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Image by freepik |
Your child may ask for a party to celebrate her birthday with friends from your neighborhood or school, and you're often left wondering if you can afford it.
And parents have good reasons to worry. The costs of food, party supplies, a photographer, loot bag fillers, as well as entertainers like mascots or clowns can rack up serious expenses.
Why not pare down and omit certain non-negotiables, and choose a crafty theme for your child's birthday party instead?
Why Choose A Crafty Theme for Your Child's Birthday Party?
You get to decide where to scrimp and save.
Venue
Your home is the likeliest venue for a budget-friendly and crafty birthday party. You can prep your garage or dining room, or clear any clutter in your backyard.
Invitations
Economize and skip the paper invitations by designing your own on the free feature of design software like Canva.
Make sure details like your home address, date and time of the birthday party, and contact information are accurate.
Decorations
Refrain from going overboard and skip the balloons and colorful backdrop.
Instead, consider the basic colors of the birthday party's theme. Get some cardstock, construction paper, or scrapbook paper and twine and create a bunting that matches the colors of your theme.
You can also get a large sheet of poster paper and spell out the letters "H A P P Y B I R T H D A Y + (your child's name) using poster paint or colorful markers. Add squiggles and odd shapes.
Party supplies
You don't need to have every detail match the theme of the birthday party. You can serve food on plain paper plates and have your guests drink from paper cups and use plastic cutlery.
Host
If you already have your hands full, get your child's favorite relative, teacher, or coach to play sparkling host.
Photo booth
You can recycle a large sheet of cardboard into a photo frame by applying techniques in decoupage or papier mache and using poster or acrylic paint.
Loot bag/box fillers
These can be optional. But if you have a limited number of guests, you can fill a loot bag or box with biscuits or crackers instead of candies and other sweets.
Other inexpensive options are small toys, sticker sheets, and school supplies.
You can get the child involved in planning most aspects of the birthday party.
Planning a birthday party will allow your child to explore his creativity and exercise his imagination.
Your child also becomes aware of constraints regarding budget, time, and resources, and work around them by streamlining the creative process and making do with available materials instead of getting frustrated.
You can recycle some of the stuff you have at home.
For starters, you would need a stash of old newspapers and spread them over your dining table if your child and her guests will use materials like glue or paint.
You can also use any leftover arts and crafts-related items you have lying around the house, like colorful yarn or ribbons from your child's school projects, stickers, construction and scrapbook paper.
Guests can be guaranteed of fun and enjoyment.
Adult chaperones can't just supervise the children, they can also join in on the fun.
Food and refreshments can be simple and fuss-free.
You can serve finger sandwiches, nachos and chips with dips, fried chicken, hotdogs or hamburgers, and pasta.
If you have a punch bowl, you can prepare ice cold lemonade, iced tea, or fruit juice.
You can bake the birthday cake yourself if you're capable. If not, drop by the nearest bake shop or pastry store and get a simple cake, and then get your child to help you decorate it with miniature marshmallows and cookies, M&M's or Smarties, and chocolate sprinkles.
Having said all of the above, here are 13 themes for a child's birthday party that are budget-friendly and crafty:
(**DISCLAIMER: This post contains affiliate links. I'll be getting a commission each time you click on any of those links and make a purchase.)
(1.) Sanrio
A Sanrio-themed birthday party will make a lot of girls squeal with delight. Boys will also appreciate designs centered on Kerokerokeroppi, Tuxedo Sam, and BadzMaru.
Crafts
Diamond painting
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AKM_Selection's Sanrio diamond painting 18 x 18 cm photo frame set |
Accessory making
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Sanrio resin charms by pulongys.ph |
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Sanrio charms resin pendants by webeads.ph |
Plaster graffiti painting
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Color Dream Factory's plaster graffiti painting |
Games
Uno
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Sanrio cartoon playing card by ANSRIDEM |
Sanrio Bingo
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Customized Kerokerokeroppi Bingo cards by maryann_ramirez |
Painting tote bags can be a fun activity for pre-school-aged children. Put some biscuits, sticker sheets, or school supplies inside by the end of the party, and they can also double as a party favor.
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DIY graffiti bag for kids/ loot bag filler by VTOBON |
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Super Mario-themed party paper glasses by gooddaystore.ph |
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Home Pro's 12 pieces/set Super Mario puzzles/stickers |
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Download free PDF printables from Monday Mandala |
Getting young girls to play with paper dolls is a good way to introduce them to racial diversity, and be more accepting of differences in physical appearance.
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Photo from superday.ph |
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Princess Barbie Make-A-Face puzzle/stickers by superday.ph |
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Berna Joy Online Shop's Barbie plaster painting set |
Most boys would be dying to have a superheroes-themed birthday party.
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8 pieces/set The Avengers party paper eye masks for kids by PHHappyParty |
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Polymer superhero clay beads for DIY accessories by sanderandsam |
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2 pieces/lot The Avengers charms for jewelry making/DIY accessories by DIY Handmade Jewelry - PH |
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PHHappyParty's 12 pieces/lot superheroes DIY puzzle/stickers |
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Superhero-theme birthday loot boxes by Strawberry Dots |