DIY: Birthday

Recently, I've been on a little bit of a DIY kick.  Everything from decorating to parties to birthdays.  I like to say it's because I'm super creative and original.  However, I think the real reason is that the DIY options tend to be cheaper.  Either way, it's been fun, and at the end of the day, that's reason enough for me.

A couple weeks ago, I celebrated my Mr.'s 28th birthday.  This is one of the most holy of holidays in my mind because it is the day my partner was born.  Without getting too sappy, for those of you who know us, it's no secret that we are a team--best friends, lovers, co-conspirators, and soon-to-be parents.  YIKES!

Anyway, it was important to me to be able to do something extra special for his last birthday as a childless man, so I decided to go the DIY route.  

Here's what I did:

I was super inspired by Jordan's number-shaped envelope creation and decided it would be the perfect surprise for my Mr. on his birthday.  I wanted this birthday to be especially centered around the birthday boy, since it's probably the last birthday he'll ever have that won't be overshadowed by the birth of his child.  And since he had to be gone at work all day, I thought it would be wonderful to come home to a special surprise after a long hard day.  Plus, it gave me the time I needed to execute the plan.

A couple weeks before his birthday, I e-mailed all the family and friends I could think of asking for a special note for the birthday boy.  I think this is the first part of what made this project turn out so good:  don't be picky.  I sent requests for messages to all of his FB friends and every e-mail address I had of people who had been a part of his life in some form or fashion.  I didn't discriminate.  And the letters I got where unbelievable.  I got the most heartfelt messages from people who I had no idea had been so touched by my Mr.'s life.  They came out of the woodwork.  It was so unbelievable.

After all the messages came in, the next step was super simple:  print and stuff.  I used an assortment of different shaped envelopes I already had on hand because I'm nasty cheap thrifty.

  
Then came the fun part:  lay it out and tape it up!  I skipped the pre-planning and just went for it on the wall.  I suppose I could have made it a little better shaped if I'd taken the time to lay it out on the floor first, but I was feeling particularly cocky confident that day and just decided to jump in.

After a few finishing touches of a trail of balloons from the front door to the envelope wall and a little extra sparkle from some star garland, I couldn't have been more happy with the way it turned out!

 
The best part of the whole thing was how happy it made the birthday boy.  He was reading letters with a big smile on his face for days.

And at the end of the day, that's really the point of a birthday gift, right?  To let that special someone know just how happy you are that they were put on this earth, just for you to celebrate.

--MEL

P.S. Obviously this couldn't have been done without all the amazing friends and family who contributed.  Our endless thanks for the gift you gave us both.  xoxo