1 2 3, 4 5 6, 7 8 9, 10 11 12 Ladybugs Came to the Ladybug Picnic

It was actually more like 35, but who am I to mess with a classic?!I always have so much fun planning Elle's birthday parties and this year was no exception! I try to do as much of it handmade as possible, so here you have it, the handmade bits from Elle's Ladybug Picnic party:

BNDesigns made some super cute invites! Elle's were a little different than these, they didn't have the circles on the background and were printed on crisp white linen paper with the moss green envelopes. She also made some matching thank you notes.

Lil Bug Clothing made this halter and short set. It's very well made, I am really happy with it. She even sent a scrap of the short material with it so that I could embroider/applique the ladybug on the top.

Mom and Dad have to get in on the party fun too and it was the only excuse I needed to pick up one of The Funky Felter's rings... a ladybug of course! She was so sweet to include a little red felted ball clippie as a freebie with my order, which Elle wore in her hair.

Not sure if this is technically handmade, but we got Doug's ladybug crossbones shirt from Cafe Press. This was the first year the kiddos did a little craft. I picked up some little bug jars with magnifying tops from Oriental Trading, the kids decorated them with stickers. We did a ladybug release and they took some home in their little jars (One of the party guests took the majority of the ladybugs home for their rose garden... in case you were wondering :))

You can't really see it in this picture, but I made picnic blankets (a yard and a half each of polar fleece), sewed ribbon on the back to tie them with when they're rolled up, and embroidered a ladybug on each one. I sent those home with the parents after the party.

Our favorite local bakery, Cakes by Carolynn made yummy cupcakes with piped ladybugs and you can also check out Elle's shoes in this picture that My Wee Feet custom made and liked so much that she carries them in her shop now.

I met the girls of Cloud Nine Design at a craft show I went to long before I started planning Elle's party and knew then that I had to figure out a way to incorporate their super cute bubble wands into the next party I planned. So I bought some handmade glass ladybug beads from Beauty with the Beads and Cloud Nine Designs incorporated them into these adorable bubble wands that we gave as favors.

I don't remember which online party supply site I bought the favor boxes from. I found some wooden ladybugs at JoAnns, wrote the kids names on the back with a white paint pen, Doug drilled holes in them for me so I could tie them to the boxes.

I got some clear screw top jars from a seller on Ebay and my Dad designed the labels for them. We have a great recipe for bubbles so I made a big batch divvied it up and waalaa!

Everyone seemed to have a good time at the picnic, and Elle hasn't stopped talking about it since, so I count it a success! Thank you all you wonderful handmade crafters you who helped make this a special celebration! Until next year...