What You'll Need
I threw my daughter Sadie a sixth birthday party with a unicorn and rainbow theme, and I wanted the decor to feel special without spending a fortune. Dollar Tree had everything I needed, and my Cricut helped me personalize it all. Here's how I pulled it off.
- Dollar Tree glass plates (the flat ones)
- Mod Podge
- Fabric (Dollar Tree has unicorn and rainbow prints)
- A candlestick holder
- Spray paint (gold)
- Cake boxes with windows (from Dollar Tree or Walmart)
- Party streamers in your colors
- Ribbon or string
- Dollar Tree cake plates and candle holders
- Plastic plates (6-packs)
- Canvases (Dollar Tree plus section has 2-packs for $5)
- Fabric markers
- Plain T-shirts
- Mason jars
- Decorative straws
- Dollar Tree wands
- Small buckets for party favors
- Tablecloths in 3 colors
- Cricut machine and vinyl
Step-by-Step Guide
1. Custom Fabric Plates for a Cake Stand
This is my favorite hack. Grab those plain glass plates from Dollar Tree and mod podge fabric onto the back. I used gold unicorn fabric for the big plate and rainbow fabric for the smaller ones.
Paint a candlestick holder gold, let it dry, and stack the plates on top. That's your cake stand. It looks way more expensive than it is.
2. Name Cake Boxes
Pick up cake boxes with windows — one for each letter in the birthday kid's name. I used five boxes for "SADIE" and turned them sideways.
Type the name in Cricut Design Space, pick a bold font, and cut it out of pink vinyl. Stick the letters on the boxes. Open the boxes and tape them so they don't collapse, then fill them with tissue paper. Quick color pop, no balloons to blow up.
3. Tassel Banner
Skip the store-bought tassel banners that have too much space between each tassel. Make your own.
Cut party streamers into 16-inch pieces. Fold each piece in half over a ribbon, tie a small piece of ribbon at the top to gather it, then cut the bottom into strips. Cut twice for smaller tassels. Bunch them up and you've got a full, custom banner.
4. DIY Tiered Treat Tray
Hot glue a candle holder between two Dollar Tree cake plates. Flip the candlestick upside down so you have more space on the bottom tier. Stack plastic plates on top for the second tier. Fill the bottom with treats and the top with more treats. Match the plate colors to your theme.
5. Color-Your-Own T-Shirts
Find an image that kids can color in with fabric markers — a unicorn works great. Cut the image out with your Cricut, weed the excess, and iron it onto plain T-shirts. At the party, hand out fabric markers and let the kids color their own shirts. Mine had a blast with this.
6. Custom Cake Topper
Needed a cake topper last minute. Opened Cricut Design Space, found a design, cut it from scrap cardstock. Done. Took five minutes.
7. Personalized Apron
Dollar Tree sells aprons that say "do not iron" on the tag. I was careful and it worked fine.
Open Design Space, search for an image — I found a colorful art-themed one. Select it, tap Weld to attach everything together, and hit Mirror before cutting (iron-on vinyl needs to be mirrored). Cut with your Cricut, weed out the excess, heat the apron surface a bit, and press the design on with an Easy Press or iron. My artistic daughter loved it.
8. Tie-Dye Canvas Sign
Dollar Tree's plus section has huge 2-packs of canvases for $5. Lightly spray paint one with teal and purple to look like tie-dye. Spritz at the end for paint dots.
Cut "SISTERS" out of hot pink vinyl and apply it to the canvas. Mod podge over the top to seal it. This sign works for any party theme and will last for years.
9. Mason Jar Decor
Fill bigger mason jars with decorative grass (the Easter shred stuff). Drop in some Reese's cups for a gold pop. Stick decorative straws in there. Use Dollar Tree wands — I found unicorn ones — and slide the stick inside a straw. Cut out cardstock stars with your Cricut and attach them. These fill blank table space nicely.
10. Personalized Party Favor Buckets
Type each guest's name in Design Space, pick a bold font, and cut them from smart vinyl (no mat needed). Stick the names on small buckets. Fill with a brush, loofah, sucker, and bath bomb from Dollar Tree's hair section. Put a gift bag behind each bucket so kids can carry their stuff home.
11. Braided Tablecloth Backdrop
My walls are gray and boring for parties. Grab three tablecloths in different colors — I used hot pink, light pink, and white. Cut them into strips. Braid a few strips together at the top and let the rest hang down. Untangle the hanging parts. Cover the top with balloons. It fills the wall space and looks custom.
Tips
- When ironing on aprons or delicate fabric, don't leave the heat on too long. Heat the surface first, press the design, and lift.
- Bigger fonts transfer easier for vinyl names on buckets and signs.
- If you're making multiple of something (like the aprons), weld the design in Design Space so it cuts as one piece.
- For the tassel banner, cut the streamers twice to get smaller, fuller tassels.
