I can’t believe my oldest child is 10 years old! Double-digits! Sometimes it does feel like I blinked and she grew up on me. I still remember being sleep deprived and holding my sleeping daughter at about 2 months old. As I was staring at her peaceful, non-fussy face I started to daydream about our wonderful lives together as a new family. All of her firsts in the horizon, all of our firsts as a family of three and how life had changed for the better because of this little human. As the daydreaming continued and I thought about her first year, I realized I wanted to have a magical 1st birthday party for her.

Handmade drink wraps  //  First birthday (smash) cupcake  //  Pretty gift wrap

Immediately after I decided I was going to plan her 1st birthday I picked a pink snowy owl theme. She was born in the middle of a snow storm in January and while I was pregnant I decided I wanted her to know that just because she didn’t have a warm birthday didn’t mean it couldn’t still be fun. With the theme confirmed the planning began! Her 1st birthday was one of my very first Pinterest boards. And I was determined to make all of my gathered pins become a reality! I’m sure my family and friends thought I was going overboard and maybe even crazy. With that said, I’m always grateful for Katie’s support of all of my ideas: big, small and yes, even sometimes a bit crazy!! Together I shared my ideas and we crafted and gathered supplies until moments before the party started and with her help my vision came to life!

Fun fringe party picks  //  Custom signage  //  Thrifted, handmade cake stands
Edible bird nests  //  Pink marshmallow cake pops  //  Pink & white cupcakes
Adorable and delicious pink owl cake pops made locally by the very talented Jenny Bakes.
Custom cupcake toppers  //  Food table setup  //  Handmade paper wall medallions
White owls displayed next to the punch  //  Owl trail mix party favors  //  Pink sparkling punch
Some of the thrifted, handmade cake stands used for the party.

While browsing through Pinterest I kept seeing so many pretty tablescapes. They were everywhere I looked! Since I had never thrown a party like this before I didn’t have any of the drool-worthy pieces I wanted to use. After a little research I realized I did not have the budget to purchase all of the cake stands I wanted. So I decided to make them instead! Knowing what I wanted the end result to be Katie and I headed off to the thrift store to gather the prettiest glass plates, ornate cups and decorative vases we could find. While in the store we made sure the pieces fit together nicely and wouldn’t tip over when stacked on top of each other. The next step was to glue all of the pieces together with clear multi-surface E6000 glue. It was my first time using this glue and this stuff is amazing! I let the cake stands sit with books on top of them to secure the seams while they dried overnight. Once the pieces were completely dry I spray painted them silver. (I made sure to not spray paint the top of the plates so they were safe for food and could be cleaned easily.) And voilà, I had the pretty cake stands I wanted for the party! I ended up making seven stands in all for less than the cost of one from a department store.

So many pink and white custom desserts!

Putting together my daughter’s owl birthday party was when I knew I thoroughly enjoyed all of the coordinating details that are involved with party planning! Oh how I love a good theme! It’s now been over a decade of throwing birthday parties, bridal showers, baby showers and themed gatherings for loved ones! Over time my passion for parties has only grown stronger and my photo taking skills (and cameras!) have improved with each party. 

Happy Party Planning, Friends!

– Maghan