violet's vintage strawberry party (the details)

This party was a "our family survived a whole year with four little ones" kind of celebration.  I never pretend the party is for the baby.  First birthdays are my favorite because they are for everyone and the birthday girl or boy doesn't have any expectations.  I 

I get an idea in my head and become obsessed run with it.  It was strawberries this time.  I kept this list going for months beforehand but didn't actually get started on any of it until a few weeks prior to the big day.  Who has time for extra projects with little ones everywhere you look?  Ha.  Well, I made time and my Mom being here for a weekend didn't hurt either.

  

The fabric is my first priority because I am in love with pretty fabric and it's so much fun for me to search and pick just the right ones for the party.

   

I made the invitations after seeing a banner sewn on to this wedding invite on Pinterest!  It took quite a long time to cut out those tiny half circle like shapes but it was worth it in the end. Banners, buntings, garlands, whatever you want to call them, I am crazy over them.

The party was held in our backyard and I wanted a fun sign to greet our guests.  I used a piece of pallet wood leftover from the kitchen bench project, traced and painted letters onto the wood, and tied it to the fence with a fun red ribbon.

The backdrop of the table was a large frame Jason had made that I painted white and hung three mini banners from.   

This was the finished product of the main party table.  I cut a burlap sack open on the sides so it could lay as a runner over a floral vintage sheet that was used as a tablecloth.

I used my sewing machine table to hold the drinks, straws, & candy.  That grill & air conditioner are kind of cramping my style here.  Oh, well. 

A banner also adorned the drink table, of course.  

I was so excited to find Strawberry Crush bottles.  I cut out Violet's photo into a circle, glued it on to a doily, and then glued the doily onto some of the bottles with spray adhesive.  

I used a little white strawberry shaped dish found for a few dollars at a flea market to hold those old strawberry filled candies (found at Wal-Mart).

I borrowed a couple Pyrex dishes from my Jason's sweet Mom, used one of my own as well as other vintage goods my Dad has passed down to me.  I painted a few Scrabble tile holders red and displayed Violet's name and labels for the berries and sandwiches.

I kept the menu simple with popcorn, strawberry applesauce, peanut butter & strawberry jelly sandwiches, strawberry Twizzlers, carrots, celery, and a bunch of strawberries. 

I used toothpicks and that fun paper tape to create little flags on the sandwiches.

This was a first for me...cake and cupcakes.  I had to go all out since she is our last baby.  Plus I just was dying to get a plain white cake and decorate it with her sweet face.

The cake sat on a red cake stand that sat on top of an old RC cola crate.

To top the cake, I used 2 striped paper straws, a piece of twine, tiny clothespins, and my favorite photo of the birthday girl. 

Violet's cupcake was set apart from the others and topped with toothpicks and a mini banner made with paper tape and a piece of baker's twine.

For her special birthday bib, I cut a strawberry shape out of the chevron fabric I was using and sewed red minky fabric to it and green felt on top for the leaves before sewing the bib together.  This bib makes me smile.

I asked a sweet new friend who bakes and decorates the most amazing cookies to make strawberry ones for the party.  I stamped the name of each child that would be at the party onto a strip of kraft card stock and attached it to the cookies.  I cut scalloped circles out of white card stock and stamped a strawberry to go with the name labels. 

The best part of the cookies is that they aren't just crazy cute but also super delicious!  (You can see photos of her other amazing creations here and she can even ship them to you!)  

I asked my Mom to make me some fabric strawberries for the party.  I placed them in old berry containers bought on Etsy and sat them on top of old scales.

Daisies in a mason jar make me smile every time.

I taped a little strawberry preserve label to a bucket that held napkins and silverware.

I used my #1 jar to hold strawberry Twizzlers.  My big kids would not stop eating these.

I made a ring toss game for the party inspired by this one.  I tied fabric strips to the metal basket and used plain small embroidery hoop insides for the ring.  

I also made a few beanbags out of the party fabric and set another metal basket out in the yard for kids to toss them into.  Honestly, neither of these games were played with very much but they sure looked cute.

We couldn't find any tall pieces of wood so we used red tomato cages from the garage and tied twine to either end for hanging photos of Violet. 

I used Tia's old radio flyer wagon to hold the gifts.  

Her party dress was red, white, & dainty.  It screamed my name at Target a few months ago.  I made a simple little red felt flower barrette for her hair.  My Mom brought Violet's favorite little chair from her house so she could have a special seat for opening gifts although she didn't stay seated for long.

She sat in Daddy's old highchair to eat her very first cupcake just like Tyson & Mia did.  Sure wish I had thought of it for Avery's first birthday.  

So that about covers all the details.  I loved it.  I wish it wasn't over.  I had too much fun.