Party Decor

Majestic Fairyland - Birthday Decor

What is more special than the precious little angel's 1st birthday? The big "ONE" birthday bash was celebrated with this  "Majestic Fairyland" birthday-themed decor. The theme says it all...

  

The dominating and magnificent purple and gold combination, with the very subtle magenta as an accent sets the royal color scheme for this enchanted fairyland. Another accent color chosen was ivory, it would have been a jarring contrast so kept it to the minimal to keep it elegant.

Came up with this unique wavy pattern of floral arrangements instead of a standard symmetric set-up. The fabric used is "Purple  Charmeuse Satin" for both the backdrop and the tablecloth. The accent gold tulle is used for the swaggins.  

Florals were made from scratch using raw paper, card stocks, and tissues. 

The flowers are unique in their own way as they are different from each other. 

 

Butterflies big and small added much more to this enchanting mood. 

Golden spray-painted "bundle" of twigs on the side reminds me of the joy the little angel brought to the family. 

The golden tulle fabric swags (as requested) give a finishing look to this setup.

The table was draped with more purple fabric and swagged with the gold tulle all around. The same goes for a runner too. 

Scattered gold leaves on the table are also handmade. A tiny flower on each leaf gives a simple yet elegant look to the regular confetti. 

Apothecary jars of treasures were the golden and purple candy treats. More treats like cupcakes and the two-tier birthday cake complete the edible setup. 

A rotating photo frame spray painted in gold was adorned with gold florals, leaves, and butterflies for the memories of the darling angel as part of the centerpiece to be treasured forever (sorry photo not included).

A gorgeous floral/ vine chandelier wreath is to think about things in a slightly different way. The golden wreath is hung from the ceiling using vines for a chandelier effect above the cake table.

It is an 11-inch foam that is decorated with tiny florals, golden leaves, and vines hanging down. A roll of gold vine (store-bought) made the work easy. More balloons tied with tulles both purple and gold alternatively accompanied the chandelier wreath.  

Wouldn't it be special to coronate the little birthday girl with a Floral Coronet/ Tiara for reaching her 1st milestone? Hot-glued tiny flowers along with satin ribbons are used to prevent the floral wires from being worn safely.

Photo frame created and decked up on reverse sides for both gender guests. The floral theme for the girls' side and the celebration theme for the boys' side was again made from scratch using foam board.

Return gift wrapping was equally time-consuming and very different. 

Made candy and floral-shaped wrapping which definitely stood out. 

Added to this is the 4 layered wrapping with tissues and tulles and simple gift card wrapping. Labeling on chalkboard tags and shimmering white and gold cards completed this project. 

Feedback:

"I have had an opportunity, to be up-close and watch the whole activities unfolded from start to finish.  I am referring to Amudha’s craftsmanship for the party decor work for Anathi’s First Birthday.    Amudha’s specialty lies in her uniqueness to be unique which sets her apart from services provided by others. Each and every aspect – be it a flower, table decoration, hanging vines, or even the goodie bags for kids are handmade from scratch. The items needed for making them are personally handpicked and are created one by one without any modern-day tools. As you might imagine, they take a lot of time and effort. She spent several nights burning the midnight lamp to get these done to perfection and on time.   The work doesn’t end here.  On the day of the party, the backdrop decor took 3 hours to set up to what was envisioned to be without any hiccups. I sincerely appreciate Amudha’s creativity and the effort put in along with the tenacity for each and every minute detail to be perfect." - Rajesh Kumar

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Wild Kratts - Creature Power-themed birthday party

Get wild with "Wild Kratts - Creature power", a simple yet different from regular birthday party decoration. A wide spread of vegetarian party finger food ideas included. 

This Wild Kratts theme decor and ideas will function for both gender and animal-themed parties. Streamers and balloons were swapped with items lying in the house for a natural appearance with this party decor. 

Tried to keep the theme as a surprise as always, coz both my son's like surprises. All that my little prince insisted on was the "Mango Mousse Cake". He specifically asked for his birthday like the one I made 3 years back for our close friends birthday party. Surprised with his memory power! Well, this is the 1st birthday cake I made for my son. Usually, I outsource it from our favorite bakery as I always prefer an elaborate decoration and a wide food spread. 

Managed to hold back the decorations and food menu as a surprise for the entire family. However, 3 days before the party while I was getting the prints of the "Thank you notes", my little one ran to the printer as always to help me get them back. Boom! the secret theme was out :( Nevertheless, the excitement was palpable being his favorite show. 

Decoration:

Decoration was like child's play yet themed with no money spent for this Wild Kratts birthday party. Reusing items lying in the house was an easy way to pull the decorations together with minimal effort. 

Yes, I did visit the party stores for this theme, but unlucky to find even the basic animal-themed item. Apparently, it was good to get creative and not give up with this theme. Moreover, reusing items was always my kind, so why not give it a try! 

Leaf Bunting:

Artificial leaf bunches were pulled out from the floral wires and tied to heavy-duty twine for the wild vine-looking effect. 

Working with a few inches at a time, tied the leaves to the heavy-duty twine using a thin natural twine creating the vine along its entire length. I made them in different sizes to give them a natural look. Hung them above the party table randomly sets up the wild ambiance. 

Banner:
The blue gift wrapper was unrolled to create the banner. Taped an appropriate existing banner with a monkey image in the center. On either side goes the creature power symbols and some cutouts either printed or from the wild kratts toy box itself. Indubitably, its an inexpensive and easy recycling idea for any character-themed party. Glued the cutouts randomly creating the banner. 

Backdrop: 
Stunning landscape painting - an oil on canvas, was tied as a backdrop and placed two small shutters on either side for a window appearance.

Some stuffed animals that I made years back, along with store-bought ones were placed in different spots as part of the decor. Monkeys, snakes, skunks, and butterflies are few to name.

Creature Power :
What is a wild Kratts theme without the creature power symbol, you will find it on either side of the banner. Here's an easy way to create the symbol using poster boards. Cut circles on poster boards (blue and green) using my baking pans as a guide to get the perfect round. Used 10-inch spring form pan (1 each color) and the 4-inch spring form pan ( 3 each color). You may pick any large and round container lid and small bowls or cups or simply use a compass for the size you prefer. 

Creature Power discs streamer:
Print the discs using the link attached in "printables" using regular white paper (to retain the original color of the discs) and cut them out. Glue half of the discs onto the green and the remaining on the blue cardstock making sure you create a border of either blue or green. Cut them and attach them to the twine or yarn using tape. You may also cut 2 slits on each disc and string it through the thin twine forming a streamer. 

An easy alternative would be to print the discs directly onto the white cardstock and cut them out leaving a thin white border if you prefer. Now, thread them to the twine and hang them in front of your table or above the banner like I did. 

Table display:
Natural fabric in green was the tablecloth used instead of the inexpensive plastic table cover. Sprinkled the green shredded paper for the grass effect as a filler in between the wide food spread.  Some mini-themed cutouts and toys were also incorporated. The menu cards were handwritten on card stock with toy animals (from the toy box) as holders were placed around the party table for a creepy crawly good time!

A globe from the study was on display for a world trekking. "Eat all but don't feed animals" was the eye-catching sign board.

Food:
A wide spread of vegetarian finger food along with Pizza and drinks were served.

Eggless Mango Mousse Cake:  

Admitting I wanted to try a 3 tier cake I was reluctant if this tropical flavored mousse could hold all the weight. After much compromise, came up with the easy creature power theme which ultimately turned out to be a smash hit. A layer of white moist cake topped with an ineffable velvety, light, and extremely creamy layer of mango mousse decorated with white chocolate. For more details and recipes please click here.

Slithering Snake Sushi:

Japanese homemade California Sushi Rolls, "Hosomaki" with the nori (seaweed) on the outside and the other "Uramaki" rice on the outside and nori inside. For the recipe please click here. 

Fishy Dolphins:

Bananas are washed and cut to 3/4 sized (to stand still) with the stem on. the stem is slit for the Goldfish crackers to insert. Using a marker make a dot on both sides for eyes.

Bat Wings:

Totopos Tortilla chips (a blend of 4 natural grains - Blue corn, Quinoa, Chia seeds, and Maca) and organic tortilla with Nacho cheese sauce and Mango salsa for dipping. 

Eel Burrito Bite:

Mexican burrito wrap bites contain pinto beans, onions, bell peppers, lettuce, guacamole, cheese, pico de gallo (salsa), sour cream, and hot sauce wrapped tight with corn tortilla as spinach tortilla was not available. Hot Sriracha sauce blobs set the eyes. 

Jungle bones:

Mozzarella cheese sticks individually wrapped is great as is.

Caterpillars:

Red seedless grapes along with black olives and cheese in wooden skewers. Oops, the eyes and antennas are missing ;)

Hermit Crabby Sandwiches:

Mini croissants are slit to spread the artichoke spread, then a cherry tomato and julienned red peppers (capsicum) are inserted. Using toothpicks, fix the sliced Kalamata black olives for the popping eyes. 

Monkey Poop:

Cocoa Puffs (cereals) dipped in chocolate frosting are great for sweet tooths. 

Cheetah Tails:

Cheetos (cheese-flavored puffed cornmeal) snack.

Hungry Hippo Dip:

Munch on a veggie platter with French onion dip. Blanched cauliflower and broccoli along with fresh carrot, cucumbers, celery sticks, and bell peppers with creamy flavorful dip. 

Tiger Club Cuties:

Markers marked these Cuties (mini oranges) for an attractive fruit snack. 

Creepy Crab:

Ritz crackers sandwiches with banana slices (cut from the "Fishy dolphins") along with pretzel stick legs and chocolate chip eyes for a sweet "Crabby bite". 

Walk on the Wild Side:

Animals crackers marching on dirty chocolate (frosted) celery sticks. 

Gorilla Grub:

A popcorn stand with a mini popcorn maker and a variety of flavors from butter, cheese, black pepper, garlic, and caramel.

The Watering hole (pond):

Pitcher of drinking water flavored with lemon slices and minty ice cubes. 

Alligator-ade (Green Hawaiian punch), Creature Power-ade (Blue Hawaiian punch), and Paradise Parrot (lemon soda) 

Activity ideas:
1. Animal Tracks Match-up:

Google for "animal track identifier" and you will have umpteen options. The attached link below is for the "Animal tracks match-up". Printed them on construction paper/ chart paper, as I ran out of cardstock. It was simple to cut out the construction paper to the A4 size paper and place it in the printer vola!

2. Animal HedBanz:

Found my kid's Animal deck of cards and decided to set is like the HedBanz game with a large rubber band that would fit on the head. You may create the creature power animal find using the printable creature discs. 

2. Forest explore:

Search and find the animals using the description given below. 


3. Origami:

The big kids can get busy with this activity.

4. Jumping Frogs - mainly for little kids

5. Animal riddles and Jokes : 

Links are attached below in the printables or simply use your own.

Favors:
Return gifts/ favors for all wild friends. 

Amazon had a variety of Wild kratts books age-appropriate for the younger kids and riddles for the older kids. 

Personalized handmade simple creature power bookmarks for all wild readers. 

Colorful pens held the "Thank you" cards in place. 

Meiji Hello Panda cookies was a little snack to munch on the way back home which completes this favor bag along with activity kits for the wild princesses grift wrapped with the paw prints on. 

Printables:
Pbs Kids contains all the Wild kratts birthday party printables for invitation, favor tags, food labels, thank you notes, and creature power discs. Although I was in need of only the "thank you" note printables. 

The right-sized creature power discs are from Olivia's Neat on the inside. They were perfect for the creature power bunting, table decor and also for personalized homemade bookmarks. Thank you Olivia, you made my work easy! Do visit her website she has a lot of creative and organization ideas and tips handy that might work for you as well. 

Activity printables:

Animal Tracks from deceptivelyeducational

Wild Kratts Forest Search and Find 

Animal Riddles from 4 riddles

Animal Jokes from Enchanted learning

One last tip for prints, if you run out of cardstock, just cut a poster board to the A4 size and place it in your printer. It worked like a gem!

Thank you to all my supportive readers for stopping by! Please leave a brief comment below with your suggestions.

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Horse/ Pony Themed Party Decor

Giddy up and gallop on over for a pony adventure! "My Little Pony- Friendship is Magic" was the little birthday girl's all-time favorite. Once the theme is decided it's easy to take it from there on to create beautiful memories to treasure forever. 

Being outdoors the backdrop was the mane apart from the return gift wapping to the custom-made tags to go alone.  The ice cream sundae stall and the Blueberry drink (recipe is coming up next on my blog) were another huge hit at this party.

Although the theme is standard, chose to incorporate the cowboy/cowgirl theme as well. A mix of both rainbow dashes of colors and splashes of brown shades were pulled together in this decor. The centerpieces were created using the little pony props lying in the toy box and some cutouts were the pony's cutie marks. Made the carriage using a hand-painted paper bowl and attached it to wooden sticks for a stable base to fix wheels on. 

Setting up the backdrop was the risk I took for some grandeur. Due to lack of time, simply opted for the same themed backdrop available. But the challenge was how to set it up with no walls... Gave thought and came down to two options Foam Poster boards and Plywood. 

The latter would have been easier if the required size was readily available at the store. Instead of entering into carpentry, purchased foam boards and attached them together with tape. Since it took approximately 7 poster boards, doubted if they could all stand up well for a longer period of time. The solution was to attach popsicle sticks and tape them to give good support. This trick worked like magic as the theme goes - "Friendship magic".

Considering the windy atmosphere the backdrop was leaned towards a tree trunk in this case and used punching machines to make holes on its sides to tie it around to secure it well. You may also use a stand or even clothes-drying stand without casters to support and hold the backdrop in place. 

A small gesture to thank the little girl's besties for galloping all the way to her party with something special for every pony.  These return gifts were wrapped with jute-like natural material and custom-made tags were made out of foam sheets, bells, and strings. Little carousel goodie pouches and candy-like wrapping were other different kinds of wrapping. 

The host hired an entertainer with his pony carriage, petting zoo, magic show, and face painting all in one package. Hence didn't have to concentrate on activities or games for the little ponies. It was truly a pleasant pony adventure party, to say the least. 

Always wanted to go to the next level when it come to decoration, each experience teaches me new lessons that inspire me. I can't Thank You enough for taking your valuable time in reading my post. 

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Themed Party / Streamer Ideas

There are hundreds of themes for any occasion, and putting them together with the guidelines provided will make it easy to host one in an organized manner. Came up with some streamer ideas to make decoration fun and unique.

Planning a month before the big day makes the project distributed with no pressure at the last minute. Start deciding on the venue, number of guests, age group, and most important of all "theme". Some of the most common themes are Superheroes, princesses, Disney, movie characters, milestones/ decades, sports, color, season, costumes, or special occasions (like graduation, baby shower, welcome home, retirement, etc.)

How to keep the guests engaged with activities and the food options must be given thought too. I prefer the venue to be either at my backyard or home for an elaborate decoration. But we have hosted outdoor parties at parks too. When outdoors, more attention is given to the centerpiece and the table decoration. Would you like a birthday party table with only a huge yummy cake or with an attractive and memorable centerpiece along with it? 

Castle

Birthday/Party table decor for the themed party:

A party table must be the highlight of any party, hence never keep it empty. A small display of toys, and unopened presents can be displayed on the table with some confetti/flower petals. Even return gifts (if uniformly arranged) can be used on the table as decor. Extra party hats especially masks give a 3-D look on the table. Themed or color-themed tableware with some unused streamer rolls tied to helium balloons would do the trick. For a grown-up's party, candles in elegant holders, lanterns, flower bouquets, or even a unique collection of art pieces (theme-related) work well. 

Cake-cutting table can be draped with a colorful plastic tablecloth cloth or find a cloth(curtain/sheet) that's appropriate with the same color theme (plain or subtle design works better ). I sometimes use my silk cloth that either blends with the theme color or as a striking contrast. Don't be afraid to use two different clothes draped on each other sometimes in an angle that looks elegant. Surprisingly, paper gift wrappers can be unrolled as a tablecloth as well. I once draped a white gift wrapper and had the kids sign in with a piece of advice, wish, or tip for the birthday kid. It is such a wonderful memorabilia!

Crepe Streamer ideas:

Ruffled garland, Twisty garland

Let's get crafty with some of these streaming ideas... Streamers are so versatile with their colors and different patterns. You must be wondering what can be different with the uniformly rolled streamer. There are ample ideas to create your unique decoration for your upcoming party. For chained streamers check out my Color Themed Party - Blue and Green.

Some of the streamer garlands are ruffled streamers or twisty, fringe, chain, tasseled, honeycomb (using crepe paper), and much more. 

Ruffled, Honeycomb, Twisty

There are two ways to make ruffled streamers. One is to sow the streamers with a simple pleated pattern. I have used a large-width blue streamer and a small-width green streamer layered on top. The streamers are pleated for about 4-5 inches, then pressed using finger tips to hold in place. The basic running stitch using your sewing machine will be perfect for creating this ruffled pattern. If you are not into sowing, the next best and next easy method is to grab a good pair of scissors and cut the ends on either side leaving the center to be attached or just on one side alone.

Ruffled streamers

For the twisty garland, fold the ends of the large streamer lengthwise to the center and fold again so the seams are tucked inside. Now give a good press to stay intact. Attach one end onto the wall using a tape or push pin. Start twisting until the length you have precut. 

Twisty steps

Honeycomb streamers are made using decorative tissue paper. They are cut to the desired shape either a rhombus or oval shape. Then stack them up neatly, gluing them alternatively in 2-3 different spots. The picture will guide you through this. The green and the red lines marked are glued alternatively. Trust me this is time-consuming and requires a lot of patience. 

Honeycomb streamers

Now the pictures speak, there are various patterns I came up with, which seem to be easy nevertheless some are time-consuming. You may pick what works for you. 

Tassels 

For the tassels, grab your pair of scissors and make strips (3-5 inches in length) at the ends. These bottom strips can be twisted for a different effect. The tops can be twisted and tied to a curling string or hung on a curtain rod or simply taped to the wall according to the height you desire. 

Tassel on curtain rods at the entry or window sill or as part of the backdrop.

The more the merrier is the thumb rule. You may choose warm, cool, or even contrasting colors like these. I have layered the yellow tassel streamer below for a dramatic look.

Layered Tassels  for a dramatic effect

Patterned streamers can be made using a desired length of streamers folded into 2-3 inch squares. Find the center and fold again to cut any small shape or pattern you like using scissors. The punching machine works like a gem to make patterns. The punched-out scrap was reused as confetti. 

Patterned streamers

You can create any backdrop image using these streamers like a castle/fort, surfboards, or underwater plants with a few tiny fishes and bubbles like different-sized circles (ocean theme), web, or octopus (on the ceiling).

Princess party - Castle backdrop using streamers/crepe paper

You might want to check out my Spidey Birthday Decor, where unused streamers were stacked up for an effortless way to bring in some height and color. 

Balloons can be stringed into a garland, or a simple straight lined above the cake-cutting table or even randomly attached to the ceiling upside down can be appealing. Balloons can be hung at the door entrance along with streamers upside down to feel welcoming. Large and small balloons(water balloons filled with air) of the same shape give a good dimensional look on walls if gathered in large numbers. 

Once you start into it, you might not when to stop, ideas keep flooding in as I start to blog. If interested in a detailed post on balloons or any similar decor ideas, please leave a comment/suggestion below. I would love to share more only if this inspires my readers. Enjoy getting crafty and do share your creative side with us. 

Let's create lasting memories to cherish for years! 

Themed Spidey Birthday Decor

Want to plan an unforgettable themed party that everyone will love? A themed party is not only majestic, chic, and organized, but it always stands out to create lasting memories. DIY projects are unique and so much fun to make any occasion memorable. Some valuable tips for any themed party are included.

It's always easy to simply purchase the themed party decoration kit/supplies and throw a party. But don't you want to host a unique party with your personal touch to remember? Something to stand out with a striking centerpiece or backdrop without breaking the bank? 

Ideas are invariably unlimited for themed parties and they are always easy to pull together. If your boy/son wishes to be Peter Parker being a big fan of Amazing Spiderman, then this superhero-themed birthday party will likely be his favorite and memorable one. 

I have attached a few pictures taken previously at my son's birthday parties as we didn't pay much attention to capture all the details. Created an illustrative miniature version just for you. Ideas are flooding in currently as I decide to blog.

Let's make the birthday boy and his buddies swing from web to web. Always start with the color scheme, certainly, you might know its major colors are red and blue; black and some yellow can be used to accentuate these dominating colors if you like.

Next, coming to the ceiling. Draping plain colorful plastic tablecloth (same color scheme) on the ceiling gives an instant lift for the eyes. Bright red or dark blue works very well. For this spidey theme, we may add a large web using yarn or streamers on the ceiling. The web can also be spun in a corner that is visible. 

Drawings of webs on black construction paper using glitter glue and cut-outs in the same shape also work well. These webs were used for a game previously, and are reused to hang on the ceiling or on walls or spread out randomly on the table. Halloween decor webs can also be reused for this theme. 

Use helium balloons else regular balloons attached to string (about a foot long) can be hung upside down for a similar inexpensive effect. Along with balloons, I have attached small webs that were in my son's toy box for an added effect. 

A tablecloth can act as a striking backdrop as well. Whether you purchase or make one is up to you, it certainly makes a huge difference. 

The centerpiece will always be the focal point. I created my centerpiece with plain cardboard and made a template to cut out squares. Stuck some stickers, and cut-outs from toy boxes and added some Spiderman figures hanging. For a more colorful effect, decorative party table weights were used behind the centerpiece. If you don't have the time to make one, at least use some of your child's toys (stick to the same themed toys) that are lying in his/her room or toy box. I added some spidey vehicles from our toy box. A large spidey gift bag with a bunch of balloons tied to it also can act as a centerpiece to avoid an empty table. Themed tableware (bowls, plates, cups) and also unused streamer rolls can be used to give height and color to the accent pieces.

A few cutouts or posters, stickers of spiderman, or even masks can be used on the display tablecloth to look unique instead of the store-bought same-themed tablecloth. Red/ White colored plain plastic table cloth can be spread out to draw a huge web using thick markers/sharpies. You may also cut out extra Spiderman loot bags and tape them as a border on the table or as a table skirt. 

For some props, write some words in bold like "BAM", "POW", "WHAM!", " BANG", "POP", "KRUNCH, "SMASH!", "ZAP" etc..  on foam or construction paper and attach it to a lollypop stick to act as props on the cake table. Ask your son, he might come up with more to make your job easy. 

Spiderman bubble maker can also be used if it's outdoors. The birthday boy's chair can be draped with the same themed blanket, towel or even a robe can be draped. Spiderman fingerrings are decorative cake toppers, kids would love to take one home. I also made  a spider dip for chips (an artichoke dip shaped into a spider and finished with black sesame seeds and pretzels for its legs.) Don't forget to dress up the kid appropriately. An adult in his Spiderman (Halloween) costume can be a good surprise for the birthday boy's wish come true!

Hope these tips and guidelines might be of help for your next upcoming birthday party. Please add a comment below if this topic interests you or might be of any use. Your input will guide me decide if I should continue on the party decor page. Thanks for stopping by!

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Color Themed Party - Blue and Green

It's all about colors! I always love the combination of blue and green hues, being nature colors it creates a soothing and relaxing mood. But when these pastels are used vibrantly they instantly stand out from the background energetic and lively. Most importantly it's attractive and appealing to the eyes. Just wanted to get out of the periodic pastels and embellish with vibrant decor for a Baby Shower... Yes, this color scheme sets the theme for the setoff to host for my best buddy!

I chose to hand-make all of the decorations and started with the preparation work five weeks ahead of the big day. Created the chain streamers, floral pom-poms, paper rosette fans, and mini dahlias for the paper cup bootie favor. The neutral white polka dot pattern plays a vital role in bringing both colors together harmoniously. 

The material I chose is basically different varieties of paper like crepe paper streamers, tissue papers, scrapbook papers, gift wrappers, and even colorful patterned paper napkins that complement the colors to complete this DIY project successfully. The decorations were time-consuming, hence the venue by default was at our place for the ease of setting the decorative craft pieces a day in advance.

The centerpiece was Onesies Cupcakes which I thoroughly enjoyed. Don't you think these cute little decorative cupcakes are a perfect gift giving? Some of them thought these cupcakes were edible. Surprisingly these two hues played together very well not only for baby shower but also for a birthday party.