Hey. You over there with the glue gun in hand. Put it down sloooowwwly and don’t make another move- until you read these pointers on how to plan the perfect DIY birthday bash (without breaking the bank). We tapped the uber-creative duo Gabrielle and Lorraine Wile of Wile Events for their top tips on how to maintain sanity while planning your kid’s fete.
:: TIPS ::
1.Carry out a theme! First and foremost you should focus on your child’s interests and personality to carry out a theme and get the best result. Most of the time when we meet with a client to discuss planning a child’s party, we ask if they have thought about a theme. It’s the single best way to inspire an event; can be carried out in as many elements as you like and help even the simplest of parties feel immediately pulled together and well thought out. Of course it’s always easy to go with what current movie the kids are obsessing over, but we like to really tap into what makes our kids unique to give them a one-of- a kind party that celebrates their individuality. Is your kid an amazing chess player? Musically inclined? Sports enthusiast? Taking cues from the things they love is the best starting point in the planning process.
2. Less is more with kids. While we have seen kids delight in grand celebrations with full petting zoos and stilt walkers, we’ve also seen kids have just as much fun at a make your own pizza party where they donned their own aprons and chefs hats, rolled and pinched dough, chose their favorite toppings and finally sampled their tasty culinary work. In the end, you don’t have to max out your credit cards to knock your kids socks off.
3. Utilize inexpensive elements in bulk to create a big impact. Creative backdrops are a great place to do this. They can totally transform a party space as they take a boring wall and set the stage for a celebration, not to mention provide an awesome backdrop for photos of the birthday cake or the partygoers. You can create one that is large enough for photo shoots complete with props for the kids to pose in front of or one to simply hang behind the dessert table to add some pop. They can be made out of virtually anything and can be created for any theme. We’ve made backdrops from tons of tiny balloons, to long stretches of colored streamers, maps, wrapping paper or sheets of fabric with graphic prints, you name it, it works with any theme.
4. Put the camera down. Have a friend that has an SLR camera or is capable of taking decent photos in focus? Kindly ask them to snap some photos of you enjoying your children and the celebration you worked so hard to prepare for them. You can pay them back with a girl’s night out for dinner or drinks. (Double bonus for you!) We see moms get burned out all of the time from the planning process, and then when the party arrives they are so busy snapping away that they never get a chance to sit down and enjoy it. Let someone else take the lens while you take a seat. We have an abundance of awesome Bergen Moms that moonlight as impressive professional photographers. Give them a call and ask for a quote to shoot for 2 hours- it will cost a little more out of pocket, but you’ll be glad you took that step.
5. Don’t do everything. If you’re dead set on making all of the food, then purchase the favors and décor to keep things simple. Likewise if you really want to roll up your sleeves making the décor and other special party elements, then outsource the food to a caterer or local deli. Don’t take on every element- that’s the best way to crash and burn.
6. Enjoy! Remember to not get so wrapped up in the planning and details that you don’t step back and enjoy it. As a busy working Mom of two, we know how hectic life can be. Celebrations for our children should be just the opposite. It should be a day where you stop everything and celebrate that beautiful little light running around and bask in their innocence because it goes by way too fast.
Wile Events is a full service boutique event design firm based in Bergen County, NJ, and is comprised of owners and sisters-in-law, Gabrielle and Lorraine Wile. With a shared loved of entertaining and elevating the beauty in the everyday; we strive to inspire, create and add style to the moments in life that deserve celebrating. As professionals, we set out to share our passion and expertise with those seeking to celebrate special moments both intimate and grand with creative vision and style.
ART PARTY
- Is your kid a budding artist? One of our favorite DIY party ideas is an art party. All you need is a few canvases, some tabletop easels (they sell cheap, sturdy ones at big box craft stores) a few brushes and some paint. Set the kids lose and let their creative juices flow freely. It’s a double bonus as its serves as the entertainment and activity portion of the party but they also get to take home a handmade favor that they can be proud of. If you’re still hankering to dole out a favor, a simple watercolor set with a brush attached and affixed with a colorful ribbon is a great take home and is super affordable.
- A white iced cake with splatters of food coloring or some abstract drawings made with food coloring pens helps lend to the theme and can easily be accomplished by any baking novice. (Bonus points if you let the birthday kid help!) We’ve also seen adorable rice krispy treat squares dipped into colored white chocolate and turned upside down with a popsicle stick to resemble a paintbrush.
- Décor is easy with a few paint cans wrapped or painted in every color of the rainbow. When filled with colored tissue paper they can act as anchors to tie balloons to that help decorate the “studio space,” you can also use paint color sample strips from your local hardware store to create a bunting for the cake table by simple hot gluing or threading them onto a sturdy ribbon to be draped across the front of the table. Looking to insert more color? Hanging a bunch of bright paper party fans on a wall can create a colorful backdrop that really helps a space to pop with very little effort.
UNDER THE BIG TOP
- Year after year we see the ever popular Circus theme making big splashes with the small set. It’s such a fun theme and can be easily replicated to any scale. Some red tablecloths, spools of tickets, circus inspired games which can be purchased online or at most party stores, a jar of clown noses, red + white candy accents and boxes of animal crackers to send home as favors help to round out a sweet circus theme- no stilt walkers required.
STORYBOOK INSPIRATION
- One of our favorite themes to work off is popular storybooks. They are chock full of great ideas to draw inspiration from as you can draw from several elements.
A simple little girls tea party gets elevated when you pull inspiration from C.S Lewis and create a birthday wonderland that takes little more than a bunch of playing cards, some mismatched teacups, a bundle of pretty flowers and finger sandwiches to pull off.
-A copy of the book of honor can be wrapped in ribbon and given to each child to take home at party’s end. It’s a nice reminder of a fun party and may also introduce them to a story they haven’t heard yet. Cupcakes and teapots decorated with tags displaying popular phrases from the story are a great way to keep the theme cohesive.
