Recently, we were asked to make a collection of custom hair ties to celebrate a very special 4th birthday for a little girl named Ellie. Like many girls her age, Ellie has a love for all things princesses and mermaids, and so her super creative momma Melissa from Petite Littles Everyday put together the absolute cutest mermaid-themed celebration for her.
Looking for some inspiration for the little mermaid in your life? Let us show you how Melissa put it all together, and created the most wonderful afternoon of memories for Ellie and her friends!
Swimming in Décor
As I written about before, “less is more” when it comes to birthday party décor these days. While you may remember gigantic, shiny banners and streamers galore from your own childhood birthdays, nowadays it’s all about subtle touches to set off the theme.
In Melissa’s case, she opted for several themed banners that were both elegant and whimsical, but without being overbearing. On the mantle, simple sticky-backed hooks were used to hang a colorful string of stars and spheres, as well as a text banner with “let’s be mermaids” written out in script between two shells. Super cute, and super easy to hang!
To continue the theme, Melissa decorated their long white dining table with an assortment of shells, gumballs, pearls, flowers, and confetti. All of this created the perfect piecemeal runner that really amplified the mermaid theme.
Bold white cake stands were added to display treats, as well as provide some additional depth and visual interest to the look. All together, these super subtle décor pieces set the tone for the perfect day of fun under the sea!
Tiny Table Settings
To add to the wow factor for the guests as they arrived, Melissa opted to do individual table settings for each of Ellie’s little friends that had RSVP’d to the party.
Seashell plates and napkins were of course perfectly on theme, and were accented with pearl necklaces and shell sugar cookies.
We were so happy to see our custom hair ties incorporated right into these settings as well. Each set included two ties – one with little printed mermaids, and the other with a plain accent color – as well as a custom message: Mermaid Hair, don’t care! Thanks for splashing by Ellie’s birthday!
From what Melissa shared with us, it sounded like the ties were quite hit. In her own words:
“I especially love the customized hair elastics because kids can actually use them afterwards for their hair or a cute bracelet. My girls love them and they're extra adorable when you can customize them to your party theme.”
Sea Snacks
Like all good birthday parties, there was no shortage of tasty treats for the kids. Melissa found a recipe for a super cute mermaid party mix that she recreated with kettle corn popcorn, fishy crackers and pastel gumballs. Placed inside a large glass jar, it was one more piece of fun (and edible) décor!
In lieu of a cake, Melissa opted for cupcakes from a local baker. The kids all thought that these mermaid cupcakes were super tasty, and of course they fit the theme perfectly. The birthday girl Ellie just loved them as soon as she saw them, and couldn't believe how special they looked.
Before all the sweet treats, Melissa served a kid-friendly mix of mini croissant turkey and cheese sandwiches, cucumber sandwiches, watermelon, fruit salad, popcorn, chips and veggies. By keeping the food really simple and easy to grab and eat, it made it a lot easier to ensure the kids had some hearty nutrition in the midst of running around playing princess games. And as an added bonus for our party host, almost all the prep on these items was completed the night before – a huge win for any mom that’s ever hosted a birthday party at home!
Sunken Treasure
At the end of the day, each little guest got to take home a shell bag filled with some mermaid goodies. The treasures inside included a shell sugar cookie, mermaid candy stick, seashell candy necklace, shell notebooks, stretchy pearl necklaces and erasers. And of course, our custom mermaid hair ties went in everyone’s bag as well, ensuring each guest (and their parents) had a fun little memento to remember the party.
Another Year of Birthday Fun
Birthday girl Ellie felt so loved by the end of the party, both by her friends and her incredibly creative mom. We are so thrilled to have played a part in the special day, and cannot thank Melissa enough for sharing all these wonderful photos and tips for creating the perfect mermaid themed birthday party at home!
Happy Birthday Ellie!!
PARTY DETAILS
Mermaid Banner teeny wish
Shell Napkins teeny wish
Confetti teeny wish
Shell Candy Necklaces teeny wish
Mermaid Candy Sticks teeny wish
Shell Goody Bags teeny wish
Felt Mermaid Banner elizabeth & lo
Pearl Necklaces - Target party section
Mermaid Hair Elastic Sets plum polkadot
Shell Plates - Daiso
Mermaid Cupcakes sheas sweet shoppe
Shell Sugar Cookies sheas sweet shoppe
Shells - Michaels
Gumball Pearls - Dollar Store
Lavender Dresses - H&M
Necklaces coral and cloud
Shell Hair Clips giddyup and grow