"Clash of the Characters" Birthday Party 2015

Last August, I helped coordinate and decorate a party for three siblings. I called it the "Clash of the Characters"

The oldest was turning 13; he wanted an Avengers theme. The middle child was turning 8; he wanted a SpongeBob SquarePants theme. Then the youngest was turning 3; she adores Minnie Mouse.

The party was held in Soundview Park, in the Bronx.

Cake: The client wanted a photo cake. So we had the children wear the shirt of their theme and we took pictures and had Stew Leonard's  make the cake. (They only need 24 hours notice prior to making a photo cake). It was a vanilla sheet cake.

Cupcakes: We also had character themed cupcakes from Stew Leonard's. They airbrushed the cupcakes and put character rings on top for additional decorations. They didn't have SpongeBob and we improvised by using Angry Birds. They also didn't have the Avengers, so I bought some finger puppets from Party City and placed them on top of the blue airbrushed cupcakes. (These are not pre-ordered which is why we had to improvise & the only ones that matched the theme were Minnie Mouse.)

Decorations: Since it was an outdoor party, I used citronella spirals and lanterns from Bed Bath and Beyond to help keep the mosquitoes away. We also had citronella tiki lanterns to help fight the flying pests and give off a little light when the sun came down. I also had battery operated string lights over the food table.
I created a balloon arch that converted into a balloon banner that hung from tree to tree over the cake table.

Invitations: I used evite and Facebook to reach the family and friends of the client. Evite wasn't really the best form of communication for this event because you have to use email (although I do like all of the RSVP options). Most people I know ask me to notify them when I plan on sending them an email. A Facebook event worked out better because almost everyone has Facebook and you'll get reminders prior to the actual event.

Food: Although I would have liked to go all out with the theme and incorporate the food into the decór, it was decided to have half catered and half cooked on the grill. I used an inflatable table cooler (from Party City) for the salad and fruit that needed to be chilled.  The other food remained heated by chafing dishes.

Goodie Bags: Each character goodie bag had age appropriate items from wrist bands and whoopie cushions to bubbles amd coloring pages. The cleint really didn't want to give the children or the guests candy so we had books and school supplies instead. 

Overall, being that this was my first event as a certified Event Planner, there were ups and downs; plenty of improvisation and quick thinking but the guests of honor enjoyed themselves and I was able to take away a lot of valuable information from this experience.