Quarantined at home. Isolated in your room. Keeping your hands and your feet to yourself. No one wants to celebrate their birthday like they’re in time out. Unfortunately, that is the world we live in right now, HOWEVER, that’s not how we need to feel on a birthday!
Personally, I love celebrating birthdays! That really shouldn’t be surprising if you know my goal for Felt Happens/Happens With Love is all about gift giving. I enjoy adding that extra special touch in gifts, and making someone feel loved on his or her birthday, or any special occasion.
Most of the time, I will start planning gifts at least a month in advance. I start researching and brainstorming new ideas. I need to decide if I will make a gift, will order something, or maybe I have to order something to make the present. I hate stressing and waiting till the last minute, and I never know how busy I will be with work when a birthday or special occasion comes around, so I got to prepare the best I can!
Here are some ideas to help make a birthday still feel special, and some I can help you with!
1. Cake Time
What kind of party doesn’t have cake?? It can be chocolate, strawberry, ice cream, gluten-free, vegan, or a watermelon topped with more fruit--whatever the birthday person likes! You could make your own at home, order one from your local bakery (COVID is tough on small business, don’t forget to support the little guys), or grab one at your local grocery store--it’s all tasty!
There are tons of toppers in the shop that would be a fun addition for a cake on a birthday or special occasion. Here are a few of my favorites:
KIDS CAKE TOPPERS Fiesta Mouse and Muppet Babies theme are some cute ideas for a kid's party. The fun thing about these toppers, is you can remove the stick, and they can double up as a party pin!
NUMBER TOPPER Moana or Pikachu are fun options for the little ones, or a sweet and simple number set for the, let's call them, wiser folks. With these you can customize the number, color and theme.
BANNER TOPPER Rainbow, Fiesta and Unicorn themes--how CUTE are these setups? With this topper combination, you don’t even need a fancy cake because this topper will do the decorating for you! Which may be the best cover up on your pinterest fail birthday cake. No shame, we have all been there.
STUBBIES Wedding Lookalike Toppers. Maybe your wedding didn’t go as planned, or it’s your anniversary and you love remembering the big day. You can place an order for these lookalikes and use them as your cake toppers! Have you checked The Shop for all the stubbies or lookalikes to choose from? You could really use any stubby or lookalike as a topper. Leave a note that you want a topper, and I will send it ready for you, no extra fee.
2. What to Wear
Let’s face it, we have been stuck at home for what feels like forever. So, maybe we have forgotten what it’s like to put together an actual outfit--no worries if yoga pants and baggy shirts are your go-to the last few months. No judgement here.
How about making this special day look like we put the effort we used to have in our attire. An easy way to do this, is throw on a shirt and/or a matching headband! Boom. Matching.
SHIRTS Fiesta Mouse Shirts for every one in the family, Muppet Babies for the whole mini party, and Retirement Plan shirt for those that have retired during COVID. These can all be customized with party hats, names, numbers, or colors.
HEADPIECES Muppet Babies, Fiesta Mouse, Moana Flowers, Unicorn, Pikachu, Totoro, Bunny Ears, and Flower Cat or Kitten Ears. Looking for something else, send me a message and I’d love to help you out
3. Party Pins
Here is an even EASIER way to “dress up” your every-day-baggy shirt on that special day. Custom order your own party pin for the birthday person to wear, or get a party pin for others to feel included too!
KIDS PARTY PINS Pua from Moana, Piñata for that fiesta, Pink Horse or Shark party pins. You can add a party hat for the birthday person, or choose to opt out for the extra party guests.
ADULT PARTY PINS Match your wise age, honor your baby shower, or share the love for a taco party! Any of these can be adjusted to match your colors, age, or theme, or maybe you’re looking for a theme that isn’t in the shop yet? Send me a message because I would love to help make this day extra special.
4. Special Banners
Just in case this pandemic has gotten you so out of it, and you need to remember the
special person’s name...NAME BANNER! This is a great way to double up on a gift AND party decor. Um, yes please, less work for the “party planner” but at the end of the day it looks like you rocked the party.
Party decor ON POINT and a fun and unique gift at the end of the day--score.
BANNERS Baseball, Muppet Baby, Fiesta Mouse, Moana, Cat, Cactus Succulent, Nightmare Before Christmas, Superhero, Shark, Monster, Toy Story, Sesame Street, and so much more in the shop! Banners can be names, words, phrases, anything that you’d love to hang in your home after the celebration is over.
5. DIY Decorations
I think Tip #5 is probably one of my favorites to be honest. This pandemic has forced us to really think about what matters, and that we need to cherish those close to us, because you never know what can happen from one day to the next.
You may not get to plan a huge birthday party for yourself or your kiddo, a special shower for the new mama to-be, or retirement party for those that had to leave work due to COVID, but you can still have fun on a much smaller level.
A few years back, we were on a mini vacation and celebrated a shark themed birthday party for one of my favorite kiddos. There were only three kids and two adults. When everyone else went to pick up cake and pizza, I stayed in the hotel room and secretly went all out with simple stuff from the dollar store and Walmart.
I taped some streams on the walls and ceilings, added a HBD Banner with a matching customized name banner underneath (double party decor and gift--heck yes!). Had some simple games like pin the tail on the donkey, and I even made three little treat bags for the kiddos.
They were so excited when they walked into the hotel room that was completely transformed with something as simple as streamers and a cut up plastic tablecloth.
The fun you have with a limited amount of people really comes down to what you put into it. If you go into it with an excited mindset and ready to have fun with a small group, then you can enjoy it to the fullest.
Quality time, balloons, streamers, and a cake are all easy ways to make Saturday night pizza feel a little extra special when it’s a birthday stuck at home.
I hope these tips helped give you an idea of thinking outside the box. If you decide to purchase from my shop, please look at the turnaround time in the Availability Page. Usually it takes several weeks for me to get to an order, but occasionally I have space for a rush order, so feel free to message me.
We also really don’t know how long this pandemic will keep us like this, or when we will even feel safe to have big parties. So Maybe keeping small parties may be the way to go for a little longer.
If you can’t or choose not to shop with me, that’s completely fine. Perhaps think about shopping at another small business for at least one part of your special day whether it’s for the gift, party decor or food. However, times are tough and there is no shame in grabbing everything from the dollar store.
We don’t know how long this will last, so the most important thing is that you, and everyone in your little party has fun, and enjoys it.
Let’s continue to be smart, wear a mask, social distance yourself, wash your hands, take care of your immune system, and remember to show your love for those around you.
I love you, and I hope you enjoy planning a special party during a pandemic. One thing we can all agree on is 2020 will never be forgotten, so let’s make some good memories as much as possible.
Always written with love,
Augusta