OK, I am not too proud of this fact, but I tend to go overboard when it comes to the boys' birthday party. I try to tell myself its because I'm making up for the fact they share a birthday, but I am sure if they weren't twins I would still go overboard. Plus, I think it is in my genes. I do remember my dad setting up an elaborate carnival party for my sister. I have lots of fun doing all this stuff and no one seems to mind, so I guess it is all good. This year the boys had a Pirate Party. A theme my friend suggested a year ago at their 4th birthday party (Dinosaur themed)! Needless to say, I had a whole year to pick up pirate booty. I wish I had a picture of the invitations because I really liked how they turned out. I scanned in a scary looking temporary tattoo, printed it on card stock, added color using ink from a stamp pad and then finally applied glitter to add sparkle and a gold tooth.
To go with the pirate theme we had a treasure hunt, of course. We only did 4 clues, because we weren't sure how the kids would handle them. They loved it and we would have certainly done more if we knew how well it would go over. The reward at the end of the hunt was two treasure chests filled with gold coins and jewels. The kids then got to spend their loot in the Booty Store. Setting up the Booty Store was fun and easy. We had both candy and non-candy treats in clear glass containers purchased at World Market. The kids filled up treat bags which we tied up with pre-cut ribbon and tags to label the rightful owner. It is also best to have two people manning the 'store': one to help the kids fill up their bags and another to tie them up. All in all the Pirate Party was a ton of fun!
I found a prototype of the invitation...
The cakes were inspired by a Martha cake--I can't find the exact link. The flags were made by ironing a ribbon folded in half together using wonder under. Little skull & crossbone motifs were also applied using wonder under. The sticks are bamboo skewers. It sounds simple enough, but it actually took longer than I thought it would. The extra time had to do with getting the ribbon to stick together...the ribs on the ribbon seemed to fight against the magic of the wonder under...fabric glue may have been a better adhesive for this project.
Clues for the treasure hunt were placed in skull cups. It made it easier for the kids to find them.
Goodie bags....
-K
I found your site from oneprettything.com and have been looking around your older posts. I love all of the things you create for your kids and the Mommy's outing sheets. I also love the valentines you create. I would love to know what you use to create all of the fun things that you do. I have Microsoft Word, but am wanting to get something new to be able to make cute labels and things for my kiddos and personalize them. Thanks for any input. You are sooo creative. Jen M.
jenrdh29@yahoo.com
Posted by: jen muir | January 29, 2009 at 03:45 PM
I love everything about this party. You did go OVERBOARD, but I am sure it was well worth it. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: | March 28, 2008 at 07:53 PM