Baby Ladybug

Oooohhhh! I am so excited about these announcements!

Awhile back I was encouraged by my friend Emma (okay, so I’m calling her my agent now – joking of course, well…not really) to approach Aly, the director of Becoming Parents Program (where I work), about creating her baby announcements. Aly was expecting a little baby girl, and had been calling her “ladybug” during her pregnancy. I thought the nickname was completely adorable, and I was inspired to design an announcement for Aly before she even said “yes” to my offer.

I found these incredibly sweet and delicate, hand-painted ladybug buttons at a fabric store, and knew immediately that they had to be incorporated into the design. It also just so happened that a “ladybug” print (actually these cute little flowers made to look like ladybugs) came from out of nowhere and instantly became the envelope liner. I finished off the look with some “baker’s twine” and voila! Baby ladybug – June Elizabeth’s birth will be officially announced!

Congratulations Aly and Allie! Really excited for you (and Sam too!).

Look Whoooo Part Two

Maili’s baby shower was here! Yes it came and it went, but boy (yes, pun intended!), was it a blast. Not only did I have a great time visiting with some of my old friends from UW, but also I loved playing games, watching Maili open adorable baby gifts, eating AMAZING food (good job Kate and Emma!), and most of all just laughing. This group of gals sure knows how to have a good time, and Maili’s baby shower was no exception. I had a fantastic afternoon with good friends.

As a means of continuing the owl invitation theme, Emma asked me to create a “wish book” for Maili so that everyone at the baby shower could sign the book and give their well wishes to Maili, Brian and new baby Luke. I loved making this little book and hope to get the chance to make another one soon. Yay for babies!

A New Addition

Our good friends Brendan and Steph are expecting their second child this summer and I couldn’t be happier for them. This past weekend Adam and I drove down to Portland to attend a baby shower to celebrate their new addition, and we had such a great time!

Brendan and Steph do not know whether they are having a baby girl or boy yet (yay for a baby girl!), so I decided to use some pink AND blue wrapping paper to wrap their gift, and personalized it with their last name, “Murphy.”  I found some super fun “fuzzy” letters to include, that seemed to just make the gift pop! No pun intended Steph : )

We had a wonderful time playing games, sharing possible baby names, visiting, chalking the sidewalk with adorable Eamon (Brendan and Steph’s son) and eating great food with fabulous friends. I cannot wait to meet new baby Murphy! Congratulations Brendan and Steph! I’m so thrilled for you!

Look Whoooo!

I was so excited to get the opportunity to create Maili’s baby shower invitations. I worked with Maili during my time at UW Medical Center and I adore her! I actually saw her last weekend and she has to be one of the most beautiful pregnant woman I have ever seen – she was glowing!

Emma and Kate (hostesses of the event) were in the process of searching for invitations when Emma suggested that I make the invites rather than her and Kate purchasing them offline. I jumped at the opportunity especially since Emma and Kate were kind enough to give me creative liberties, only requesting that there be a few shades of blue in the design; AND I had never made a baby shower invitation before.

I have always wanted to do something with owls (they are so cool!), and while searching through baby shower invitation wordings online, I came across the adorable idea of stating “look whoooo’s expecting” as the opening statement on the invite. The statement turned out to be the perfect tie-in to my owl design.

The owls came to fruition through hours of cutting out different shapes to create my own owl “ideal”.  I wanted there to be a mamma owl and baby owl, and as I started the process of cutting all the tiny little pieces by hand I thought, “there has to be a better way to do this!” I checked out a few paper shops in Seattle, and came across circle punches that were the perfect size for the owls eyes. As for the rest of the design it is all from scratch and hand cut. I had so much fun making these invites!

I hope you love them as much as I do, Maili! Congratulations my friend, you are going to be an amazing mommy!