olimad says: "To save on a cake, take a cake mix & make cupcakes & homemade frosting & let the kids decorate them at the birthday party. Everyone gets to eat the cupcake they made."
deemom says: "If you have a Dollar Tree go there for plates, cups, silverware, hats, and candles. I think you can find cheap pinatas at Factory Card Outlet stores. Make your own birthday cakes. If you really want one decorated, and can't do it yourself, call around and ask if someone will decorate a cake you bring in."
BESTMOMMYSAVER says: "Kids decorated their own goody bags (I had brown paper lunch bags, and I already had the glue, paint, glitter, etc)"
allgirls says: "If u really want to deocrate I woud have kids make bday posters/signs."
queenboxtop says: "Let the kids make their own cakes. Cupcakes are fine or you can put a couple of tbsp of cake mix in a ice cream cone and they will look like an ice cream cone when done. Ice them and then add sprinkles to make them look real. Games can be fun too. Get a box and cut holes in it and have a football/baseball throw. Any game you want can be played at the park if it is warm enough for that. You could also have a movie theme. Have the kids dress up as their favorite actor/character (hopefully they still fit in their halloween costume) and watch a movie. With this have a concession stand and someone dress up to work it. Have popcorn, drinks, candy and have them pay with "money" you make for them. My dd1 says her best b-day party was done in the back yard with water balloons and water guns. We did a picture frame craft for the kids as their goody bag. My dd2 says her best b-day party was in the park."
nolamom says: "We've started having b-day parties from 10a.m. to 12 p.m. for several reasons. First, we then only have snack food like chips and veggie with dip then cake, ice cream, and drinks. No lunch served. Second, it gets it over with early in the day. The other thing I do is to buy themed plates for the cake only. I buy plain white for the snack food and also plain white napkins and cups. Goody bags are the cheap celophane type and are filled with snack items--chips, candy bars--bought BOGO and with coupons. I have also found that kids do not need too many activities when they are young. They really just want to hang out and play with each other. You could do something simple like a scavenger hunt. We made cookies and wrapped them then hid them in the house and did a cookie hunt. The cookies were eaten or taken home by the party guests."
gourdlady06 says: "At my ds fifth bday party in Aug. he wanted a pirate theme so I bought black paper plates, cups and so on (much cheaper). The only themed item I bought was a mug shaped like a pirates skull to make my son the special one out of the bunch. Instead of buying a cake I made cupcakes and then let them decorate their own cupcake with color sugar and gummy worms (they loved this). Then I hand drew a pirate map and (due to the age they all had the same map) went on a treasure hunt for their treat bags. You can play games like duck duck goose, musical chairs, and so on. In the past I let the parents know to dress kids in play clothes and I got an end roll of newspaper print at the local newspaper office (free), bought finger paints and put some of mine and dh's old t-shirts over the kids clothes (paint with wash but I didn't want parents to freak) and let the kids show their artistic abilities. It was a little messy and my original plan was for the kids to do this outside but it rained that day and we had to do it in my very tiny kitchen but they had a blast. My oldest ds's bday is in Feb. so I always let him have 3 boys over to spend the night and I always made the cake and we ordered pizza (but hamburgers would work). They were more excited about the mere fact there were four of them spending the night than they were worred about decorations. He loved this so much it was a running tradition from 6 to age 14!"
terrisirig says: "If its mostly adults: have some homemade confetti (don't worry about the mess); bring out the baby photo albums and any videos; let the other child help you decorate his brothers cake (and vice versa) for a nice surprise."
satsukirebel says: "I bought a set of "first years" music instruments for about $10 at walmart (maybe target, i can't remember). That ended up being one of her gifts PLUS I had planned to bring them out and use them as a musical start and stop play along game. I made all of the party food from scratch. Dollar stores are great places to pick up birthday themed products or gift bag fillers. You can also visit Birthday Party Planner For Best Birthday Party for some theme ideas and printables. You can also buy or get a birthday themed book from the library and have a storytime too. One fun activity would be buying some cheap socks and bobble eyes/colored cotton balls and such to make sock puppets. Those could always be the party gifts, instead of gift bags."
caitlyn says: "you can go to
Party supplies, crafts, party decorations, toys: Oriental Trading it has save valentines day and last christmas already for me! You can even buy in bulk for classes and things. Personalization is even free BONUS."
momofezl says: "If the dollar store is too expensive for paper goods, don't use paper plates, use your regular ones. Also, ask on freecycle or craigslist if anyone has any party stuff left over from a party. For instance, I had my son's 1st birthday party and just gave a whole package of invitations I did not use to goodwill. You would be surprised at the stuff people have in their house and don't want!"
Inexpensive Kid's Birthday Party Ideas
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