Papertrey's Fresh Alphabet

If you follow the Papertrey countdown, then you've seen Nichole's newest alphabet called Fresh Alphabet. I LOVE alphabet sets because I love to personalize cards and gifts with them. Being the *oh-so-fun* mom that I am, I'm throwing my girls and 4 of their friends a Valentine's Party....on Valentine's Day.......with a slumber party and all the fixings. Some parents are gonna owe me a rain check on a Valentine's date with my hubby.....big time!!

I wanted to start off the process by making some personalized invitations. The Fresh Alphabet was perfect!! I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to make in addition to the invites but I knew that I wanted everything to match and to be personalized. There's nothing better than receiving a card or gift item that has YOUR name on it. It makes you feel so special and I'm sure little girls love it even more!
I decided to stamp their name three times so that I could mass produce while I had the letters of the girls' names all spelled out. The Fresh Alphabet is so clean and simple, perfect for my project.

Tip: Since there are only one of each letter in this alphabet, I have a great tip for spelling out words/names. For the example above, I needed two letter *A*'s for Sarah. I simply started out by placing the *S* on the grid line block. Then I placed an *A*, then an *R*. I then removed the first letter *A* and placed it after the *R*, then placed the *H*. By placing that first letter *A* after the *S*, I was able to get the correct letter spacing that I needed. I then stamped the name Sarah, without the first letter *A*. I removed the *A* from the clear block and placed it on a smaller clear block and proceeded to stamp the missing *A*. Easy peasy!

I set my stamped names aside and went to work on the invitations. I used Nichole's Heart Prints stamp set to stamp out large hearts in Sweet Blush ink and small hearts in Aqua Mist ink. I then punched them out with the corresponding heart punches. LOVE the punches, and more should be in soon! Keep checking the website for availability.

Above are all my pieces and parts I need for my cards. I like to get everything cut and ready for mass production since I needed six total invitations. Check out that polka dot heart outline. It's from the Borders and Corners Hearts stamp set. I started fiddling and discovered that the stamped and punched hearts from the Heart Prints set mix and match with the Borders and Corners Hearts set. BONUS! I love to mix and match my sets. More bang for your buck, for sure!! For the circles, I used Papertrey's assorted circle and scallop circles in Vintage Cream and Aqua Mist. Ribbon is Aqua Mist and patterned paper is from October Afternoon.

Here's my finished invitations. They came together really quickly once I got into mass production mode. Look how the punched heart nests on top of the polka dot heart, cool huh? I used that same process to make coordinating envelopes. Wait 'til the party girls see these beauties in their mail box.

Above is a close up of the finished invites, complete with a *You're Invited* sentiment (from It's a Celebration set) above the names, a large pink sequin in front of the names and pretty Aqua Mist Swiss Dot ribbon.

I decided to make coordinating place cards for each girl to set at the dinner table. I'm giving the girls four options to choose from for dinner.....make your own pizzas, spaghetti and garlic bread, taco bar night, or all about the appetizers. They will place their vote when they RSVP to the party. Each girl will bring a food dish/item to contribute to the dinner. (I'm also having each party girl bring a $5 or less Valentine stuffed animal for a gift exchange)

For a party event, I decided to let each party girl make their own personalized Valentine bookmark. I have all of the supplies cut up and ready to assemble. Josey has instructed me to not take up too much time with stamping. Yes ma'am! The completed bookmark is for my librarian friend/mom of two of the party girls....I needed a sample. All the supplies will be adhered flat since they're doing bookmarks.

I'm also doing one more party favor for the girls to take home. I'm going to print a photo of the party girls the night of the party, using my Canon Selphy printer. Love that little machine!! While the girls are partying and watching a lovey-dovey, teeny bop movie, I'm going to assemble a cute, decorated frame for the girls to take home. They'll coordinate with all the colors I've used for my projects above.

One last thing...party decorations. Wal-Mart was setting up their Valentine aisle last weekend. Jordan and I were scoping out the fun colors. But then when I got home, I found this party article in an old issue of Better Homes and Gardens. Zoom in to read the quote:

So true and in my effort to go more *GREEN* this year, I decided that less is more. I'm going to get out my real dishes and glasses and let the girls just use them. I'll dig up lots of my wonderful Longaberger baskets and vintage tins and line them with pink tissue paper or cloth napkins. Jordan has volunteered to make hanging paper hearts and other fun decorations to place around the house.

We're going to have such a fun time! There's nothing that warms my heart more than seeing my girls having fun with their girlfriends.....all safe and sound under our own roof. I'll be sure to post more about the party in February. There's plenty of time, so I hope you consider throwing a fun party for your little kiddos....and don't forget the personalized invitations. You're kids will think you're A-OK!