This special couple has been together since pre-school (almost), and somehow managed to make it all the way to the end of their 20′s without a surprise party. That ended with Bryan’s 30th, and what a party it was. Flowers (on every surface available), top notch food and A-list guests all came together for one heck of an evening.

Asked by the stylish hostess to create the invitations, LLB Designs incorporated blue and brown colors for a fresh and not too girly palette. And of course the number one fear when planning a surprise party is the honoree catching on, so a little reminder reading “Shhh….it’s a surprise” was printed on the back of the invites and positioned to be the first thing guests saw when opening the invitation. While all of these little details help, there’s no getting around the fact that the photo of the birthday boy steals the show. Just as it should.

Everybody loves a surprise party and we here at LLB Designs are no exception; especially when we get to help out with the invitations. This family planned a special reunion and surprise party for their grandmother’s 80th birthday in St Leonard, Quebec. The party was held the first weekend in December, so winter colors and frosted images were the perfect fit.

Because some guests live in the states and others in Canada, the family thoughtfully chose to include reply cards so that guests wouldn’t have to make long distance phone calls to RSVP. The outside of the final piece was a serene aqua gatefold with snow-topped branches and bright pops of berry red. The inside packs a bit more punch with a stunning red background and much talk of toasts and surprises.

LLB Designs recently had the pleasure of creating these surprise birthday party invitations for one lucky guy in St. Louis, MO.  His super-wife wanted something unique and personalized, festive yet low key and relaxed. The result: a set of four coasters tied together with twine and a tag reminding guests to keep mum before the big day.

The individual coasters featured Polaroid photos of the birthday boy himself, his pet basset, and the event details. Great use of fonts and typography worked with the simple layout for a polished, guy-friendly package. Coordinating square envelopes and the unique size and shape made for one fun piece of mail for each of the lucky guests.