf with cognac boots and could be seen carrying a Starbucks pumpkin spiced latte while infusing my house with a pumpkin roll Scentsy scent. Oh, and I'll even snap a picture of all that and upload it to Instagram. We're all so cliche, aren't we?

Or just totally obsessed with the coming of the holidays that are right around the corner.

Which really means...you better get your ass in gear.

Is anyone else's head spinning about the next couple months?

What do I prepare for Thanksgiving dinner this year? *** Better start shopping for Carson's birthday and Christmas gifts. *** How on earth will we coordinate schedules and babysitters for the gazillion holiday parties? *** Where will the Christmas tree go in our new house? *** When will I find time to get our family holiday card designed and mailed?

Such a busy, overwhelming time of year.

But, also the most joyous, cheerful time of year!

Designing my company's holiday party invite was what sent me into excessive-anxiety-holiday to-do-list-tailspin today. About my personal to-dos of course.

But, I'm not complaining too much. Because it's pretty rad when I get to put aside the construction services design and writing tactics and spend time doing something I enjoy in my spare time.
 

For fun, I thought I would share holiday invites from a few past parties as well. Maybe it will inspire someone to get their holiday party invite or family card started. Lord knows I'm already thinking about ours!

We never host a holiday party (our friends have it more than covered), so it's fun to have the opportunity to design these for my company.

Happy holiday party planning everyone!

 

Joint Baby + Bridal Shower

I've hosted quite a few showers with my friends by now. We pretty much have it down to a science.

They started out more simple, and still are, but have developed into encompassing more details. Small touches. Embellishments.Very put together.

And ya know what? I like it.

My husband recently asked me if I thought anyone really cared about or noticed the paper pinwheels, tagged toothpicks or paper embellishments I spend so much time to design, print, cut and make.

To be honest, I didn't know the answer to his question. I wasn't sure if anyone appreciated them as much as I do.

For a second, I felt deflated. Maybe my work has gone unnoticed all these times and it wasn't really worth it? I can't knock the hubby for thinking like this. He's a realist and well, a guy. He just doesn't get the power of details.

Regardless if any guests truly notice the details or pay attention to the time and effort I pour into these showers, it doesn't matter. It's something I'm passionate about and I frankly enjoy doing.

I get giddy about a simple theme for a party turning into a put together masterpiece where every place you look incorporates a detail that could very well get overlooked. But, when you look at the party as a whole, it stands out.

I'd say that was my goal for the joint baby and bridal shower I recently hosted. Say wah? Yep, two of my out-of-town besties have big things happening in their lives. One is headed down the aisle and the other is headed for chaos. Hah.

I have never hosted a combined baby and bridal shower, and to be honest, it was somewhat challenging. I had to find a happy medium to incorporate both baby and bridal, offering both guests a shower that was relevant to each of their exciting new chapters.

With the invitation being the first thing guests would see explaining the not-so-ordinary shower, it had to be spot on with the description without sounding generic. I was pretty proud of the rhyming I came up with to do just that.

Invites were gray and yellow with a Morrocan pattern. No real theme, just classy. 

Now for the fun stuff.

I'll start off with the sweets, because you all know that's what I think is most important.

Baby buggies and wedding cake sugar cookies adorned with the bride's soon-to-be last name initial.

 Ordered from Connie's Cookies

The bride took home a basket full of household goodies and the bride left with some baby girl gear. 

Everything matched the theme colors of course. 

We offered both a bridal and a baby-friendly drink. Lemonade and White Sangria.

The White Sangria was YUMMY.

Fresca + bottle of white wine + fruit for garish.

That's it. Easy peasy.

Kansas City was oh-so-lucky to have its millionth snowfall starting the night before the shower, and affected several people from not even being able to make it. 

Nevertheless, the 10:00 start time got bumped to Noon and we enjoyed Yogurt Parfaits, Breakfast Casserole Bites, and Assorted Mini Muffins.  

We were supposed to have French Toast bites as well, but that dish was a doozy and had to be thrown away. Everything can't go as planned, now can it?

Small touches and embellishments included decorative paper pinwheels (tutorial here), bride + baby toothpicks for the yogurt parfaits, food display tags, advice cards for the mom to be and bride to be (not pictured), and a few other things.

To spice up the mason jars below (right), I simply rolled up a piece of paper, stuck it inside the jar, and used as utensil holders. I also did this for Carson's 1st birthday party with football paper.

What a great shower!

If you're ever thinking of hosting a joint baby + bridal shower, it's doable. And fun! Congrats to my besties!

Little Man Mustache Baby Shower

I recently helped host a baby shower for a great friend and her special little man that will make his debut in June. I revealed the invite here.

We utilized her nursery colors of navy and green and aimed for bright and fun with a touch of manly.

When designing the invite, I liked the idea of using the ever-so-trendy chevron pattern, but I feared its girlish nature might overpower the boyish feel I was going for.

So I incorporated the stache to get the combo of yin and yang I desired.

A Little Man Mustache themed baby shower 

We wanted to keep things simple, yet cohesive, so we served sweet treats only and incorporated the invite design throughout.

The spread included:

Mini Fruit pizzas (sugar cookies + cream cheese frosting + fruit = easy peasy)

Blondies (box mix from Trader Joe's topped with their Cookie Butter. To. Die. For)

Rice Krispie Treats topped with blue sprinkles

Cake Balls

Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

The blue punch was a hit. Guests were raving about the Blue Raspberry Punch.

So they asked, and we embarrassingly told them what it was.

1 2-Liter of Sprite

1 pkg. of Blue Raspberry Kool-Aid (Or flavor of your choice)

Ice, as desired

I'm not kidding...it's that easy. Everyone can drink the Kool-Aid.

Mason Jars, Wal-Mart

Green Paper Straws, Amazon

Cut-Out Mustaches were printed on cardstock, cut out and hot glued to each straw

We used the family last name, "Baby Casey" for the banner and cupcake toppers, and also included the invite tagline of "a little man is on the way" for some additional cupcake toppers.

Cupcake Toppers were printed on cardstock, cut out and hot glued to toothpicks. 

Onesies that matched the theme colors hung on the fireplace and added a few mementos for the mom-to-be to take home. A skull and cross bones onesie was a must.

Baby Casey won't be a Chi Omega, but he might date one:). We like to start the brainwashing early!

Just like these little handsome men. They've already heard all about it.

Gifts were light as this out-of-town mama had to fly back to San Antonio! Hope you enjoyed gift cards, books and knick knacks Megan:).

A great shower surrounded by great friends!

Invitations: Owl Baby Shower and Sprinkle Shower

I recently received my first request for an invitation project from a totally unexpected person (friend of Brian's from high school).

I was completely shocked and honored when she reached out to me via facebook. I had a ton of fun designing, printing and fulfilling two invites for showers she was hosting.

Her first shower called for an Owl theme, where she requested natural colors and a vintage feel.

I think the owl sketch graphic made this invite, but I equally love the dot background. I also love tea-length invites. Of course, we continued the theme to the envelopes and spiced up the address labels.

 Ivory #10 envelopes with a side enclosure.

The second invitation was for a "Sprinkle Shower." I didn't know what this was before she told me, but I guess they are fairly popular. She gave me free reign of the design, so I kept it simple, yet fun and cheery. I love that the dots mimic a "sprinkle."

5x7 Invitations placed in teal envelopes from Hobby Lobby

Happy Heart Day

I once told you I hated Valentine's Day. I still do. Sort of.

Except for last year, when a special 3-month old and I (plus a fur baby) scored some of my all-time favorite pics while making a V-day card for Daddy.

Oh, and a few years ago when I actually had time to make dinner for my husband and find ways to shape our food into hearts (wow, I'm such a weirdo).

This year, Brian and I stayed true to our annual Valentine's Day boycott. We grilled burgers (so fancy!), had a glass of wine and cuddled up on the couch to watch Flight.

I'll admit, my attitude about this holiday has slightly altered. Thanks to a two-and-a-half foot tall little person.

Pics from the Valentine Party at his school

Who knew having a kid would do this to me?

I had so much fun making Carson's Valentine treats for his class this year. In typical style, I just wasn't ok with doing something ordinary.

My goals were a toddler friendly treat, and a cute tag with a saying that played off the treat.

So, I went with an easy throw-it-together-yourself trail mix in small snack-sized Ziploc bags.

The mix included pretzels, Craisins, chocolate teddy grahams, cheerios, M&Ms, and marshmallows. (Note: If I did it again, I wouldn't include the marshmallows because the other ingredients sucked all the moisture out of them, making them slightly hard. I'd probably look for yogurt covered raisins.)

I then printed tags with the saying, "I would be so mixed up with you!" and folded them in half. Lastly, I attached the tag to the bags (with the fold at the top and over the clasp part of the bag) with a stapler. The entire project only took me about 45 minutes.

Aren't they so cute!?
 

Carson loved them. He told me.

He also loved opening all his Valentines from all his classmates.

Happy Heart Day! AND Happy Weekend!

"Mom, I got Valentines from every girl in my class! I'm pretty sure Layla, Alex and Leah have a huge crush on me!"

Little Man Mustache Baby Shower Invite

I've been busy planning more baby showers. Which means more designing invitations and fun embellishments!

Here's a recent invite I did for a special little cowboy arriving in July.

1st Birthday Invite: Bright as the Sun Theme

Here's a First Birthday invite I recently created for a coworker friend.

A girly, yet simple, classy invite. I love the various use of patterns that give it added texture and a semi-scrapbook feel. The hearts add a subtle feminine touch that make it oh so sweet.

Designed in InDesign and printed to cardstock.

All patterns were free downloads.

Fonts: Sunshine in my Soul & Throw My Hands up in the Air

Carson's First Birthday

I have been planning this party for weeks and am super excited to tell you all about it.

It was perfect. It was special. It was fun. It was everything I wanted it to be for our one-year-old.

It's official. Our baby is now a toddler. For some reason, saying it helps me cope with the matter.

Although Carson won't remember his 1st birthday, Brian and I feel extremely blessed and thankful that so many of our family and friends shared this special day with us.

As I revealed when I posted the invitation, the party was football themed. I envisioned a tailgate party. A casual, laid-back, fun gathering.

I'm not sure how fun watching my one-year-old stuff his face with cake was, but let's be honest...this day was all about him.

A baller party for my one-year-old.

I gave it my absolute best to turn the inside of our house into a football frenzy. I incorporated football-inspired food, drinks, decor and other little touches, and this is what I came up with.

Lucky for me, I scored big by borrowing several football serving dishes and plates from a friend.

Appetizers served included savory meatballs, artichoke dip, mini pigs in a blanket, tortilla roll-ups, chex mix, deviled football eggs and summer sausage/cheese/crackers. Chive sprigs were used to make the laces on the eggs (thank you Pinterest!).

Drinks included beer, cherry limeade, Bloody Mary's and bottled water. I busted out the mason jars, of course, and they made the perfect glass for the Bloodys.

The cupcakes were homemade and oh-my-delicious (thanks to my cousin who gives Betty Crocker some serious competition). White and chocolate cake with butter cream frosting.

I may or may not have spent almost an entire day baking and frosting these damn things. I may or may not have forgotten the oil in the first batch I made. I may or may not have knocked over the cupcake stand on the day of party ruining several cupcakes.

Despite my challenges, the cupcakes were definitely not a failure. They were decadent. So mysteriously decadent that I've already had two people ask me what the secret to the recipe was.

DETAILS: Frosting made possible by a grass tip and disposable frosting bags (made by Wilton). Plastic football toppers purchased from Amazon. Custom diy paper pennant flags (glued to toothpicks) topped the mini cupcakes. Framed photo of Carson holding an "I'm ONE" sign (made with chalk board spray paint and scrap wood) accompanied the table.

Other football touches were scattered throughout the party and mostly made of paper and craft supplies.

  DETAILS: Welcome sign greeted guests at front door. Paper rolled inside mason jars for utensils. Plush footballs, paper confetti and personal touches for centerpiece on food table

I designed two personalized banners: one for the fireplace that read "Carson is One," and another that included all of of his monthly photos.

 DETAILS: Top banner is paper cut out and attached to twine. Bottom banner was hung using twine and clothespins.

I can't seem to throw a party without a favor, so I made these cute little hot cocoa cones, and attached football-inspired tags. The best part? I have a few leftover that I'm going to gift to Carson's teachers for Christmas.

 DETAILS: Cone bags and twist ties purchased here. Tutorial (and idea) found here.

The infamous smash cake. I didn't want to make my own, and I didn't want to spend a fortune.

So, I purchased this 5-inch bad boy at Price Chopper for $5 and used my own cake embellishments.

 DETAILS: Pennant banner was made using skewer sticks, paper twine and super glue. For the candle, I printed the one on cardstock (in the "varsity" font as all other details), and then hot glued it to the basic "1" candle you can pick up anywhere. 

Remember the hat I made for him to wear? Yeah...he wasn't having it, so the hat wasn't invited to the party. 

Here's how Carson and his smash cake met and how their relationship ended up.