Birthday love: Surprise parties!

Hi Royal Milk Tea readers! I’m Lo of Little Somethings by Little Lo Hood! Lyndall has been just the sweetest blog friend. When she asked me to guest post I was honored, excited and so happy. I told her I wanted to give budget worthy tips on how to throw a birthday bash. But little did she know, I decided to throw her a surprise birthday. Like a virtual across the world surprise birthday. And you are all invited, now shout “SURPRISE!”

I’m not sure what it is but I think I have some sort of gene that compels me to throw surprise birthdays for special people. In college I threw one for a roommate and this past March I threw one for my boyfriend. It is so much fun!

Having a celebration in your home does not need to be expensive and in no way is your friend going to disown you because you threw them a bash that cost you little to nothing. Here are some fun tips for throwing a party on a budget:

? Tell guests to dress up! Sometimes it’s fun to get all dressed up for a celebration.

? Make confetti: Cut up small squares of colorful cardstock…
PS: it’s fun to take photos of your feet when the confetti has fallen. duh.

? Use items you already have. Utilize items from all over the house.

? Create little displays that make the scene super cute. I used:

• My colorful place mats
• Hand-painted mushroom vase with handmade flowers: I painted a used milk jug blue with mushrooms all over. Then I made little flowers and glued them to the end of old paint brushes.
• Vintage mugs
• A cute tray
• A couple cameras
• A birdhouse that I painted
• A colorful striped picnic container to house craft items

? Make decorations like the banners from materials you already own. (I used pink leather that I cut into circles then used embroidery thread of different colors and lengths)

I don’t know about you but any good party has a number of crafts. I know that Lyndall is a crafting soul and I thought she may like a party centered around crafting and creating. Here are a few craft suggestions:

• Chevron Tote
• Ascot Bow
• Wall Art
• Netted Stone Necklace

You can ask guests to bring their own fabric or totes or designate certain people to bring certain supplies. You are throwing the party and others should be willing to help make it wonderful! If you’re a crafter you probably already have a lot of the supplies needed anyway.

At this party there will be the following sweets:

• Mini Banoffee Pies
• Strawberry Bubble Tea
• Raw Strawberry Pie

This will be where most of your budget goes but if you keep it to a few items with similar ingredients or already have the ingredients it shouldn’t be too bad at all.

I even made Lyndall some tassel earrings from the leather I used for the banners. I hope she likes them!

A few more tips:

• Use a little board to let guests know the menu and what you will be doing. It’s just an added put-together touch.
• If you have a polaroid camera take lots of pictures throughout the party. Maybe even set up a cute backdrop for photos. But now you have lots of photos that you may just stick in some drawer. Instead string your instax photos together to make a nice banner to hang in your room so that you will always remember the fun you had with your friends.

Happy Birthday Lyndall! I hope you’ve enjoyed your surprise!