1950s Party Ideas

1950s Party Ideas

Oh WOW! I have got to share the photos from my collaborated birthday party with my wonderful sister-in-law. We had a 1950s themed birthday party this past weekend and it was SO much fun! All of our friends really enjoyed it so I thought I would post some 1950s party ideas and tips that helped make our shindig a success!

Retro party ideas

Retro party ideas

 

How to throw a DIY Retro 1950s Party

How to throw a DIY Retro 1950s Party

First, we picked a color scheme. Reds, pinks, & black and wanted it to feel like a 50’s diner threw a party. Since it was for both of our birthdays, we  collaborated on pinning to our Pinterest board our 1950’s ideas. Everything made visual is SO much easier to envision how the party should go.

What I Bought



 

1950s party, decorations, party table, retro, vintage, rockabilly, diy, ideas, 50s party

1950s party table decoration and diy

We ordered our black and white checkered table cloth from Amazon. It really gave that “diner” vibe without breaking the bank.

black and white checkered table cloth, 1950s party

black and white checkered table cloth

One of the BEST props we got was the HUGE jukebox standee that was just perfect! If you host a 1950s party, this is the one prop to get. You can find the jukebox on Amazon here.

jukebox prop, 1950s party

Jukebox standee prop for our 1950s party

1950s party, decorations, decor, diy, balloon arch, pink and white balloons, jukebox, props, retro party, rockabilly, vintage, photo wall, party ideas

Rockabilly 1950s photo wall

Even though I don’t drink pop (or “soda” if you’re from the South) I just HAD to have Coke in a glass bottle with pink striped straws. The Coke from Mexico has real sugar in it and people really loved them. Get them here

pink and white paper straws

pink and white paper straws

coke in a glass bottle, mexican

coke in a glass bottle

rockabilly, 1950s party table, design, diy, black and white, checkered table cloth, retro party

1950s party table design

I needed a lot of crepe paper so I ordered one 500 foot roll of each color – Hot pink & Candy Pink

magenta crepe paper

magenta crepe paper

candy pink crepe paper roll

candy pink crepe paper

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Balloons I ordered online and rented a helium tank locally to fill them. We made our own balloon arch and I used  Hot pink, magenta balloons & white balloons

*TIP! Helium only lasts 6-8 hours! Don’t fill your balloons until the day of your party!

magenta balloons

magenta balloons

white balloons

white balloons

 

Since this was a late night party, we did snack foods – white cheese fondue, pizza bites, veggies, mudslide milkshakes & chocolate mousse cake.

We used this popcorn maker to make our own freshly popped snack foods! So DELISH !

popcorn maker

popcorn maker

Things I Made

I made the prop hamburger and hotdog out of air dry clay and paint.

hamburger_prop

I made some prop candy since candy to fill jars is SO pricey. I used air dry clay for the sugar sticks, let them dry, then painted them. I used my food sealer and a strip of cellophane to wrap them in.

How to make fake candy for a party

How to make fake candy for a party

For the other candy jars I used wadded up paper and cellophane to look like taffy and balls of aluminum foil for more candy filler.

I cut out the music notes for the walls out of construction paper.

Using photoshop, I designed the 1950s party invitation.

I put it up on Zazzle so you can customize it for your own party, too! Check it out on Zazzle 

If you want to make it easy, check out the list I put together of ALL my party supplies for your 1950s party !

outfit ideas for couples going to a 1950s party

outfit ideas for couples going to a 1950s party

 

drink station for 1950s party

drink station for 1950s party

 

rockabilly party, couples outfits, 1950s party, ideas, diy party

rockabilly party, couples outfits, photo wall

 

Well there you have it! I hope you’re party goes just as well as ours! Don’t forget to put thought into the music selection- keep it authentic and throw in a few 50’s remixes to make it interesting!

Diy retro 1950s party ideas

Diy retro 1950s party ideas

 

 

Safari Party – DIY Food & Decorations

Safari Party – DIY Food & Decorations

Safari Party – DIY Food & Decorations

My son turned 4 this January – I can hardly believe a year has past since his last birthday party ! Last year we did a Lego themed birthday party. This year he wanted to have a Safari Party (with Lego Ninja Turtles as the accent theme hah ) . With our friends at the Ann Arbor Creature Conservancy , we planned an interactive animal presentation for the kids & adults with food, cake & presents to boot . We had a blast ! Our animal guests were the three-banded armadillos, a sloth, the boa constrictor, a giant tortoise & a skunk . Anyone who lives in or around the Ann Arbor area, I would highly suggest hosting an event at the Creature Conservancy – they are a great non-profit that works with rescue animals and they help you host a great party.

 

For the food, I wanted the Safari party theme to be apparent so I enlisted my talented sister-in-law & went with all fruit and vegetables since Judah is a vegetarian anyway. Our guests gobbled up most of the food, but the left over fruit and veggies we left and donated to the animals to eat – and they were happy to have it, too.

 

Here are the pictures we have of the safari party food & event space, food table design, food ideas &  easy decorations I set up .

I love throwing fun, kid parties – little people have the best taste xo

food table, safari party, dessert table

food table set up for safari party

safari party, fruit lagoon, food ideas, birthday party

safari party food ideas – fruit lagoon

vegetarian kid party food ideas

vegetarian kid party food ideas


 

Snake sandwich – roasted red pepper, mushroom, pesto & mozzarella sandwich – What a hit! Everyone loved that one. The kids had an option of a almond butter and grape jelly sandwich on  gluten free bread that we used an elephant sandwich cutter to cut them out which was so helpful because you can get two elephants per sandwich.. brilliant!

snake sandwich , elephant sandwiches

snake sandwich and elephant sandwiches

 

 

snake sandwich, safari party food

snake sandwich – safari party food

Fun monkey head we made with a cantaloupe , oranges, sliced strawberry and blueberry eyes

safari party decoration, monkey, cantaloupe

Monkey head made of cantaloupe and oranges – safari party decoration

Gorilla grape kabobs with ants on a log with animal crackers

gorilla grape kabobs

gorilla grape kabobs

The juice bar for the kids . I love those monkey cups !

safari party juice bar

safari party juice bar

 

All the kids LOVED the explorer safari hats they received as a party favor .

kids table for safari party , party favors

kids table for safari party and party favors

And of course, it’s so helpful to let them just color all over the table so cover it with a big roll of paper – they are having fun, giving mom & dad a breather & decorating – a win win win.

kids party activity

kids party activity


 

My cute sister in law and her adorable safari party outfit showing her food labels she made with animal stickers .

safari party outfit

safari party outfit

His Lego Ninja Turtle cake made by my cake girl and safari cupcakes with plastic animals on each

Lego Ninja Turtle Cake

Lego Ninja Turtle Cake

 

Lego Ninja Turtle Cake

Lego Ninja Turtle Cake

 

We had a great time. I hope this helps you throw your own fun safari party for a birthday party.

*Kelly*