Skip to Content

Caitlin’s Art Party 2nd Birthday

Description

Our almost-two-year-old always loved coloring so an art party was the perfect theme for her birthday party. It was such an easy theme since we used every color of the rainbow for decorations. This was a very budget-friendly event with a bunch of "big bang for your buck" DIY projects.

Design Inspiration

Our daughter was our initial inspiration--we came up with the "art party" theme at a restaurant one day as we were watching her scribble away with her crayons as her tongue was sticking out of the corner of her mouth :) Then I went a little crazy on pinterest and started pinning anything and everything art party/rainbow related!

Decorating Style

Everything was rainbow colored! I'm so glad I decided to tone it down with white table cloths and dishes, it would have been a bit overpowering on the eyes otherwise.

Project Details

There were so many details that went into this to make it budget friendly. Almost everything was DIY.



Favors:
-crayon bubbles: found on clearance at World Market (not pictured)
-playdough party pack (not pictured): http://www.amazon.com/Play-Doh-Party-Pak-10-Tube/dp/B000096O8J
-DIY Crayon box: made by yours truly on photoshop. I don't know if I can share the template due to Crayola copyright rules, but here is a great generic one:  http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841730937480/
-Molded crayons (not pictured): http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841730937517/
-Paint chip notepad (not pictured): http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841731008115/
-Buckets were from the Target dollar spot after Christmas clearance
-Balloons: Helium tank and 30+ balloons for $20 at Walmart (more than enough for favors and decorations)

 

Decorations: 
-DIY Paper fans/pinwheels: http://ruffledblog.com/diy-paper-wheels-backdrop/ (inspiration: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841730934851/)
-DIY cake stand from Goodwill items: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841731102539/
-Streamer inspiration: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841730900221/-All the other decor was white--tablecloths, dishes, plastic forks/spoons/knives, cups, etc. 

 

Food:
-DIY Rainbow cake jars tutorial: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841730911694/ 
-Rainbow fruit tray inspiration: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841730934842/
-DIY Polka Dot Cake tutorial: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841730972252/ 
-DIY Layered Rainbow Jello recipe: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841731002280/
- Cake decoration: cream cheese icing with rainbow sprinkles. I cut out a "C" from parchment paper and laid it on top while adding sprinkles. When I peeled it off, I just had to retouch a few spots and it was a prefect C :) Inspiration: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841731038475/
-DIY Rainbow Spiral Cookie recipe: http://pinterest.com/pin/99571841731081251/
-Iced cookies with rainbow sprinkles were funfetti cookies with white icing

 

Activities:
We covered the dining room walls with plastic drop cloths used for painting and then used a long roll of butcher paper and taped it to the plastic. We let the toddlers go to town with crayons for the first half of the party and then switched out the crayons for water colors during the second half. They had a blast! After cake and presents, we went outside to enjoy the nice day and played with sidewalk chalk as everyone grabbed their favor buckets and said their goodbyes. With toddlers, this was the most "structure" we could handle!

Favorite Items

I LOVE that the polka dot cake came out wonderfully! It was one of those "cross your fingers and hope for the best" moments as we were cutting into it. The cake jars were a favorite among the older guests and the kiddos (of all ages) loved the jello. The streamers on the ceiling had a great visual effect, too.

Advice

If you're on a budget, choose an open theme! Since we didn't pigeon-hole ourselves to a very specific theme, we had such an easy time with this party. We didn't have to buy high-priced character plates and everything still had the wow-factor visual effect.

elayne

Tuesday 25th of September 2012

I love this and have just spent the whole day making a smililar invite on the computer. Can I ask what font you used for her name on the invite?

Angela

Sunday 21st of October 2012

Sorry for the late reply, Elayne--I think the font I used was Futura Bold.

Rachael Johsnon

Saturday 28th of January 2012

LOVE this idea!!!! Thanks for all the ideas and sharign the info!

Paula

Monday 16th of January 2012

So pretty! Love the multi-color details! :)

Angela

Thursday 12th of January 2012

Ingrid--Thanks! The adults had a blast, too :)

Cassidy--yes ma'am.....although not really anymore :) It's awesome that I left that big of an impression that I'm still recognized months after I've disappeared LOL

Cassidy

Wednesday 11th of January 2012

Love this party! Absolutely adorable and fun! Are you on the January 2010 board? I am and I recognize your screen name and daughter's name! :)