{real invitations} audrey is a classic!

October is my favorite month all year! I love all the beautiful changes--the Autumn colors, the crisp air, the donning of warmer clothing and the harvest of amazing foods. It is also a month filled with celebrations in our home--our wedding anniversary, my father-in-law's birthday, my dear-departed daddy's birthday, my mom's birthday, Trunk or Treat (our church's Halloween celebration) and Halloween.

My mom, Audrey, will be celebrating her 80th birthday this year. She is AMAZING! Her kids--Dorothy, Nora, J and I--wanted to plan a special birthday celebration. Mom's response, "It only comes around once. I'm not sure I can make it around a second time!" So...the planning began!

My mom's birthday is October 28th--right before Halloween--so we decided to celebrate the following weekend. Next, we needed to determine how big the soiree would be. The fellowship hall at my family's church in Michigan was booked so the celebration will take place at my mom's house. To accommodate the guest list, we are planning to have an Open House.

After throwing around a number of themes, we decided on "Audrey is a Classic!" The jewel tones of fall will be our color palette including purple which is my mom's favorite color. I sent Dorothy on the hunt for pictures while I formulated the invitation in my head. Here's what I designed...

{the invitation}

I wanted to convey the feeling of Autumn leaves swirling in the wind. I used a font that not only "swirled" but looked like Audrey had actually signed her photograph. J designed the falling leaves for a client's wedding stationery two weeks ago and this is the third design I've used them for. {Love them!}

The black and white photograph's colors were changed to sepia tones and J created a "textured" picture frame. After many design layouts, I finally decided to "frame" the invitation with flourishes and lines. The important details were highlighted with a deep purple script font and embellished with leaves.

{the insert}

The invitation and insert were printed on Ivory linen cardstock. The invitation was backed with Chocolate cardstock and the set was inserted into a Poppy envelope. I created an address label design with similar artwork and printed them on white full sheet labels. {Yes, the labels were originally white...not kraft colored!} I then scored the labels and wrapped them around the envelope.

{the envelope}

{the return address}

Hank's Hint: Have an envelope that is folded incorrectly or warped? Want to use a dark envelope but you don't have an opaque pen? "All-in-One" labels--shown above--are an easy and stylish way to address envelopes.

{the assembly line: invitations}

{the assembly line: inserts}

{the assembly line: envelopes}

{the "classic" stamp}

I will keep you "posted" on all the planning details. Stay tuned to Oink! for more inspiration...