April 23, 2015 by: Michelle

Monster High Party – Cami’s 6th Birthday!

SIX. Can you even believe it?! This year Cami chose a Monster High themed party since that is her absolute favorite right now! I had so much fun with this theme using a black, white, hot pink and aqua color scheme along with some major pattern mixing. This was her first all girls party, plus they were all her age so to say they had a blast would be an understatement!

First off, isn’t her tee THE cutest ever?! Rachel from *golden* made her custom tee and yes she hand cuts and sews everything herself – eeek!! I love how she incorporated the 6 in there along with glitter; because glitter makes everything better, am I right?!

I adore the custom banners seen on the wall that Piggy Bank Parties made for her party – the detail is amazing and they look perfect! They even sent me the bow garland as a surprise and it was PERFECT!! I made the fabric garland that is draped underneath the bow garland. I’ve been making those garlands since Cami was three and I hadn’t made one in a while so thought it would be a fun touch! I’m obsessed with the fabric pennant banner and sparkly black star banner that is seen across the front of the table handmade by Amy of Pearl and Jane. It’s soo pretty and I love how it sparkles! As you can tell, I really like banners! 🙂

I didn’t go overboard with the sweets this year. My friend made the adorable cake that I simply added some sixlets around. Paige from Polka Dot Bakery made the cutest matching cupcakes and I dressed them up using cupcake toppers I bought on etsy. The cookies. I can’t even begin to describe these totally amazing cookies hand painted by Sandy of Firefly Confections. Her talent is pure genius and I can’t even think of words to express how amazing these are!

The light up “PARTY” DIY Marquee Letters are from Heidi Swapp’s line at Michael’s which if you follow me on Instagram, you know are my new favorite thing!! The lights are battery operated and the options are endless when it comes to decorating the letters! SO fun! My sister is a florist so she made the gorgeous flower arrangements and I also decorated some of the areas using Cami’s favorite Monster High Dolls.

One of my favorite things are the Monster High Dolls we gave away as party favors. I was on the hunt for them months before to find them on clearance/sale so it didn’t break the bank and all the girls LOVED them! They were all so excited to take one home and for many of them, it was their first one! I didn’t spend much more than I would have on a typical goodie bag that let’s be honest, is normally full of junk.

I also loved the Monster High Student ID Name cards I found on etsy. I had them printed on a removeable sticker paper so they could wear them around like ID Badges 🙂 So fun! Thanks for listening to me ramble – now on to the pretty pictures! I hope you find something that inspires you for your next party!

It was such a great day! I hired an amazing face painter, per Cami’s request and we played several games – the Mummy wrap game with toilet paper was a hit! Happy 6th Birthday to our pride and joy! <3

Vendor Credits:

Styling/Fabric Garland: Ellery Designs

Cami’s Handmade Shirt: *Golden*

Cami is Six Banner, Arrow Banner + Bow Banner: Piggy Bank Parties

Pennant Banner and Star Banner: Pearl & Jane

“PARTY” Marquee Letters: Heidi Swapp for Michael’s

Cookies: Firefly Confections

Cupcakes: Polka Dot Bakery

Cupcake Toppers: Cake Topper Chic

Water Bottle Wraps: Built 4 Kids

Student ID Name Cards: Angie’s Announcements

February 17, 2015 by: Michelle

Our Finished Basement – Gray, Yellow + Turquoise

Today I’m sharing with you our newly finished basement. (Not really new anymore – it’s been almost two years but I finally made time to finish this post!) I LOVE decorating, especially a brand new space. We’ve lived in our home for 8.5 years now so it was nice to be able to decorate using my new favorite styles and colors. The rest of our home is very traditional and modern with a little country feel and the basement is modern and bright!

My wonderful hubby did an amazing job – he did everything himself (minus the carpet!) A big shout-out to his Dad for helping him frame it, as well as with some of the electrical work.

I have to admit, when I decorate, I typically have all the decor purchased before it was even done. Most people think I’m crazy b/c you don’t know how it’s going to look or if it’ll work but most of the time I love how it turns out. I had a few things that I ended up taking back that I didn’t end up liking but normally I have a vision and just go with it! I only buy things I LOVE and want to look at every day – not just things to fill up a space. The only thing I didn’t pick out were the three door panels seen on the back wall – Ryan picked those out at Kirkland’s and are one of my favorite pieces 🙂 And how about those distressed gray and white table + chairs set I scored at our local flea market last Fall? Obsessed.

I also love a good deal – everything I got at Hobby Lobby was either 50% off or from the clearance section. All of the light gray vases and pieces came as a set with our furniture. As did the lamps, that were originally brown but Ryan spray painted them my favorite yellow color by Rust Oleum – “Marigold”. Totally love them! And yes, we even bought them knowing we were going to spray them since we didn’t like any of the ones to choose from. Spray paint is our friend! 🙂 My hubby alsomade the two sconces seen on the sides of the TV using the old hand rail that used to lead us to the unfinished basement. How cool! He spray painted them, did a little distressing and added a chevron fabric behind them and made them into candle sconces. So fun!

I just love our bathroom – we bought the tile from Menards and I love how it looks like a wood floor. Wish my whole house had this floor! One of my favorite spots is the built in niche. My sister (who is a floral designer) helped me make the flower arrangement – again, we bought everything at Hobby Lobby 50% off to make it. Totally obsessed with their burlap flower selection! So fun!

That brown wicker chair has been sitting in our bedroom for over a year just taking up space, plus it didn’t even match. We used to have it in my office but when we re-did that last year it didn’t fit anymore but voila! Works perfectly for the basement! As you can tell, I’m a pillow lover – most of them are from Target or Pier One. You can never have too many! I used to have an issue with mixing colors, especially grays and browns but I really love how the brown accents, such as the end tables, look with the gray. If anyone is interested our paint color is Fieldstone by Pittsburgh Paints. It kind of photographs with a blue-ish tone but it really is a true gray. Just wish it looked more gray but especially at night, it doesn’t always look gray. Oh well. Win some, lose some. Gray is a tough one! Once Ryan put all of the trim and doors up it did look a little bit more blue than I was wanting but what are you gonna do? 🙂

So what do you think? I hope you like it! Everyone has their own style but I’m obsessed with turquoise and yellow combo this past year so just went with it! It makes me so happy walking down the stairs and seeing this bright and cheery space that we can now enjoy!

“Where did you get that?” Helpful sources below.
“What I Love Most About My Home…” Free Printable: Eighteen25

Grateful, Thankful, Blessed Yellow Sign: Mann Made Designs

God is Good Always: The Sign Cafe
“Choose Joy” Sign: Evie Ivy
Every Child is an Artist Sign: Barn Owl Primatives
The Knox Family Est. Sign: Signs by Lucas

Wood Sconce Mason Jar Wall Vases (in bathroom): Old New Again
Ball Jar Flower Print in Bathroom: The Wheatfield by Katie Daisy
“Life is Fragile, Handle With Prayer” Printable: Brightsides Designs
“Enjoy the Little Things” + “Do More What Makes You Happy” Signs: Ott Creatives
Long White Ribba Picture Ledges + TV Stand Table: IKEA
Turquoise Flower Petal Pillows, Distressed Yellow Frame seen in Niche: Pier One
Gray and Yellow Pillows, Small White Ledges in Bathroom, Yellow and Turquoise Glossy Frames seen on Ledges in Living Room, 3 White Square Mirrors and Turquoise Bathroom Waste Basket: Target
Materials to make Flower Arrangement on Niche, Owl on Niche, Aqua/Gray Chevron Tray, Letter “K” and ceramic birds in bathroom, yellow distressed chunky mirror seen on Ledge in Living Room: Hobby Lobby
3 Door/Window Panels seen on back wall: Kirklands
Bath Towels + Rug: Kohls

February 5, 2015 by: Michelle

EOS Lip Balm Smooth Sailing Valentine’s – Free Printable

Hi friends! So, I’m obsessed with EOS Lip Balm and it seems to be everyone’s new favorite thing. Am I right? Download this free printable to pass out to your EOS loving friends this Valentine’s Day. EOS = Evolution of Smooth so my mind went crazy with ideas and “smooth sailing” came to mind. Fun, right?! Great for tweens and teens, too – as it gets a little harder to come up with something fun. I hope you enjoy and share with your friends!

Simply click on the below image, then right click on it and choose ‘Save Image As’ and save to your computer and print yourself right from home or send to a local professional printer to have printed. I recommend using a card stock and you can even matte it using a another color to glam it up. Happy Crafting! 🙂

January 30, 2015 by: Michelle

Heidi Swapp Marquee Letters

Happy Friday! If you follow me on Instagram you know how much fun I had with these yesterday. A few weeks ago, I was at Michael’s buying some glitter paper and I saw Heidi Swapp‘s new marquee letter line and I instantly knew I had to get them! So many colors, options and styles to choose from!

We are currently working on redecorating our home office to go along with our new branding so figured these would be perfect! Black, Gold and Hot Pink make my heart smile! So fun and happy. I decided to spell out Party, plus I can reuse them for my daughter’s upcoming birthday and switch out the gold with aqua. I just love how they turned out and can’t wait to make more!

Check out the fun video below I posted on Instagram of the process. Heidi herself even reposted this to her page and I can’t tell you how happy that made me! Thank you, Heidi! Hopefully this space is done in a few weeks because I can’t wait to show you the full makeover!

http://instagram.com/p/ycgjbnDZpp/?modal=true

January 9, 2015 by: Michelle

2015 Valentine’s Day Photo Cards

Happy Friday! I whipped up a few new Valentine’s Day Photo Cards for 2015. So cute + fun, and there’s something for everyone! They are marked down to only $12 for the digital printable file in my etsy shop so don’t miss out! Which is your favorite?! As always, feel free to share, comment, or pin. XOXO

January 5, 2015 by: Michelle

Dining Room Remodel – Pallet Wall + Floating Shelves

First things first, Happy New Year friends! Secondly, oh my gosh you guys I’m obsessed with my new dining room wall! Last month, I showed my husband a few photos I found on Pinterest of these floating shelves I liked by Shanty 2 Chic that they made for a bathroom. I originally told him I wanted two long shelves to go in the dining room. That’s when he suggested doing a barn wood wall and putting the shelves on that instead. I have to admit I wasn’t totally sold on the idea but let him run with it and now I can say I’m totally obsessed!

He tore apart wood pallets he already had (gotta love free things) and got started. First, he pencil outlined the ‘square’ to make sure it was all level and marked where the studs were. He outlined the edges using the thickest pieces and filled in the rest. It turned out amazing! The total size of the pallet wood section is 70×78.

He made the shelves using oak, and stained them using Varathane wood stain in Espresso. The shelves were the easiest part – he made them under an hour. Each shelf is 3 ft long and 6.5 inches deep and 4.75 tall. We bought all of the material at our local Menards and the entire wall cost us under $150. Here are a few poor quality iPhone photos to show you the process….

After he hung everything, it was time to decorate! {Yay!} I had most of the things already around my house that I moved around but we added the wine rack and burlap sign I found at my home away from home, Target. I found the glass chalkboard jars in the Target dollar aisle and had some fun with those. I’ll blog about my cupcake liner jar another time, it was so simple and a fun addition! I played around with the layout of everything and probably moved things around 50 times before I was happy. 🙂

I have to say I can’t get enough of our new space and just keep staring at it. It’s hard to tell in these photos but it’s huge! It makes the room look so much bigger! My husband did an amazing job – his craftsmanship is incredible. We hope you love it and are inspired to make your own pallet wall + floating shelves. I love how it kind of looks like barn wood but it’s not. I’ve seen a few barn wood walls where they do the entire wall so when he had this idea, I was a little hesitant. Now I know to just trust him and go with it! Feel free to share with your friends, pin or leave us a comment 🙂 We hope you enjoy!

{Wine Rack: Target}

{“Life is a Kitchen” Free Printable by Pen ‘N Paperflowers inside white Hobby Lobby frame. White Sweater Vase from Crate & Barrel, Burlap flower from Hobby Lobby, Burlap “Swell place to gather” sign and succulent from Target.}

{I used cork fillers from Target to fill the $3 Target jar with a $1 aisle chalkboard sticker. Bless Your Heart sign from Hobby Lobby.}

Linking up to: I Heart Naptime

Here’s a little before and after to give you a better picture of the size and difference it makes to the room.

November 12, 2014 by: Michelle

Ellery Designs – OUR new name!

You guys! I’m beyond excited to show you our new website!! Isn’t it pretty?! In case you missed it, I shared on Instagram a few weeks ago that we recently rebranded and renamed our business to better reflect who we are and what we do. When I first started I DO invitations by michelle in 2008, my main focus was creating wedding invitations and now six years later it has evolved into so much more! That’s when ELLERY was formed. MichELLE + RYan = Ellery. We are still the same shop, just a new name + new look. I really love it and truly hope you do too!

If you’re new here, let me tell you a bit more. 🙂 I (Michelle) specialize in creating stylish invitations and announcements for all of life’s proudest moments – from weddings and baptisms to birthdays and holidays and everything else in between! Ryan, my hard-working hubby, is the creator of our popular handmade signs seen at parties across the web. You’ll probably notice the name Cami around here quite often – she is our beautiful, funny and energetic daughter who lights up our life and inspires us daily.

A big huge thank you to Pretty Darn Cute Design for making our new site all come to life. Lindsey creates the most gorgeous wordpress themes and her assistant Susan helped me with every single question along the way. Thank you Susan, you are truly amazing at what you do and SO speedy. I think we exchanged over a hundred emails and she was so sweet every single time.

I think that’s it for now. Take a look around and let me know what you think! We hope you love it! Oh, and it’s only FIVE weeks until Christmas! Can you believe it?! Check out the 2014 holiday photo card collection in our etsy shop where you can purchase the digital file or printed cards. Take 15% off your order using code THANKYOU at checkout.

We will be posting A LOT more often here, too so be sure to favorite our page so you don’t miss our new posts!

XOXO, Michelle

April 22, 2014 by: Michelle

Cami’s Rainbow Dash {My Little Pony} 5th Birthday Party

It was no contest what Cami wanted her party theme to be this year – a Rainbow Dash party! Her room is full of My Little Pony’s – I know more about each of the ponies than I would care to admit. I loved the idea – plus rainbow parties are my favorite so the planning began! Since her actual birthday fell on Easter this year, we decided to do a separate kids party for her this year.

It all started with the invitation I designed, read all about that here. Bright traditional Rainbow Dash colors along with some glittery gold accents. Thanks to the ridiculously talented vendors listed below for helping make my vision all come to life. You guys are amazing, and I am your biggest fan. So inspiring. ALL of you. At the end of this post I have links to every shop – so be sure to check them out.

The first thing I ordered for her party was the Happy Birthday Cami banner seen on the wall behind the dessert table by the talented Piggy Bank Parties. You must check out their shop – amazing favor boxes and handmade signs that are super affordable, too! In the dining room, I used festive wrapping paper to cover up the frames on the wall. Such a cheap and easy decorating staple. A last minute addition were the mini banners draped on each frame. The “Elements of Harmony” are six supernatural artifacts representing subjective aspects of harmony – one for each of the six main ponies. Rainbow Dash is loyalty, for example. Cami’s adorable {and comfy} dress came from Palm Tree Princess on etsy.

I made the festive heart banner using gold doilies from Shop Sweet Lulu. I bought glitter card stock from Hobby Lobby and cut out small hearts to place in the center, punched some holes, strung some ribbon and voila! The prettiest little heart banner you ever did see! 😉 Dina from Deliciously Darling knocked it out of the park with her gorgeous paper flower wreath and the cloud/heart rain drop decorations. She’s probably my #1 party girl crush – her parties are always chock full of the most insanely creative details. My friend Kristin of Threading Marigolds 2 on etsy made the rainbow fabric pom poms I pinned to the front of the dessert table. They were perfect and I just loved her idea of using gold ribbon 🙂

I decorated my two side windows using colorful tissue fringe garland from Petite Party Studio. Cami and I also made the rainbow wands using rainbow printables from Love the Day. See the tutorial on how we made those here. While we were at Party City ordering her balloons, I saw the rainbow chocolate coins seen in the glass container and couldn’t pass them up. I made the glittery gold number five and added some ribbon and a heart b/c it just needed something! 🙂 Ryan made the wooden Cami “five” sign. She was so excited her daddy made her a special sign! 🙂 The Hip Hip Hooray sign displayed on the back of the dessert table was just perfect from Jenny of Evie Ivy. She also made the rainbow “Camryn” sign just for Cami and it was such a wonderful surprise!

Lets talk about the sweets. I mean really. Sandy from Firefly Confections made the delicious rainbow cookies. Perfection, I say. I adore this lady so much, can’t really explain it. So sweet and so talented. The cupcakes are one of my favorites b/c they are just so pretty with rainbow fondant toppers by the amazing Brittany of Edible Details and glittery paper rainbow toppers from Kristy of The Purple Pug. Aren’t they beautiful? Her glitter skills are out of this world. Little masterpieces I tell ya. My sister made the rainbow jello cups – which was her first and last time – ha! They turned out so great but very time consuming.

My friend Ann made the mini rainbow heart cookies that we wrapped up so everyone could take home. Paige from Polka Dot Bakery made the delicious rainbow cake and cake pops. I am pretty much obsessed with the glittery floral cake topper I bought from Paper Treats on etsy. The cake pops were so cute with the rainbow heart skewers and gold sprinkles!

I bought the cute rainbow plastic milk bottles from The TomKat Studio and filled with bubbles for simple favors. We added some My Little Pony stickers on the lids and some ribbon and gold hearts around the front. I hired a face painter, who was fantastic and the kiddos enjoyed, we played pin the cutie mark on Pinkie Pie, and Cami’s request – a pinata! Of course, the biggest hit was the bounce-house slide.

Enjoy the photos below – my sister and I took turns taking them so you’ll notice hers are better than mine! I do like the shot I got though of Cami and my sister taking a selfie 😉 Enough talking…hope you enjoy and leave with a dash of inspiration!

Oh how I love that sweet, happy face. Happy 5th Birthday Cami!! We love you SO much! A huge thank you to our family for their help and to the amazing vendors below for making this all come to life! XOXO

Vendor Links

Styling + Invitations: I DO invitations by michelle

Cami’s Dress: Palm Tree Princess

Rainbow “5” Cookies: Firefly Confections
Cake + Cake Pops: Polka Dot Bakery
Cake Topper: Paper Treats
Heart Cake Pop Skewers: The Bakers Confections
Rainbow Fondant Toppers: Edible Details
Glitter Rainbow Cupcake Toppers + Sparkle Sacks: The Purple Pug
Flower Wreath + Cloud/Heart Rain Drop Decor: Deliciously Darling
Happy Birthday Cami Banner and
Mini “Elements of Harmony” Banners: Piggy Bank Parties

Rainbow Printables (used on wands): Love the Day

Fabric Poms w/ Glittery Gold Ribbon: Threading Marigolds 2

Rainbow Table Runner: A to Zebra Celebrations

Mini Milk Bottles w/ Rainbow Lids (Used for Bubble Favors): The TomKat Studio
Gold Heart Doilies, Gold Glitter Stickers, Cupcake Liners: Shop Sweet Lulu
Tissue Fringe Garland: Petite Party Studio
Goil Foil “Be Strong” Print : Lindsay Letters
Chalkboard Favorite Things Printable: Pink Poppy Designs
Hip Hip Hooray + Camryn Rainbow Signs: Evie IvyLinking Up:

March 19, 2014 by: Michelle

New Personalized Railroad Crossing Train Sign

I’m so excited about this! We had a client contact us who ordered one of our Sesame Street inspired signs last year that was looking for a train themed sign for her son’s birthday this year. I talked with my hubby and he created the perfect sign! The lights he made are just perfect!

You can purchase this sign in my shop! If “Thomas the Train blue” isn’t what you’re looking for just message me and we can do a different paint color! What do you think? So awesome for your train loving child. I know train parties are so popular right now and I think these would be the perfect addition to your party!

March 12, 2014 by: Michelle

Cami’s 5th Birthday Invitation – Rainbow Dash

Since pretty much last year, Cami’s wanted a Rainbow Dash party for her next birthday. She’s in LOVE with My Little Pony. I don’t do character invitations so every year when she seems to want a character themed party it always gets a little tricky for me. I snapped some shots of her holding her favorite Rainbow Dash Build-A-Bear and that set the tone for the invitation. {I’m sure you know by now but I’m a big fan of using a photo on birthday invites!} I’m using the traditional rainbow colors to decorate and adding in some gold glittery accents along with some hearts. I really love how this turned out.

You can purchase this invite in my etsy shop! Here are a few more shots that didn’t make the invitation but I can’t help but share 🙂 She’s even lost two bottom teeth since taking these photos! We are getting SO excited for her party next month. Seriously cannot believe my baby is going to be FIVE. XOXO