First Birthday Banner and Cake Topper

No, I haven't been a crafting dynamo lately.  But in an effort to bring a little life to my blog, I've dusted off some never-before-posted projects and I'm now trotting them out to make you think I've actually been doing something.

I haven't.

My daughter asked me to make a cake topper for her daughter's first birthday.  Or maybe I volunteered. I'm pretty sure I insisted she let me make a Happy Birthday banner whether she wanted one or not. I know she would have loved to make all her own decorations (she's much craftier than me!), but she has a full-time job and two toddlers, whereas I'm a stay-at-home grand/mother who needs a purpose in life beyond cleaning up after able-bodied teenagers, so I enjoy an opportunity to make something fun that will actually be used and appreciated.  

I wish I had been able to get a better picture of the window, but my photo skills are seriously lacking. But you get the idea.  The giant pompoms and purple streamers in the window were made by my daughter (probably while two little cuties were pulling at the crepe paper and trying to undo all her hard work).

The banner was made using the Cricut cartridges Creative Memories-Tiny Treasures (butterfly, ladybug, bird, elephant and "1st") and Birthday Cakes (letters).  The letters were placed on simple rectangles I cut with my paper trimmer.  (Another horrible picture.  When my ship comes in I hope there's a professional photographer on board.)

I stitched a simple banner for the cake topper, then made some matching pompoms using a variety of fabrics.  I wasn't sure I liked the color combination, so I tried again with softer shades of purple.  I let my daughter choose her favorite (which turned out to be the first ones!)

And this was my reward--spending time with my two precious grandchildren, who live much too far away:

My adorable granddaughter wasn't a big fan of the cake, which seemed to perplex her equally-adorable brother.

Oh, and they don't live in a tropical climate, far removed from the cold weather and snow currently sweeping across the country.  This party actually took place in August.  I'm that slow.