Want to know how I managed to plan an epic fifth birthday party just 12 days after giving birth? Well my secret is that I didn’t really plan it at all! I engaged a local Party Planner, the incredible Jasmin, from My Little Party Hire to do all of the hard work for me!
Rosie was due to be born on Ari’s fifth birthday which left me in no position to plan a party for him. I hoped she would come early so that I could give him the birthday bash that he was dreaming of, and when my wish came true 8 days earlier, I immediately (literally the day after birth) contacted Jasmin and said “She’s here, now let’s plan a party!”
The Party Planner –
Jasmin specialises in sustainable parties that are inspired by nature and given that Ari’s request was for a ‘Koala party’ his themed fitted in perfectly. Jasmin can be as involved or uninvolved as much as you like. She can do anything from hiring out her party supplies to organising the whole do, even attending it to make sure that everything runs perfectly. With a 12-day old darling in attendance, I opted for the latter and took all of the help I could get!
The Décor –
Jasmin took the theme and ran with it in the most beautiful way. We held the party in the front area of our garden at Palma Soleada and used out cacti garden as the backdrop. She brought the most incredible wooden décor to style the space into whimsical Australiana wonderland. A ‘Party This Way’ sign greeted the children as they arrived. Next to is was an arch which was set up for them to walk under, with a large wooden five and a wash basin to clean their hands. The arch was adorned with a large koala and beautiful native leaves hanging all over it. Jasmin set up a beautiful wooden table with individual tree stump seats for each child. My favourite part of the table décor was the leaves that she hung from string all above the table, as it added a textured layer to the décor. Jasmin brought absolutely everything we need for the party with her, right down to the wood cutlery, eco napkins and plates. She even brought beautiful glasses for the children to drink from. You can tell how truly passionate she is about her business, and creating parties that are stunning to look at, fun to attend, and of course gentle on the environments.
The Food –
Bonnie from Gather by Bonnie created a beautiful brunch spread for the children to enjoy. This included, fruits, bakery treats, croissants, meat pies, sausage rolls and muesli bowls with coconut yoghurt. Bonnie has catered for three of our parties now, and every time the food has been incredible quality and very delicious. Bonnie styled the food across little tree stumps that Jasmin had brought along, making each dish another element of décor to the table with its rich colours and shiny texture.
Cookies and Cake
Sweet P Cakes and Cookies regularly creates beautiful cakes for my children’s birthday parties, each one has been unique and delicious. Ellana is a wizard in the kitchen and her creativity always amazes me. For this party she made gorgeous Koala cookies to sit on each of the children’s place settings. She also created cute little gum leaf cookies; these were hung from the same string as the real gum leaves that were hung over the table. I thought that this was a particularly clever idea. Lastly, we got to enjoy the cutest koala cake I have ever seen. Vanilla cake and vanilla frosting, but in the shape of a koala head! Ari was ecstatic!
Party Favours –
The children had two party favours to take home. Firstly, a wooden koala that Jasmin had created and cut herself. Secondly, beautiful party favour bags from Poppy and Daisy Designs. Helen creates eco conscious party favour and creative kits, with the environment in mind. The children had a choice of three options; Natural Play Dough Mini Bag, Clay Fossils Mini Bag and Lady Bird Rocks Mini Bag. Each bag contained everything each child would need to engage in a beautiful eco experience, craft activity. These were the best party favours I have ever given out. I loved that they gave the children an activity to do at home and kept the environment in mind. It was so great to receive photos from my friends of their children engaging in the activities the afternoon after the party was over.
Craft –
Once the children enjoyed brunch, Jasmin cleared the table and set up a craft activity for them to engage in. They reused jam jars to create a miniature succulent garden of their own to take home. On the table she spread out sand, soil, rocks, little wooden bees/lady bugs and pretend toad stools. The children were taught how to create their garden, and all had a wonderful time doing so. It was a fantastic activity to bring all the children together.
Entertainment –
Jasmin organised for a party entertainer to attend and provide fun entertainment for the children. It was fantastic for them and fantastic for me to be able to sit back and enjoy the party too! She played bubbles with them, brought along a parachute and organised a scavenger hunt in our garden. All the children absolutely adored her, and it was lovely for the parents to have an additional set of hands too, making it easier for them to relax and enjoy the party too.
Photography –
I am a big lover of collecting moments and memories, but I don’t want to spend these occasions looking at them through the lens of my phone or my camera. So, I engaged local photographer Nicola Holland Photography to come to the party and capture this special time. Nicola is an incredibly talented wedding and family photographer who has been lovingly taking photographs of my family for over five years now. She also happens to be one of my best friends. All of the images in this blog are by Nicola.
I found that I was able to sit back and enjoy this party. There was no pre party stress, and no post party clean up. There is absolutely no way I would have been able to give Ari such a wonderful party if it wasn’t for these amazing women who came together to create and complete this special morning. They all liaise within each other, making my job so easy… simply to enjoy my beautiful son’s fifth birthday party.
You can find everyone on the details below –
My Little Party Hire Website
My Little Party hire Instagram
Gather by Bonnie Website
Gather by Bonnie Instagram
Sweet P Cakes and Cookies Website
Sweet P Cakes and Cookies Instagram
Poppy and Daisy Designs Website
Poppy and Daisy Designs Instagram
Nicola Holland Photography Website
Nicola Holland Photography Instagram
Enjoy!
