A DIY Cars Party

 I've been meaning to post about Toddler Bee's Cars themed birthday party for a few months now and now is finally the time when I've remembered.

Toddler Bee was volleying birthday ideas around for weeks prior to his party date. He couldn't seem to decide between Cars, Toy Story, or a million other random themes he would pull out of the air on any given day.

The theme was sealed one day when we were shopping in the Dollarstore and came across a section of Disney Cars themed decorations. There are few things I like more than a bargain so I took this as a sign that my boy was meant to have a Cars party.

Most of the party was DIY, like the majority of parities I plan. I usually bemoan the amount of work I have to put into making decorations but I really do enjoy creating fun parties for my families and creating my own decorations is the best way to make a party just how I want it.

So, allow me to take you on a tour of our Cars themed party...

The Welcome sign I drew and painted for our front door.

We'll start with Luigi's Casa Della Tires - Home of the Leaning Tower of Tires! Toddler Bee owns nearly every car from the movies, so they  made the perfect props for the party. Here we have Luigi balancing on the Leaning Tower of Tires; which are just chocolate mini doughnuts on a skewer. Meanwhile, Guido is moving around our white wall tires.

For refreshment, our guest were able to stop in a Fillmore's for some delicious organic fuel.

 Don't forget to post signs so your guests don't get lost on their travels!

Painted carboard adhered to a tension rod with duct tape.

And, for the birthday boy, a delicious cake! This was so simple to make. The sign is cardboard with blue paper glued on and markers for the lettering. I made a chocolate cake and then green frosting and covered the cake. Then, I sketched a number "3" with a toothpick and used that as a mold for the chocolate cookie crumbs. The lines on the road are yellow Mike 'n Ikes.

We were also able to find Cars themed plates, noise makers, cups, and a tablecloth for $8. The other red and blue plates and napkins were from last years party (same with plastic cutlery).

This beauty was one of our Dollarstore finds. It was only $3! 

This was the second part of the wall mural, which we had to put on a separate wall because we were out of room. The balloons have Cars characters on them and were $2 at the Dollarstore.

The red streamers were leftover from last years party and the yellow were $1 at the Dollarstore. The Cars themed streamers were $2 and so were the foil cutouts.

I am so proud of these tractor tipping cupcakes! The liners (which you can't see) are Cars themed and were $2 at the Dollarstore. I cutout the tractors from white cardstock and then hand painted each and every one. I wish I had gotten a closer picture so you could see all the little details. I used a fine-tipped Sharpie for the writing and small details. Then, I hot glued them onto toothpicks and stuck them in the cakes at various stages of tipping. These were a bit of a pain to make but I love them!

And, of course, a Cars party is not complete without some traffic signs:

For the traffic lights, I took a piece of cardboard and painted it black. Then, I cut circles out of thinner cardboard and painted them red, yellow, and green. Then, using cardboard from an old cereal box, I cutout the covers for above the lights.

Our basement took on the role of Sarge's Surplus Hut (because that's where we store all our extra junk!)

And the door to the bathroom boasted a sign for Tow Mater's Towing and Salvaging.

And at the base of our stairs we see a sign for the Cozy Cone Motel. Unfortunately, there was no vacancy so our guests couldn't stay the night.

For the kids, Ramone set up his House of Body Art. I was able to find temporary Cars tattoos at the Dollarstore for $1!

In the last half hour before the party I decided to draw some Piston Cups on drink glasses. You can't see all the details, and they were rather hastily drawn but still fun!

 Somehow I managed to miss photos of our Flo's V8 Cafe sign, which was above the table of food. I also missed a picture of the foil banner we found at the Dollarstore ($2).

In total, the party supplies (including food) cost around $100, which I don't think is that bad. Especially if you could see how much food there was! All of the signs were made from recycled cardboard. I hoard old cardboard boxes in the weeks before a party so I can make my signs. The paints I already had, too, so it was just a matter of going online and looking at stills from the movies so I could make the signs as close as possible to the "real" thing.

Planning a party for a child is so much fun and party planning is one of my favourite things to do. All the hardwork is worth it when you see how excited and happy you child is on the day of their party. Of course, it's more about the friends and family who gather to celebrate with you (and we had plenty of that, too!) but the window of time you have available for the true magic of childhood is so small that I like to make every opportunity I have amazing.

And, like most other crafts I do, these things can be planned on a budget. You never know what you will be able to find at your Dollarstores and you'd be surprised at how easy it can be to make your own decorations!