A Colorful Letterpress Invitation For My Son's Third Birthday!
Surf’s Up!
Throwing a birthday party for a little one is always an adventure, but when it came to my son’s third birthday, the excitement reached new heights. This year, he knew what celebrating a birthday entailed, and was way more involved than previous years. We embraced the summer season’s sunny, carefree vibes for this special occasion with a "Surf’s Up!" theme. From the moment we began planning, it was about capturing that quintessential SoCal surf spirit. One of the highlights of this celebration for me was creating his invitations (as usual), which perfectly set the tone for the day.
The moment we settled on the "Surf’s Up!" theme, we envisioned a beach party filled with sand, sunshine, and splashes. (We did not envision the strong winds we had that day. Oh well!) The invitation needed to reflect this energy. Color plays a crucial role in evoking feelings and setting the mood. For his invitation, we chose four bold letterpress ink colors: a golden yellow, a rich magenta, a peachy orange, and a light ocean blue. I printed this on a pearl white card stock to echo the warm hues of a beach sunset and the spirit of surfing. We incorporated a fun, hand-lettered style typography to keep it playful, reflecting the spirit of a toddler's birthday.
To enhance the playful vibe, we included various summer icons that represented our theme - surfboard, beach ball, sunglasses, flower, sandcastle, sea star, palm tree, tube of sunscreen, sunset, seashell, little specs of sand and even a cute little wave. Each icon was strategically placed to balance the design while adding a touch of whimsy. The combination of colorful inks and vibrant illustrations made the invitation pop, ensuring it would be a keepsake for years to come. I had a blast creating this one and showing it to my son after each color was pressed. We were both thrilled with the end result!