THROWING THE PARTY HE DESERVES

Amanda Wibbenmeyer
May 21, 2019
2 min read

My eight year old, Andrew, has the most amazing curiosity for so many things. He loves famous artists, big cities, national monuments, Presidents, Star Wars and everything in between. His interests inspire and amaze me daily. So when he came to me and said he wanted a Paris inspired artist party I couldn't wait to make it happen!

The Invitation

I wanted to share his creativity from the very beginning of the planning phase. I borrowed some clip art I found from a google search and started to play around with it. I found a cartoon likeness of Andrew and then I pasted an actual drawing he made of the Eiffel Tower onto the image. He was so excited when he saw the invitation!

The Party

He really wanted everyone to be an artist and paint their own masterpiece. I found some paint by number paint sets that included his second favorite painting, The Starry Night! I also found another Van Gogh Sunflower and an Eiffel Tower so that his guests had a choice.

I then began to imagine 20 children painting in my house so I had to take some precautionary measures with the planning for my house and the kiddos. I ordered aprons for all the guests and personalized them for the party with their name and a Paris skyline. They were a big hit and they kept the paint off their clothes. I also added a beret and mustache selection so that our friends could really express their inner artist!

The Food

I offered some brie and baguettes with French preserves to keep the theme going. I also had some french cookies and made chicken salad sandwiches on croissants. The rest of the food selection was very kid friendly and adorned with French flag tooth picks.

To continue to the artist theme we wrapped up the party with a decorate your own cupcake activity. Each child had a pallet with various color sprinkles and made their own masterpiece.

The Swag and Decor

I love great swag so I always get a little bit "extra" when it comes to it. I stayed with the art theme and included markers, paint sets and paintable letters. I also added personalized stickers on some adorable lollipops and ordered the cutest cookies from a local baker. I topped it off with a personalized box/ art kit for each kid to take home.

After the swag was assembled, I transformed my house into a french flag museum. I had smaller flags everywhere and then a very large flag that we used as a photo backdrop so our friends could show off their entire ensemble.

Andrew had an amazing time and loved all the extras that were included. Nothing makes me happier than seeing an appreciative smile on that adorable face.

For a link to all the goodies mentioned, please take a look at the Andrew's 8th Birthday Party page.