Ugly Sweater + Mustache Themed Christmas Party

This spectacular UGLY SWEATER + MUSTACHE THEMED CHRISTMAS PARTY was submitted by Kate Petronis of And Everything Sweet! Oh my goodness, what an awesome party full of darling ideas and holiday party inspiration!

Vendors and Credits:
Party Styling, Cookies, Cake Pops, Fondant Cupcake Toppers- And Everything Sweet
Push Pop Sweaters- Susan’s Sweaters
Printables- Lauren Haddox Designs

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Gable Boxes
Paper Straws
Push Pop Containers
Cupcake Liners
White 2-Sided Frame

   

Kate said this about planning the party- ”This past weekend I threw my third annual trophy husband party: theme-UGLY CHRISTMAS SWEATERS!! It was such a blast! My favorite type of party is one where people are forced to dress silly to fit in. Its an instant ice breaker as the moment guests walk through your door everyone is laughing at each other. ;)

I had SOOO much fun putting together the dessert table for this party. It was a bit of a challenge because obviously I wanted the table to be UGLY, but then again I didn’t. ;) I used a lot of different colors and patterns to create a mismatched/yet somewhat coordinating theme. Who knew ugly could be so challenging!?!?

Lauren, from Lauren Haddox Designs, shared her Tacky and Mustachey collection with me. It fit perfectly with my theme. I loved the addition of mustaches!! Since it was also a trophy husband party it totally fit!

I don’t normally “do” cookies. I looked into purchasing some, but at $5/cookie (at the lowest) I figured I’d try my hand at them. Let me just tell you, $5/cookie AIN’T enough! These little suckers are time consuming!!!

My FAVORITE addition to the table were the little sweater push pop desserts. SO awesome! I purchased the sweaters from Susan’s Sweaters on etsy. They’re Barbie sweaters, hand knitted and then I got my hands on them and tackied them up. (THAT was FUN!) Under each sweater is red velvet cake and cream cheese icing in a push pop.

And since adults don’t typically attack desserts quite like kids, I left some boxes out on the table so they could “stache” away some treats for later (i.e. their kids). That worked! The dessert table was 100% cleared by the end of the night as guests left with their boxes of goodies.

I set up a cheesy photo booth with a winter background purchased at Oriental Trading, some silly photo props, and of course, a blow up Santa to pose with.

And since it was a trophy husband party I had to create games for the guys to compete against each other for title of #1 TROPHY HUSBAND. Let me first start off by saying we have the BEST, most COOPERATIVE group of guy friends EVER! They truly are trophy husbands!! Such good sports!! (I can never have a normal party, with normal socialization). We did a version of dizzy bat (a trophy husband party tradition). We split the guys into two groups and created a relay race. Using wrapping paper as “the bat”, they had to spin around 4 times with an ornament in their hand. A few feet away from the start was a little Christmas tree. After they were done spinning they had to RUN and place their ornament on the tree and then run back. Once they reached the end the next guy could start. HILARITY!!! They were all over the place, some even fell from too much dizziness. (so funny, like pee in your pants kind of laughing, just saying).

Next, was blindfolded gift wrapping. The guys were given a box (I used cracker boxes, mac n cheese boxes, etc) to wrap. (I pre-cut the paper so no one got hurt!) We blind folded them, put them in pairs (they had to share tape), and gave them each a box, paper and a bow. This was also a race. Whichever team finished first (both guys had to have a fully wrapped present, topped off with their bow) were then judged on which present of the two was most presentable. This game, again gave us girls some awesome laughs. It was belly busting watching these guys (in their ugly sweaters) try to share tape, find their bows, etc. Just awesome!

The final game we played was “Holiday Sausage”. In this game the guys were asked questions like “What was your favorite toy to play with as a child?” or “In your opinion, what was the biggest issue facing this 2012 election?” and the only answer you could say is “holiday sausage”. You’re not allowed to laugh or smile when you give your response. Funny game, but if you ask me the guys had WAAAAY too easy of a time keeping a straight face. These men are hard to break!!

It was a GREAT night! SO MUCH FUN!!!”

Vendors and Credits:
Party Styling, Cookies, Cake Pops, Fondant Cupcake Toppers- And Everything Sweet
Push Pop Sweaters- Susan’s Sweaters
Printables- Lauren Haddox Designs

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Gable Boxes
Paper Straws
Push Pop Containers
Cupcake Liners
White 2-Sided Frame

Elf on a Shelf Christmas Party

I just couldn’t resist sharing another ELF ON THE SHELF HOLIDAY CHRISTMAS PARTY! This lovely party was submitted by Audrey Novak of Sweet Cheeks Tasty Treats. Oh my goodness, there are so many adorable ideas here! Scroll through the photos slowly so you don’t miss anything & be sure and read all the party details from Audrey at the bottom of the post!

Event Styling, Photography, Dessert Table Treats- Sweet Cheeks Tasty Treats
Magical Elf Christmas Collection, printables- Anders Ruff Custom Designs
Custom Elf Stockings, Table Runners, Pennant Banner- Puddin’ Pies
Custom Decorated Sugar Cookies- Emi’s Treats
Minatures (layer cake, cupcakes, pennant banner, stocking)- Little Things By Anna
Elf-sized baking set, apron, oven mitt, and chef’s hat- BJWildey
Custom children’s clothing, Christmas dress, applique shirt and cardigan- Lottie Da Baby

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Striped Paper Straws
Lollipop Sticks
Cupcake Liners
Washi Tape
Ribbon

       

Audrey said this about planning the party- ”So…I have a little confession. I’m ELF OBSESSED. Seriously. It’s one of those things that started innocently enough, as a family tradition YEARS in the making, but has now taken on a life of its own. I can’t control it, or at least I choose NOT to. But I do find comfort in the thousands of Elf-tastic pins on Pinterest and the incessant Elf-related Facebook posts of my friends…it’s nice to know I’m not alone!

We’ve had some vintage Christmas Elves in our family for years. We call them our Disco Elves because they (there are 3 of them) are wearing shiny, metallic outfits and look like they’re ready to party ALL the time. My Grandma used to tell us they were watching us and would tell Santa if we were being naughty…not sure if word ever got back to him about any of the “nice” stuff. Last year we added an Elf on the Shelf to our collection, the kiddos named him Mack, and our little Elf family was complete. The kids love waking up in the morning and rushing out to see what shenanigans the elves have gotten into…it’s become one of their favorite things, and mine too.

I’ve been mulling over the idea of hosting an ELF PARTY since LAST Christmas. SO many of our friends have Elves now too, I knew the kids would really be into it.

So that’s the WHY…and here is ALL the rest! I hope you enjoy!

I worked with the talented ladies of Anders Ruff Custom Designs for the printables. They totally “GOT” my vision and their creations were absolutely perfect! You can see their own photo shoot featuring this printable line HERE.

Since our guest list was very short for this party, I planned on hand delivering all the invites. I printed the invitations large, 8×10, rolled them up and tied with a ribbon. We all know that the Number 1 Rule when it comes to Christmas Elves is you CANNOT touch them…or they lose their magic! To solve that problem, each guest also received an Elf-sized stocking. This way they could come along without being touched!

When our guests arrived they were directed to the “Elf Check-in” area. Each Elf had a name tag waiting for him or her…we didn’t want anyone going home with the wrong Elf! After the kiddos deposited their Elves and went downstairs, the Elves jumped out of their stockings, put on their name tags and had their own little Mixer.

At our ELF ADOPTION center, we had several Elves just waiting to find their own family! Some of our guests added another Elf to their family, and one family got their very FIRST Elf at our party. I also had some Elf attire available for our guests to take home. Included were pretty skirt-sets and bows for the lady elves. We also had some tiny Elf scarves that were a BIG hit with our guests!

I knew the desserts for this party were going to be a LOT of fun. With so many teeny-tiny guests, I planned on making some mini-versions of some of our favorite treats! I made Elf Cake Pops and Swirl Cake Pops. I love using the striped paper straws as “sticks” for my Cake Pops…it really adds something special! I also made some MINI Cake Pops. These are REAL Cake Pops ya’ll. I rolled them super small, used a cut-off toothpick as the stick, and then dipped them just like the full-size pops. Easy. Cute. Good. So then, I wanted a bit of a challenge – lol! I thought it would be fun to try to make mini versions of the Elf Cake Pops too. I used a toothpick to add-on the details, but they were pretty basic so it wasn’t too bad. Totally worth the extra effort…they were SO cute! Local Cookie artist Emily of Emi’s Treats made some AMAZING cookies for our party. She created a “Peeking Elf” design that I just loved…it was beyond perfect! She also made stockings, mittens and candy canes. Emily’s cookies are equal parts delicious and adorable, I just love her work! Even cuter…she made MINI cookies for our Elf guests too! They were SO sweet! When we were all downstairs, each of the Elves helped themselves to a cookie…they were a BIG hit with our littlest guests. We also had some ridiculously cute miniatures on the dessert table! Little Things by Anna created the TINY layered cake and TEENSY cupcakes. Seriously, these things are SO adorable and incredibly detailed…I can’t lie…I squealed OUT-LOUD when I opened the box they were shipped in.

My sister volunteered to read The Elf on the Shelf to the kiddos while I was upstairs making sure our Elf guests were “comfortable”. We had a few activity stations set-up for the kiddos. They were free to go from one to the other at their own pace. First was the Jingle Bell Bracelet table. A tray of pipe cleaners, a container full of jingle bells…easy…and they loved it. Even better, after they finished their bracelets they got to go jump in the trampoline to hear how they sounded. We also had a mini tree decorating station. You know the drill…a package of foam Christmas trees, with about a million little sticker pieces to peel and place. A little cheesy maybe, but I tell ya what…my kids NEVER get sick of these things! Like ever…so I go with it! There was also a table full of Elf-sizes treats. The kids got to pick out an assortment of goodies to “take-home” for their Elves. That was the idea. In reality, most of them chowed-down on their Elves goodies…I’m sure it was from a quality control standpoint. Each of the guests had the chance, one-by-one, to put on an apron and join me in my kitchen to make a few EXTRA special Elf treats. I had three melters going, one with chocolate, white chocolate and green candy melts. They got to dip a mini sugar cookie, mini Oreo and a Cheerio (to make an Elf donut). I also had an assortment of sprinkles out so they could decorate their creations however they chose!

Word must have got out at the North Pole because we had a LOT of Elves show-up for this party. They were hiding ALL over the house! The kiddos went on an ELF HUNT to find all of our Elfish visitors. I used the printable Advent Calendar Tags from Anders Ruff (1 through 5) to label our “scenes”. That way the kids knew they had 5 different Elves (or in some cases, groups of Elves) to find. They did a great job hunting!

When it was time for our guests to head for home, I used a pair of decorated kitchen tongs to carefully put each Elf in a basket for the ride home (the stockings are a tight squeeze and we didn’t want to risk any accidental touching!) The kids, Elves and grown-ups all had a GREAT time at our Elf Party! The Christmas season is so magical, and being able to create these memories, to me, really is priceless. If you’re into the whole ELF-thing, be sure to follow me on Facebook! I post a lot of our Elves daily shenanigans there…frequently…too much…I know I have a problem.”

Event Styling, Photography, Dessert Table Treats- Sweet Cheeks Tasty Treats
Magical Elf Christmas Collection, printables- Anders Ruff Custom Designs
Custom Elf Stockings, Table Runners, Pennant Banner- Puddin’ Pies
Custom Decorated Sugar Cookies- Emi’s Treats
Minatures (layer cake, cupcakes, pennant banner, stocking)- Little Things By Anna
Elf-sized baking set, apron, oven mitt, and chef’s hat- BJWildey
Custom children’s clothing, Christmas dress, applique shirt and cardigan- Lottie Da Baby

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Striped Paper Straws
Lollipop Sticks
Cupcake Liners
Washi Tape
Ribbon

Modern and Merry Christmas Party

How FABULOUS is this MODERN & MERRY CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY PARTY submitted by Debbie of Wants and Wishes! I love the bright & bold color scheme! The ornaments hanging from the cake stands is such a brilliant idea! SO many darling ideas here, for sure!

Debbie said this about planning the party- “Neon bright colors are very popular right now so I wanted to created a collection that would brighten Christmas.

Have yourself a Merry & Bright Christmas with neon colors to excite. We have a new and fresh Christmas collection the will bring Holiday cheer and joy to everyone!

For the background we color blocked the wall with wrapping paper from Ikea (only .99 cents per roll!) Then added a modern twist by hanging a white faux deer head in the middle (from Z Gallerie)! We strung our merry and Bright banner from the antlers. To add a little sparkle and softness to the table we made a little ornament bunting string with mini clear glass ornaments strung between each cake stand.

For the sweets I wanted pattens and color to be apparent. We had polka dotted covered oreos, bright green macaroons with strawberry filling, hot pink and white checkered shortbread cookies (coordinating with one of our fun patterns in the collection), snowflake sugar cookies, cupcake topped with “sweet tarts” candy canes, cake pops and white chocolate popcorn “reindeer food”. To gulp it all down with we had waters and a frothy Strawberry ice cream punch.”

Vendors and Credits:
Stylizing and photography: Wants and Wishes
Printables: Wants and Wishes
Snowflake Sugar cookies: Frog Prince
Wrapping paper for backdrop: Ikea
Reindeer head: Z Gallerie
Small clear ornaments: Michaels

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

          

Nutcracker Ballet Themed Christmas Party

This gorgeous NUTCRACKER BALLET THEMED CHRISTMAS PARTY was submitted by Chritie Skerski of Flaired Affairs! What a fabulous holiday party theme! I love the muted pink & aqua color scheme…the gold looks fabulous as well! So many darling ideas here…

Here’s what Chritie had to say about planning the party- “I knew I wanted to do a Christmas dessert table this year and I was inspired by recent posters for a local ballet company who performs the Nutcracker annually.. First, while it is a Christmas event, it is outside of what I would call traditional Christmas. Coupled with the non-traditional colorscapes I chose of teal, pink and gold, it felt a little bit out of the ordinary just as I wanted. Add a dash of sparkle, and it was magical. One of my favorite elements of the entire style were the little party guests all painted up as their favorite character – Oh What Fun We Had!

There were two dessert tables filled with so many goodies! There were vanilla bean cream filled cupcakes that were crowned with toppers by Hot Mama’s Bakery along with matching sugar cookies. A beautiful adornment and equally tasty were the French Macarons by Crazy about Macarons – just gorgeous. The true sparkle on the table was the Glam cake pops by The Sweet Tooth Bar ~ goodness gracious, they were fab eye candy! One of the tastiest treats was the Nutcracker sweets cookies by The Cookie Jar. Another dessert table favorite is the chocolate covered Oreos by Sweeties by Kim. And rounding out the mouth watering, melt-in-your-mouth treats were raspberry meringues by Maddie’s Meringues.

The party guests were also a treat to invite. The little guests that dined on all the desserts were face painted by hand by Playful Paints to match their favorite Nutcracker character. They were served sparkling mocktails while they ogled over their little gifts from Santa. These little beauties were the glitter and sparkle for this party.”

Vendors and Credits:
Party Styling and Planning: Flaired Affairs
Photography: Dyal Photography
Model face painting: Playful Paints
Printables: Graphics by Lilly Bimble at My Grafico
Raspberry Meringue Cookies: Maddie’s Meringues
Nutcracker Sweets Cookies: The Cookie Jar
Cupcake Fondant Toppers & matching Nutcracker Cookies: Hot Mama’s Bakery
Pink Damask Chocolate Covered Oreos: Sweeties By Kim
Brush Embroidered French Macarons: Crazy About Macarons

Glam cake Pops: The Sweet Tooth Bar
Drink bottles: Pretty Sweet Stuff

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Rock Candy Swizzle Sticks
Striped Paper Straws
Popcorn Boxes
Milk Bottles
Chinese Favor Boxes
Lollipop Sticks

     

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Rock Candy Swizzle Sticks
Striped Paper Straws
Popcorn Boxes
Milk Bottles
Chinese Favor Boxes
Lollipop Sticks

Christmas Sweet Shop 1st Birthday Party

Do you have a child who has a birthday in December? How cute is this CHRISTMAS SWEET SHOP FIRST BIRTHDAY PARTY submitted by Paula Marie of Vens’ Paperie!

Paula said this about planning the party- “Throwing a birthday party close to Christmas time is indeed tricky. I came up with a sweet solution by combining a sweet shoppe theme and Christmas desserts. All thanks to a trip to a local cake shop where I saw them displaying Christmas cookies and cupcakes!

To make it look like a snowy day, I decided to use a light blue fabric with white polka dots as the backdrop. The lollipop cut out graphics on each side of the table really gave the tabletop a sweet shoppe look.

The guests were welcomed with a cute party sign and a red polka dot Santa hat. The Santa hats were embellished with cotton balls and were so easy to create. We just glued them together and had instant Santa hats for everyone.

We cut, punched and glued wrappers to Hershey’s bars and Hershey’s kisses for extra festivity. Plus, we made coordinating cupcake toppers.

I think that every Christmas party might just need a hot cocoa bar. Plus, a buffet of hot chocolate is always a party favorite.

If you’re interested in these printables, the FULL collection (personalized with your child’s name and age) is available in the Vens’ Paperie Etsy shop.”

Vendors and Credits:
Printables and Decoration: Vens’ Paperie
Cookie Cutters: Wilton Holiday Cookie Cutters
Paper Straws: Kikkerland

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Striped Paper Straws
Cupcake Liners
Ribbon
Lollipop Sticks
Whirly Pops

       

Items used in this party available in Kara’s Party Ideas Shop:
Striped Paper Straws
Cupcake Liners
Ribbon
Lollipop Sticks
Whirly Pops