party planning 101
Wednesday, April 05, 2017parties are a big deal to me, I take 'em very seriously.
so because of that, I often get asked about little things here and there on party planning. I don't have all the answers but have learned a thing or two by experience.
these are the steps I like to follow when planning a party. I hope they help when you get to it. I used noah & skylar's recent parties as examples.
and just as a disclaimer, I am not an event planner (although I've thought about it) nor am I a professional. I just really enjoy it and the have lots of fun doing it.
P I N T E R E S T - B O A R D
I always start out with a pinterest board for every event. I usually will start on that months before the actual party. this is basically the back bone for me, everything about it will be on this board. this way when you start brainstorming along the way, you have somewhere to put it all, and you wont forget about it. if I find a cute idea, I will pin it, if you find a cake you like, pin it. everything that inspires you about this party, pin it and save it for later. this is basically a party on a screen, you just have to put it together. THEN, once you've ordered the product, or made it, you can delete the pin so you are just left with what's left to do.
*I always make sure to set my birthday boards to private. I like to do this because I like to keep my party private from our guests until the day of. why show them the party before it even happens?
click HERE to see the board for noah's 4th birthday party.
click HERE to see the board for skylar's 1st birthday party.
T H E M E
this is the most important part of a party for me. everything will revolve around this one thing. once I have chosen, or know what the theme is, I can plan the time, the food and the activities around it. I usually pin the most important inspiration first and then go from there.
for example, for sky's party, my inspiration was the birthday invitation. the invitation was colorful, but simple, and involved "chilling with popsicles." from the invitation, I determined the party was going to be at noon (hottest time of day), the color scheme and so forth.
D E C O R A T I O N S
next, I like to determine what the "highlight" of the party is going to be. the "wow" factor.
for noah's superhero party, I wanted the focus to be the cake/dessert table. I chose to go all out in this one area. I knew I wanted a skyscraper backdrop with a huge number balloon and action figures for décor.
printables are on of my favorite things to decorate with. you can find party packs or single printables on etsy for very inexpensive and all you have to do is print and decorate. I never do a party without printables.
I N V I T A T I O N S
most of the time I choose the theme before the invites just because their are so many options out there now a days that I can always find something I like within my theme.
for Noah's superhero party, it was very easy to find an invite because its such a common party theme. BUT, for sky, I had chosen an "under the sea" theme but couldn't find an invitation I liked, so I seriously nixed the whole party and changed it when I found the "chill" invite.
also, make sure you are very clear on your invitation as to what your guests should expect. weather there will be food, games, cake, the size of the birthday boy/girl, weather you don't want gifts or just toys, etc.
popsicle invitation
F O C U S
what is your goal for this party? do you want just friends and family to chat and have a good relaxing time? do you want the focus to be on the kids?
for noah's party, our focus was for noah to have the most fun of all with his friends. so we built an obstacle course. this ensured he was always occupied and never got bored.
for sky, since it was close friends and family, we just wanted to hang out and let our guests chill with good food and catch up.
A C T I V I T I E S
you need to plan the schedule. what flow will you have? what will people do when they walk in the door? what will keep the kids entertained? have a plan as to what will come after each activity. down time at a party could be your worst nightmare.
it doesn't have to be a min by min schedule, but just an order of events so that when one thing is done, you can move on to the next quickly.
also, it's very important when having a kids party to plan an activity. weather its a pool party, painting party, obstacle course, or simply just let them play in the back yard or playroom. be prepared! and work that into your schedule.
the schedule for sky's party was as follows:
guests arrive - chit chat
prayer before lunch time
smash cake / gender reveal
piñata
presents
V E N U E
where is your party going to be and what will it allow? will it be a pool, a restaurant, a play place or your home? you need to be aware of what you have to work with. know the area and figure out what will go where and what needs to be decorated. its much easier planning a party in your own home than a restaurant. so pick quickly.
also, make sure you are aware of what is allowed at your venue. some places don't allow party décor (ex. restaurants), so ask before hand so you are not left with a hand made party banner you now have to toss.
F A V O R S / G I F T
I go by two rules when it comes to favors.. 1. either choose favors or a piñata. no need for both. 2. make your favors something people actually want. for kids its easy, goody bags and your done. with adults, if you are going to spend money on something for people to take home, don't give away trash. I love it when people actually put thought into favors. good ones could be.. sunglasses, nail polish, gift cards, bath bombs, specialty drinks. nobody really cares about a cookie in a bag anymore.
for noah's party, we gave away capes and masks to suit the superhero theme. and since we had an obstacle course, it was perfect! and for sky, we had a piñata, so I made sure to have goodie bags ready for the kids to fill with candy from the piñata.
I D E A S
where to get the ideas? tons of places. pinterest, blogs, instagram. I save it all! I have separate boards on my pinterest for girl/boy parties and entertaining. I also use my instagram as somewhat of a board. I only like pictures I want to keep. weather it be a cake, a dress or an adorable baby picture, I will go back to see my likes. then blogs! my favorite place to look. when I find a blog post I'm interested in, I will pin it.
I keep an eye out year round for cute ideas that I like and could in the future want to use. even if its not necessarily a theme I would pick, you can always modify. start saving!
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