Posted on May 18, 2013 by Kara

Budget Friendly Olivia the Pig Birthday Party

Budget Friendly Olivia Pig Birthday Party via Kara's Party Ideas | KarasPartyIdeas.com #olivia #pig #birthday #party #ideas (15)

This budget friendly OLIVIA THE PIG BIRTHDAY PARTY was submitted by Lina Darnell of Fancy Frugal Life.

I love that this party is not only full of fantastic Olivia the Pig ideas but it also has money saving party planning tips that can be used for almost any event, regardless of the theme! A few of my favorite Olivia ideas and elements are:

The wreath made using a feather boa
The photbooth props made from craft foam, including pig noses and tiaras
The boxes covered in polka dot wrapping paper and used to display the cupcakes
The ornate design cupcake liners
and MORE!

Scroll down to see Lina’s party planning tips!

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Gable Boxes
Cupcake Liners
Sprinkles
Jute Twine
Pinatas

Here’s what Lina said about the party, including her SIX budget friendly party planning TIPS!- “For my daughter’s fifth birthday we threw her a fun Olivia the Pig themed party at our home.

In case you are not familiar with her, Olivia is a book character and TV show, based on the book series by Ian Falconer, that my daughter LOVES. Olivia is a lovable,funny, and precocious little pig with a huge imagination who loves to dance, dress up, and gets in all kids of fun adventures.

I want you to be able to take my easy tips and apply them to whatever theme or type of party you choose to throw. This could be a birthday party or even a baby shower, bridal shower, etc. Instead of just throwing up a bunch of edited party pictures, I want you to see that what I do anyone can do if you have the time. It took me a good week of planning and work to put this party together, and it’s something I genuinely like to do..kinda my thing. If party planning isn’t your thing I totally get it! There’s nothing wrong with that! I’m feeling a little backlash lately on moms who throw creative parties. I like this sort of thing and I realize it doesn’t make me a better mom than the next. Throwing out some store bought cupcakes and balloons and calling it a day is great! I’ve thrown kid parties both ways.

Party Planning Tip #1: Use dollar store table clothes to decorate.
I folded and cut up tablecloths from the dollar store and taped them to the top of my hutch to make them look like curtains. My backdrop is gift wrap from the dollar store. Then printed out pictures of Olivia online and taped them up. The larger one is actually an engineer print from Office Max. They are pretty inexpensive from office printing places. All you have to do is bring in your image on a thumb drive to order it.

The boxes for party favors are from Amazon, also inexpensive.

Party Planning Tip #2: Wrap empty boxes with coordinating gift wrap and duct tape/ribbon and then stack them for an easy cupcake stand.
I found this wrapping paper at my dollar store and bought 5 rolls when I saw it. The duct tape is some I already had but you could use ribbon or whatever you’ve got on hand. Such a cute and cheap way to serve cupcakes that can be customized to the theme and colors of your party!

Party Planning Tip #3: Create a festive photo backdrop with wrapping paper and dress up items from the dollar store and your kid’s closet.
I went through my daughter’s dress up items in her closet and pulled out tiaras, fairy wings, glasses, pretend high heels, and bought some boas, scarves, and hats from the dollar store. The kids and parents LOVED it! We made our own piggy ears by cutting out craft foam and gluing the ear shapes to foam tiaras. I also made the noses by gluing foam shapes to small dowels.Having a painted frame like I have here is also cute.

Party Planning Tip #4 : Use store coupons and shop Amazon for party supplies.
This may seem like a no brainer, but I cringe when I see people buy full price things at stores like Michael’s and Jo Anne’s. Those stores even have apps for your phone to show the cashier at checkout. Also Party City has in store coupons all the time on their website that you can pull up on your phone or print. Last week it was 40% off any full price item.

This pinata is a good example. It was $20 full price at Party City and I showed the cashier a 40% off coupon from their website and received the discount. I went back a different day and bought the candy for 40% off too.

I made cupcakes and found the cute plastic cupcakes toppers on Amazon for just a few dollars. Together with the no fade Wilton cupcake liners they turned out great!

Party Planning Tip #5: Make your own party wreath for the front door or cake table.
For the wreath I used hot glue to attach a white boa to a wood wreath form and also painted and glued this craft frame. You could use a photo of your child or make a graphic on PicMonkey.com like I did. Then I used a couple of the piggy photo props I made for the kids and attached to the wreath.

Party Planning Tip #6: Make your own free personalized invitations and party graphics on free online editing websites like PicMonkey.
I made the invite using PicMonkey and this free chalkboard background jpg. You can then email your image or print and hand out as invites.”

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Kara

Harry Potter Party for Parenting Magazine!

I was so excited for the April issue of Parenting Magazine! I had the honor of styling a Harry Potter themed birthday party for both the Early Year and School Year April issues!

Being a part of the editorial advisory board for Parenting has been fabulous! When Sabrina James (Style & Fashion Director) asked me if I would like to work on another fun project for them I just couldn’t resist! I will admit, when she asked if I would do a Harry Potter party my first thoughts weren’t all warm and fuzzy. It was a party theme outside of my comfort zone, and a theme I had never done. But now, it’s one of my most favorite parties to date!

If you haven’t yet, be sure and grab a copy of the April Parenting Magazine to see the full spread along with other fabulous parties styled by The Tomkat Studio & Oh Happy Day!

Photography by Valerie Hart.

Decor

The party was set out on Harry Potter inspired items like an old steamer trunk, some vintage suitcases, a british inspired telephone booth shelf and a book themed end table.

Candles were hung from the ceiling with fishing line to create a floating candle effect.

Old books are an easy way to stage a lot of the party food/decor. They go along perfectly with the Harry Potter theme, too.

The printable lightning banner, paper ties, argyle cupcake wrappers, invitation, Hogwarts Express sign and food labels/place cards are all part of the Harry Potter printable collection in the Kara’s Party Ideas Shop.

Invitation

This Harry Potter fill-in-the-blank invitation is a simple download from Kara’s Party Ideas shop. Roll it up and attach it to a white balloon, acting as the “delivery owl” from Harry Potter. Use a black permanent marker to draw an owl face onto the balloon. I weighed down the invitation with a vintage key.

Popcorn Bar

Since children will be watching Harry Potter at the party, provide a fun popcorn bar! This one included caramel corn, original corn & kettle corn. Parmesan seasoning and salt were set out for added flavor. Find the wooden scoops, signs & popcorn baskets in the Kara’s Party Ideas Shop- www.KarasPartyIdeas.com/shop

Butter Beer

Cream Soda acted as “Butter Beer” at the party. To create the foaming effect simply add vanilla ice cream to each drink.

Hogwarts Express Sign

Bring the feel of the Hogwarts Express Train Station into your party with this printable sign available in the KPI shop.

Butter Beer Candy Favors

Small glass salt and pepper shakers perfectly resemble mugs, so they were filled with butterscotch candies and labeled as “Butter Beer Candy Favors”. A vintage key was attached to the top of each jar with twine.

Owl Glasses

If a few simple steps, make these darling owl glasses for the kids to wear at the party.

- Pop out the center eye pieces of inexpensive glasses or sunglasses (available at the dollar store).

Attach white and brown feathers to each side of the pair of glasses with hot glue.
For the nose, cut a diamond shape piece out of orange card stock and make a crease down the middle. Glue the piece in-between the eyes of the glasses with hot glue.

Harry Potter themed birthday party idea via Kara's Party Ideas | KarasPartyIdeas.com #harry #potter #decorations #printables #invitation #party #supplies #idea #cake #cupcakes #activities (44)

Hanging Key Activity

These darling chocolate keys were made with a key candy mold from the KPI shop & melted chocolate. The keys were hung from a broom with twine. A child held up the broom as children tried to eat the keys with their hands behind their backs or at their side.

Party Activity- Magic Potion Station

Clear plastic gumball tubes from the KPI shop were filled with lemon lime soda. Three small honey jars, also from the shop, were filled with different flavored Koolaid drink mix. Koolaid is perfect because it’s a very light color, so the children can’t tell what flavor it actually is. The kids spooned the Koolaid into their tube of soda & watched in amazement as their color was revealed!

Paper Ties

These darling HP inspired printable ties are available in the KPI shop and are simple to print and cut out. Attach the ties to inexpensive elastic headbands and put the ties on guest as they arrive at the party.

Candy Stick Wands

Rock candy sticks from the KPI shop were placed in an owl vase as “Candy Wizard Wands”.

Honey Dukes Candy Shop

Small burlap bags from Kara’s Party Ideas shop were set out for the kids to fill with various types of candy from “Honey Dukes Candy Shop”, including actual Bertie Bott’s Every Falvour Beans, also available in the KPI shop here.

Owl Cake

Make this cake with fondant or gum paste pieces, cut to resemble leaves or feathers, and layer the pieces up the side of the cake. This cake was made by the talented Marcee, owner of Dippidee.

Owl Cupcakes

Easily make these cute owl cupcakes with vanilla icing, mini vanilla wafers, chocolate chips, almond slices and cashews. The argyle cupcake wrappers are from the Kara’s Party Ideas Shop here.

Golden Snitch Gumballs

Gold gumballs from the KPI shop were put in a jar and labeled as “Golden Snitch Gumballs”.

Golden Snitch Cookies

These were made with store bought banana cream cookies and yellow card stock. Simply cut the card stock into wing shaped pieces and insert the ends of the “wings” into each side of the cookies.

Chocolate Frogs

Simply make these with a frog candy mold from the KPI shop and melted chocolate. The frogs were set a top of an open book for added HP charm.

Party Favor- Truth Serum

Cute miniature glasses with cork lids from the KPI shop here were filled with water, mimicking “truth serum”. What mother wouldn’t love her child to come home from a party with this! The tags are part of the HP printable collection in the KPI shop.

Gowns

Inexpensive children’s graduation gowns look just like Hogwarts gowns! A gown was given to each child as they arrived at the party. The gowns are available in the Kara’s Party Ideas online shop here.

All party items from the Kara’s Party Ideas Shop- www.KarasPartyIdeas.com/shop
Harry Potter Invitation
Harry Potter Tags/Place Cards
Harry Potter Paper Ties
Harry Potter Banner
Harry Potter Train Sign
Harry Potter Paper Ties
Graduation Gowns
Harry Potter Napkins & Plates
Twine
Candy Sticks
Frog Mold
Key Mold
Plastic Gumball Tubes
Wooden Scoops
Jars with Wooden Spoons
Rock Candy Sticks
Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans
Burlap Bags
Wooden Baskets
Miniature Glass Bottles
Wooden Spoons
Gold Gumballs

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Kara

Disney’s Brave Themed Birthday Party

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This fabulous DISNEY’S BRAVE THEMED BIRTHDAY PARTY was submitted by Heather Liebman of Cake Pops Galore.

A few of the highlights of this Brave themed party are:

The Craft Carver stand with a bear claw necklace making activity
The beanbag toss featuring the faces of Merida’s three brothers
The stunning Brave themed fondant cake displayed on a tree stump platter
and MORE!

This is what Heather said about planning the party- “Welcome to the Highland Games! My daughter is a huge Disney fan and when Merida hit the Disney stands there was not a doubt that a Brave themed birthday would be in our near future. Will-o’-the-Wisps lined the walkways and driveway to lead the party guests to their fate and to lots of party fun! I love parties and sweet details!! I love making my kids feel like their birthday is the most special day it can be each and every year. This party was no exception!! Happy Birthday to our Princess Merida!!”

Cupcake Toppers- Creative Fondants
Cake- Krissy’s Cake Creations

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Balloons
Cupcake Liners
Candles

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Kara

Little Red Riding Hood Themed Birthday Party

Little Red Riding Hood Birthday Party via Kara's Party Ideas #storybook #party #idea

This enchanting LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD THEMED BIRTHDAY PARTY was submitted by Dawn Parsons of Party ’til Dawn Party Design and Styling.

I love the woodland vibe of this Little Red Riding Hood party, as well as all of the red apple elements! Some of my favorite ideas are:

The ornate gold frame used for the photobooth
The tall apothecary jars filled with apples
The acorn cookies made with Hershey’s Kisses and Nutter Butter Bites
The snow globe party craft / activity
The tree trunk slice cupcake stand
and MORE!

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Burlap
Apothecary Jars
Cupcake Liners
Striped Paper Straws
Tissue Pom Poms
Lanterns
#8 Candle
Chinese Favor Boxes

Here’s what Dawn said about planning the party- “I have always dreamed of styling a little girl’s birthday party someday, and after we adopted our daughter in 2008 that dream became a reality. I knew I wanted to do a Little Red Riding Hood party in my parents gorgeous wooded backyard.

I took my daughter into the woods, and photographed the birthday invitation myself with the inside reading “Over the river and through the woods to Grandmother’s house we go…”

The main dessert table was set under an arbor. I covered the table in burlap with a moss table runner. The focal point of the table was the amazing cupcake stand that my father made from tree trunk slices. Apothecary jars full of delicious red apples, wood bowls filled with woodland treats, and apple juice served in apple shaped bottles.

The girls made made mini “snowglobes” with baby food jars, moss, sticks and a tiny deer tucked inside. A photo booth was set up in the woods, which was the highlight of the party.

My Little Red Riding Hood never saw the big bad wolf that day!!”

Posted on April 21, 2013 by Kara

Wizard of Oz Themed 4th Birthday Party

This remarkable WIZARD OF OZ THEMED FOURTH BIRTHDAY PARTY was submitted by Tatiana Guimaraes Carcabrini.

A few of my favorite ideas in this Wizard of Oz party are:

The red and blue gingham pattern mini suitcases used as packaging for the party favors
The Wizard of Oz character shaped cookies
The assorted dolls and figurines representing the main characters
and MORE!

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:

Clear Cellophane Bags

Apothecary Jars

Rock Candy Swizzle Sticks

Striped Paper Straws

Balloons

Candy Sticks

Cupcake Liners