Birthday party ideas that won’t blow the budget

As the first day of February dawned, I realised with horror that my youngest daughter Emily turned 9 in less than a month and I had done absolutely nothing to organise a celebration for her.  You’d think given that I design party stationery for a living that I’d be more organised than that – well you’re wrong.  I’m very good at organising everyone else.  Me … not so much.

Kids were starting back at school the first week in February and on the third week they were heading away to camp.  So there was a very small window in which to design and have Emily’s invitations printed so she could hand them out before camp.

We chatted about some party themes and fairly quickly settled on a rainbow theme.  It really suits Emily’s very much “out there” and vibrant personality.  Of course with a rainbow theme, the party styling possibilities are endless!

Thing is though, this year I must stick to a budget.  I simply must.  I get so carried away with the girls’ parties, they end up costing a small fortune.  This year is an expensive one though, so I’m determined to stick to a budget.

So off to Pinterest I went and wow, what an abundance of all things rainbow!  I lost several hours right there.  I wanted to share a few ideas with you that I found which are simple and inexpensive but will make the world of difference to any celebration.

Crepe Paper Pom Pom – such a fantastic idea!  You can head down to the Warehouse or even one of those dollar type stores and pick up crepe paper in any number of colours.  Martha Stewart’s blog shows you how to make these gorgeous little numbers.  I’ve made them before, I made them for Sophie’s birthday last year.  They’re so simple, I

managed to whip up about half a dozen in about half an hour!  I used string instead of wire, anything will do as long as it holds everything together firmly.

Rainbow coloured Jelly – yum!  Jelly’s always a crowd favourite.  Check out Homemade by Jill’s blog for a link to
the recipe.  Rather than using glasses, you could just use clear plastic cups (as Jill has).  You can get these in lots of different styles from your local supermarket or again, from one of those dollar type stores.  I would just use Dairy Whip instead of the “cool whip” they refer to, or perhaps whip up your own cream and use a piping bag.  If you read the article, you’ll see that Jill substituted the cream for vanilla yoghurt.

Rainbow cupcakes – full of the colours of the rainbow.  Sounds frightening I know.  But once I read the recipe, I thought “yep I could make those”.  So I’m going to give it a whirl for Em’s party.  Here’s the recipe thanks to kevinandamanda.com.

Party bags are often something you either love or you hate.  I understand parents not wanting their kids to come home with a bunch of small cheap rubbishy toys that will break in a few minutes, but you don’t need to fill a party bag with that type of thing.  And it doesn’t have to cost you the earth either.  Here’s a picture I found of a very simple party box thanks to Lil Sugar – a colourful paper bag finished with a thank you tag attached with a tiny wooden peg.

Parties don’t need to cost a fortune.  I have found if you put in some time and some effort, you will be amazed at what you can create yourself.  The blogs I’ve referred to above all feature fantastic yet inexpensive ideas to help you turn your next celebration into something very special indeed.

As for me, well I’ve got the invitations out.  Considering Em’s party is less than two weeks away now, I best get my skates on and take some of my own advice!