Family Tradition | an Ornament Advent Calendar

Hi friends- today I'm sharing a special family tradition post on the Land of Nod's blog- it's our ornament advent calendar.  I'd also love to hear about your unique family traditions if you'd like to share in the comments.

Click over to Honest to Nod for the complete post.

A Joyful No Sew Holiday Banner

Felt message banners are such a fun and easy way to add some joy (or love, or peace, or cheer…) to your home this holiday season. You can make them in endless festive color pairings and trace the letters in any font you like. I did my banner lettering freehand to save time and add a bit of extra character. Here’s how to make your own:

images © cake. | events + design

Supplies
- 2 sheets of contrasting colored felt
- thin wood dowel, at least 2 inches longer than your banner
- Baking twine or yarn
- No sew hem tape (w/ iron) or hot glue gun
- Ruler
- Pencil or chalk

Directions
1. Create your base felt.  Use a ruler and mark the center of your felt at the lowest point you want your angle. Then mark both sides of the felt about 3” up, forming a triangle at the base. Trim from center to the edges.
2. Line the top of your base felt with hem tape and fold over about 1 inch from the top, leaving a gap to slide a dowel through. Iron/Glue and press firmly into place for a strong hold. Slide your dowel in place, leaving an 1” extra on each side.
3. Measure your lettering felt on top of the base to ensure your letters will fit within the space. Either freehand sketch/trim your block letters, or use a paper cut program like Silhouette create templates in your favorite font. Trace them onto your lettering felt and trim out.
4. Line the back of your letters with hem tape or hot glue, and place on to the backing felt.
5. Cut a length of your twine or yarn and tie to each end of the dowel. Hang and you're done!

Our Minted Holiday Photo Cards

Using Minted for our family holiday cards has become a bit of a tradition the past few years and they never disappoint. Minted is headquartered here in San Francisco, and I love supporting their community of independent designers.

Our family always does a photo card and the options are endless- with lots of ways to tailor them to your personal style.  As you can see, I'm a fan of rounded corners and kraft paper envelopes, and I'm pretty sure all you metallic lovers will get on board with the gold foil stamping.

I also learned a new trick I wanted to share with you guys... if you upload your family photo first, just click the 'find it fast' button and you can see your photo placed in each different option to know at a glance what looks best. Very cool timesaver.

This year I was super excited to try the new Minted Envelope service and they turned out better than I could have hoped. You can choose from a bunch of beautiful envelope designs and for a limited time, the recipient addressing is FREE!

It it so easy you guys. All I had to do was export my google address book into Minted's template and upload to the site. I picked out this simple greenery graphic that coordinates with our cards and now all I need to do is stamp and send.  I'm telling you- your biggest holiday card challenge is going to be how to choose your favorite design!

images © cake. | events + design

This post was sponsored in part by Minted, but my good opinion of their products is all my own. 

Season to Sparkle | The Party Hop - Day 5

As the week comes to a close, so does our Season to Sparkle.  So last, but totally not least I bring you our final 3 party hop projects.

Whatever Dee Dee Wants glitters up the partyware...

Squirrelly Minds DiYs the fun on the holiday napkins...

and KoJo Designs sparkly favor bags will definitely send guests off in style!

I hope you've enjoyed sharing in the holiday inspiration this week.  Do you have a favorite project?  Thanks so much to Sara for bringing this fun and stylish event to life!  We'd love for you to share + pin your favorites with the hashtag #thepartyhop.

For more from the Season to Sparkle party hop series, click here.

Season to Sparkle | The Party Hop - Day 4

Lucky you! Another day of fabulous holiday crafts!  Hop on over to these blogs and get all the deets:

Bump Smitten is rocking the giant balloon fringe...

Paisley Petal Events topping her cupcakes with the cutest glitter bows...

and Modge Podge Rocks is hanging the holiday garland...

For more from the Season to Sparkle party hop series, click here.

Season to Sparkle | The Party Hop - Day 3

Are you having fun yet?  Hope you enjoyed yesterday's projects! Today we're sharing even more holiday goodness, starting right here with a mouthwatering turtle recipe from lgrollins...

You-Make-Do is livening up the cocktails with these sweet drink stirrers...

and Me And My Insanity is prettying up her party hats...

For more from the Season to Sparkle party hop series, click here.

Season to Sparkle | DiY Sequin Holiday Wreath

Welcome back to the Season to Sparkle party hop.  Today I'm sharing my DiY tutorial for a sparkling sequin wreath... So shiny! So colorful!  This thing gives off some serious holiday bling.

Now in theory it's super easy to make. So easy a four year old can do it.  But I'm going to tell it to you guys straight... this is a time consuming project.  It took about 4-5 evenings of sequin pinning to get it finished. I even enlisted my daughter Caitlin's help because her nimble little hands made her the perfect assistant.  Yes, for a while there I was afraid I was running a sequin sweat shop, but she promised she was having fun. The whole time she just kept saying with awe "it is SO beautiful mommy!".  Sequins will do that to a four year old (and some of us grownups too I guess).

Supplies:

- standard sequins in a variety of colors and sizes

- sequin pins (plan for 2-3 packages of 500)

- foam wreath

- satin ribbon for hanging

Directions:
1. Pick a spot on the foam wreath and begin pinning your sequins. There's no rhyme or reason to it, but I recommend working out from a single spot and covering the front area first, then working your way around to the back.

2. When you're satisfied with the amount you've covered, loop your satin ribbon around the top of the wreath and tie a simple bow. That's it!

Tip: The larger the sequins the faster the process will go, but make sure your pins are large enough for the hole in the larger sequins. Otherwise they'll just keep falling off. I learned this the hard way and ended up using sewing straight pins for some of the larger ones.

Okay, so you ready for more?  You bet!

The Frog Prince Paperie is sharing these fun fringe cupcake toppers...

And Confetti Sunshine is crafting up some sequin filled envelopes...

Come back tomorrow for more... there's may be something sweet in it for you.

For more from the Season to Sparkle party hop series, click here.

Season to Sparkle | The Party Hop

I know it's been a while since I've posted, so let me make it up to you with something really special this week... my friends, get ready to party hop!

To help inspire your holiday party planning, I've joined Sara of Confetti Sunshine and a team of talented creative bloggers to bring you the 'Season to Sparkle'. Cheerful color meets modern design in this glitzy party setting and I love everything about it.

There are loads of shiny happy DiYs planned throughout the week, but first a shout out to Tiny Prints who joined us to sponsor this event and provided some great ideas of their own.  Just look at this clear acrylic serving tray... I want one on my coffee table stat.

Be sure to stop by throughout the week to find out how to bring this party theme to life.  Tomorrow I'll be sharing my tutorial for that super sparkly sequin wreath, and more!  

#thepartyhop holiday bloggers:  Confetti Sunshine  // Frog Prince Paperie // LGRollins // You-Make-Do // Me and My Insanity // Bump Smitten // Paisley Petal Events // Mod Podge Rocks // Whatever Dee Dee Wants // Squirrelly Minds // Kojo-Designs //  
 
The following Tiny Prints items were featured in the Season to Sparkle:

pillow // invitations // custom gift wrap // tray // easel art

For more from the Season to Sparkle party hop series, click here.

Bing Cherry Cobbler Bars

Looking for the perfect dessert to bring to a Fourth of July party this weekend?

These cobbler bars. Do it.

See below for the recipe, and have a happy 4th!

images © cake. | events + design

Bing Cherry Cobbler Bars
recipe adapted from here

makes about 24 bars

Ingredients
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour (I substituted 1c for wheat flour)
1 cup cold unsalted butter (2 sticks)
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon salt
zest + juice of one lemon
1/2 cup white sugar
4 teaspoons cornstarch
4 cups fresh cherries

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan.
2. Remove all cherry stems & pits (I used a pitter) and cut cherries into quarters or chop into small pieces.
3. In a medium bowl or a stand mixer, mix together 1 cup sugar, 3 cups flour, and baking powder. Mix in salt and lemon zest.
4.Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter and egg. Dough will be crumbly. Pat half of dough down into the prepared pan.
5. In another bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently mix in the cherries. Sprinkle the cherry mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble remaining dough over the cherry layer.
6. Bake for 45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Allow to cool on counter for 30 min, then place in the fridge to cool for an additional 1-2 hours before cutting into squares.

Pixie Party | Fairy Birthday Invitation

Oh, Hi! Remember me? I used to blog here regularly once upon a time. Not surprisingly, things have been more chaotic in my world since little Teddy was born. Between the late night feedings, toddler wrangling (that's a thing, right?) and long hours at my day job, I haven't had much time to spend on new creative projects, least of all something pinterest perfect.

Caitlin's fourth birthday is coming up in June though, and I've been having fun gathering inspiration for a small and simple pixie party.  Just a few friends from school, a fresh color palette + some crafts. And cake of course. There will always be cake.

A new party theme means I also have a new invite ready for the shop. Caitlin loves her some Disney fairies, but luckily she's still impressionable enough that I was able to create more of a Tinkerbell-esque style design without her pitching a fit.  You know I love a more clean + modern approach so I'm pretty happy about this one... how about you?

images © cake. | events + design

Click here to purchase invites. More fun + inspiration to come this summer after the party so stay tuned. In the meantime, if you need any coordinating printables, just ask!  

Over the Moon | Birth Announcements

Today our baby boy Theo is a month and a half old. The part of me that's sleep deprived can't wait for the next few months to fly by so we can get back on more of a schedule, but as a mommy I'm in awe of how quickly time is passing and how big he is already.  As in like 12+lbs big...eek.  I'm so glad I have my phone nearby to snap quick pictures because it's pretty crazy to watch the changes happening overnight.

I finally understand how second babies tend to get neglected in the memories department- my hands are so full between him and my daughter that stopping to record the milestones can be such a challenge.  Honestly I haven't been quick to accomplish much since he was born, but I have to give myself credit for remembering order his baby announcements.  

I had such a positive response over the Minted cards we sent out at the holidays that I already knew I would be ordering from them again. I instantly fell for this design... it's such a sweet, simple style and I keep telling people that we're 'over the moon' about Theo's arrival.

I've said it before, but one of my very favorite things about Minted is all the options they offer for customization.  I ordered rounded corners on the cards, kraft paper envelopes and best of all... coordinating return address stickers with a personal message.

So cute right?  I'm just so glad to have something with his stats and a good photo to hang onto, even if I never do get around to making a baby book. Here's the original picture I used for the card... boy oh boy do I love this little bundle.

images © cake. | events + design

This post was sponsored in part by Minted, but my good opinion of their products is all my own. Images are for personal use only.  If sharing them on your site, please link directly to this post.

Free Printable | Valentines Teacher Gift Tags

Yes, this is a totally last minute post.  Last minute... as in, I just thought of this yesterday when I saw these super cute potted violets at Trader Joes.  And yes, you could easily DiY your own little heart pots too if you happen to have a little more time on your hands. (like maybe next year?)

I put together some non-edible valentines for Caitlin's preschool classmates earlier this week and realized it would be nice to bring in a little something for her teachers too. After deciding on the flowers, I made some coordinating labels and thought I'd offer them up for your enjoyment... you know, because I love you guys.  The link is below. Happy Valentines day!

images © cake. | events + design

Bonus... check out last year's pencil Valentines printables here.

These printables and images are ©CAKE Creative Co. and are for personal use only. If sharing them on your site, please credit CAKE. events blog and link directly to this post.

Creating a Shared Room for Brother + Sister

A few weeks ago we welcomed the newest member of our family!  Baby Theo (short for Theodore ... aka Teddy), was born on January 6th, weighing in at just under 9 pounds. We're over the moon. He's cute as can be, and actually looks a lot like his big sister Caitlin did when she was born. I've been posting pics to instagram occasionally if you want to take a peek.

When I started my Maternity leave over the holidays, I realized I still needed to think through how I was going to handle our living space with a new baby in the mix.  We currently rent a small two bedroom apartment, so room sharing is a must.  Our plan is to keep Theo in our room until he's old enough to sleep through the night, but it won't be long before he'll be moving in with Caitlin.

I've loved Caitlin's room since designing it as a nursery before she was born (you can see the old room pictures here), but I wanted to update the space to something more gender neutral and functional for both a baby and active pre-schooler.

While searching for crib bedding, I found my inspiration in the Beaucoup de Fraises crib bedding set from The Land of Nod.  The sheet has a sweet, gender neutral vintage pattern, and the navy blue in the quilt adds a friendly touch of 'boy' to the original aqua, pink and yellow color palette.

In order to make space for both a crib and a twin bed, we had to move out the dresser and changing station into our bedroom, but this opened up room for an additional bookcase.  It was originally a dark wood color, but I painted it white with a cheerful pop of yellow on the backing.  It's great added storage for books and toys.  Caitlin's bed has a pale pink quilt cover, so I added a navy and white striped throw to tie it together with the crib bedding.

With Theo being a winter baby, I thought it would be fitting to add some woodland details to his side of the room.  Earthquake safety is an issue in California, so I created a gallery area in the space above the toy chest, and left the wall above his crib simple- just a wooden 'hello' sign purchased from Oh Dier on etsy and a handmade owl mobile gifted to us by a friend.  The large fox print and ceramic reindeer were more great finds from the Land of Nod. The print is titled 'Theodore Collects Firewood' and designed by blogger Ez Pudewa at Creature Comforts. When I saw it I knew it would make a special addition.

I designed the 'B is for Baby' print myself and it's available as a download in my etsy shop with custom color options also available.  The remainder of the artwork and items you see in the room are things we already owned, some of which are even handed down from my own childhood.

images © cake. | events + design

If you're having a similar challenge designing a space for two genders or ages, I highly recommend using simple accents of color for a fun and cohesive space. Trying to divide up the space up can often make the room smaller, so instead think about using eccletic mix of gender neutral decor and toys.  If you're on a budget, scour your home for found objects and consider adding paint to make old items new again.

This post was sponsored in part by Land of Nod, but this post & my good opinion of their products is all my own.  Images are for personal use only.  If sharing them on your site, please link directly to this post.