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kojodesigns

around the world party

June 8, 2011

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Kirstin mentioned our Around the World Party last week… I’ve been so excited to share the pics with y’all.

See, Drew and I have a serious affection for world travel and geography… and we love watching our girls become interested in the world. So when Keadryn asked for a fourth birthday party with a ‘little explorer’ theme, I was more than thrilled to oblige.

 

My inspiration for the invites (right) was a vintage “Around the World in 80 Days” poster (left)…

…and we incorporated vintage-y maps into the decor, favors, water bottle wraps, drink flags, and more. Even the dessert table had map-backed labels and map-made favor bags (we had a plentiful supply from a falling apart 1970s Geography Textbook that Kirstin found at a thrift store).



PARTY DETAILS
The party was laid out like a Tour Around the World. We had ‘layovers’ at various locales…

…in ‘Mexico’ for some pinata fun…

…in ‘Australia’ for some kangaroo races…

…in ‘India’ for ‘henna’…

…in ‘France’ at a “Bonbonerie”… and back to the good ol’ USA for an All American Lunch.

Each of the party guests was equipped with a Passport to Fun (they collected stamps at each ‘country’ we visited).

The coordinating dresses were gifts from Aunt Kirstin.

FAVORS
What better way to keep track of the party favors (or ‘souvenirs’) than in a stamped, vintage-y suitcase? Party guests toted the suitcase from layover to layover, collecting treats at the various stops. It was also the perfect catch-all for Keadryn Approved Travel Elixir, a map-made party hat, a telescope, and novelties like kangaroo ears.

DESSERT TABLE

The dessert table (or “bonbonerie”) was one of the layovers in our Tour Around the World. Let me tell you something- if you want a group of absolutely elated three and four year olds, include a whole trunk full of candy as one of your party features!

As guests stepped up to the trunk, they ‘ordered’ various varieties of candy (they were labeled in French… but since most of the guests can’t read yet, that was just for looks).

The candy bags (maps sewn into little tabbed favor holders) were filled with scoops of ‘guimauve’ (marshmallow scewers), ‘etoiles’ (starburst), ‘poissons’ (swedish fish), ‘menthe’ (peppermints) and plenty of other ‘bonbons.’

DECOR
Maps, flags, and hot air balloons were the major decor motifs.

There were map paper airplanes, map drink flags, map water bottle wraps and map party hats.

 

There were hot air balloon signs, including a “Keadryn” banner.

And there were fluttery flag garlands and flag toothpicks (for scewering fruit).

I seriously love (love!) this “Around the World” theme. Though there is a both hilarious and tragic tale to tell of the party day itself… Let’s just say that these are the pics of our plans and of the party stuff we made. Can’t wait to fill you in on the rest- stay tuned! 🙂

ps- Thanks for all of the Harry Potter love yesterday (and all of your shirt input!). I’ll email the winner later today!

Photobucket

decor 28 Comments

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Amy Kirchhoff says

    June 8, 2011 at 1:48 pm

    This party theme is great! Will be copying it one day. 🙂

    Reply
  2. The Gunny Sack says

    June 8, 2011 at 2:11 pm

    This looks like so much fun! I love the little envelopes for candy!

    Reply
  3. Nicole says

    June 8, 2011 at 2:41 pm

    This is amazing – I am completely blown away!! I have seen candy bars before, but yours is ADORABLE, and I love the idea of making those favors!

    Reply
  4. kate says

    June 8, 2011 at 4:11 pm

    this is really cute! great use of maps 🙂

    Reply
  5. Amanda says

    June 8, 2011 at 4:48 pm

    I've noticed that you have a lot of printables on your blog… how do you make a printable? Could you do a printable tutorial? Or do you just need to install cetain software? Thanks!

    Reply
  6. JLR Designs says

    June 8, 2011 at 5:18 pm

    Very, Very cool idea!! They all look like they're having a blast too!

    Reply
  7. Julie Rosenhan says

    June 8, 2011 at 6:41 pm

    This is amazing! I love this theme! It is beautiful. You did an amazing job! Someday when my boy is older, I'll have to try something like this. Thanks for the great idea!

    Reply
  8. Jenny says

    June 8, 2011 at 10:40 pm

    Ladies, this is awesome! I want you to come plan MY b-day party next month! And every other birthday party our family ever has. 🙂

    Reply
  9. Hannah says

    June 9, 2011 at 4:21 am

    I love this party theme! I love maps and traveling and adventuring. I know there are a lot of details but I love the simplicity too. I pinned this!

    Reply
  10. Randi~Dukes and Duchesses says

    June 9, 2011 at 12:38 pm

    One of the best parties I've ever seen. Love the map goodie bags and I love the way you had different activities at different geographical locations. What a perfect theme!

    Reply
  11. The Yoder's Four says

    June 9, 2011 at 7:31 pm

    Absolutely gorgeous party! Love everything you did. Looks like a lot of work–what a lucky little girl! Anything with maps floats my boat.

    Reply
  12. Tasha @ Creation Corner says

    June 9, 2011 at 9:02 pm

    Fabulous!! Hands down. Oh how I love the parties you ladies put on. Jordan is was amazing. Love all of it.

    Reply
  13. Molly says

    June 9, 2011 at 10:21 pm

    love, love, love this idea. entertaining and educational all at the same time. I hope to be as creative as in the future with my toddler's birthdays!
    I can't believe how many great details you thought of! Great job!

    Reply
  14. Katie says

    June 10, 2011 at 5:47 am

    Super cute party. I love the style and all the great details.

    Reply
  15. kristen says

    June 11, 2011 at 3:07 pm

    AMAZING jordan!! AMAZING!! i love everything about this party!!

    Reply
  16. Andrea @ Our Little Gems says

    January 14, 2012 at 11:13 am

    love love love this party!!! bonbonerie! that’s too much. also love the travel stops, the passports, and the suitcases. very creative!

    Reply
    • Kirstin says

      January 14, 2012 at 2:50 pm

      thanks friend! since we both love to travel so much, we might’ve gotten a tad carried away- haha! 🙂

      Reply
  17. Teresa says

    April 29, 2013 at 6:26 am

    I am doing a teacher luncheon with foods from around the world. Could you possibly send me how you made the banner with all the different flags? Is there a template you used? I love it to decorate the teacher lounge.
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Kirstin says

      April 29, 2013 at 4:44 pm

      Teresa, I love it that you’re doing that luncheon (I was a teacher before Burke and Pi came along…).
      I found the flags in an old atlas and glued them together around twine to make the banner- sorry that’s not more replicatable. 🙂

      Reply
  18. Kari - the Sweetest Memory says

    August 31, 2013 at 1:19 am

    What a creative, colorful and amazing birthday party! So Cute!

    Reply
    • Kirstin says

      August 31, 2013 at 9:54 pm

      Thanks Kari!

      Reply
  19. VJ says

    March 23, 2015 at 10:38 am

    This is great! Where did you find the “stamped, vintage-y suitcase” for the party favors? I’m having difficulty finding large ones similar to the ones shown above. Thank you!

    Reply
  20. Kasey says

    March 18, 2019 at 2:49 pm

    Okay. I’m kinda obsessed with all of your cute ideas!!! This is such a fun party! My son turns two in May and now I’m rethinking all of the themed ideas I had had. And I blog about worldwide cultural activities for families. I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of this. If your family ever wants to try out some other worldwide holiday activities, I’d love to talk about it! You can check me out at colormecc.com

    Reply

Trackbacks

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