Kids Birthday Party- Sails & Whales with Nautical Flair
Ohhh, it's Friday! Hallelujah. Today I'm sharing a little birthday party inspiration with you. I can't believe it, but my little guy just turned 2! I must have been daydreaming of warmer days because the sailor theme I chose was probably a bit random for the middle of winter. I am such a sucker for nautical though, that it was hard to resist. Plus, next year, I'll let him choose the theme and so I just had to do this one while I still could get away with it! And, let's be honest, he enjoyed it-- especially the balloons & blue Jell-o!Anyway, the detail list is at the bottom of the post & as always you're welcome to leave comments with any questions on how things were made, where they came from, etc. This was a total DIY party, so pretty much everything can be created with simple supplies. Hope you enjoy...
--DETAILS--Invitation/Paper Goods: I designed these invitations last minute since I spaced it until just over a week before the party! Can you believe that? Seriously, my brain has been a little overloaded lately, but luckily I got them done quickly & with matching sucker labels, food signs & favor bag tags. I thought the color scheme of orange, aqua, blue and white would be fun and a little less traditional than the usually nautical navy & red.Treats/Drinks: Blue Jello cups topped with cantaloupe boats & dried coconut sails, Blue Hawaiian Punch filled bottles topped with candy skewer sailboat drink stirrers, "fish shots" (mini anchor cups filled with goldfish, which were perfect for the little ones at the party), Suckers with personalized round tags to coordinate with other paper goods, Orange Pepper Octopus in Ranch Dip (added blue food coloring to make it look like water-- perfect for veggie dipping).Decor: Balloons, striped/polka dot pennant garlands, felt whale & sailboat confetti, orange & aqua plastic table cloths as runners, blue metal buckets, etc.Cake: I had the plain aqua cake made at Macey's Bakery, then I just used Air Heads Candy & cut out quick shapes for the whale, water spout & "2". It was seriously so fast & easy!Activity: Guests could decorate sailor hats. I was surprised at how much fun the hats were-- even for the adults. When I put them out for the kids to decorate, I noticed a few minutes later that more adults were wearing them than kids! I guess it just proves how much "kid" there is in all of us!Favors: Treat bags included a small toy sailboat, whale eraser, whale/sea life fruit snacks, felt anchors (just because they looked cute) and were tied with thin nautical rope, a lifesaver and coordinating paper tags. I used aqua tissue paper at the bottom to look like water.