Football Frenzy & Additions - Day 2

Good morning and welcome to the April Papertrey Ink new release countdown! Today is Day 2, or alternately, "How I Threw A Tailgate Party In My Backyard In The Middle Of April" day. The Football Frenzy & Additions sets are perfect for decorating your tailgate, graduation, or birthday parties to the nines! I wanted to demonstrate that today with a mini tailgate party for the Bengals (my mama-in-law's favorite team [I can already hear my papa-in-law protesting the neglect of his beloved Ravens]). Let's get started!

So every great party has festive decorations. A banner? Delightful!

I cut the letter flags from white cardstock and stamped them with black polka dots before adding the pinked toppers. Then, I created Orange Zest rosettes using Nichole's "Lazy Stamper Medallion" tutorial. I adhered them to the flags and topped them with white circles. The letters were die cut from Orange Zest and True Black cardstocks using the Modern Alphabet Upper Dies and shadowed together before being mounted to the circles with foam tape.

The jersey flag was die cut from Orange Zest cardstock and patterned paper (adhered together afterward for stability), layered with white cardstock, and the same pinked border was added to the top. Then, I die cut the jersey and stamped it to resemble the Bengals' home jersey. I heat embossed Boomer Esiason's number with white powder for an added custom touch. That was then mounted to the flag with foam tape.

The helmet flag followed the same steps, but when I stamped the helmet, I heat embossed the face mask with clear powder to give it a bit of realism and texture. I added buttons cut from the Buttoned Up #1 Die and threaded everything onto black jute.

Once decorations are handled you have to start thinking of food and beverages. How about some cups?

I die cut the helmet and football shapes out of white sticker paper and stamped them with their coordinating images. The sticker paper makes this whole process super "no fuss." A little tip about lining up the football: one end of the die cut shape is slightly dimpled. When you have the football image in your hands with the laces at the top, that dimpled end should be on the left. It's a very subtle difference and it really won't be the end of the world if you don't want to look that closely. The nice thing about largely symmetrical images is that the die can be flipped and it will still work out just fine.

And what about napkins?

These really couldn't be easier. I simply stamped the images onto the napkins, using a piece of chipboard behind the first layer of tissue. There wasn't any bleed-through, but I figured it was better safe than sorry. Die ink will bleed a little bit, so some of the details are lost (like the knit pattern on the jersey), but it isn't terribly distracting. You'll also want to make sure the inks dry between layers if you're adding things like numbers to a jersey. Otherwise they bleed like crazy. There are so many possibilities with these! Graduation party? Try the graduate's year or (if an athlete) jersey number. A note about inks: I wasn't worried too much about the not-so-waterproof nature of these inks since my snacks are all dry, but that might be important to keep in mind if you're serving chili or something.

Speaking of food...what about grilling? See those little picks there? How about a closer look...

Grilling markers! Stick these into burgers, hot dogs, or chicken so your guests can choose their preferred doneness.

Look! There's even one for me!

All I did for these was die cut the footballs and stamp them with the coordinating image. Then I used the alphabet from Football Frenzy Additions to add the labels. I attached them to toothpicks using circles of label paper. Yes, you could add another football to the back and fully enclose the pick, but a (literal) throw away isn't where I like to spend time or supplies. And these are just as cute!

You may have also noticed the hot dog tray there. I stamped a piece of white cardstock with two of the stripes from Background Basics: Super Stripes using Orange Zest and True Black inks. Then, I die cut them with the Favor It Box #7 die and assembled it with Scor Tape for a secure hold. It's a perfect fit for a hot dog or some snacks!

Thank you so much for attending my tailgate party today! I hope you enjoyed today's festivities. Still want to see more of Football Frenzy & Additions? Check in with Nichole and Erin today as they features these sets! You'll also want to visit with Betsy, Dawn, Heather, Laura, Lexi, Maile, and Melissa Bickford as they share more of this month's new releases. Can't wait to see you tomorrow!

Recipes:
Bengals Banner
Stamps: Football Frenzy, Polka Dot Basics - Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: Orange Zest, Orange Zest Stripe Paper, True Black - Papertrey Ink; white
Ink: Orange Zest, True Black - Papertrey Ink; VersaMark - Tsukineko
Other: Football Frenzy Die Collection, Limitless Layers 1 3/4" Circle Die Collection, Banner Borders Die Collection, Basic Banners Die Collection, Buttoned Up #1 Die, Modern Alphabet Upper Die - Papertrey Ink; Clear Detail Embossing Powder, White Detail Embossing Powder - Filigree; Foam Tape - Scotch; Black Jute - American Crafts; 1 3/8" Circle Punch - EK Success

Football Cups
Stamps: Football Frenzy - Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: White Adhesive Sheets - Papertrey Ink
Ink: Orange Zest, True Black - Papertrey Ink
Other: Football Frenzy Die Collection - Papertrey Ink

Team Napkins
Stamps: Football Frenzy, Football Frenzy Additions - Papertrey Ink
Ink: Orange Zest, True Black, Fresh Snow - Papertrey Ink
Other: Napkins

Grilling Markers
Stamps: Football Frenzy, Football Frenzy Additions - Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: White Adhesive Sheets - Papertrey Ink; white
Ink: Orange Zest, True Black - Papertrey Ink
Other: Football Frenzy Die Collection - Papertrey Ink; Toothpicks

Snack Tray
Stamps: Background Basics: Super Stripes - Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: white
Ink: Orange Zest, True Black - Papertrey Ink
Other: Favor It Box 7 Die - Papertrey Ink; Scor Tape