ANDIE’S FAIRYTALE FIRST YEAR
I have no idea how I am throwing a birthday party for my baby, but here we are! I knew I wanted something original, that I hadn’t really seen done before. Something whimsical and really girly. As I reflected on the past year, I feel like all my dreams have come true with the addition of our sweet little Andie. Life has been like a fairytale, and so we decided on the theme of a Fairytale First Year.
One great thing with my girls having birthdays in the fall, is that all the summer floral is on sale just in time for their parties. I stocked up on stems and used them for the table decor. I also swapped out the photos in our gallery wall, and replaced them with pictures of her throughout her first year. At Lou’s party recently, Andie was not a fan of balloons so instead I draped some neutral crepe streamers and hung tassel garlands that I’d made. She’s always loved a garland. Another easy way to add a wow factor was by using floral wall decals from Amazon to decorate around the custom balloon sign. Although I love the way it turned out, I honestly can’t say I would recommend the sign shop. Many of them were leaky and I was left DIYing a solution at the eleventh hour. Thankfully, it ended up still looking beautiful.
I was able to find the most beautiful printables on Pixel Perfection Party’s Etsy shop. They went perfectly with the theme and I used them for the invitations, gift tags, food and drink labels (pro tip to save your furniture and buy the Koolaid jammers clear juice), and her monthly photo wall.
To play on the storybook theme, I wanted books to be part of the decor. Only I wanted them to be aesthetically pleasing. Since I have accumulated a small library over the years, I came up with the idea of wrapping the books in a neutral sleeve using Ikea craft paper. For a sentimental touch, I decorated them and added ‘book titles’ that were all a nod to a different milestone Andie had reached in her first year. Things like her first trip to the beach, the song I rock her to sleep to, and Lou & Andie Vol. 1.
Desserts were from the one and only Grandma’s Oven, they always do a phenomenal job and I can promise you that they taste as good as they look. We went with a small, white cake for Andie to inevitably smash, and let the cupcakes add to the ‘flowers’. We topped her cake with thee most beautiful fairy cake toppers. Custom cookies have become a birthday tradition, so I had to include some with her name and a big number one for her big day!
Fairy Wing party favours were also from Amazon, along with a little custom look bag for each guest, filled with play dough, fairy tattoos, and a little toy.
Finally, some sentimental touches included her custom name cake topper by Thistle and Lace Design. Julie is absolutely wonderful, and the topper was the perfect touch. I’d gotten one for Lou for her first birthday and was so happy to carry on the tradition! Another tradition was to get a small keepsake. Lou had gotten a crown from HeartFelt by Natalia (which Andie is wearing in the picture for her birthday post). So for Andie, we got her a handmade wand by The Wooly Canvas. Their keepsakes, cake toppers, and the candle they made their first wish on, are saved in each of their baby boxes.
In the end I was so happy with how everything turned out. It was beautiful, meaningful, and everything out littlest girl deserved. We felt so blessed to kickoff a lifetime of birthday celebrations with the prettiest party possible. Happy tears were shed, cake was smashed, and our hearts are so full. Happy first birthday Andie! Mama, Daddy and Lou love you so much!
