Tuesday Tip - How to customize party printables in word

I thought I would start sharing quick tips that I find useful in the party world - aka. Tuesday Tip.

There are a lot of party printables floating around on the internet. They are a great way to customize and have fun with party planning. I always like to customize my printables, and do so in Photoshop. But here is a quick little demo on how you can customize your party printables with text in Microsoft Word...

1. Open your pdf printable in it's default program - Adobe Acrobat. If you printable is already a .jpeg or .jpg file, you can skip down to step #3.

2. Click "Save As" (found under "File"). Under the "Save As" window choose JPEG under the "Save as Type".

3. Quit out of Acrobat and head on over to Microsoft Word. Open a new "blank document". Under "Page Layout" make sure your page orientation is correct. For the printable I am using I need my page to be in the Landscape format.

4. Under "Insert" select "Picture". Select your new .jpeg printable as your picture to insert.

5. Now that your printable is on your word document, there are still a few more steps. Right click on your printable, scroll down to "Text Wrapping" and select "Behind Text". This allows you to type over the picture.

6. Right click on your printable again and select "Size...". In the size window make sure the Height and Width are both at 100%.

7. Select your printable by clicking on it. While your printable is selected, at the top of your screen select "Align" and scroll down and click "Align Center". Do the same thing again, except click on "Align Middle".

8. Now your printable is the correct size, in the middle of your page, and can easily be typed over for customization!

Type out your text and position it around with the enter key and space bar. It might take some work to get it in perfect position, but it's worth it in the end.

(and yes... Word does seem to think my daughter's name is spelled wrong.)

You can find the printable used in this demo here,

Let me know if there are any other tips you would like to see on Tuesday Tip! 

almost the weekend...

Check out my recent posts over at One Charming Party:

Add some wave to your next cupcake flag

Did someone say Gelato?

Party Trend - the Mustache

I love the mustache trend that has swept over parties everywhere. There is something classically funny about seeing friends and relatives don an absurdly large fake mustache.

Here is some lovely ways to include mustaches in your next party -

1 - Dazzle Expressions

2 - Say Hello

3 - Bake It Pretty

4 - Artisans Crafts

5 - Parkers Flour Patch

6  - The Manic Moose

Did you know...

...that scrapbook supplies can be a great place for supplies and inspiration when planning a party?

You can find a lot of the cutest coordinating scrapbooking supplies at any craft store. Some even come with little die cut images and tags - which are great for favors, cupcake toppers, and so much more!

also... did you know...

we just moved this past weekend.

So, I've had a lot going on.

Thank you for visiting my blog!

I've got a lot of fun stuff planned in the near future.

So, stay tuned!

Pretty Ribbon Flags

These little ribbon flags are great for so many different uses! If you are like me, you can use up those old scraps of ribbon or fabric that you've been stashing away just because they are too pretty to throw out. 

Have a variety of colors for your guests to choose from as a way to keep track of their drink through out the evening.

Have a vintage themed party and use some scraps found at your favorite antique store.

Match the colors to your child's birthday party and have some cheap, easy, yet gorgeous cupcake toppers mixed in with the themed circle printable toppers.

Like I said... too many uses. And, they are as easy to put together as 1, 2, 3...

All you will need:

lollipop sticks

ribbon or fabric scraps

Your ribbon or fabric can be all sorts of shapes and sizes. All you need to do is loop your ribbon around the lollipop stick (like shown in the diagram above). Give the ribbon a nice tight tug at the end and you are ready to use!

DIY scalloped cupcake stand

I've seen these adorable DIY cupcake stands around on various blogs. While, I love it just plain white, I wanted to add a sweet little scallop around my stands.

What you will need:

1 inch circle punch

scrapbook paper

3 inch wooden circle

3 inch wooden candle stick holder

white paint

glue gun

scissors

Glue the wooden candle stick holder in the center of the wooden circle. Allow it to dry, then paint all over with the white paint. While your cupcake stand is drying, punch 5 circles and cut them all in half. Once the cupcake stand is dry, simply glue the half circles around your cupcake stand - creating a dainty scalloped edge!

color inspiration - pink, coral, orange & and hint of cobalt

1 - little happy things 1

2 - Confetti Sunshine

3 - Carta, Inc.

4 - Minted

5 - Bake it Pretty

6 - Sweet Style

Garden Party - painted pot

Terracotta pots are a great for a garden party!

Let the children have fun painting their pot with acrylic paint. Then help the kids plant a plant or seed in their pots and have them take it home as a party favor.

A perfect ending to a perfectly fun garden party!

Garden Party - DIY pinwheel

Pinwheels look good in any garden, and kids love to watch them spin around. So why not have the children at your garden party make their own pinwheels?

All you need is:

lollipop stick - Confetti Sunshine

candy apple stick - Confetti Sunshine

4 inch square piece of paper

hole punch

hot glue gun (adults - you got to do this part)

Directions:

1 - cut your lollipop stick 1 1/2 inches from the top (I gently used a wire cutter). Cut about 2 inches diagonally into all four corners of your paper.

2 - Punch a hole into four of the corners of your paper and into the center.

3 - Line up the punched holes in your paper to create the pinwheel. Thread the shortened lollipop stick through the holes. Without catching any of the paper, glue the end of the lollipop stick to the top of the candy apple stick with the hot glue gun.

Garden Party - garden snack

This week at the Confetti Sunshine blog we are having a Garden Party! Come back all week for more party inspiration!

A Garden Party is a great way to try and get kids interested in eating more fruits and vegetables. I love seeing my daughter be excited when it comes to healthy food, so I was delighted when she was eagerly awaiting to dig into this awesome lunch.

If you do plant some of your plants in pots, bring them in to create a fun and garden-like center piece for your table!

I served:

lemonade

whole carrots

bagels with garden spread cream cheese

apples

cucumbers and carrots with dip

green stripe straws - Confetti Sunshine

push up pops - Confetti Sunshine

I added some variety in the lunch by not only serving fruits and vegetables, but by coming up with clever solutions to still keep to the theme, such as the lemonade and bagels with garden spread cream cheese.

The cucumbers, carrots with ranch dip all popped in the a push up pop was a huge success with the kids. Who says vegetables can't be fun?

Garden Party - invitation tag printable

This week at the Confetti Sunshine blog we are having a Garden Party! Come back all week for more party inspiration!

I did this party as a little play date, so I didn't need invitations, but I did make up these cute tags that could be used as invitations or as tags for favors.

I dressed them up with a little twine and small (2 3/4" x 3 3/4") stamped glassine bags.

click the picture below to download the tags.

The downloadable freebies in this article (and across my entire site) are free for personal use only. If you would like to blog about this free download, please accompany any images from my site with a credit and link back to this article.

DIY Sombrero Pinata

Every Cinco De Mayo celebration needs a sombrero! Be creative this year by making these personal sombrero pinatas as party favors or place settings.

What you will need:

Balloon

Dinner plate

Saran wrap

Colorful paper

Glue

1 inch hole punch

Party fringe

Twine

Start by cutting your paper into 1 1/2 inch squares. Wrap your dinner plate in the saran wrap. In a separate dish water down your glue to 1 part glue and 2 parts water. Dip your paper squares into the water and glue mixture and place them on your plate. Cover your entire plate with the paper. Repeat the process again until you have two layers of paper on your plate.

Do the same with your balloon, except only cover the top half of the balloon. When you are done with two layers of paper, you can add 1 inch paper circles for decoration.

Let your pinata pieces dry overnight. Once they are dry, take the brim of the hat off of your plate and punch a hole on either side. Pop the balloon to get the top of your hat off.

Glue the party fringe around the brim of your sombrero. Let it dry.

String some twine through the two hole punches on the brim of the hat. Glue the twine in place. Fill the top of the hat with candy.

Glue the top of the hat to the brim. Let it dry.

Have your guests pull the string to break the pinata and get the candy!

Cinco De Mayo chili pepper favors

Make these adorable little chili pepper favors for your Cinco De Mayo celebration!

What you will need:

red crepe paper

green floral tape

candy

Cut out a 10 inch circle out of the red crepe paper. Cut your circle into fourths.

Roll and glue one of the pieces of crepe paper into a cone shape. Fill it half full with candy.

Gather the top of your crepe paper cone and wrap the floral tape to create a crepe pepper and stem.

make a bunch to fill a bowl for your guests to enjoy through out your Cinco De Mayo party!

DIY papel picado inspired cupcake toppers

Its May! Time to start thinking about all the warm weather holidays and activities. First off - is Cinco De Mayo! These papel picado inspired cupcake toppers are super easy to make and a great festive topper for any Cinco De Mayo party food!

What you will need:

Colorful paper

Lollipop sticks

Martha Stewart Diamond Rings Pattern Punch

Scalloped and straight scissors

glue stick

Fold your paper in half. Use the pattern punch and punch the paper 1/2 inch from the fold. Trim on either side of your topper with your straight scissors. Then, using the scalloped scissors, trim the end of the flag. 

Glue the flag on to a lollipop stick using a glue stick. 

These are such fun little food flags or drink stirs. I love papel picado banners, so I was excited to come up with such a fun look-a-like! Enjoy!