My daughter turned 6 the beginning of this month. Besides wanting her party to be at the nearby indoor trampoline park, she also wanted the celebration to be anything and everything unicorn. With the current popularity of these magical creatures, I had no trouble finding ideas, themes, supplies, and party decor. In fact, it got to be a little too much. I was heading down the rabbit hole of excess and obsessiveness in preparation for this unicorn party, soon to be extravaganza. Fortunately, I did stop myself from getting out of control and instead put together a delightful, simple, unicorn themed party that my daughter absolutely loved. It was a hit for the two of us because she and her friends had a fabulous time and I managed to keep my budget and sanity intact.
***If you are new to this whole “kid birthday party” thing make sure to read my 2 party survival tips that will simplify and de-stress hosting any child’s birthday celebration.
A Unicorn Party Made Simple
1) The Birthday Cake
A charming themed birthday cake, or cupcakes (make it easy on yourself and just choose one), is a definite kid party must. My daughter chose to have a unicorn cake for her party. I found this precious unicorn cake topper on Amazon for less than $8. My local grocery store has an excellent bakery department, so ordered a 9” round 3 layer cake from them. I was able to customize the colors of the rosettes (that would be the unicorn mane) as well the cake’s flavor, frosting and color.
2) The Party Favors
I have a party favor rule when it comes to kid’s birthday celebrations; “one thing to eat and one thing to keep”. For this party, I ordered plastic unicorn headbands from Amazon (the thing to wear) and made cotton candy filled Unicorn Treat Cups (the thing to eat). Besides being absolutely adorable, these cups could easily be filled with a variety of other goodies; fresh fruit, marshmallows, or other rainbow colored candy. And it does not have to be limited to food. Small trinkets like plastic necklaces or rings, stickers, and temporary tattoos would also look pretty inside these cups.
3) The Party Decor
I like my party decor to have a purpose so more times than not, I use the the food and favors as the decorations. This trick also helps with clean-up because the guests eat and take home the decor, meaning less work for the host and hostess post-party. This birthday celebration took place in one of the party rooms at the trampoline park and they provided all the serve and tableware. I bought 2 foil balloons (the gold “6” is Target $1 bin find and the unicorn balloon is from Party City) to be my table top decorations. For the place setting, I used the guest’s party favors. The plastic unicorn headband and handmade cotton candy cup were set out, ready to be worn and eaten as soon as the girls walked in the room.
I highly recommend Circus Trix OC as a place to have your next birthday party They offer a variety of party packages with different prices and options to fit your budget and needs. Our party choice included 1 hour of jumping, a 45 minute party in a private room, our personal host who helped with all the set-up and clean up, a pair of grip-socks for each of the guests (another party-favor score), and a special message announced over the PA system for the birthday girl. It was such a treat.
2 Kid-party Survival Tips
Every Parent Must Know
- Do not host a party at mealtime. – I learned this survival tip from a dear mom friend of mine and she is 100% right. This trick is a huge budget and time saver. Children come to a birthday party wanting to play, eat cake, and open presents, PERIOD. Host a party mid meal and all you need to serve is cake and drinks. Maybe a couple of snacks if you want to, but nothing more is needed or expected. Adults care about the food and drink so save your gourmet recipes and handcrafted cocktails for your next grown up party where the guests will truly enjoy it.
- Do not have a party marathon, 2 hours are more than plenty. – Children run full throttle at birthday parties. The excitement, the sugar, the activities, and the presents, all feed into this flurry of stimulation. To avoid meltdowns from guests or the birthday child, keep the party short and sweet so it ends on a positive note. Plus if the party passes the 2 hour range, survival tip #1 might have to be broken and now a meal has to be prepared.
I hope these ideas and tips can help you plan a fantastic birthday party for your little one.
