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31 May |
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10:04 am Posted by Kristy |
Summertime brings forth the birthday party invitations to pool parties, pirate beach parties, rollerskating parties, and other kinds of action-packed, warm weather themes. It’s best to keep these parties short in duration before kids tire and become prone to injury, tears and whining. Another approach may be to host a low-key summertime party.
We’ve taken a fresh look at some classic kids summertime birthday party ideas that are lower in intensity and less physical. We like these for their fit with the relaxed, laid back atmosphere that kids enjoy with warm weather.
New Summer Themes for Your Birthday Party Invitations
The Almost Camp-out
Imitating the similarly named ‘Almost Sleepover,’ this works great for 6-9 year olds who just aren’t ready to sleep away from home–never mind outside! The best features of the Almost Camp-out resemble the real thing. The important difference is that kids don’t actually spend the night in the tent, but go home to sleep. Have all the fun without fears and tears from snapping branches and animal howls…
- Whittle sticks
- Face paint GI-Joe/Navy Seal style
- Grill hotdogs & roast marshmallows
- Pitch tents
- Take kids snipe-hunting (night-time hike for a fictitious creature)
You decide which classic campout-inspired activities your age group would enjoy!
Drive-in Movie
This is not literally a “drive-in” (unless you’re really ambitious/creative and make cardboard box cars!) It’s more about bringing a favorite indoor past-time outside.
- Go BIG: Rent an outdoor projector, inflatable screen and popcorn machine from a local or national source like www.Funflicks.com.
- Be THRIFTY: Borrow the projector, fasten a bed sheet between two trees or poles, make your own popcorn and spread out blankets.
Include fun details like rolling out a red carpet to direct guests to your outdoor cinema, make your own movie ticket stubs, and post a sign with the name of your feature film. You’ll need to be able to count on zero rain and minimal wind, but this party works just as well indoors on a wall or ceiling.
Carnival
A classic kid favorite, this party theme will require more party planning and legwork to make sure you have enough games and prizes to keep things moving along. The classic games are simple:
- Beanbag and ring toss
- Face painting
- Tattoo parlor
- Fortune telling
Make plenty of award tickets for carnival players to cash in for prizes (candy, rubber balls, whistles, etc.) You’ll also need some helping hands to run your games and booths. Neighborhood teens who like kids and are willing to volunteer are ideal, but you could sweeten the deal for them with free ice cream or movie passes too.
Find your fun, fresh birthday party invitations from the constantly growing collection at www.LookLoveSend.com. You’ll find a wide variety of styles and themes to create birthday invitations that can be personalized the way you want. Our own in-house printing on premium quality papers will make sure your invitations print flawlessly!
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30 May |
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2:34 am Posted by Kristy |
Among the many wedding day events and activities to plan, the bridal brunch remains a time-honored centerpiece. Organized either by the Maid of Honor or friends of the Mother of the Bride, the intimate brunch serves a nervous bride and her frenzied mother in 3 important ways:
- Creates order to the day. The scheduled activity and social distraction help smooth the bride’s nerves and those of her mom. The brunch gives the open space before salon appointments and photography some structure, and provides nourishment during a day when thinking about eating may be a challenge!
- Keeps bridesmaids on time. Getting the entire bridal party into a single location at a specific time is no easy feat, especially if you have a bridesmaids coming from out-of-town locations. A brunch can help ensure everyone will be on time for their salon appointments. It also helps coordinate necessary transportation among out-of-town bridesmaids.
- Provides a neutral setting for the bride to thank her bridesmaids. In addition to giving her bridesmaids their gifts during the brunch, the bride may also want to share her individual relationship with each bridesmaid with the larger group. One great way to do this is with a slide show or a video montage. Set to music, it is a fun for all to see well-chosen photos of the bride and each of her bridesmaids from childhood, school years, college, or even their own weddings that the bride participated in.
Consisting mostly of just the bride and her bridal party, a bridal brunch can be held at a restaurant, but ideally is done in the comfort of someone’s private home. One good reason for a home-based brunch is it’s likely the group will be without make-up prior to their appointments. Add in late-night arrivals from out-of-towners, the rehearsal dinner, post-rehearsal parties, and bleary-eyed bridesmaids are likely to appreciate the privacy of someone’s home over a public setting!
You’ll find a gorgeous selection of wedding invitations online at www.LookLoveSend.com to use a a template for your bridal brunch. Coordinate the design with the rest of the wedding invitation suite, or choose a wedding invitation design that stands on it’s own. Either way, you’ll find a wide selection of styles that you can quickly and easily customize with your brunch information, including personalization with a photo.
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27 May |
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10:20 pm Posted by Nicola |
- Want your wedding guests to be extra excited when they receive your wedding invitation? Add a note that a gourmet food truck will be visiting your reception site. The hot trend of food trucks has moved into the wedding space, with many couples choosing to save money and help small businesses by booking a food truck for their special day.
- photo credit: Chelsey Boatwright Photography
Who: Adventurous modern couples hire food trucks.
- When: While some couples hire food trucks in place of a buffet or sit-down meal, others hire the truck to occupy guests between the ceremony and reception (that hour-or-so-filler-while-the-wedding-party-poses-for-photos-time). Another option is to hire the truck to provide refreshments as your guests leave as a combination novelty snack and wedding favor.
Where: Surprisingly, finding a parking spot for your wedding food truck may be your biggest obstacle. Many receptions sites that function as hotels may not have a prime parking spot available during your event, but this detail must be pre-arranged prior to the event with support of your wedding planner or location staff.
Why: Couples choose to hire a food truck because the concept is original and fresh. Food trucks also offer a great opportunity to showcase personal tastes or the flavor of local food specialties.
How: Checkout roaminghunger.com to find and track food truck options in most major cities. Use the site’s interactive map to find a truck you can visit for a tasting and possible booking for your special day. Search online for food truck festivals in your area for the best chance to sample multiple dining options on wheels.
Food trucks are fun. Whether you choose Roxie’s Grilled Cheese, Lobsta Love, Franca’s Wood Fired Pizza, or the The Whoo(pie) Wagon (all spectacular New England area food trucks), there is something for everyone and a food truck is sure to make your wedding one to remember. For equally unique wedding stationery, including wedding invitations, save the date cards, programs and coordinating wedding thank you cards, checkout the growing selection of fantastic designs at LookLoveSend.com. Enter our monthly sweepstakes for a chance to win $500 of wedding stationery. Good luck!!
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25 May |
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9:22 pm Posted by Kristy |
Memorial Day has arrived! This holiday weekend kicks off the summer season for cookouts and gatherings in all regions of the country. Many of us will gather informally with friends and family. Others plan to attend events where bringing a hostess gift is in order.
If you expect a few party invitations to come your way this summer season and want to make a gracious impression, be ready with a few unique summertime party hostess gifts. We’ve found a few great ideas to share now, plus you can follow us on Pinterest for more gift ideas that work for all kinds of special occasions. We’re always shopping!
Ice Cream Scoop
Pair a gourmet pint of ice-cream with an ice-cream parlor-style scoop. The stainless steel version that softens ice cream from the heat your hand creates work the best. Keep the cleaning instructions attached–putting them in the dishwasher can wreck them.
Candle Lantern
Decorative, hinged-door lanterns are all the rage. Bring your hostess a lantern in the season’s latest colors–aqua, tangerine, white–to infuse her outdoor space with the special combination the rustic metal and elegant candle glow create!
Corkcicle
From the purveyors of really original, crafty gift ideas, Uncommon Goods has a cork with an extended icicle that keeps white wine chilled. Pair it with one of their wine bottle holders that stakes into the lawn, and you’ve got a unique summer party hostess gift.
If you’re the party hostess and are shopping for party invitations rather than hostess gifts, check the unique designs of party invitation online at www.LookLoveSend.com. All our invitations are original designs created by real artists. You can easily and quickly personalize your favorite party invitations with your own text and photo image. LookLoveSend prints all invitations with coordinating envelopes on premium quality paper and card stock. When you order more than 50 you’ll enjoy free shipping, and approved orders ship the next business day.
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24 May |
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9:36 am Posted by Kristy |
This is just a little reminder to grab 20% off on any order of your personalized special occasion stationery while it lasts. Sign up on www.Facebook.com/LookLoveSend now through May 31, 2012. Enjoy free shipping when you order more than 50!
Click here or on the pink icon above to sign up!
Choose from our many styles of designs for wedding invitations, birth announcement cards, party invites, and much more.
Unlimited Design Styles & Custom Options
You won’t find our unique designs anywhere else. Shop quickly by event, theme, color or even card shape. Customize your invitations online easily with a few clicks. Upload a photo, change your color palette, choose your preferred type style and select a paper texture. Add additional patterns or text to the backside or inside (for folded type cards) and personalize them even more using our ‘special instructions’ box.
First-Class Quality
All our cards print on premium quality papers that give them substantial weight and feel luxurious to the touch. Coordinating envelopes can be printed with a return address and envelope liners for a high-class, finished look. Our customer service professionals always make sure your order is printed to your 100% satisfaction. With custom orders, you will receive a digital proof to approve first before we print.
Pride in Our Work
Unlike other big-name stationery websites, we don’t ship your order off somewhere else to be printed. We handle it start to finish. We use our own state-of-the-art digital printing presses, and our pre-press quality controls makes sure your order prints crisply and perfectly. If you are unhappy with any aspect, we’ll take it back and reprint it for you. Our goal is always your 100% satisfaction. No exceptions.
Don’t miss out! Sign up today and find out for yourself how easy it is to customize affordable, high quality invitations and announcement.
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23 May |
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9:39 pm Posted by Kristy |
Every mom does stationery differently. We’ve got the monogrammed set from the wedding, our own personalized note cards with just our name, and the family stationery we keep on hand for all occasions, usable by anyone in the family.
But don’t leave out your kids! As the children grow and become more independent and better writers, they’ll need their own stationery and thank you cards. Letter-writing may seem like a quaint relic of the past, save for sleep-away summer camp, but kids still have occasions that demand thank you notes. Birthday presents, holiday and other special occasion gifts come to mind.
The style of stationery you choose for yourself and your children is, of course, entirely up to you. We like the idea of letting your children’s stationery grow as they do, so we’ve made some suggestions for different styles of thank you note cards to use at different ages:
"Parade Dump Trucks" at www.thepolkadotprincess.com
Fill-in-the-blank Thank You Cards
Perfect for the youngest writers just forming letters or sounding out their spelling. Pre-schoolers and Kindergarteners will enjoy practicing writing the gift giver’s name, the item that was given, and signing their own name. These cards are so easy, and sources like The PolkaDot Princess have so many adorable designs you can customize with your child’s initials or name.
Funky Photo Thanks by www.LookLoveSend.com
Personalized Note Cards
For the elementary-age school kids, personalize note cards using the child’s name first name printed in an artful font in a color they choose. Additional design isn’t really necessary, but you could further personalize the cards by adding a photo.
Monogrammed Stationery
For older children, stationery with their full and proper three-initial monogrammed is a nice way to bring them into young adulthood. A single first-name initial also makes for a more sophisticated monogram, but is better reserved for more personal, intimate correspondence than would be appropriate for thank you cards in general.
Find your own fabulous thank you cards as well as thank you notes for children at www.LookLoveSend.com. We have many designs to choose from, all which can be personalized however you’d like. Don’t shy away from considering our gorgeous wedding collections for a design that works for you. We’ll work with your to get it just right, and you can count on quality printing and fast turnaround.
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22 May |
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10:54 am Posted by Kristy |
Many more betrothed couples today are older, more financially independent, and paying their own way, or at least a substantial portion. They do not want to start their life together in debt over their nuptials. Furthermore, they see the logic in investing that money in something else, such as for a down payment on a home. One of the best ways to manage your wedding budget is to stick to a firm headcount.
Others would rather splurge on another aspect of their wedding that means more to them. A live band, top-notch catering, open bar–whatever the expense a couple thinks will make their special day more memorable may be more important than the number of wedding invitations that go out. For them, less is more!
4 Ways to Reduce the Number of Wedding Invitations
So what are some of the best ways to shrink your wedding guest list, or at the very least make it easier to manage?
- Destination Wedding. Going out of town automatically shortens the guest list. Not everyone will want to receive a wedding invitation if a destination is simply out of their own budget. Think Hawaii, the Caribbean, Italy. More savings can come to you when you choose a location that doubles as your honeymoon–no additional travel expenses!
- Small Venue. Some of the most unique venues won’t hold more than 100 guests, or even less. A country inn, a restaurant, a local landmark or even a private home are typical smaller venues. Seeking out intimate venues is a good strategy to force you (and involved parents!) to choose accordingly.
- Off-peak Timing. If getting out of town or selecting a small venue simply aren’t doable, most wedding venues charge less for an event during the week or in an off-season. You could also enjoy other savings from other vendors who might also charge less for during off-peak times.
- Reception-only Event. One last option is to separate the timing of your wedding ceremony and party. Popular with older couples or second marriages, only the closest friends or just family attend the ceremony. Plan a later, separate party. The small ceremony simplifies things (decorations, flowers, wedding party, or printed ceremony programs) and spreads out your cash flow.
Once you’ve devised your strategy for a manageable wedding guest list, shop for fabulous yet affordable wedding invitations from www.LookLoveSend.com. Every wedding invitation design has coordinating components, such as save the date cards, reception cards, menus, ceremony programs and more. Shipping is free when you order more than 50 invitations, and don’t miss out on entering our Wedding Sweepstakes for the chance to win $500 towards your choice of invitations!
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21 May |
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10:26 am Posted by Kristy |
Stay tuned to the ‘New Featured Design’ that we are posting every other week. We want to keep you on top of all the fabulous designs you’ll find for creating stylish, custom party invitations online. Our artists are constantly refreshing their collections, so we don’t want you to miss something new. For weddings, baby showers and announcements, birthday parties and more, LookLoveSend has something perfect for your special occasion.
Inspired Artists
Our talented artists draw on inspirations from all around them to create unique, stylish invitations and announcements. Their talent and experience with hand illustration, watercolor painting, ceramics, sculpture, and many other fundamental art skills give our designs an authentic quality not found on some other big-name websites. Inspired by natural surroundings in every region of the country, you will find an impressive variety of styles blending contemporary tastes with classic motifs. The best part is how you can make a design your own with a few clicks on many custom options.
Custom Options
Many designs come in multiple color options, and you can customize your favorite design with a different type style or photo image. With just a few clicks, you can choose your preferred paper texture–smooth matte, glossy finish or textured felt–and add a coordinating pattern to the backside of your invitation or announcement for a custom look. Customizing and placing your order is easy to do.
Quality Printing and Service
LookLoveSend makes sure our designs print crisply and flawlessly on premium quality paper stock. We use our own in-house, state-of-the-art digital printing presses and high quality inks. Seasoned customer service professionals review orders carefully and contact you if they have a question or see a problem. They are available to you when you need help or have questions, and your order won’t print if you have to first approve a digital proof.
Start your special event off right with a stylish, quality invitation or announcement from the best online source for your money. Don’t miss our newest custom stationery designs. Visit this blog every day for information, advice and ideas for planning your next event. We are here to help!
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20 May |
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10:39 pm Posted by Nicola |
- We all know the rules for baby and wedding thank you cards– handwrite, send two weeks after receiving your gift, and mention the gift in your personalized words of thanks. But what about when you receive a collaborative gift from a group of friends, family workers or colleagues? The team at LookLoveSend has researched the top etiquette sources to find the rules for the group gift thank you.
- If fewer than 10 people chipped in for your group gift, send a handwritten thank you card to each of them.
'Modern Strips' by Sandra Roth
- If a group of more than 10 people contributed, such as an office or church group, write a communal thank you card and post it in a visible location. Then remember to thank the contributors individually when you next see them. Another nice gesture would be to leave some baked goods by your thank you card as a token of your appreciation for the group. The exception to this guideline is if members of your group always send individual cards for group gifts – if this is the case you may want to stick with tradition and write a card for each gift giver.
- If the card accompanying a group gift is signed ‘from the group/team/club’ it’s OK to send a group thank you note.
- Don’t mention the fact that it was a group gift in your thank you note – just say ‘thank you for (gift)’ instead of ‘thank you for contributing to (gift)’.
- If you are writing individual thank you cards but you aren’t too close with any of the gift-givers, it is acceptable to use the same wording on each of the thank you cards.
Whether you are writing one or many thank you cards, checkout the diverse collection of easy customizable designs at LookLoveSend.com. Whether you prefer a simple monogrammed card or a brightly colored design, we have a card for everyone. Stock up as orders over 50 always ship for free!
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17 May |
Retro Bridal Shower Starts with Vintage Wedding Shower Invitations |
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9:32 pm Posted by Kristy |
Vintage Bridal Luncheon by Lauren Poole
Vintage. Retro. Mid-century. These labels reveal that the tastes and style of a bygone era are still quite alive. And their presence in the wedding world confirms a widespread appeal. Maybe we feel we’ve progressed a safe enough distance from the social upheaval of those times to enjoy the charm and comfort of uber-homemaking.
Hosting a retro wedding shower is the perfect place to tap into the the sentiment and charm of the mid-century era. Have a little fun with outdated traditional roles, and play up the happy homemaker with gifts that remain central to today’s wedding registries.
Go Vintage with Wedding Shower Invitations
Start with vintage wedding shower invitations like the one featured above. You can include a description of the theme when you personalize the wedding shower invitations. One great idea would be to fire up your guests with copies of the now infamous Good Wife’s Guide, published in 1955. It’s a great ice-breaker, but you can also put it to good (and fun) use.
Inside each wedding shower invitation, assign each guest one of the 18 bullet-point tips from the Good Wife’s Guide to use in their gift buying. If you haven’t yet seen this circulated on your own email box, here are some excerpts, along with suggested gift ideas:
“Have dinner ready…This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal (especially his favorite dish) is part of the warm welcome needed.”
- Crockpot
- Serving tray
- Buffet server
“Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair, and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.”
- Vintage silver-plated brush and mirror set for the dresser
- Pampering accessories such as eye-covers, heating pad or bath salts
You get the idea. This list of tips goes on and gets steadily, hilariously worse. There are many great wedding gift ideas to pair with each point, many which remain useful to modern day brides (and their soon-to-be-spouses too!) Think blenders, ironing boards, vacuums, house-cleaning products, and more.
To find your perfect retro or vintage style wedding shower invitations, look at the collection at www.looklovesend.com. Invitations are printed on your choice of paper textures and you can personalize your text and upload images for certain designs. You may order in quantities as few as ten, but orders greater than 50 ship free.
