Themed party is becoming a trend. I noticed that with my friends in Facebook as they proudly post the grandeur party of their babies, or one of their family or the party that they attended.

Sometimes I’d ask do we really need it? It looks nice but looking at the picture I’d really say they spent fortune to have it.

But I didn’t know that we will be one of the victims of the commercialism of themed party when Jean’s baby was born. The question lingers in my mind, “Are we really?”. My answer is no. Coz here’s our principle – we will have themed party but as much as possible we will do it in zero budget or at least $10 maximum. And our friends asked us how we did it. It’s simple,  we follow these Frugal Chickas’ Rule to Make the Best Out of Less.

Check available materials

We decide our themed party out of what materials we have on hand. Yes it’s nice to have something like what we saw online but we ditch that idea if we know we will spend money if will do it.

On Aira’s (Jean’s baby) first birthday, we have all the red papers, hockey arena liners sheets that Jean’s partner got from the recycled bin.

From that we decided to go for a red color theme. We researched on the themed party where we can use the red paper since we  have lots of supply. And we ended up on Little Red Riding Hood Theme.

Recycle. Be Resourceful.

Check surroundings, your garage, your recycle bin, at work. Collect scraps that you think that will work on your themed party.

One of the materials we used in Aira’s birthday are the edges from coffee filters that I trimmed out from a humongous coffee filters at work. It turned out nice together with the red pinwheels that we created for the backdrop.

We collected empty boxes at work too. Jean turned it into Granny’s house. With roof made out of coffee filters, walling from the red paper. All are scrap that comes together into a beautiful piece of art. We spent only stick glue for this.

DIY. Don’t Buy

It’s tempting to buy  ready made decors. It’s hassle free and readily available. But it could be more expensive. So we do it our own. I am crafty so I love doing it.

Yes I heard you. If you are not crafty try watching tutorials it’s actually easy. Or delegate the making of decors to your family or friends. I know they would gladly help.

Pinwheels made out of red papers from scrap, coffee filters. 
Some red pinweels are painted with dots to add different elemets.

Be Creative

When we feel like something is missing on the decors. We do mix and match. Add elements that suits the theme. It’s always like trial and error thing. Plus we do value each others opinion.

Go Digital. Go Online

One of the trend now is sending invitation online. In Facebook you can set-up an invitation. Who’s not in Facebook anyway, even newborn baby has Facebook account even the old ones are catching the new way of socializing.

You can edit picture and add some text on it using photo editor like Photoshop or use online like Pic Monkey.

 

But honestly you don’t need to do it if you have no skills on photo editing. A simple notification to your friends will do.

Receive

We’re glad that we have friend who volunteered to donate to add on decors. One of Aira’s Godfathers made balloons decors. Which made the venue more appealing and look grandeur.

Do Research

Our number one site to go to when looking for decor ideas is Pinterest. We also go to Youtube for video tutorials. It is through researching that we discover about paper dahlia which we use for Aira’s Christening.

 

When planning for a party do it in advance. Look for the materials around you. Be resourceful and creative. But one thing that you should not forget – stick with your budget.