Sewing Party

Age of Birthday Girl: 10 years

Age Range of Guests: 8-12 years

Gender of Guests: girls

Potential Age Range of Theme: 6-13+ depending on the tasks presented.  If you keep the party a no-sew theme then the age range could run lower. If you have the tasks be more intricate or involved then you could extend it well into the teen range.

Invitations: For a sewing party we naturally had to sew the invitations!  Rectangles of fabric were cut out and tacked to card stock.  Cream card stock was printed with "You Are Invited..." and the placed on top of the fabric.  

This was all sewn together on the sewing machine using a simple programmed pattern.  On the back of the invitation we glued cream card stock to hide the thread.  Information about the party was printed on this piece of card stock ahead of time, along with some sewing clip art.

Cake: The cake was inspired by one of the projects for the party - a no-sew pillow made from felt and colorful strands of ribbon.  A round layer cake was covered in white frosting.  Strips of fondant were woven together and then trimmed to fit the top of the cake. Edible paper and markers were used to create a measuring tape that was wrapped around the bottom of the cake.

Activities: The party was planned in stations with a different craft project at each one.

Station One: This was the no-sew pillow which inspired the cake.  Here, the party guests chose a felt backing for their pillow and strips of pre-cut colored ribbon.  They wove the ribbon together into a square.  The felt backing was pre-cut around the edges to have the same number of strips of fringe as ribbon.  The woven ribbon was placed on top of the felt and the girls tied a ribbon to a felt strand all around the square.  Before it was closed off they filled it will pillow stuffing.

NOTE: This activity took longer than we expected so some of the guests finished them at home. Also, the cut ribbon started to fray fairly quickly so if we were to do this again we would take the time to sew the ribbon ends to ensure they would remain clean after the party. The resulting pillows though were colorful and fun!


Station Two: Using the sewing machine, (under direct adult supervision since many of the girls had never used one before), each guest made a simple drawstring bag which would serve as their goodie bag.

Each girl selected a pre-cut piece of fabric which was twice as long as the bag would be. The short ends were folded over (wrong side together) about a 1/2 inch and sewn to create a slot for the string.  Then the fabric was folded in half, right sides together, and the long edges were sewn being careful not to sew the opening closed where the string would be inserted.  The girls chose their string color, inserted it into the slot, pulled it through and then tied the two ends together.  So easy and they were all thrilled to have created their own personal bag.


Station Three: This was a jewelry making station which was led by two of the dads - they really got into it (and were seen still working on their creations long after the girls had finished)!

The girls were given a selection of beads & charms and used wire to create bracelets.  The dads were there to help cut the wire and crimp the beads at the end if the girls needed help, but most of them could do it on their own.


Station Four: This was the waiting area since the sewing machine could only be used one at a time and the jewelry station only had a certain number of tools. If someone had down time they could select something to color/create, or they could assemble their goodie bags.

Goodie Bags: As previously mentioned, the girls created their own goodie bags by sewing a simple drawstring bag.  These were filled with a variety of candies, as well as their hand-made jewelry, and some fun stickers.  They also took home their hand-made no-sew pillows.

Stop-Motion Video Party

Age of Birthday Boy: 11 years old
Age Range of Guests: 7-13 years old
Gender of Guests: Boys and girls

Potential Age Range of Theme: 6-14+ years, depending on specific focus & activities

This one was just plain fun!  We recruited some parents with cameras and tripods and some familiarity with video creation in a Mac computer to help us out and everyone had a great time. (If you have enough kids who have this knowledge you could run this party without as many adults as we needed. Actually, if we did this party today I think the kids would know more than most adults about this sort of thing)!

Invitations: The invitations were similar to this sign.  Instead of saying "welcome to..." it said "You Are Invited to The MacBeath Stop-Motion Studio". It was put onto black card stock and the movie reel image is actually a sticker found at Michael's Craft Store.  Party information was attached to the back.

Cake: So easy and it turned out great!  A 9x13 inch cake was tapered into the shape of a popcorn bag and covered with white frosting.  Red fruit rollups were used to create the stripes.  The popcorn label was created on the computer and printed onto paper to be placed on the cake. (You could do this all with fondant as well). We popped some popcorn and mixed it with with melted butter and melted marshmallows.  While it was still a little warm we shaped it onto the cake to look like it was overflowing the popcorn bag. Leftover popcorn mix was shaped into balls, wrapped in plastic wrap, and included in the goodie bags.

Activities: This party had one main activity: creating stop-motion videos using Lego as the primary tool.  As the party guests arrived they received a film crew ID tag to grant them access to the production set.

They were divided into 4 groups with an adult and a camera assigned to each group.  We ended up with three groups of boys and one group of girls who were siblings of invited guests.

They were given a brief demonstration of stop-motion techniques for those who had never tried it before (smaller movements between shots will produce a smoother look but take more time, ways to hide supports so it looks like a piece is in the air, keeping the background clean, etc).


Then they had time to create - approximately one hour.  Each group had a Lego base to work on, and a large pile of miscellaneous Lego pieces and characters to use in the video. The adults were instructed to step in only when needed to help keep disagreements to a minimum, to make sure everyone gets a say in the process, and to assist with camera work as necessary.  Basically though, they were the support staff.

The results were terrific and very creative!  We downloaded the videos to our computer while the guests enjoyed cake & ice cream. Then the groups took turns demonstrating their videos to each other.  A couple of samples are included at the end of this blog post if you care to see what they came up with in a fairly short period of time.

Goodie Bags: We used Dollar Store popcorn containers as the goodie bags.  Inside we put some Twizzlers, a chocolate bar, the sticky popcorn balls, and a bag of microwave popcorn for later.  They were also each promised a copy of the videos that were created at the party.

Secret Agent Party

Age of Birthday Boy: 10 years old
Age Range of Guests: 7-12 years old
Gender of Guests: boys and girls

Potential Age Range of Theme: 5-13+ years, depending on specific focus & activities



Invitations: The invitations were requests to join a top secret agency of spies.  Guests were asked to report to headquarters (our house) at a certain date and time for training to become secret agents.

Cake: This one was easy but still turned out great.  We made a stencil template on paper that read "TOP SECRET", placed it gently on a frosted 9x13 cake and sprinkled red sprinkles over top.  To make it neater we could have used a stiffer icing or a larger piece of paper but for the limited time we had to prepare we think it turned out really well.

Activities: As guests arrived their names were checked off the official secret agent training camp list.  They were given name tags to wear and each guest chose an alias or code name, marking their name tag with a fingerprint (using washable ink).

Guests were put into two groups of new recruits - it happened to be a girls team and a boys team this time but it didn't have to work that way.  The teams were instructed that they would go through secret agent training to see if they had what it takes to be a spy.  There would be stations to get through to test such qualities as teamwork, accuracy, agility, and problem solving.

Teamwork: This was essentially the human knot game - an old stand-by that remains a favorite.  The kids stood in a circle and reached across it to grab someone's hand.  Anyone's hand was fine as long as you weren't holding both hands of the same person.  Then they tried to untangle themselves into one big circle.  You could also try this blindfolded for a bigger challenge, or have only some kids blindfolded and/or some unable to speak.

Accuracy: In this challenge one of our secret agent instructors (aka: dad) sat by a tree.  The kids were given water balloons and told to break the balloons on the tree over the head of the instructor.  Points were awarded for correct placement, and deducted if you hit the instructor. Of course, some kids didn't care about the deductions so the instructor got fairly wet!!

Agility: Teams were given a rope with loops for handles and instructed to go through an obstacle course all together single file.  We set up chairs to crawl under, board to cross, hoops to jump through, etc.

Problem Solving: Here, teams were given some items and a task.  They had to create something long enough to reach and grab a key hanging on our play structure while they stood on the deck.  The kids had to figure out the best way to use the sticks, rope, and a hook to create something both long enough and strong enough to reach, grab, and retrieve the key.

Final Challenge: As kids were finishing up their last task it was announced that an urgent matter had come to the attention of the instructors.  Since all other active agents were currently assigned it had fallen to the new recruits to solve the mystery for the agency.  They were given clues and coordinates to a hidden stolen treasure.

The teams had to decipher the coded messages to determine the general location of the treasure.  Then they had to follow instructions for placing string from one spot, across the playground area, to another spot.  This was done 3 times.  Where all the strings crossed is where they were to dig for the treasure (sort of an X marks the spot kind of thing!).  Each team had a different specific location in the same general area.

Both teams found their treasure which meant all the new recruits graduated form their training and were granted full secret agent status.

Goodie Bags: Kids were given certificates of completion and they also kept their new recruit name tags. In addition to various candies and chocolates, the goodie bags included a stick-on mustache and sunglasses to help with their spy disguises.  Each child also got a pen and notepad as well as a spy decoder ring.

This party was a bit more work to pull together as far as planning the activities, but was so much fun - as long as you don't mind kids digging up your yard! Fortunately we were getting our playground area ready for wood chips so it was ready for the purpose.  A sandbox would work just as well.

Olympics, Summer

Age of Birthday Boy: 9 years old
Age Range of Guests: 7-12 years old
Gender of Guests: boys and girls

Potential Age Range of Theme: 6-14 years, depending on the specific focus & activities, and how physically difficult you make each event

Our son's 9th birthday coordinated nicely with the timing of the Beijing Olympics so it was a natural party theme idea and he was thrilled.


Invitations: Invitations were easy but unfortunately there is no photo.  We drew the Olympic Rings on white card stock and put party information the back.  We found some flag stickers to decorate the envelopes.

Cake:  Again, this one was very easy - Olympic Rings out of colored frosting with a white background on a 9x13 cake.  We also had cupcakes with the same design.

Activities:  This was the highlight!  The kids had to register as they arrived for the party, receiving numbers, and choosing a country to represent.  We had flags from various countries and each child chose one to carry during our opening ceremony.  We even had a "torch" to light (cardboard box and tissue paper)!

The guests were sorted into groups to rotate through stations.  Events included javelin (broomstick), shot put (bocce balls), high jump (using a mattress to land on), long jump, basketball, and soccer.

We also had a station where the kids had to identify countries by their flags with points earned for how many could be completed correctly.
After the games were completed, medals were awarded to the guests (everyone received one), and we had our closing ceremony complete with the Olympic Fanfare music.  Then it was on to cake & ice cream!

Goodie Bags: We filled red party bags with candy and various Olympic themed items such as stickers, pens, etc.  They also kept their flags and we took a picture of each child receiving their Olympic Medals to send along with thank-you cards.