Let's Travel Back in Time, Shall We?

I've been thinking lately about where I started, and how far I've come with this whole "party" business. There has to be one or two of you out there who know that I had another blog, before this one, called "piece of cake parties"? It started out as a place for me to write about and share all of the events that I did for friends and family - and trust me, as a non-party planner, I did a TON! The very first post I did back in May of 2008 was all about my daughter's first birthday party. I was SO proud!

Please don't laugh?

So, without further ado...


"In getting ready for my 3 year old son's birthday party this weekend, I fondly remembered planning a 1st birthday party for my now 6 year old daughter.

Even back in 2003, I was adamant that I would not buy a prepackaged "kit" of birthday supplies. No Dora, no Thomas and NO princesses! Once I had announced this plan to my friends I couldn't then go back on my word, even after I figured out how difficult I was making it for myself. Oh, the pressures of your very first child's first birthday party!

Invitations

I decided on a "Jungle" theme - mostly because my daughter's favorite book was "Goodnight Gorilla" and she loved saying the word giraffe. I asked a friend to help with some illustrations of cute little jungle animals, very appropriate for a 1st birthday party, (although, cheap stock photo would have worked just as well) and just printed the invitations on my color printer.


Decorations
Next I had to decide on decorations. I just happened to have a ton of leftover green, brown and maroon construction paper, I found leaf and animal silhouette templates online and I went to town! Animals and leaves covered every horizontal surface, the ceiling and some windows too. I chose 3 shades of green streamers from Alin Party Supply and hung them from every chandelier and tent canopy.

Keeping with this Jungle theme, I found green striped cellophane party favor bags and tied them with animal print ribbon, made sugar cookies in animal shapes (although I could have just bought animal crackers) and make cupcakes with a little iced leaf on top. Our house was really small, so for comfortable seating I rented three round tables and covered them with forest green table cloths, and topped them with the paper animal and leaf cutouts. I also purchased plates, napkins and cups in 3 shades of green to match.


Activity

I knew there needed to be some kind of activity to entertain the children, and I had not yet heard of bounce houses or rent-a-character. I did not have any experience throwing a kids party before, so I just went with what I knew...crayons and paper. A child height table and chairs with a long piece of white butcher paper plus a few boxes of crayons and markers kept those multi-age kids busy for longer than you would expect.


Cake

And now for the pièce de résistance! The moment you have all been waiting for... the cake. While looking at my latest issue of Martha Stewart Baby, they had several options for children's birthday cakes. To my great surprise, there was a giraffe! Everything was right there in black and white - a template and everything. All I had to do was make a regular 9x12 sheet cake, the cut out between the legs became the neck, cut off a slope for the back and it becomes the head and tail pieces (see pattern details below). White frosting in a can (colored yellowish), frosting in a tube (in a contrasting color) to outline the legs, feet and face, plus some chocolate jimme sprinkles for the spots and you look like a STAR pastry chef!

Honestly, anyone can make this cake... here are a few tips:

• use boxed cake - it always turns out right
• use frosting in a can if you want to, it's easy and it tastes good
• what are you going to put the cake on? cut a piece of cardboard and cover it with foil, or purchase a ready made cake board of plastic or cardboard
• push 2 inch strips of paper towel or wax paper slightly under all the edges of the cake to keep the frosting off of the base board
• if you plan on writing on the cake, leave enough space for it
• remember to purchase candles!
• make cupcakes too - the kids actually prefer them to a piece of cake (and you'll be sure to have enough dessert to go around) 

 

sheet cake pattern

giraffe cake assembly

Shopping List

Michael's, Joann's or any online Craft Store

• paper to print invites on - or just use whatever you have at home
• envelopes
• green, brown, maroon construction paper
• animal print ribbon - to tie the party favor bags and for misc use on the food table
• crayons and markers - unless you already have some at home? you certainly don't need to buy new especially because kids are really hard on them

Party Supply Store

• paper streamers - multiple shades of green
• plates - multiple shades of green
• napkins - multiple shades of green
• plastic cutlery - clear, leftovers can be used at your next party
• plastic cups - clear, leftovers can be used at your next party
• cellophane party favor bags - look for some with green stripes or an animal print
• roll of butcher paper - can be brown kraft or white
• something to put the cake on - cake board of cardboard or plastic
• Party Rental Store
• tables - do you need kid size as well as grown up?
• chairs - do you need kid size as well as grown up?
• green cloth table cloths

Grocery Store

• cake mix - find some on sale and buy 4 boxes, you'll need enough for cupcakes too - remember, these have a long shelf life and buying extra will save you if/when you make a mistake (trust me) OPTION FOR A BIG PARTY: make the giraffe a double layer cake
• 3 cans of white frosting - (extra is always a good idea) for the giraffe and cupcakes
• food coloring - yellow/orange for giraffe body
• chocolate jimmies
• frosting in a tube (brown and green) - to trace the features of the giraffe and for the leaf shapes on the cupcakes... you can also use a pastry bag with a tip or I've seen icing syringes or plastic kits right there in the baking aisle at the market
• make sure you have eggs and oil for the cake
• EASY OPTION FOR THE CAKE - buy a plain, no frosting, 9x12 sheet cake from the grocery bakery and while you are at it get a dozen cupcakes as well.

All in all, it was a very successful party, AND I didn't have to resort to any franchise characters. This first party set the stage for our family's birthday party plan... original themes, creative thinking, spend as little as possible and make it look homemade - even if it isn't!"

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Found: Mini Cupcake Stand

You never know what you will find when you go into our favorite neighborhood gift shop, Aunt Fanny's. An eclectic mixture of hand made, vintage and reproduction, this tiny mom and pop shop is crammed with treasures. I was surprised when I found this little jewel yesterday, mostly because I was preventing my 6 year old from touching/knocking over the entire inventory of china teacups at the same time. Cute, right?

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P&C Real Life Party: Start Your Engines!

Start those engines! This real life Race Car birthday party is so spectacular, you need a seatbelt just to look at it! Charlene (Brendan's ultra awesome mom) put this together recently, and here is what she had to say:

When I started planning my son's 4th Birthday party I was inspired by Paper & Cake's car party. My son LOVES playing with his hot wheels!

I loved the color palette of red, light blue and white. I also wanted to accent it with the black and white check. I was able to use the printable package and enhance those colors with all the decorating accents. I customized the printable a little to gear it for his 4th birthday by changing the red car number to read 4!

I enlarged the car images and printed and spray mounted to foam core to have added stand up decorations.

I decorated the cake table and dining table with hanging tissue honeycomb balls above from devra-party.com. I printed many of the 2" circles graphics with adding "Fuel Up" on to sticker paper and used them on cups and plastic juice containers.

I transformed the basement into his own mini race track where I made signs and set up stations for the car mechanic, pit stop for drinks and snacks, gas station, tattoos and also set up some hot wheel race car tracks all around the house!

I also had mini car cakes made from a car cake pan I had from William Sonoma the kids decorated them for an activity and for their own cake to eat!

I also loved using the car trays that was included in the package to use as there goodie-loot bag!! I also had to enhance a plain white paper bag from Michaels for all the extra things to bring home by printing the top part of the invitation and spray mounting them  to the front and backs of the bags and adding there name onto the thank you tags tied with a ribbon to the bag!

The kids all had fun and most of all the birthday boy who said "Mommy, I love my car party- thank you!!! So makes it all worth it!

Oh- The Dessert table had Oreo truffle pops and chocolate dipped Oreos that I made, and I bought the chocolate covered square marshmallows from Costco (just added the blue chocolate drizzle). My friend Elizabeth Geiser made my cake. And assorted candy from gumballs, sixlets, licorice, gummies all from Party City and The Sweet Factory.

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P&C Real Life Party: Sharks and SCUBA divers (part 2)

I do love it when a plan comes together. I'm talking about all the little details that just happen because maybe the planets are aligned... or maybe because the force is with you? Notice the beach towels as tablecloth - I had no idea that I already had these towels in my linen closet - a perfect match!

A Smoothie Bar with custom made smoothies on the spot. It takes a special husband to find this kind of patience. He was pretty funny with the kids too - asking them, "would you like banana? would you like strawberries? would you like ketchup and mustard?"

And take a close look at the cake toppers from Edible Details, they not only match the party exactly, but fit oh so perfectly on the cake! Brittany can make these for you as well - and ship across the country with ease.

Lucky for me, my daughter has a shell collection - otherwise these centerpieces would have taken a bit more time and maybe even some money to put together.

Rounding out the food table, some healthy snacks, a pretzel bar, lemonade and ice tea. Yum!

Stop by the shop today for your Shark and SCUBA printable party collection. And don't forget that this party has a corresponding Party Planning How-To guide just chock full of party info, lists and recipes.

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P&C Real Life Party: Sharks and SCUBA divers (part 1)

Last Saturday we celebrated my son Jack's 6th birthday - practically underwater (DISCLAIMER: no part of this party was actually underwater, nor was any guest attacked by a shark). Jack is learning all about all ocean life in school this year, and has been completely obsessed with sharks as of late. So, what's a mom to do but create a Shark themed party complete with SCUBA accessories.

Decor in the yard to welcome/warn party goers. Yes, that is a 6 ft great white cardboard shark. They are quite rare, and hard to catch.

Once inside, the guests were nearly frightened away by the shark above the fireplace, but alas, he was stuffed - with a meal of swimmer. The Dive flag was raised, warning all of the SCUBA divers below.

Jack and his buddies had a choice to dress in scuba attire or don a shark fin. Pretty much everyone wore both at some point, but almost all started with the scuba tanks. Because the tanks had a "regulator" that went in the mouth, I put out some home made stickers and name tags to differentiate their little germ factories.

I have not laughed this hard in a very long time... their little masks were fogging up, and yet, they were taking it all very seriously.

Now for an activity, I just took into consideration that a 6 year old boy, and his friends, would require some time to run. Just run. Flat out, RUN. This was an obstacle course with a twist. The kids lined up on two teams, and had to run with a tiny cup of water through the course and pour what water was left into a jar. So the team to fill their jar first, well, was the first team to fill their jar (we are a non-competitive family). Those boys were having some fun!

After the first couple of turns through the line, all the kids just wanted to do the course. So I passed out more little cups, and boys were running - on either side - just going for it! It was really cool to see it (and they burned lots of energy).


The Shark and SCUBA Birthday Party printables and coordinating Party Planning Guide are available now - get your party started today!

and stay tuned for part 2... we will cover the food and the CAKE! 

Photos courtesy of Missy and Krista.

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Sneak Peek: Printable SCUBA & Shark Birthday Party

Phew! Just threw this super fun birthday party for my cute son, Jack yesterday - and man am I tired! Be sure to check back by next week for the printable party set and a How-to party guide full of details and tips and tricks - including how to make SCUBA tanks and scary sharks.

SUPER special thanks to Brittany of Edible Details for the cake toppers - be sure to order yours soon to match your party! Also to my paparazzi, Missy of Missy Marie Photography, and Krista of Krista Lucas Photography for taking about 6 million fabulous photos.

I also want to give a shout out to my friend Julia for putting up with me the night before the party - always a life savor in the last minute printing and cutting. And I can't forget my patient husband, my knight in shining shark-shaped-cardboard-cutouts.

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6 Years Ago

My cute son Jack was born. He came 3 weeks early, and was a surprise - mostly because I was convinced I was having a girl - but also because of his shocking crazy neon hair.

And Jack now? Well still crazy, but the hair is no longer neon - just red. He loves Star Wars, his bear called Henry, playing baseball with his dad, singing, his sister and, I'm pretty sure, me.

Happy Birthday Jack!

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GIVEAWAY: Edible Details

Start jumping for joy... Brittany of Edible Details is sponsoring our giveaway today!

A few months back, I was searching around on Etsy for some fondant cupcake toppers when I came across Brittany's shop. Her store, immediately stood out to me for all of the outstanding and creative work she had listed. I reached out to her to collaborate on our Train printable birthday party, and when I received the toppers that she made I was in awe! Very detailed, exactly what I was expecting and shipped across the US in no time at all.

So, to celebrate the launch of her brand new website, Brittany is offering a $25 Edible Details gift certificate. Thanks Brittany! And because I SO enjoyed working with her on our Train Party, I would like you to have a $25 gift certificate from Paper & Cake to go with it!

To win these two prizes worth $50, leave your comment on this post telling me what your favorite items are from Edible Details new website.

You can also get up to two extra entries by becoming an Edible Details Facebook fan, or by blogging tweeting or facebooking about this giveaway. Your comment on this post will be your entry into the giveaway.

You have until Friday, April 15th at 5pm (PST) when one lucky winner will be announced.

This giveaway is open to US residents only. Please be sure to link your name, email or blog to your comment. The winner will be determined by random.org.

Brittany's custom cupcake toppers made to match our Train Birthday Party



***UPDATE*** 


We have a Winner! Congratulations to Gretchen of Not a Short Order Cook!

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P&C Real Life Party: Art Birthday Party

My sweet daughter turned 9 last month. Nine. Years. Old. It seems like just yesterday I was planning her first birthday party - my first real party planning adventure. But, that's another story for another day.

Anyway, Autumn has been an artist since birth - I'm pretty sure it's in the genes. My mother is the director of the American Museum of Ceramic Art, she began her artistic career as a ceramicist just after I was born. Her parents, both extremely creative. My mom's sister - Aunt Janet - also an artist. See? in the genes I tell you.

So this year, when my daughter asked for her birthday party theme to be "all-things-Art", I was excited! Fun to plan, perfectly age appropriate, and lots of ways to save money!

Luckily for me, Autumn chose to do away with a traditional cake in favor of ice cream sundaes. We had a wide variety of toppings and sauces to put on top of plain vanilla or chocolate ice cream.

We also had some yummy cakeballs on hand, supplied by Terri's Party Treasures, served in artists palettes to match our theme.

That's my mom... the director of AMOCA giving the kids a little abstract art lesson. They painted with anything and everything I could think of, including straws and feathers.

And if that wasn't enough, Autumn herself put together a Photo Booth area that she and her friends used to take pictures of each other. Is she my kid or what?

Happy Birthday to my baby, ahem, I mean big girl?

Is your Birthday Child dreaming of an Art Party? How about a Printable Art Party! This Spectacular paper printable set comes complete with everything you see in these photos, and more! It includes:

Invitation (fits A6 envelope) +
Address Labels +
Thank You Note
Birthday Gift Log
Jar Labels +
Candy Buffet Labels +
Mini Popcorn Boxes
2” and 3” party rounds +
Pennant Banner +
Table Tents +
Front Door Sign +
Straw Markers

All the items listed with a + sign can be easily personalized -by you- using nothing more than adobe acrobat reader (free from adobe.com).

Now here is the best part - we are now offering an Art Party Guide so that you can easily throw this party with all of our tips and tricks. With lists and schedules and plenty of instruction, the printable Art Party Guide will help ensure your success with an Art Party of your own.

One last thing.... and its a good one... included in the Art Party Guide package is the beautiful Art Supply Posters that you can upload to your favorite photo printing website and hang for added themed decoration.

So? What do you think? Stop by Paper & Cake to purchase the Art Party Printable collection and the printable Art Party Guide (a new website is under construction) your artist will thank you!

SPECIAL THANKS.... to my sister Missy of Missy Marie Photography for taking ALL of the photos at the party, to Terri of Terri's Party Treasures for the yummy rainbow cakeballs and lastly to Jenn at Hostess with the Mostess for featuring this party on her fabulous blog.

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New Party! All Aboard the Printable Train Birthday Set

Does your little one eat, drink, breathe, dream and play with a certain blue Tank Engine? Throw a birthday party they will remember long after the train runs out of steam! In this Printable Train Birthday party set:

Printable Invitation (fits A7 envelope) +
Thank you note and Envelope
Front Door Sign +
Crayon Box +
Individual Train cut outs
Cup Sleeves
Snack Box / Hamburger Sleeve +
Cone Party Hats
Cupcake Picks +
Pennant Banner +
Birthday Engineer’s Hat +
Goodie Bag topper +
Train shaped serving tray
Gift Log
2 styles of coloring pages

+ Customizable item - Those items with a + sign can be easily personalized, by you, using Acrobat Reader - a free download from Adobe.com.

Customizable Train Invitation - you enter your information using Acrobat Reader

A simple and age appropriate tablescape can be beautiful AND healthy.

Train cut-outs

this pennant banner can be customized by you - spell any words you wish

Serve healthy snacks in fun containers - your tots will come back for seconds!

Train shaped serving tray filled with goodie bags

you can even write the guests name on their cup sleeve

these matching fondant cupcake toppers from Edible Details are custom made to match this Train Birthday... 

order yours today!

Special thanks to Brittany of Edible Details for the spectacular MATCHING custom fondant cupcake toppers. These are the perfect addition to our Printable Train Birthday Party - order yours today!

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