Five tips on how to organise a cost-effective kids Birthday party
Last minute kid’s party organisational checklist
Lucas’s Birthday falls in the summer – so it is a no-brainer to have a kid’s party outdoors.
Kid’s parties can get very dear in cost, it is easy to add x, y and z the things you don’t need and then before you know it you feel so over-whelmed you forget why you are even having a party in the first place?? to celebrate your childs Birthday obviously! and to make it extra special for them.
There is no such thing as the perfect party. Hiring an event planner for a kid’s party? talk about being boshy AF. If you have disposable cash then maybe yes, nobody has disposable cash nowadays? why hire a decoration company to do something you could do yourself.
Have you ever asked yourself maybe having a joint party? a 2-3 hour party? the shorter the party can bring down the costs. Keeping your guest list at a minimal per head, even opt for a boys only or a girls only party
A party in the park could suffice for many. The dilema many parents face is help with some logistics that do matter at the end of the day let’s face it parenting is hard enough, I got you! say goodbye to logistical nightmares.
It is also a lot about having the right mind-set
You have to get into the right mindset, kids will always have another Birthday party no need to go all out every year, a little trick in my head is I convince myself less is more.
5 top tips/hacks on throwing a kid’s party revealed….
5 top tips/hacks on throwing a kid’s Birthday party
HOW TO VS WHAT I DID
- HOW TO: Establish a guest list and if it is a) just boys or girls? or mix?b) Adults or a drop off?
Decide on the number of kids and adults and send out a digital invitation, the sooner you get RSVP’s sooner you can start prepping ahead to how many you are catering for – you get a rough idea on number of heads and how much quanatity you need to organise.
To save money hack/tip: Do a ‘just girls’ or a ‘just boys’ party drop off
HOW WE DID IT: We figured out that we wanted to include the adults due to the nature of the venue plus to the fact it was kind of like an end of year party for everyone to enjoy and get to gether, we thought why not – you can be cut throat and don’t feel obliged to, we ended up utilising the budget within food & drink in order to acoomodate having parents at the party (like making homemade trays of sushi bake and having one option of drinks i.e; processco) of course no need to make sacrafices afetrall this is meant to be a fuss-free process.
We decided to have a mixed party of both girls and boys – in the future I will probably go with an only boys party. Lucas has a classmate with more or less the same Birthday in July.
2.
HOW TO: Pick a venue, finalise a budget right there and then.
To save money hack/tip: For summer, have the party outdoors at the park, if the weather looks fickle have it at home.
HOW WE DID IT: First things first, we decided how many we were catering for, we wanted a location that wasn’t the park or indoors and ruled out an indoor venue as it was Summer.
Lucas takes some pony riding classes sometimes, so we decided on Eailing riding school. I could not fadom what the riding school had to offer – we also had an amazing host. These are the various packages, each package catered to the duration and what you want to included and if that included actual pony riding.
The packages included activities at the stable like; horseshoe hide & seek, den-building, chariot racing and tug-of-war in our Gallivanters barns and tracks area followed by 30 minutes of Golden Barn Wood Wack activities such as tree climbing, wood-whittling, stool-making, bows & arrows contest, axe throwing, fire-laying, foraging and marshmallow toasting.
The idea of being outdoors and getting your hands dirty was genuius for the summer – you would’nt need to think much about activities. A tug of war against children and adults was a highlight for the party.
3.
HOW TO: Decide on a date, and decide on the duration of the party.
To save money hack/tip: Depending on the nature of the venue, keep the time limit shorter, establish a 2-3 hour party duration prefarably an after lunch in time for tea and snacks part of the day.
HOW WE DID IT: We went with a date a two weekends before the summer holidays, as it was nearer the time kids broke up for school keeping that in mind we wanted everyone to make it. The activities the venue offered fit comfortablly withing the time frame, 1 hour 30 minutes for the activity, which left 1 hour 30 for the kids to play amongst themselves, eat, blow the cake.
4.
HOW TO: Make a checklist of everything you need for the party this includes: a) Food menu- what food to serve b) Party supplies; decorations, and party bags c) Cake – what kind of cake? bought or home-made?
To save money hack/tip: Use the year to gather all you can on sale for Birthday stuff, this includes party supplies galore, you will save alot of money this way. Keep what you did not use the year for the following Birthday!
HOW WE DID: First made a list of tentative brainstorms of what to serve food wise, previous parties ordered Deliveroo at the venue so we ended up ordering some Dominoe pizzas for convenience, it was an ultimate win (don’t forget to cater for the vegans or gluten preferred) we made home made sushi bake (add the menu to make it clickable) and made some homemade canapes in which you can buy in bulks if you have easy access to a Costco or I know Pret cater for larger numbers.
Snacks included crips and various sliced fruits, strawberries are glorious for in the summer, slices of watermelon, pineapple, cherries and apple. In a cool box; bottles of water, fruit boxes, orange juice, and bottles of prosecco.
Decorations consisted of bunting I had kept from previous years, and yellow table cloths, and we went as simple as 3 helium foil ballons one of which was a number foil. The cake was from the hummingbird, cake stand I have always kept. Candles (always forget – it is such a small thing)
Stack on the paper plates and napkins you can never have too much. First aid kit, cake cutter, can sprays for the hot weather.
5.
HOW TO: Plan a logistical to-do list a week before the party so don’t feel over whelmed and keep on top of things , download checklist here.
To save money hack/tip: All you need is this checklist and you will feel accomplished for the actual day of the Birthday.
HOW WE DID IT: So I did not feel overwhelmed I went by this checklist – it is a less is more mind trick.
Finally, we all forget the celebrant on their Birthday and why we are celebrating in teh first place, we can get so overwelmed with the planning and organising we loose the intention of the clebration. I always have a little set up for little one in the morning, every year without fail. I organise his Birthday presents as early as two weeks I ask him to make a list, wrap them up, have his cake and presents with balloons in the front room, it just makes it more special and exciting for them when the wake up!
Extended tips/hacks;
- Party bag ideas; a block letter you can get from an art shop, some small paints or pens to decorate the block, and sweets. This avoids any unwanted plastic and clutter. Tiger tiger do amazing cost-effective party supplies and party bag fillers.
- Bring a marker pen to label to write names down on paper cups to be resourceful!
There you go with minimal efforts and little budget, plenty of fun as we had a parent vs children big of war match, we threw a successful party and remember to thank everyone for coming and the appreciation of generous gifts.
