A Party in Wonderland

This past weekend we had a very special 6th birthday party for Delaney.  She asked for an Alice in Wonderland party months ago and kept us on our toes for weeks with her party “vision.”  She actually asked me to watch the movie with her and take notes, so we could be sure to incorporate every little detail into her party.  This girl is serious about her parties!

I hope you’ll indulge me for a post or two while I share some of the details from her special day.  My husband and I, with help from the girls, made most of the decorations with basic supplies on hand – cardboard, paper, Sharpies, and paint.  Enjoy!

Guests were greeted at the front door by the Doorknob.

Inside, we put direction signs all around – this way, that way, up, down, yonder, back, etc.

In the living room, I covered the fireplace with whimsical tree fabric (these were curtains in Delaney’s bedroom at one time).  Above the fireplace, I hung a name banner {Printable Alphabet Bunting} and some bread-and-butterflies that I drew and painted on watercolor paper.

I glued googly eyes to the colorful daises, too {idea from No Fuss Fabulous}.

Tweedledum and Tweedledee were overseeing the present-opening area…

…while the Mad Hatter was busy with his tea party in the dining room.

Paper lanterns, made by my girls and nieces, criss-crossed the dining room ceiling.

The table setting included:

• woven paper placemats (more on those soon)
• turquoise burger baskets (Sur La Table)
• reusable plastic cups (IKEA)
• blue-striped paper straws (cdk designs on etsy)
• various teapots and vases filled with flowers

One of the girls’ Calico Critters became the Dormouse, with a “custom” felt vest and bow-tie.

Here’s a close-up of the cake.  Delaney wanted a three-tier cake, each layer a different flavor.  Cake baking and decorating is not really my thing, but I am happy with how it turned out.  The trick for me was lots of refrigerating in between layers and layers of frosting (from a can, by the way…).  Alice in Wonderland characters (Disney Store) and jumbo heart sprinkles were used for the simple decorations.

The party menu was very simple, filled with the birthday girl’s requests: peanut butter & jelly sandwiches (cut into teapots, butterflies & hearts), mini corn dogs, fruit salad cups, lemonade, and juice.  We also had Annie’s Bunny Grahams and Trader Joe’s Cat Cookies (which look a lot like Cheshire Cats!).

Speaking of the Cheshire Cat, he was watching the festivities from a tree outside…. I’ll be back tomorrow to share our party activities and more photos!

{Read Part 2 of our Alice in Wonderland Party}

{Read more about how we made our cardboard characters!}

Tagged as: Alice in Wonderland, birthday, party