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♥ Supplies bought for the party are linked at the bottom of this post ♥
This past November, we celebrated my sweet baby girl Charli Jean turning 1! It was incredibly bittersweet. I want her to stay small forever, but I also love watching her learn & grow. OF COURSE, being the creative that I am, I had to go all out with the 1st birthday party (it was a must)!
People may ask why I opted to have such an extravagant 1st birthday party since my daughter won’t remember it. & thats why I hired a professional photographer to document the event, so she can look at the photos when she is older lol! For the party we hired our family photographer Marianne Lucille Photography.
Party Planning
The planning side of the party is important before we get into the nitty gritty of all the party details. Following the steps below insured the party went off without a hitch & minimal stress!
First, I started by choosing a theme. The second I got on Pinterest, I knew I would go back & forth on themes. To be decisive, I decided to choose a theme before entering Pinterest land. I wanted the party to include the color pink… Obviously! & one of Charli Jean’s favorite foods is strawberries. That’s how I chose a theme… So complex I know!
Second, I decided where I was having the party. I was trying to keep the price of the party down as much as possible while still going all out, so I decided to have the party at the house.
Thirdly, I got down to planning the space. I sketched out location of all the decorations based on what I pinned on Pinterest. This was a great way for me to get realistic about what was obtainable with budget, time, & space. It also made the setup of the party MUCH easier the day of.
Lastly, I created a guest list & ordered invitations. On the invite list was close friends, close family, & neighbors. After solidifying the guest list, I ordered & shipped invitations.
After invitations, I went crazy buying items for the party & starting my DIY decorations. Giving myself ample time to finish the DIY projects was a must!
Phew okay now that the steps of the planning process are out of the way, let’s get to the fun stuff!
Balloons
Balloons are my favorite… I knew I wanted A TON. I hired Savannah Celebrations to do all the balloons for the party (this was definitely my splurge item).
The centerpiece of the party was a “Charli’s berry first birthday” balloon backdrop. Thi is where we took photos with all of the guests! It was also a great backdrop for the smash cake.
To compliment the ballon backdrop, I decorated her highchair across the front with pink tassels & a “one” banner. & of course every baby needs a cutie party hat!
Smash Cake
Being the health nut that I am in regard to my child, I opted for a refined sugar free smash cake. The cake was made with bananas & monk fruit sugar. I hired a local cake baker that works out of her home here in Savannah. She only takes orders through Facebook messenger (she is a hidden Savannah gem)!
Front Porch Decor
In my personal opinion, the first step to make any front porch look fabulous is potted flowers! It adds color & makes the space look finished. Of course, a fabulous balloon arch over the front door is also a must!
For DIY projects, I did the welcome sign & the “Charli Jean’s Strawberry Farm” crate. Both of these projects were very easy. For the welcome sign, all I did was paint it white & red. For the crate, I started off by painting the crate white. Then I hot glued red painted letters, added white crinkle paper, & faux strawberries.
Entryway Decor
In my opinion, a newborn to 12-month photo banner is a must for a 1st birthday! There is something so special about seeing how your baby has grown in the first year. To save time, I ordered a photo banner online, but you could absolutely DIY your own.
I know everyone has a different opinion about party favors, but I think it is a great way to show your guests that you appreciate them! We got each guest a jar of strawberry jelly & added adorable thank you tags. The favor table was finsihed off with a custom table sign.
Sweet’s Table
Who doesn’t love a sweet’s table!? I knew I absolutely wanted one the second I started party planning. My goal was to have a beautifully decorated table, but also be realistic about how many sweet’s people would actually eat.
My favorite thing on the table was the custom iced cookies. In my opnion, they are the perfect addition to any party! My mom hand carried these cookies on a plane from Michigan to Savannah… I am cray cray! But I couldn’t help myself, Cookie Party Detroit really just is the best for custom cookies! Also, after the party is over, guests can take the cookies home as an additional party favor.
The key to any great sweet’s table is to have enough sweet & sour candy options. I served Pocky Sticks, strawberry sugar wafers, red & green Hershey Kisses, Twizzlers, Swedish Fish, & Strawberry Sour Patch Kids.
To keep cost down, I ordered cupcakes from Publix. They are seriously so good… Don’t sleep on Publix cupcakes! To jazz them up, I had a photo of my daughter in a strawberry party hat as the cupcake topper. I had my friends painstakingly cut out the photos & hot glue the photos to toothpicks… Once again, Haley is cray cray!
In regard to table décor, I ordered a custom sign that says, “you’re the sweetest pick of the patch”. The sign is on a flat wooden circle that I painted white with red polka dots.
I painted the “sweet” letters & the number “1” red. Confetti & faux strawberries were scattered all over the table. & of course, fresh flowers in a mason jar with pink & red ribbon to finish of the space!
Drink Table
Charli’s birthday party was in the late afternoon, so I decided to serve alcohol & soft drinks. We had an assortment of red wine, white wine, rose wine, beer, white claws, strawberry soda, & strawberry lemonade.
Custom wine labels are a super inexpensive & fabulous detail to add!
To keep the drinkware simple, my mom gave me leftover cups & wine glasses from a previous party she had. I finished off the cups with custom birthday stickers.
To make the drink area even more extra, I DIYed a “Charli Jean’s Fresh Berries” market sign. The market stand was super simple to construct. It is made out of 4 crates, 2 wooden poles & a flat wooden board. I painted everything white, stenciled the letters on the sign, & nailed everything together.
Any fabulous market sign turned drink table needs a drink sign, curly straws, berry bakset with faux strawberries & fabulous tissue paper pink tassels!
Food
Since the party was in the afternoon, I opted to have heavy appetizers. The food was a combination of making food at home & ordering catering.
Of course, I had a custom food sign! You know how much I love my signage at this point lol! Additionally, I had napkins with the custom birthday logo.
To keep it easy, I ordered a fruit tray & a veggie tray from Publix. As well as ordering a tray of sandwiches & wraps.
My best friend made a DELICOUS strawberry shortcake dip recipe. I got the recipe from Play Party Plan. The dip is served with vanilla cookies & animal crackers… So fun for the kiddos!
Now for my favorite part, the insane Charcuterie spread! Bless my wonderful mother for setting this up before the party. The key to any successful spread is having it across the entire counter & labeling everything for the guests. As well as adding “decorative” but edible items, such as whole strawberries & fresh thyme.
Living Room
The living room is a great opportunity to showcase how your little one has grown! I created a slideshow of all my favorite pictures from Charli’s first year & projected the slideshow on the TV. The finishing touch for the mantel was pink painted “Charli Jean” letters.
Activities
In my opinion, when having kids at a party, it is a good idea to have activities that will entertain the kiddos! The fist activity was a kids coloring table. The table was stupid simple with crayons & themed coloring sheets.
My husband & I got our daughter a ball pit & slide for her birthday. Since all the kids attending the party were 2 & under, it was not necessary to rent a larger ball pit/fun zone area. We just put her brithday gift right out in the yard!
Cute photo of Charli Jean in the ball pit just because… & to showcase the “one” DIY letters. These letters were a bit more time intensive than the others, but still simple to paint!
Person Sized Strawberry
Most importantly, the only way you are going to have an epic berry first birthday is if your best friend dresses up as a giant strawberry! LITERALLY love the dedication #coolauntiestatus! It was such a blessing to have so many incredible people invested not only in Charli’s life, but also her party!
Other Details
It is truly all in the details. The details are how you make a space & party look finished!
♥ Custom yard signs- I made these signs the exact same way as the cupcake toppers, just on a larger scale.
♥ Fresh flowers – For the party, I only bought 3 bouquets from Cosco. I put the flowers in small & large mason jars.
♥ Confetti- Literally just scattered red confetti EVERYWHERE! I am still finding confetti in my house…
♥ Custom coasters – Adding a birhday logo to a coaster is a fun detail! I put the coasters on all inside & outside tables.
To sum it up, I know Charli’s 1st birthday party was very extra, but being extra is who I am & I embrace it! I am so thankful that I got to create such a fun event for my girl! It was such a blessing to have all our close friends & family there celebrating with us. Now on to planning the next birthday party… JK I am never planning another party again… Or until she is 5 years old (next big birthday milestone)!
Xo Haley Jean
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