How to Throw a Themed Birthday Party for Under $50

I've wanted a themed birthday party since I was a kid. You know how it is — other kids got them, and I figured their parents were rich or something. Now that I'm an adult with a little income, I decided to make it happen.

Theme: white, pink, and gold. And I kept the decorations under $50 by making everything myself and using stuff I already had.

Here's how I did it.

• Tissue paper (pink, white)
• Pink plastic tablecloth (dollar store)
• Balloons
• Construction paper or Bristol board
• Popsicle sticks
• Foam board
• Gold spray paint
• Pool noodle
• Fish bowl or vase
• Plastic wine glasses (dollar store)
• Painter's tape
• Gold paint
• Doilies
• Ribbon
• Toothpicks
• Sugar cookies
• Powdered sugar
• Corn syrup
• Food coloring
• Clear cellophane bags

This was the part I was most excited about.

Tissue Paper Flowers (Two Versions)

Version 1: Daisies

Take six sheets of rectangular tissue paper, all the same color. Add one smaller sheet for the center — I reused old pink Victoria's Secret packaging because I'm a grandma who hoards stuff.

Stack them flat and aligned. Rotate the pile so the shorter ends face you. Fold a 1-2 inch flap forward and crease it hard with your nail. Fold that flap backward. Keep folding forward and backward until you've made a zigzag all the way down.

Loosen the folds and remove the smaller center paper, keeping it folded separately. Fold the big stack in half to find the center. Cut slits into the open ends with sharp scissors.

Undo the most recent fold and slip the center paper back in. Fold everything back together, then fold in half again to find center.

Secure the middle tightly with string or a stapler. Leave extra string if you want to hang them.

Cut your petal shape on both ends. Save the scraps for confetti later.

Now the fun part. Spread the folds and pull each individual sheet upward toward the center. Don't worry about the two halves not being connected — you won't notice once it's fluffed. It's okay if things get crinkled or ripped. You won't be able to tell at the end.

Version 2: Pom Poms

Same steps — six sheets, zigzag, secure with string, cut petals. The only difference is no center sheet. Scrunch each sheet toward the center more than the daisies to make it look like a pom pom. Play with the fluffing until you're happy.

Assembly

I taped a pink plastic tablecloth from the dollar store onto a fence. Use painter's tape if you have it.

Use packaging tape to secure the flowers onto the tablecloth. I knew I wouldn't have enough flowers to fill the whole backdrop, so I added balloons to complete the wall.

I freehanded shapes from construction paper using Pinterest for inspiration. For a more permanent version, use Bristol board, foam, or cardboard.

I added black outlines with Sharpies to make everything look cartoony and bold. For speech bubbles, I laminated them with packaging tape so people could write on them with whiteboard markers.

Most props get held up with Popsicle sticks. If you're using flimsy paper, reinforce with cardboard backing.

I also added an old glass picture frame from a previous DIY video that I spray painted gold for another erasable sign.

The giant polar photo frame came from a $2 foam board from the dollar store. I sketched the shape with a toothpick, cut it out with a knife and cutting board, and used a book as a straight edge. Pop out the center and clean up the edges.

Remember those tissue paper scraps? Cut them into small pieces for confetti. Don't try cutting them up in a jar — just dump them out and cut individually.

I used a fish bowl from the dollar store with a piece of pool noodle foam cut to fit inside. The green didn't match my theme, so I wrapped the foam in double-sided tape and tissue paper. Stuff it back in the vase.

For the gold numbers, I sketched "23" on separate foam sheets. Cut them out, glued them to another foam sheet with a skewer sticking out for stability. Cut it out again and paint gold. Make sure you get the sides.

When arranging flowers, remember the pool noodle has a hollow center. I'm terrible at flower arranging, so my friend Jessica took over. She added white flowers, spread confetti around the sides, added gold ribbon around the vase, and made mini tissue paper flowers for the top.

Six plastic wine glasses from the dollar store. Use small pieces of painter's tape to get clean lines — small pieces worked better than one long piece.

Paint the bottom gold. It'll take a few coats. If your paint dries plastic-like, you can skip sealing. Otherwise use Mod Podge. Don't get paint on the rim or inside where people drink.

Peel off the tape when dry.

Totally unnecessary, but I did it anyway. Remove labels, glue doilies onto the bottles with double-sided tape. Measure gold ribbon, wrap it around to hold down the doily ends.

Someone might bring food that doesn't match your theme. Here's how to fix that.

Measure ribbon, cut. Add a dab of hot glue, put a toothpick in the middle, squish the halves together. Cut a triangle shape at the end.

Mix 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract with 2 tablespoons water. Use clear extract if you want whiter icing.

Sift 1 cup powdered sugar. Add the vanilla mixture and 2 tablespoons corn syrup. Mix. If it's too thick, add water a teaspoon at a time.

Put some icing in a separate bowl and add red food coloring. Sprinkle the pink over the base icing. Dip cookies in, lift, let drip. Use a toothpick to swirl for different looks.

Dry on a baking rack with parchment paper underneath. Clean edges with a toothpick while still wet.

Package in cellophane bags from Bulk Barn. Tie with ribbon, curl the ends with scissors.

I kept the flowers because they were too tedious to throw away. They're in my basement now, looking pretty.