First Birthday Mermaid Party

Our baby turned one last weekend and we celebrated with a First Birthday Mermaid Party. The pretty pink and turquoise theme incorporated chalk art, pearls, and whimsical details. While I’m still in full shock my baby has already celebrated her first birthday, the day couldn’t have been more perfect. Complimentary party supplies from Minted.com and a customized order from Alexis + Bolt created the perfect First Birthday Mermaid Party! I shared this party April 12, 2016 live on 12 News Arizona Midday Mermaid Birthday Bash!

The birthday girl wore the cutest little mermaid outfit and was so happy celebrating her special day. I made her mermaid pants by simply tracing a circle with a fabric pen to create scales on leggings. Her shirt had a sparkly iron on number.

I received Sirena Children’s Birthday Party Invitations, Sirena Children’s Birthday Party Thank You Cards, and a Siren’s Song Custom Art Print from  Minted.com to help with the planning process. 

From there I sent an invitation to a professional hand letterer, Kate from Alexis + Bolt. She did an amazing job creating custom decorations to match the party invitations and print from  Minted.com. She also made a beautiful birthday chalkboard with some of the details from my baby’s first year milestones.

The party table featured a backdrop I made from two plastic tablecloths. I strung a banner of monthly photos across the top. 

Each month I took the same photo of our baby in her nursery chair with a favorite stuffed pig. The party guests enjoyed being able to see how she grew each month.

When guests arrived they were greeted by a “Welcome to the Mermaid Party” sign made by Alexis + Bolt. The mermaid on the sign exactly matched the mermaid on the  Minted.com invitations.

I usually order birthday party cakes but because I was doing my best to stick to a budget I decided to try to make the cake myself. I was inspired by the cake featured in a party at The Frosted Petticoats. I did practice frosting the week before the party just to make sure it would turn out how I imagined. I used a chocolate mold to make pink seashells for the top of the cake.

Other sweets at the party included Oyster Pearl Cookies. Alexis + Bolt made cards for the food table and I embellished them with a pearl to match the party theme. I made the cookies with Vanilla Wafers, frosting, and candy pearls.

The cupcakes were frosted with frosting to match the smash cake. Alexis + Bolt sent adorable cupcake toppers that I also embellished with adhesive pearls.

Party tip: if you’re not a baker, purchase unfrosted cupcakes from your local grocery bakery and then frost to match your party theme. Shhhhhh, no one knows I do it either.

The party was in the mid afternoon between lunch and dinner. We didn’t serve a full meal but had plenty of themed snacks: 

• Seaweed Dip: spinach dip
• Drift Wood: pretzel rods
• Starfish: cucumbers cut with a star cookie cutter
• Shells & Cheese: mac and cheese
• Crab Legs: carrot sticks

I embellished plastic forks and spoons with colored adhesive pearls to match the party decor. 

Each guest had a special sparkly placemat with their name and seashells. Alexis + Bolt created place cards for each guest. I used double sided tape to stick them on sparkly paper matching the party colors. Then I added seashell stickers and laminated. The easy DIY placemats provided each guest with a very personal gift to take home!

The party table also featured the Siren’s Song Custom Art Print and a DIY shell letter. I used gel glue and seashells to easily embellish the plain letter purchased from the craft store. 

Thank you bags were also custom by Alexis + Bolt. I added the same adhesive pearls to pull the theme together. 

We filled the little thank you bags with suckers and mermaid tattoos. Because most of the guests were my seven year old daughter‘s friends, we gave them mermaid dolls as thank you gifts too. We found the dolls at the Dollar Store and they were perfect for the birthday mermaid party!

I dressed up the smash cake candle with adhesive pearls. 

The DIY crepe paper garland fit perfectly around the baby’s high chair. Making the garland myself was also a great way to stick to the party budget. We sang happy birthday then put the cake on the high chair tray. It was the first time our baby had sweets so we weren’t sure what to expect. 

She quickly decided she was a fan of cake and frosting!

Happy Birthday baby girl. We had so much fun celebrating at her First Birthday Mermaid Party!

Check out these other mermaid party ideas to plan the ultimate under the sea party.

Are you planning a birthday mermaid party too? I’d love to hear about your special party details inspired by our First Birthday Mermaid Party!

Learn more about Alexis + Bolt by connecting with them on Facebook and Instagram. You can also email Kate directly at alexisandbolt(at)gmail(dot)com for custom product purchase details.