Fab Fete: Party Animal Themed 2nd Birthday
Last year, Juliet’s birthday party started out with the perfect birthday dress. See here. This year, her birthday party was inspired by Meri Meri paper products that I found during a random clearance sale. Here is just a sampling:
I adored the color combination, unisex animal theme and the amazing deal …. so much so that I didn’t care that her next birthday wasn’t for another 6 months. Yes I realize that that officially makes me THAT crazy party planning mom. But what do you expect? I loved planning parties as part of my Public Relations and Marketing profession pre-baby. So I’m bound to plan events with the same passion for my daughter. Besides she is way cuter than my previous clients (Samsung, Saks Fifth Avenue, Toys R Us etc). Plus it’s always so much more meaningful when it’s all about family and your daughter’s BFFs.
Too bad the budget isn’t the same. Oh well, that’s why I have Pinterest boards full of DIY ideas. In addition to the Meri Meri paper products that I bought, I complimented them with customized handmade items. This post will concentrate on some of the DIY party projects that I had fun glue gunning, spraying, and sticking:
- party animals
- animal-themed wall decor
- themed water bottles, Gogo Squeezes, and Applesauce
- backdrop board and risers
- banners
- milk bottles
- birthday hats
The party animals were done 3 months ahead of time and involved buying (wholesale from Amazon) the plastic animal figurines and then gluing random items on them to make them fit into the party animal theme.
The presents on the larger animals’ backs were made from old jewelry boxes and Nerd candy boxes! I just wrapped them in coordinating papers that I bought on sale from Michaels and added washi tape or pom pom trim. Hats were made from anything from paper to pom pom balls to buttons and ribbon. I just used whatever broken jewelry, leftover craft supplies and ribbon I had.
And I painted the nails of some of the animals which made my husband label them the “gayest animals he has ever seen.” True as that may be, they were pretty fabulous.
I’m selling these party animals as a package to anyone who can pick up from NYC. Message me if interested! They made for great centerpieces at our party but can also serve as fun displays in your kids rooms.
To make our venue more in line with our theme, I decorated the walls with animal themed photos of Juliet and also decorated the pillars – one with a pin the tail on the elephant game and one with art that Juliet created.
The musical entertainers performed in front of that photo wall singing songs with animal lyrics and leading an animal parade around the room.
As I always am with snack stations and dessert bars, I want all my food displays to match. Choosing items within the color theme are a must for me and when things don’t exactly match, I sticker them!
Everything from the GoGo Squeezes, to the toddler-friendly mango applesauces, water bottles and favor bags were stickered in my so-called free time (without a nanny) and made to coordinate with the theme. Michelle, from That Party Chick who I worked with on Juliet’s 1st birthday party was kind enough to partner up with me again on this project. Check out her shop! She is super creative and lightning fast with her graphics. I’ll have more pictures of the dessert bar in my next post but here’s a sneak peak.
The backdrop is something I’ve been wanting to craft ever since I saw some online how-tos during my research and Pinterest round-up. It took some time but was a cheaper alternative than having a customized graphic designed and printed large-scale. Basically, I taped together foam board pieces, added fabric with spray adhesive, then taped on a banner. And now I can store and re-use the foam core board for other future events!
Make a riser with tissue boxes covered in coordinating fabric! Mine is a blue giraffe print fabric, found on clearance that I simply glued on at home. See how I used it prior to this event during my Disney sponsored princess party here. I also covered a diaper box with plastic tablecloth and pom pom trim to create a last minute riser for one of the kids tables shown here (last minute RSVPs!)
The birthday hats, milk bottles and banners were all made with leftover paper and fabric.
I’m excited to show you how the whole party animal theme came to life through the themed outfits, food, entertainment and the rest of the decor! Stay tuned for a continued blog post coming soon!
The pictures from this post are a mix of mine and those from www.Hammjackk.net
Juliet’s fashionable friends did NOT disappoint!
