Balloon Banner

Our fabulous Aunt Dianne celebrated her 70th birthday a few weeks ago. I've had some birthday banner ideas I'd been wanting to experiment with, and this was the perfect opportunity. I envisioned large circles in vibrant colors with contrasting colors of grosgrain ribbon as the balloons, and bold letters spelling out Happy Birthday.

I was inspired by some glittery paper I had stashed in my craft supplies, and used my 2 inch circle punch for the balloon outlines.

I utilized my adhesive paper and Silhouette to make my own sticker lettering. It was incredibly easy, and I was delighted with how well it worked.

I played around with several of the colored ribbons and felt they overwhelmed the smaller circles.

Instead, I used my supply of baker's twine.

Next time, I think I'll make the circles significantly larger and experiment with the ribbon again. This size turned out better than I thought, and was the ideal size to mail.

I also had some fun decorating one of her gift bags with my balloon punch.

On another note, I have a quick follow up on my Valentine's Day post. I received two incredible valentines.

Valentine #1 - Sent by Rachel in Maryland. The inside says "Wool you be my valentine?" So clever!

Valentine #2 received from Anna in Tasmania, Australia. I was thrilled to receive an international valentine, and thought her use of hearts to create this scene was genius!

I loved the valentines I received, and can't wait to participate in next year's swap!