Aria turned six? How did that happen?! My little girl is getting so big, it’s killing me! We threw her a unicorn birthday party with a few of her friends to celebrate! She was so excited, even though literally about half the kids she invited were sick with either a cold thanks to the changing weather, or out of town. But she still had a blast at her unicorn birthday party!
I’m always a little stressed when it comes to planning birthday parties, which is why I usually order a bounce house or rent out a place. It’s just easier and and makes my job less stressful. But, this year, since Aria is in school and we live close to family again I wanted to get back into my party planning days and do something fun.
SO I went to work and it turned out so darn cute and the kids had a blast.
Centerview: Party Venue
I love to plan and entertain, but I am not a fan of the clean up. So I found the perfect spot to host the party, Centerview Event Center. I actually discovered this place several months ago when I was running around town taking outfit photos with my Mom, and just knew I wanted to do something here.
It’s the perfect spot, they have three different size rooms, we chose the larger room so we could set up party stations, and have room for the kids to run around. Plus, they had everything we needed from table and chairs, area for food setup, outdoor patio for the kids to play outside and even a Photo Booth back drop holder!
So whether you’re looking to host a birthday party, wedding reception or even just a small gathering (I think my mom has had her Bunco group there before) Centerview is the perfect spot.
Party Decorations
Decoration for a theme is my absolute favorite. Once I knew she wanted a unicorn theme I started seeing unicorn party supplies everywhere. To keep things affordable I went to my favorite place, Dollar General (here and here) to grab a piñata, tablecloths, candles and items to make a photo booth frame and backdrop.
I also found this party kit on Amazon and this was seriously the best find. It was $33 and came with balloons, plates/utensils, napkins, favor boxes, decor items and more. I believe they had these kits for other themes, so I will likely be looking for them every time now because of how easy and affordable it is.
Unicorn Cake
The ever popular unicorn cake was a must for me. They are so cute and also great to help with decorations. McLain’s here in Kansas City made her birthday cake. And you guys, it was the BEST cake I’ve had in a long time! It had that real homemade taste to it. A little dense, made from scratch texture and the buttercream…you guys I’ve been dreaming of that buttercream for weeks now because it was so good.
Everyone was raving over the cake, and several had to have a second piece. I’ve had their cakes at weddings and when I worked in Marketing/PR we would have their desserts at some of our events. McLain’s is the perfect spot to grab your cakes and dessert (or even breakfast has they have a cafe too) for your next event.
Photo Booth
I wanted to have a photo booth so I could have an easy way to capture cute photo’s of Aria and her friends. There were some cute things on Etsy, but they were pretty expensive, so I hand made this photo booth backdrop for about $3…I know can you even believe it?!? It was as easy as picking up three tablecloths from the dollar store, lining them up, cutting strips in it and then braiding the three colors and tying a knot. I happen to have one of the paper fans that I found once summer in Target’s Dollar spot (also have them at party stores) to spruce up the center of it.
I brought all of our costume items from Halloween for the kids to dress up with, and then made this really fun frame. This was a little time consuming, but in general relatively easy. DG had a poster board that had a gold glitter frame on it, so I cut out the center of it and a foam board, hot glued them together and then decorated it with colored and glitter paper I also found at the dollar store.
Party Activities
To keep the kids entertain I had a face painter, nail painting and tattoo station, some carnival style games, punch balloons, photo booth and then the piñata.
The kids had the best time getting their face painted like unicorns and butterflies and then having their nails painted in a rainbow of colors. I found some cute rainbow and unicorn tattoos, which we all know kids love!
For the games, I found a fun Ski Ball game, rope toss, unicorn bucket toss and ring toss. I actually made the ring toss game by hot glueing party hats on paper plates and using glitter bracelets…all items also found at the dollar store!
Birthday Favors
Figuring out what to give as party favors sometimes stresses me out. Mostly because I want it to be something the kids will enjoy. So to stick with the unicorn carnival theme I reached out to Cottontale KC for fun flavored cotton candy favors. And you guys when I say fun, I’m talking mango, red apple, root beer, caramel and more. Seriously so many yummy flavors (yep I was able to taste a ton of option, including champagne for the adults) that actually taste like they’re meant to. I also love that Cottontale is all natural and even certified kosher!
I first had their cotton candy when she was live spinning champagne toppers at an event for KC Fashion Week. She does some of the cutest things from cotton candy pops to drink toppers and live spinning.
In their boxes they kids also got some colored slime and a balloon. I set a few of these in the center of each table for decor and gave one out to each kid as they left.
Party Food
The party from 2-4pm so I kept food pretty simple. I had out snacks like Cheez-Its, Goldfish, Pirates Booty, veggie tray and charcuterie board. That’s it, keeping food and snacks easy also keeps a party like this more affordable, as well as a little less stressful for you!
Our girl and her friends had the best birthday party, which all that truly matters. I’m so glad that everything came together perfectly because it was such a special day for her.
Have you done a party like this before or are you thinking about it? Know that you can truly do these kind of parties on a budget. If you make a backdrop, photo booth frame or game let me know! Be sure to tag me (@kallieflexman on Instagram and Facebook) if you do, I would love to see your creative parties!
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