Birthday Invitations

I have been having so much fun making invitations for a friend's daughter (Kristen) and grandson (Bentley).  It's Bentley's first birthday and his mom ask if I would be able to help her with the invitations.  She wanted something unique for his special day. She explained they were going to have a pool party and as I was getting ready to leave the next day for a trip to PA, I told her I would be thinking about a design.    I found a rubber stamp that had a little chair and umbrella and that gave me an idea and so I stamped it on a scrap of paper and stuck it in my sketch book.

My friend, Cheri, is having a pool built in her yard and that will be the pool for her grandson's party!  I hope they plan more parties, as I don't have one, pool that is,  and would love to cool my toes in a pool with a glass of wine on hot summer nights! But I regress!  Back to the invitation! As I flew across the country this little sketch appeared on my page. I was especially excited about the little duck . . .

After a quick text for her thoughts and she said she loved it, the redrawing began on watercolor paper.  I think I did a pretty good job drawing it the second time and had a blast painting in all of the little boy colors.  I took the wording off of the picture to place it directly on the invitation.

Once Cheri and Kristen approved the final picture I photographed it and completed the wording and now we have a finished invitation for a very special little boy's birthday party.

At one he may not remember the party, but he'll always have the stories shared by family and friends and an invite in his baby book.

It's a real thrill for me to have made his invite. So many of my sketches just stay in my sketchbook, it's fun to share  And here's the final invitation shown with back and front of the envelopes.  I stamped and colored in a little party hat and a cupcake as a finishing touch. And guess what - we have an invite to the party!  Yes, I will be in that pool soon!!!!!