{NEW SERIES!} "SWEET & CHIC ON THE CHEAP!"

I'm so excited to announce that Melissa from Truly Chic Inspirations and myself have teamed up once again to bring you a new party series! We'll be taking popular party themes and showing you how you can do them yourselves...on the cheap! The cost of birthday parties can be so overwhelming, but as we've found out, they don't have to be! If you have the funds and the time to plan an elaborate get together, by all means, go for it! But, that's not always possible or practical for many of us, so that's why we've created "Sweet and Chic on the Cheap"! 


I'm starting the party off by sharing my Ice Cream Party that I put together, with the help of my amazing kiddos! Here is my vision for how you can pull off this party...for UNDER $25.00!!! Seriously, I spent $20.78 on this entire party, and I think it's still one that kids are going to love!

First of all, the decorations.  For an inexpensive party, you have to remember to  multi-purpose whenever possible.  These cupcakes served as decorations AND a take home gift for the little ones who come to the party.  It's a win/win situation because the kids get a cupcake, which we all know they'll love, and the parents don't have to deal with a baggie full of junk toys that they'll be anxious to get rid of! 

I brought in the ice cream theme, by sprinkling on chocolate sprinkles that you'd often see on top of an ice cream sundae, putting the cupcakes inside ice cream cones, and topping it off with a pink marshmallow! (Since some kids aren't fond of the cherries!)

An upside down ice cream cone doubles as a cupcake stand!

Before you can have a great party, though, you have to have a great invitation! I found these cuties for FREE at One Charming Party! So simple to download and print off, a quick and easy way to knock out those invites!

A sugar cone doubles as a container for little goodies.  A great place to hold bubble gum, or any other candies that your little guests may want to try.

So many kids love to color, why not print off some coloring sheets that go along with the theme of your party? I found these for FREE at colormountain.com.  

Believe it or not, this is actually a game! It's simple, easy to follow the directions, and it kept my kids (ages 10 and 6) busy for a while!  The concept? Throw the marshmallows in the air and catch as many as you can in the cone in the allotted amount of time.  I had an unopened bag of marshmallows from Valentine's Day, but if you don't have them, regular large (or if you like a challenge, small) marshmallows will do the trick, too.

I love books, and am an avid reader so I love to incorporate books whenever I can.  My first thought would be to head to Amazon and find a book that went with the theme of my party.  However, since I'm doing this on the cheap, I instead went to my local library and looked up books about ice cream! I found this one and then checked it out...you guessed it, for FREE!  What a great way to add an activity, and add to the decor of your party for no money at all!

Now comes the question of what to serve at your ice cream party.  Simple ice cream sundaes would definitely be yummy, but I decided to mix it up a bit and give the kids a Cold Stone Creamery experience! Now, you may not have that marble slab in your kitchen that they do at Cold Stone Creamery, but you can improvise.  Put a baking sheet in the refrigerator for a few minutes, and you'll get a similar effect.  Make sure to leave the ice cream out for just a few minutes before mixing up the goodies for the kids, so that it's soft enough to blend.  Yum! The flavor combination's are endless! (My preference...I wanted to add peanut butter, marshmallows, and chocolate chips...too bad I'm trying to cut back on my sweets!) Note: if you're going to use nuts of any kind, make sure none of the kids have an allergy, and if someone does, be sure to use a separate baking sheet for that child.

When throwing around ideas for our party, Melissa mentioned how her nephew loves ice cream floats! She also mentioned that some parents don't allow their kids to have soda, so we set out to think of an alternative.  This, while not the most healthy choice, may be better than soda in the eyes of some parents.  It's a Creamsicle Float! So simple and it totally tastes like the creamsicles we used to have when we were kids.  All you do is scoop some ice cream into a glass and add Sunny Delight...done! Give it a try, it's even good for grown ups!

Finally, since we always want to send our guests home with something special, a cupcake decorated to look like an ice cream sundae with colorful sprinkles and a thank you note.  I found these along with the invitations shown above at One Charming Party. 


Can you believe I did all of this for just over $20.00?? All it takes is a little time and creativity, and remember, before you head to the store to purchase everything you'll need for the party...shop at your house first! You'll be surprised what you find there!

Stay tuned for a party on the cheap coming soon from Melissa!