Some friends of my family are throwing a New Year’s Eve party this year, and asked me for help with an invitation. Even though the party isn’t formal, I instantly thought of a penguin, dressed to the nines for the big event. Then I realized that while my goal was to use this for New Year’s Eve, the penguin was so cute that with a few tweaks, I could use this same invitation for any party invite!

To make it easier for you guys to reproduce at home, I’ve got a great template. You know how I love giving you templates! This one has five pages to it, and you’ll need to pick and choose the ones you want based on what type of invitation you’re making.

Download our Penguin Invitation Template (PDF)

The first three pages of the template have three different “fronts” for the invitation. One says “Happy New Year” and if you’re throwing a New Year’s Eve party, that’s the one you’ll choose. Another says “You’re invited” and can be used for any general party or event where you want to use this invitation. And finally, there’s a blank one, that you can customize to any occasion.

The other two pages of the template have two different “insides” for the invitation. One has lines for the party details such as “Date”, “Time”, and “Place”. You can choose this one if you want to just fill in those values. The other is completely blank, and can be customized however you like for your event. Choose whichever of these you want to use.

Once you’ve chosen the pages you want, print them out on white cardstock. The “front” pages have four designs on them, so you’ll only need to print one copy for every four invitations you need to make. The “inside” pages have two designs on them, so you’ll need to print one copy for every two invitations you need to make.

Now cut out those printed designs with scissors. This is also a good time to write your party details on the inside page.

Now for the really fun part. Glitter!

Take the front piece and brush some glue on the bow tie. I used regular white craft glue. Then generously sprinkle some black glitter over the glue, and shake off the excess.

Grab the other piece of the invitation and use the same technique to apply black glitter to the penguin’s top hat. If you have some white glitter on hand (I didn’t), you could also use it to glitter the white stripe on the hat, but it’s not really necessary.

When your glue has completely dried, take the front of your invitation and set it on top of the other piece, lining it up so it matches. Then take a craft knife and carefully poke a tiny slit in the middle of the bow tie, being sure to go through both layers of the invitation.

Now take a medium-sized black glittered brad and poke it into the slit, through both layers of the invitation. Bend the two pieces back to secure it. Don’t do it too tight, though, or else the invitation front won’t swing properly.

Oh, and if you don’t have black glitter brads on hand, not to worry! You can make your own by taking any brads you’ve got, paint them with black craft paint, and sprinkle them with black glitter. Perfect! (Just be sure you give them plenty of time to dry, or else you’ll just mess them up when you handle them.)

Seriously. I want to eat this little bow tie right up, it’s so cute.

In case you didn’t notice, you’re done already! Wasn’t that easy? Just look at how cute that penguin’s belly is when you swing it open to reveal the party details inside. And, because I like to make things easy on you, this invitation happens to fit perfectly inside a standard 5 3/4″ x 8 3/4″ envelope. Awesome.

Let the party begin!

And hey, I just thought of something! If you want an alternative to sending out Christmas/Holiday cards and are considering New Year’s cards instead, you could use the “Happy New Year” front and the blank back, and sign it from your family. How cute!