Birthday Bash on a Budget

We’ve been celebrating so many birthdays around here lately that it seemed like the time to share some tips on how to pull off a big celebration on a budget. When planning any party, I like to start with a theme. When I say theme, I don’t mean you have to go to your local party store and grab every cup, plate, napkin, and tablecloth with Minnie Mouse on it - a theme can be subtle. The theme should be thought of as a reoccurring idea that helps to achieve the setting or ambiance of the party.

Once the theme is established, you can start thinking about the invitations. The invitation sets the tone before your guests even arrive at your event. In the theme of being budget friendly for a birthday party, I typically head to Etsy and order a digital, downloadable template. The colors, verbiage, and font are customizable and can be done quickly and effectively. Once your invitation has been designed, you can either print at your local print shop to mail the invitations or share digitally to save on printing, envelopes, and postage.

Once invitations have been mailed out, you can focus on the décor of the event. Décor helps support the theme and establish the ambiance. I usually play a little game of mixing a couple more expensive “must haves” with some budget friendly items. Balloons and streamers are the most universal birthday décor, but can seem a bit outdated and boring at times. We think mixing balloon and streamer tones, and using them in unique ways, can make a big splash on a budget.

An easy way to pack some punch with streamers is by twisting two shades together to achieve dimension. You can also hang colors together to create a backdrop using different lengths, colors, and textures like luckpartygoods on etsy has done.

Balloons are another inexpensive party décor option, especially if they do not need helium. You can blow up the balloons and put them in many arrangements to create a bold statement. Mixing balloon sizes, shapes, and shades adds interest to the traditional balloon bunch.

Balloon garlands are pretty time consuming but can add a great décor piece to your space. If you have great patience, grab some balloon garland tape and go for it! Sound like too much work and worried about popping the balloons? There are some great companies who will take the guess work out of it for you.

While I am not against a themed set of disposables from the local party store, I try to tone the theme down a bit in this area, which ultimately ends up helping in cost. I typically find something that I love that falls within the theme that I love, and then pair it with inexpensive neutrals. Sometimes I find a plate that I love and I pair it with the white grocery bulk napkin pack. In the example below, I loved the precious zebra dessert napkin and all the animals featured on the dinner napkin, so I chose to pair them with neutral bulk plates. Sometimes I even alternate a white napkin between a patterned napkin to make the theme stretch a little further.

My last feature, but most definitely not least, is the birthday cake! Everyone needs cake on their birthdayMy little cost saving tip is to call your local grocery store and order a plain iced cake, then decorate yourself. I stick to simple elements because I am definitely not skilled in the baking & cake

decorating department. For this particular party, I added sprinkles & pulled some plastic animals we already had. I made the animals some party hats and plopped them on top of the cake.

Are you enthralled and ready to pull together your next intimated birthday bash? Or are you completely stressed and still not sure where to begin? If it’s the latter – CONTACT US and we can take all of the details into our own hands so that you can relax & enjoy the milestone.