Brighter Than the Sun! Rainbow Birthday Party
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Brighter than the sun, Reese is one!
Reese’s first birthday comes when we are still self isolating, so I knew that it would be simple, but I still wanted to make it something special.
I always try to make birthday themes something that the individual child enjoys, but at just one year old that list includes her dad, yogurt melts, and Oreos. While a party themed around her father would be HIS dream come true, I wasn’t going to give him that kind of satisfaction.
Every time that I put Reese down for a nap, I sing ‘You are my sunshine’. My first thought was a sunshine theme, but I felt that was a little boring. I took to Pinterest to do a little wordplay with ‘You are my sunshine’ to determine what the invite would say, and I kept coming across rainbows. Eventually the tag line hit me, Brighter than the Sun, Reese is one.
Since Reese has certainly been a bright spot in this unprecedented year, I felt a rainbow themed first birthday was appropriate.
With that in tow, I headed to Canva, a free online design site, that I use for all my graphics to mock up an invite to email and text my family. Of course, the party is virtual this year.
All I did to create this rainbow first birthday invitation was search rainbow in the invitation category in Canva. Once I found this general design, I brightened the colors and added the sun and text.
My next task was the decor. Typically I try to create a full party experience from the front door and throughout the house. Since the party is virtual this year, I will just be focusing on two main elements - the gift table and a photo back drop.
The gift table set up is pretty standard for each first birthday that we celebrate. I print every month’s milestone photo of the child and display them with a chalkboard sign that I DIY. In addition, I have a glass box that will hold the first birthday letters that we write our kids. We have as many family members as possible write letters for the child to open on their 18th birthday. This is a beautiful little time capsule gift to give your child.
My next task was the backdrop for the Zoom party, the photo op if you will. I luckily came across this inspiration from Mrs. Blinks’ My Little Pony party for her daughter. While not the theme I was looking for, she made the most beautiful rainbow.
Given her explanation, it looked easy and affordable. Here’s what you need:
Set of long rainbow colored balloons (these are like the ones that balloon animal makers use)
Plenty of white balloons
Gaffing tape (beware that this tape can remove paint or leave residue on your wall, so be careful where you put this)
The balloons that I link above are perfect for this DIY because when inflated, they naturally have a small arch to them. I tried to mimic the rainbow pattern as best I could with the pinks substituting for my red and orange.
As I got toward the lower arches, I inflated the balloons less and less to make sure they would fit under the last balloon.
The white balloons are inflated in varying sizes, but all relatively small. I attached them to one another and the wall using the gaffing tape I link above.
I added a small rainbow garland from Amazon onto the high chair and that was it for the photo op.
A few other party supplies that I grabbed included this small rainbow wall hanging (which came with the garland) that will be used as decor after the party and a rainbow and sun plate + napkin set, which are currently unavailable but this rainbow and cloud set is equally as cute. Both sets are by Meri Meri, which is a great resource for party supplies if you don’t need Prime shipping.
Finally, since a large portion of our family is local, I grabbed these rainbow goodie bags. In order to make this party a true experience, we will be (socially distanced) delivering little treats to the local family to have for the party.
All in, I spent about $50 for this set up. Throw in a box cake and some rainbow sprinkles, and you’ve got yourself a virtual Rainbow birthday party!
