When your soon-to-be three year old daughter tells you she wants pink and purple and twinkle stars and rainbow and sparkle for her party you get this: Magic Rainbow Galaxy birthday party! Summed up into the theme "You are Magic!" Who said party themes need to fit inside a box? They can simply be a collection of the birthday boy or girl's favorite things.
We are throwing it back almost a year to February 2022, and Kat's baby girl Collins' 3rd birthday party. We are currently planning her 4th birthday for next month (time flies!) When Collins said "rainbows and stars" we got excited! We had been dying to make a balloon rainbow for some time, and we finally got the chance. The rainbow measured about 5' x 5' and was the focal point for the party, which all other details coordinated with. You can't tell from these photos, but we painted on some iridescent glitter onto the white "cloud" balloons to add another detail of sparkle. The stars hanging behind the rainbow were cut from a backdrop we found at Target. Its all about the small details that make a big impact! Details and links to products we used will be listed below.
Obviously, balloons are our thang. Its a given that our kids birthday parties will be over the top with balloons. We LOVE when our clients want to go all out for their kid's birthdays, too. The bigger the better in our opinions! A lot of clients have told us that they attempted a DIY balloon garland kit in the past and never want to do it themselves again. They will gladly pay someone else to do it for them. We totally understand that and welcome the opportunity to take that task off their plates and do it for them. However, we understand that it is not in everyone's budget. We are all about DIY-ing everything we can ourselves. So no shame to anyone who choses not to spend money on balloons, or chooses to do a DIY kit. Sometimes they turn out amazing! And sometimes not so much haha. But if you have it in your budget, splurge on some profession balloon décor.
In addition to the balloon rainbow, and small balloon garlands, Kat also made the streamer/fringe backdrop for over the dessert table and we made the jumbo confetti balloon with tassels. All of these are things that we offer to our clients! Well, except for the helium currently, as we are experiencing a national "helium shortage" and can't get our hands on it right now.
There are tons of video tutorials on how to make the fringe backdrops on YouTube. For a small one like this, you just cut plastic table cloths (we got cheap ones from Walmart, also found at Hobby Lobby, Amazon, Target, etc.) into strips and loop them around a rope or string and there you have it! We added star garlands and strips of iridescent fringe (both from Amazon) on top to add some sparkle. You can cut the ends to be any shape you want, or leave it kind of random like the one we did here. There are also retailers on Etsy, such as Oh My Darling Party Co, that make and ship them if you are not local to us.
As far as entertainment goes when hosting a party at your own home, a bounce house is our go-to activity! This party was the perfect opportunity to bust out our rainbow bouncer for the first time. We couldn't have planned the colors or theme better to add this in. If you are local to us, we rent our rainbow bouncer for $75 per day. It is on the small side (8' x 8') and is for little children only. If you are not local or you want to buy your own to use anytime you want, you can purchase this from Smol. They run about $500+ and they have other colors and designs as well. Super cute with or without balloons added, but of course, we always like to add balloons! And for this one, some star garlands, too.
Another great option is a craft! For this event with only three kiddos and lots of older family members in attendance, we just let the kids jump on the bouncer. But typically, with a larger group of kiddos, I like to offer both the bouncer and a craft or other activity to keep them entertained.
One of our favorite party "hacks" is for the cake. Custom cakes can be really expensive! Sometimes it is definitely worth splurging on, but in our case, we opted to DIY this too. You can purchase a plain white iced cake from Walmart for about $24 (depending on size) and then add your own custom details with sprinkles (we love Fancy Sprinkles), edible glitter, icing, figurines, toppers, candles, etc. Luckily for us, Alyssa is an experienced cake decorator so she was able to take the plain white cake and make it fabulous! We made fresh cotton candy to put on top and added fun details like disco balls, star sparkler candles and the CUTEST handmade custom cake topper from Fancy Free Finery (on Etsy).
Etsy and Amazon are our main go-to sites for party supplies. Another way to incorporate your theme onto tables and around the party area is printables. You can find TONS of cute printable images & posters online to download and print yourself. I found this "You Are Magic" printable on Etsy for $4, downloaded and printed it at home for free on picture paper. I took a frame I already owned and changed out the picture for the printable. It brought part of the theme into the dessert table and gave it just another level of detail. You can also find printable placemats, backdrops, party hats, food labels, and more on Etsy (or Zazzle), most of which you can print at home or at Office Depot.
A super easy DIY that we did was the kids pallet wood picnic table. Simply took 2 pallets that we already had, sanded the rough edges, painted them white, and stacked them together to make a table. It could easily seat 8 kiddos, but we only had 3 at this party (it was family only). You could add more to make it longer if you need more seating! You can usually find pallets for free around town (check Facebook Marketplace).
I also love to add flowers and ribbons to any party! They just add a lot of color, texture and personality to a table. Flowers can also be an expensive addition, but they don't have to be! I opted for silk florals that I got from Walmart and Michael's. You can also get inexpensive fresh florals from Walmart, Sam's, United Supermarkets, etc. Or, if you got it in your budget, support local and hire a florist! We love to tie ribbon onto flower vases, drink glasses, cutlery, and party favors to take them to the next level and just add another element of detail! I tied chiffon ribbon and star tinsel garland around the stars of the disco ball tumblers on the kids table just to be EXTRA! Did the kids appreciate the extra effort? Absolutely not. But I sure did! And bonus, the tumblers doubled as party favors.
One thing I always splurge on is custom sugar cookies from one of my favorite local cookie makers Enchanted Flour Cookies (@enchantedflourcookies). I told her our "theme" and she ran with it and totally nailed it. She did disco balls, stars & moons, and other detailed cookies in our color scheme. I could never DIY cookies like this! Its good to know your strengths.
Lastly, we have the luxury of being related to other party suppliers like Filament Marquee (Kat's hubby), so we always get marquees for our events! We love adding marquees to our party setups and our client's parties because they easily add so much to a space, with or without balloons, and they are very trendy right now. Since we had a giant rainbow we didn't want to take away from that by adding balloons around the "3" marquee, so we just kept that simple.
Okay, that about sums it up! We are currently planning Collins' 4th birthday party which will be princess theme and will re-use as much as we can from this party since they have a similar color palette. Let us know what you think!
K Thanks, Bye!
Mod Sistas
Product details & links
Vendors:
Balloons, fringe & bouncer: Mod Balloons Co.
"3" Marquee number: Filament Marquee
Custom cookies: Enchanted Flour Cookies
Location: Kat's house
Tabletop:
Iridescent sequin tablecloth: Amazon
Chiffon purple table runner: Amazon
Harlow & Grey hexagon watercolor plates: Amazon
Meri Meri scalloped bamboo plates: Amazon
Disco ball drink tumblers: Amazon
Iridescent paper cups: Amazon
Acrylic star stir stick: Amazon
Rainbow fringe napkins: Etsy
Disco balls: Tablecloth Factory
Silk flowers: Michael's & Walmart
Dessert/Cake table:
Custom cake topper : Fancy Free Finery
"You Are Magic" image : Etsy
Disco balls: Tablecloth Factory
Arched candlestick holder: World Market
Pink sequin table runner: Party City (old)
Meri Meri star sparkler: Meri Meri
"3" birthday candle: Target
Fringe backdrop:
Plastic tablecloths: Walmart & Hobby Lobby
Star garlands: Amazon
Other details:
Star backdrop : Target
Chiffon ribbon: Amazon
Star tinsel garland: Amazon
Iridescent chandeliers: Amazon & Oriental Trading
Collins' Outfit:
Toddler iridescent star sequin dress: Target (old)
Toddler ballet flats: Target
Star headband: The Daydream Republic (old)