Pirate Party Tutorial : The Invitations

I come from a family that likes to honor random holidays. You know the ones that no one really knows about, but are fun to celebrate anyways? Well my sister loves Flag Day (June 14th) and I love Talk Like A Pirate Day, which is September 19th. I really wanted to do a Pirate-inspired DIY in honor of this exciting day! Of course you can do this for a birthday, too :-) 

The first thing you need for a party are invitations. So I am going to show you how to make a treasure map invite! Here we go!

Supplies:
Off white paper or light antique paper
Printer
Computer (with a dash of computer savvy)
Pirate Font

Step One:
Open up your computers’ processing software (I used Word for Mac, but most any will do) and type up your parties info in a text box using a stylistic font. I used Blackmore LET that comes with the Mac or you can get this cool free pirate font at Dafont.com  I sized the text box to fit a little bigger than half page so it was a good size, but still fit in my regular envelopes. If I were making more of these, I would probably make them smaller so I can get 2 to a page. That is the beauty of using a text box; very little reformatting if you change your mind! Here is what my invitation said:

There be treasure to be found!
Come to 1224 Main St USA
on
Sunday Sept 19th

to find treasure beyond your wildest dreams!

We will set sail at 2 pm for the adventure of you life.

Any scallywags will walk the plank ARG!

You can have lots of fun with the format, size and info, just make sure it goes with the pirate theme! You could add a secret password to get into the party; everyone could request the right of “parley”, like in Pirate of the Caribbean. Very Piratey.

Step Two:
To add the dashed line for the map part, select the “draw it yourself” tool, usually under the “insert” header. Then scribble to your hearts content till you have the best path that doesn’t distract from your words. Then all you have to do is format the line. I made mine a 6 pt line that is dashed and red. I did the same for the “x”.

 

Step Three:
Print on your paper of choice. In hindsight, I wish I would have used either old book paper or maybe even and old map I have lying around somewhere. So moral of the story, don't limit yourself to what I do, get creative with your piratey self!

Step Four:
Tear the edges of the paper, using your fingers or a flat edge to guide the tears. You definitely don’t want to tear it into your beautiful creation!

 

Step Five:
Now this goes against every fiber of my being, but crumple the paper at least 4 or 5 times to achieve a “distressed look”. This would be an awesome time to get the kids involved!

 

Step Six:
Repeat steps 3-5 as many times as you need until you have enough invitations for your party

Hope this inspires you to create your own rad invites! I will see you guys next week for the next installment of my Pirate Party Tutorial!

Wishing you crafty success, 

Christine JustLoverly

p.s. I made this eye patch while listening to The Decemberists. Definitely good for an adult pirate party! You can check out their songs on Playlist.com

Comments

[Tasha]

I love your invites! I'm always looking for ways to spruce up our annual treasure hunt for the kids at our family reunion. You made me think about sparking excitement in advance by sending the kids invites at home! Why didn't I think of that before? Love your design! (You can see my last one here: http://diyingtobedomestic.wordpress.com/2010/06/07/treasure-hunt/ -- although I definitely have to go bigger next year!)

[Rachel]

I love these! Thanks so much for sharing the how-to, I'll be linking.

[Dennis @ Wholesale Fresh Flowers]

My nephew will be 5 in October and I think the Pirate motif will make for an excellent party.

[Tammy@Events By Tammy]

So cute!

[Christine]

Thanks for the encouraging comments! I will be doing a Pirate DIY every friday for the rest of the month so check back!