Hello and first of all, thank you for having me! I couldn't be more thrilled to be contributing my first piece for B.LOVED - I love the beautiful images, ideas and inspiration that Louise and this amazing team of creatives showcase and am really excited to be part of the team as a features writer. Designing wedding & party stationery is my absolute passion and I'm so lucky to work with so many lovely brides & grooms through our company Hip Hip Hooray. With my new B.LOVED hat on, I'm really excited to be bringing you DIY inspiration and some fabulous free printables for your big day. Adding a little DIY charm into your wedding plans can not only do wonders for your budget, but also helps to inject more of your personalities into your celebration. As this first project shows, I will be championing ideas and tutorials that anyone can feel confident to try, regardless of how crafty or creative you consider yourself to be...

These DIY pom pom party hats are super fun, pretty darn cute and more than a little bit simple to make. Much like balloons, party hats are universally symbolic of a good old celebration - so add some pretty prints and tiny pom poms in the mix and we're smitten! They'd be a great little addition to so many occasions; offer them in your photo booth, give them out at a bridal or baby shower, add to the excitement of a kids party, or why not make some for the children attending your wedding and pop them on their place settings?

Here's the genius bit - the hats are made from paper party cups, which is great as there are so many different styles to choose from on the high street and online. Polka dots, metallics, florals, neon, geometric - you can match the theme of your celebration by choosing colours and prints that complement the colour scheme, stationery and decorations.

YOU WILL NEED:

• A glue gun with glue sticks (this sweet pink one is available at Hobbycraft for around £5)
• Paper party cups (Mine were another find from Hobbycraft)
• Ribbon (approximately 50cm per hat)
• Craft knife (optional)
• Scissors
• Mini pom poms (available at Hobbycraft & other good craft stores)

HOW TO

• Firstly, you'll need to carefully cut off the base of your paper cups. I used a craft knife for this but if you don't have one, scissors will do just fine.
• Now you've opened up the cup by removing the base, you'll need to snip all around in a zig zag shape.
• Using your glue gun, carefully stick a pom pom onto each point - you'll need to hold it in place for a few seconds until the hot glue has cooled and worked its magic!
• Using your craft knife, make two slits just below the rim of your cup on either side - if the print on your cup has a particular bit you'd like on the front of your party hat, (like the floral motif on mine) - do keep this in mind and keep your slits on either side of this. Make sure the slits are just wide enough to thread your ribbon through.
• Thread a piece of ribbon (approximately 25cm long) through each slit and tie at the end to keep it in place.
• Using a small dot of glue from your glue gun, stick the ribbon end to the inside of your hat to keep it looking neat and tidy.

Hey presto, it's done! All that's left to do now is don your pom pom party hat, accessorize it with a smile and skip off to your celebration right? Or like me, you could put it on, hang out in your office and look just a tiny bit like a wally on a Tuesday morning. All in the name of blogging of course...