The encouragement award goes to...Kallan's Vintage books and toy party

Anything vintage and boys related is like a breath of fresh air for me. I think for Tara and I who both have boys, we seem to spend a lot of time sighing over the beautiful pink parties out there. But then vintage and books, trains, cars etc pops up, and suddenly we find ourselves sighing over the boys parties too!

And this party is one you will definitely sigh over.

Readers, a round of applause for the encouragement award which went to Kristie - a mum of 3 boys (5, 3 and 1)-  who held a birthday celebration for her youngest son, Kallan who recently turned 1.
Kristie is a teacher currently on leave (enjoying her time with her young kids). She has also recently started a business from home called 'Li'l Parties' (but more on that later).  Here's what Kristie said about Kallan's party...

What was the celebration for?

 My son, Kallan's first birthday party.  It was held at our own home, with family and some close friends and their children.

What was the theme?

 Vintage (Retro) Books and Toys

Why did you choose this theme?

 I love vintage books and toys - especially anything 'retro' and have kept quite a lot of books and toys from my own childhood, so it was these treasures that inspired me to choose this theme for my little boy.  Since he is too young to choose his own theme yet, I got to choose it this time (my other boys - 3 and 5 - are now old enough to choose their own themes and birthday cakes!).  I wanted a theme that would allow for lots of colour and fun for a little boy!  There is something wonderful about the colours and graphics of retro books and toys!

What was your favourite thing about the party?

 Seeing little Kallan enjoying the moment when everyone sang Happy Birthday to him - so cute!  Also seeing the little kids playing and having fun!  I loved the bright colours and was pleased with the way the decorations came together.

What 3 Sweet Little Birdy products did you use?

 Red party favour boxes

Spotty paper straws - red and blue

White metal tins/buckets (used for the large pinwheels)

What food was served?

 On the Sweets Table:

Popcorn served in baking cups (my 5 and 3 year old boys had fun helping Daddy to pop the popcorn!)

Fruit salad served in baking cups

Cake pops, chocolate freckles, cupcakes - all made by myself

Little chocolate bars - I made the wrappers

Sweets - Lollipops, Gumballs (for the adults only), Retro Mix lollies, Licorice Allsorts ...

Chips and pretzels in cute retro canisters

Macarons

Birthday cake - I made this myself.  It was a layered basic butter cake with frosting and decorated in a classic retro style to suit the theme.

On the Savoury Table:

Party pies, sausage rolls, mini quiches, some savoury platters with dip etc.

What games/lolly bags were there?

 Games - a few classic retro games for the guests and Kallan's siblings (The birthday boy is a bit too young to join in the games of course).  They included Pass the Parcel and Pin the tail on the Donkey (not too many structured games as the kids are only little and are usually happy just to 'play' at this age.

Party Boxes - filled with cute little retro-themed favours (stickers, mini Rubiks cube, slinky, crayons etc.)

 A couple of activity tables for the kids to go to at their own leisure, such as a 'Storytime Table' - set up with a selection of vintage (retro) books, 'Craft Table' - set up with some craft supplies/materials and a 'Play Area' - set up with some classic retro toys (spinning top, wooden blocks etc.)

What do you plan on spending the voucher on?

I am planning to spend it on the gorgeous glass cupcake jar!!

Cupcake Shaped Jar

You have recently started an online business, can you tell us a little bit about it?

I enjoy creative tasks (when time permits) & in particular have a passion for decorating kids' spaces. I have only recently discovered that I also love to style kids' parties (fun for me to create & at the same time bringing so much joy to the little ones!). After being unable to find any kids' tables & chairs to hire for my boys' parties, I went out & bought a whole lot of my own. Then earlier this year I had an idea that I could hire them out to other parents who were wanting little tables & chairs for their children's parties - hence the creation of my little party hire business - Li'l Parties. I'm looking forward to having a go at styling more parties for my children next year ... the older ones are already coming up with suggestions for the themes!! :)

Best party planning tip?

Start organising early! It can take a while, especially when you have busy little kiddies all under school age, as most things need to prepared at night whilst they are asleep.  I like to design and make my own labels and signs etc. and all those little details take quite some time.  Another tip - wrapping paper makes a great table runner! I love to choose wrapping paper to suit the party theme, then place it on top of a white table cloth for the kids' party table - easy, effective and not expensive! Don't think I would change anything really - it was a lovely little celebration for our sweet little man xx

Oh my goodness, is anyone hungry after reading about all that food! Thank you for all those party tips Kristie, I am sure we have all kept a few tips of yours for our next party. Until next time readers!

Yours in blogging

Val