A Budget Birthday: Simple Ways To Create a Great Kids’ Party
If you find that saving for the Christmas season is the hardest task of all, try and see how much it cost to get a birthday party together! Your child’s birthday is always going to be a big event, but the biggest mistake we all make is that we think we have to put a lot of money into it in order to get a great party that will be memorable. In fact, you don’t have to go all out to make your kid’s birthday memorable. Let’s show you some simple ways to focus on quality rather than quantity.
Keep the Guest List Small
Right now, in these COVID times, it’s easier than ever to keep the guest list small, and while your child might be a very popular individual in their class, it’s not always affordable to invite everybody. It depends on their ages, of course, because if the children are old enough every child can come, with only a handful of adults. It will make it a bit easier because the adults won’t be consuming the food.
However, keeping the guest list to a small bunch of friends and family is the best way to keep costs down, especially when you are looking at sending out the invitations. Invitations are a great way to get a build some anticipation for the party, and while there’s a variety of folded invitation printing services out there, if you are only inviting a small group, you can focus on sending a good quality invitation. It also means that if you have a smaller party, you can spend quality time with all of the guests.
Coping With Peer Pressure
News can spread quickly, especially if all the parents are on WhatsApp groups. One excluded child means that gossip can easily spiral out of control. Another parent asks why their child wasn’t invited, or if they can bring a friend, and before you know it, you will have double the amount of guests. It’s crucial to not let anybody force an invite out of you. Think about what your child wants.
Keeping the Party at Home
If you want to save money, the best thing you can do is cut costs by having the party at home. The benefits of having a party at home, especially during the summer months, is that you know how much space you have, and you can realistically keep the party under control. Sometimes, parties can be a bit more stressful at home, however, you have the opportunity to run to the bathroom for a quick breather if it all becomes too much. Ideally, when you have a bigger garden, you should use it, and make the inside of the home off-limits. That way, you are concentrating all of the mess in one place, making for an easier cleanup operation.
When you have the party out in the garden, you can also make sure all the cutlery is compostable and biodegradable, meaning that all you need to do at the end of the day is put everything into recycling bags. When you are holding a party out the garden, make sure that there is enough space for everybody to enjoy themselves. If you don’t, you can always use a local venue like a village hall. A local church is usually reasonably priced to hire for a couple of hours and is less stressful than having all the kids make a mess in your back garden.
Think About the Type of Party Your Child Wants
As our kids get older, they won’t want the traditional birthday party. They will much prefer to stay over their friend’s house and stay up later. Having a sleepover party is a great way to keep the costs down. If your children are are big movie fans, you could throw in a movie marathon for good measure.
To make things interesting, you could have a themed night, including a quiz during the film, board games- just let your kids’ imagination grow wild! It may feel like you are taking on more than you bargained for by having a group of children laughing and giggling in the middle of the night, but the only cost will be the food. It’s very easy to prepare a simple breakfast, such as pancakes, cereal, toast, and fruit.
Fixing up the Decor
You don’t have to spend a huge amount of money to make any party venue look pretty. All you need is a collection of balloons and streamers to add lots of colour. If your kids are under 8, it’s pretty easy to impress them. You can go easily get a party set from your nearest store that has everything to decorate the party venue. You can always make a few more decorations as well, such as tissue paper pom-poms.
Preparing the Food
Usually, the kids are having so much fun to eat! One of the biggest mistakes we all make is over-preparing. The best way to save money is to purchase cardboard meal boxes and put one out for each child, which contains a sandwich, crisps, fruit, and a drink, because the birthday cake will be the dessert. And if you really cannot make a cake, these days it’s so easy to find someone online that lives near you. This is especially true if you are running short on time.
When in doubt, you can always purchase a traybake from the local supermarket. You don’t need to spend a fortune on the cake, but you must remember this is the magic moment where everybody gets their phones out and records the singing of “Happy Birthday.” Get a simple one full of colour- this is perfect for small bellies.
Don’t Forget the Party Bags
While party bags are a traditional way to finish off a gathering, you don’t have to do them. But if you had an activity party, such as a sports day, the things they made or won can be a good substitute for a party bag. But a little party bag is a great way to say “thank you” to the kids for coming.
If you are looking to make a birthday party on a budget, the options are endless. It’s not easy, but there’s plenty of ways around it.