April showers bring May flowers so there is no better time to plan a fun garden-themed party.
These ideas for a Shabby Chic Garden Party are perfect for any age. With a few slight adjustments, this party theme could be used for a first birthday party, a bridal shower or even a 90th birthday celebration. Here I’ll share ideas from invitations to goodie bags and everything in between.
Invitations. When creating your party invitation, you’ll first need to decide where to host your event. One of the great things about a garden-themed party is that there are so many location possibilities. You could go with somewhere quiet like in your own backyard, somewhere with more activity like a local park or somewhere semi-private like in a public greenhouse. As you know, the weather in May can sometimes be unpredictable so if you are planning an event outside, you’ll want to have a backup plan. With a shabby chic theme, there are many cute touches you can add to your invitation, such as doily prints, lace and adhesive pearl embellishments.
Decorations. When you think of the term “shabby chic”, what items come to mind? I think of weathered wood, lace, butterflies, doilies, flowers, small weathered garden tools and more. All of these items can be included in the décor for your party. If you’ll be hosting your party around a flower garden, part of your decorating will already be complete.
A banner is an excellent way to welcome your guests to the party. The banner pieces can be glued to small doilies and looped together with a lace ribbon.
Small weathered garden pails can be filled with fresh flowers and a decorative butterfly on the rim.
There are many beautiful options for silk flowers to accent the party area as well. You could incorporate some silk flower balls on ribbons alongside pink paper lanterns to hang above the party area. Small flower or shrub topiary art could also be placed on the table or around the party area. A sweet added touch would be to ask a local florist if they know of anyone who could make a topiary centerpiece of the initial for the birthday girl.
For a special added touch, chairs could be covered in satin chair slips and organza bows. You can rent these at most party rental companies.
Activities. A garden party just wouldn’t be complete without cute little tea party hats! A fun activity for guests would be to create their own party hat out of plain sunhats, feather boas and plastic flowers. You can also include a mirror area for the guests to admire their tea party hats. Be sure to take a picture of all of the adorable creations! Guests could be invited to decorate their own small flower pots to take home. Small terracotta pots, paint and glitter glue could be set out for the guests to create their own little masterpiece. You could also supply a few small flowers for the guests to plant in their pots once the paint has had time to dry. This is a great homemade favor that the guests can take home.
Another simple craft for kids is to invite guests to create their own paper fans. All you’ll need to get started are a few sheets of craft paper in floral prints and some ribbon.
A party trend that is increasing in popularity is having a photo booth area at a party. A flower garden is a perfect backdrop for a photo area. Guests could be given props, such as feather boas, tea party hats, long strings of plastic pearl necklaces, empty weathered wood frames and chalkboard speech bubbles. Your thank-you cards could then include a picture of the guest along with a note of appreciation.
Food and drinks. When planning the menu for a party, it is always good to know about guests’ food allergies. This may be a question you ask your guests upon their RSVP to the party. Food tent cards are a cute way to let guests know what each dish on the buffet table is.
With a garden party theme, you’ll want to keep the menu light with options, such as tea sandwiches, crumpets with jam, bite-sized cake balls (white powdered donut holes work great as well), mini cupcakes, pastries and other bite-sized treats. Butterfly shaped cookies would be an adorable touch as well.
Your garden tea party could include iced tea in mason jars for your young guests. The mason jars can include a lace ribbon accent and a decorative paper straw. For more of a tea party setting, you could serve the iced tea in an antique looking pitcher with a small plastic tea set.
Goodie bags. If your guests have completed crafts at the party, this could be included as part of their goodie bag to take home. Some other items for a shabby chic garden party include butterfly gummy candy, flower shaped cake pops, small packages of flower seeds or bulbs for planting at home and small garden tools for kids.
We’d like to wish you all a happy Spring filled with laughter and great memories!
Cheryl is a married mother of one. She is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with a strong interest in parties and event planning. She is the owner and writer for Moms & Munchkins (www.momsandmunchkins.ca), which is filled with ideas for family fun, activities for kids, party ideas, party planning tips, holiday fun, moms’ night out ideas and more. For more information on Just a Little Sparkle, visit www.justalittlesparkle.etsy.com.
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