There are a ton of pins on pinterest about airplane parties.  BUT, mine wasn't for a boy & I didn't want to go with strictly a plane party.  I wanted any type of air travel (helicopters, paper airplanes, kites, hot air balloons, planes, travel globes, etc).  So it turned into a more diverse theme as I pulled together all the elements.  All the links to each part of the project are at the end of this post.  I also have an airplane themed party pinboard that you can follow if you'd like.

We sent out boarding pass invitations to the guests.

I printed pictures of the birthday girl throughout the year and hung them on chicken wire.  It didn't turn out quite like I expected, but I gave it my best shot and people liked the pictures a lot.  This idea was from pinterest.

 

I simulated hot air balloons on the gift table with baskets from the dollar store, some silk flowers that I keep on hand and mix and match to go with the party colors, and some helium filled balloons.  I liked that it wasn't a literal translation of the air travel theme, but still was fun and a great way to add some interest to the table.

 Below you can see the kites I made hanging in the pavilion.  They were a bit heavy and fell about halfway through the party, but if you had hooks, they would stay up just fine.  I'd love to see someone else take this idea to the next level.

We used the beehive from the bumblebee party to serve lemonade, aka Jet Fuel.

 I made some cake pops (really marshmallow pops) that are shaped like propellers.  I used the chalkboard signs from the bumblebee party to name these "Prop Pops".  I like the sound of that!  This was an idea from pinterest, too.

 Here are some of the cupcakes I made, with pinwheels shaped from starburst candies.  I got this idea from pinterest.  I made the cupcake stand from Goodwill findings.

 Here's another shot of the hot air balloon centerpiece I put together.

 The party favors were gliders from oriental trader, wrapped in sheets of tissue papers, and then wrapped with crocheted kites.  The idea for the crocheted kites is here.

 We also had people write advice down for the Birthday Girl or guess what she'll be when she grows up.  She got some good, funny advice.  You can also see inside the basket the Passports I made for each child who attended the party.  It had their name & picture inside, along with coloring pages and a place for stickers.  It kept the kids' attention during the party for a good while. 

 My mom with the Birthday Girl:

 A Propeller plane watermelon (pinterest idea):

 The cake was on the table with the party table skirt I made from Goodwill finds.  I added the paper airplanes on a string to hang over the cake.  I also borrowed a globe to complete the dessert table.

The cardboard box airplane was a huge hit too, although it didn't hold up for long when they squeezed four kids inside.

  Overall it was a very happy day!

 Last but not least, I made Amelia her own airplane hat with white flying scarf.

Want to see how to complete each part of the party?  Follow these links:
1 - Boarding Pass Invitations - including Silhouette studio file and Publisher files to make your own FREE
2 - Pretend Passport Activity Books - including Silhouette studio files to make your own FREE
3 - Glider Party Favors with crocheted kites
4 - Cupcake Stand from candlesticks and glass platters
5 - Welcoming Kites with Name
6 - Dessert Table Cloth - multi-tiered ruffles!
7 - Cardboard Box Airplane - you only need one box and a roll of tape

Like this post?  Then

Our daughter is having her baptism at the end of October, so I've been busy (as a bee) dreaming up a fun little party that doesn't cost too much.

One of the first things I thought of after deciding to do a "bee" theme is that making your own invitations isn't really that difficult. So I thought it would be great to have a beehive as an invitation.

First, it came out much better than I thought. I am by no means an artist. Another question I bet you are thinking is: how do I get envelopes for my cards? Well, I bought mine with envelopes.com. They are great and for 50 envelopes, it was only $9.99 plus shipping. So far so good! Those came in the mail and I was off to the races.

I decided to keep the costs down, I would make 2 invitations per page of paper, which basically means a 5 x 7 invitation. That would mean an A7 envelope. I found this out by using the google and asking "What envelope size do I use for a 5 x 7 invitation?". It told me the answer. Smart google.

Next, I went to my local Joann's and picked up some letter sized scrapbook paper. I wanted the thick kind and my choices were limited to 2 yellow papers. One had gold in it (yuck!) and the other had a canvas feel. I personally thought the canvas feel had a more "hivey" look, so I went with that one.

I needed 14 invitations so I bought 9 pieces of the paper just in case I made printing mistakes.

Next, when I got home, I had to measure the paper and cut it down to 8.5 x 11 inches because that is what I was using as a paper size in the word template. Here is the word template by the way. You can edit it however you would like. I just love the bees I got from clipart!

Then, I drew out the hive shape I wanted the invitation to have. This was a bit trickier because it had to be in the 5 x 7 size for the envelopes and also contain all the words. I cut down a plain sheet of paper to 5 x 7.

Next, I printed out the words on my fancy paper. Be sure to do a couple tests if you change the wording template to be sure it will fit in the hive. Once I was sure, I printed out 9 copies (enough for 18 invitations). Then I traced the hive onto each invitation. I folded the hive across in a straight line as a guide to be sure the hive wasn't crooked, and aligned the fold with the last line on the invitation about the RSVP. It worked like a charm.

Then I cut out the invitations and decorated. I loved adding the dotted lines from the bee stinger to show a little movement. I think this was the best part of making the invitations. What do you think? Does it look like a beehive?

Be sure to stay tuned, more party DIY to come!