My daughter's second Birthday is coming up this December so I figured I would share what we did for her first Birthday. When she was a baby, one of her favorite toys was Ellie the Elephant so we decided to throw her a Pink Elephant Birthday Party; Ellie is a pink taggie elephant incase you were wondering.
We invited the whole family down to celebrate her birthday/check out our new home the weekend before her birthday and we all had a good time and my daughter got tons of new toys and clothes. To save on money, I made everything for her birthday from the cake to the her outfit. You would be surprised at how much you can save from doing it yourself.
Birthday Outfit:
My daughter wore a onesie with the #1 and an elephant on it and a tutu. I bought all the supplies from Hobby Lobby. I bought a 12 month onesie but remember Hobby Lobby's onesies run a little small and shrink when washed so go with the bigger size. I drew the #1 and the elephant on paper, cut it out then traced it onto the fabric and cut the fabric out. I had my Grandma sew the them onto the onesie because it was too small for my sewing machine to do.
She informed me not to cut out the fabric until after we apply the stuff to make it stick to the shirt first though (I believe it is a sheet of fabric adhesive but may be wrong). I think it turned out pretty cute.
She informed me not to cut out the fabric until after we apply the stuff to make it stick to the shirt first though (I believe it is a sheet of fabric adhesive but may be wrong). I think it turned out pretty cute.
I made a very basic tutu since I knew it wouldn't get a lot of use. I bought pink ribbon, light pink tulle and hot pink tulle for the tutu. I cut a strand of ribbon long enough to wrap around my daughter's waist and make a bow. I then cut the tulle in 24" long strips and loosely looped them around the ribbon, rotating light and hot pink, until it went all the way around my daughters waist. I had originally planned to make a short tutu but somehow managed to make a floor length one. If you want a short tutu I would probably cut the tulle in 12" strips instead. *see below for tutu picture
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Decorations:
Name Blocks:
I thought it would be cute to have blocks with my daughter's name on them. I was going to put them by the door so everybody knew they were at the right location but decided to use balloons instead. I used the blocks for her one year photoshoot and as a decoration next to the gift table. The blocks were easy to make and turned out pretty cute.To make the blocks you will need enough boxes as there are letters in your child's name. We used bottle beer boxes for our boxes. The beer pictures showed through the pink paper so I taped a piece of computer paper on the side I was going to put letters on. I then wrapped the boxes in pink paper. My mom got this paper from her classroom but you can use wrapping paper, table cloths or fabric if you don't have access to the roll paper. I then drew and cut out letters on white computer paper and glued them to the boxes.
High Chair Decorations:
For the high chair I used the leftover tulle from the tutu and scrapbook paper. First you need to make the O-N-E Flags. Cut out three flags from your scrapbook paper and poke two holes at the top. Cut out the letters O-N-E and glue them to the flags. String some string or yarn through the holes. Next cut the tulle in 15-20 inch strips and wrap it around the string/yarn, evenly spreading the tulle out around the flags. When you are finished you can hang it on the high chair. You may need to tape it to the front to get it to stay.
I hung streamers behind the high chair to cover the window and make for a cute backdrop for pictures. I rotated different shades of pink and tapped them to the window frame.
I also laid half of a pink table cloth under the high chair for an easy clean up for the smash cake.
Chalk Board Signs:
The three chalk board signs are leftover from my wedding. If you don't have chalk boards sitting around, they are super easy to make. I bought three 8x10 picture frames from the Dollar Tree and removed the glass. Spray the back of the picture frame with chalkboard paint and let dry. I used the chalk boards to display fun facts about my daughter such as her favorite things, words she knows, how many teeth she has, etc. You can buy chalk boards, make your own or print off the fun facts and frame them in a picture frame to put on display.
"Watch Me Grow" Pictures and Elephants:
I made eight pink elephants out of construction paper to hang on the wall. I eliminated the elephants so we can use them in the future if needed. Four of the elephants were hung by the high chair and the other four were hung above the food table. I printed out my daughters watch me grow pictures, from newborn to one, and hung them above the food table. I taped the twelve photos to a piece of pink ribbon left over from making the tutu and tacked it to the wall.
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I made the smash cake myself by using a mini glass dish. I used the leftovers to make cupcakes. I decorated the cake with a bunch of icing in hopes of my daughter creating a huge mess but she ate the cake like a lady so I had to make the mess for her to get a cute picture.
Check out my tutorial on how I made the Pink and White Smash Cake.
The cupcakes were pretty basic. Chocolate with vanilla and strawberry frosting and strawberry with chocolate frosting. The icing was done in a swirl technique. The cupcakes were baked in a pink with white polka dot cupcake holders.
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Food & Beverages:
I tried to make all the food and beverages relate to the pink and elephant theme the best I could. It was hard because there isn't a ton of pink foods out theres so I tried to be creative. I also added some animal crackers, circus peanuts and cheese balls because they reminded me of elephants.
The food table consisted of:
- Chocolate and Strawberry Cupcakes
- Funfetti Cake Dip
- Animal Crackers
- Pink Popcorn Party Mix (Pink M&M's instead of regular)
- Chocolate Pretzel Bites with Pink M&M's
- Circus Peanuts
- Pink Mints
- Cheese Balls
- Chocolate Fudge
- Pink Fruity Pebble Rice Krispie Treats (Poppin' Pebbles edition)
- Strawberry Wafers
- Pink Lemonade
You can use pink chocolate, pink food coloring or pink sprinkles and candies to make more foods have an added touch of pink to them for the party.
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After all the planning, crafting and decorating, my daughters first Birthday party was a success and it didn't break the bank. The most expensive party expense is the food. Besides that, the streamers and tulle weren't that expensive. If you are on a budget and want to throw your child an awesome party then think of some cool DIY decorations to save on money and consider making your own Birthday/Smash cake. I think the party turned out pretty pink nice. Can't wait to start planning her second birthday party!
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