I am thrilled to participate in the DailyBuzz Moms 9×9 “Party On” Challenge!
This month’s “Party On” theme came just in time for our daughter’s fifth birthday party! We have some big-time expenses around the corner (family weddings, extended travel, showers to throw…) and so we wanted to see if we could throw a nice and memorable party on a budget.
Origami was the way to go for us!
We ended up spending just under $50!
Here’s how we did it!
1) WE HOSTED THE PARTY AT HOME.
This saved a lot of cash. Here, you can see our play room ready to host 8 kids. Yes, we had to clean up our play room afterward. (But, we do that for play dates all the time.)
2) WE MADE OUR OWN DECOR.
We used pieces from around our home (like that shadowbox from the living room, those vases from the kitchen and birdcages from our daughter’s bedroom)….
3) WE KEPT THE FOOD SIMPLE.
The party was at 3 PM so folks didn’t expect a big food spread. We laid out chips, dip and cupcakes for the adults with a couple of bottles of sparkling soda. The kids “dined” on croissants filled with organic blueberry jam and peanut butter.
We made origami pouches to hold the organic apples and yogurt pretzels (bought in bulk). We made our own cupcakes and decorated with toothpicks through origami cranes. And, our daughter helped to make the origami heart decor for the apple juice boxes!
***Note: Kids with peanut allergies were given peanut-free options :) ****
4) THE KIDS’ ACTIVITY WAS….ORIGAMI!!!
We had a lot of origami paper left over after the home and food decor were made. One pack of origami paper costs $10 for 150 sheets. It went a long, long way and the kids enjoyed learning how to make simple folds of hearts and rockets.
5) WE MADE OUR OWN ORIGAMI PARTY FAVORS.
The kids took home pencils displayed in vases as decor topped with origami flowers or rockets.
There were also some simple pinwheels to throw and little flower hair clips for the girls to choose from. Each child took home 8 sheets of origami paper secured with a paper clip.
The cost of the party favor materials? $2.99 for 20 hair clips from Hobby Lobby and $1.50 for 12 natural pencils from Target plus a few sheets of origami paper from the $10 pack. I bought a pack of multi-colored buttons at Ross for $2.99 (normally $8 value).
An origami party is a versatile, inexpensive, beautiful, and cultural way to throw a party for children.
- I definitely recommend this kind of party for children 5 years and older.
- Yes. There IS a time-cost to make the decor that balances out the money-savings.
- BUT…. the beauty of origami is that it is something that can be done anywhere and anytime.
- You could make just a couple of items a day months or weeks in advance. I started two weeks out and folded during episodes of CSI, The Apprentice and The Voice. :)
- I actually always have sheets of origami paper in my bursting planner to pull out with the kids wherever we might be.
- The best part of it all? I have a lot of leftover materials to do other projects with! (Like these Origami Paper & Mod Podge-coated Dollar Store Cookie Tray Magnetic Boards I’m making for my friends! Total cost…about $1.50 per board. :)
To See More Photos Of Our Origami 5th Birthday Party, Here’s A Slideshow!
(Ipads and Iphones may have difficulty viewing the slideshows, sadly…)
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TO LEARN HOW TO MAKE THE SAME ORIGAMI FLOWERS FROM OUR PARTY, I’VE CREATED A TUTORIAL FOR YOU!
(Again, Ipads and Iphones may have trouble viewing slideshows…)
WOW! This is amazing! I had no idea you could do so much with origami! Looks time consuming, but totally worth it! What a party
Crystal- It would be time-consuming if you waited until the last minute! But, I spent two weeks and folded things during my nighttime episode-watching with the hubby! Normally, I’m surfing the net or something at the same time, so it seems like a lot less work when you do it that way!
Thanks for the comment!
Gosh, I thought, “How in the world will she ever top the superhero party?!” Well, you just outdid yourself. Well done!! I’m in love with it all. If i had to pick a favorite aspect, it would be the origami barrettes. Will be pinning!!
Rebekah- haha! That super hero party was so much fun! This one was, too- It’s so great that we get to be kids, again, through our own!!! One of those barrettes would look so pretty in your daughter’s “gorgeous hair”!!! Helping your SEO some more! haha!
I want to play! I’m a fan of origami and I’ve never seen the flowers or rockets before — love them! The flowers are gorgeous as hair clips and I’m impressed that you pulled this all off for just $50. We spend way too much on kids’ parties these days and it’s a good reminder that we can still have fun with less (which in this case is really more).
Goodness, Rachelle- An endorsement from Tinker Lab? Big Time!!!! Thank you so much!!!!
You are just sooooo creative! What a cool party – I want and adult origami party, now!! Love love love the idea. Keep it up, Tricia.
QF- Thanks so much! Origami IS so much fun!!!! We should do one. haha! But, we should do that blogging conference, first.
Wow, that is an impressive party. It looks absolutely gorgeous, everything is exquisite!!
Ali- Thank you so much! The colors and patterns of origami paper are so much fun- that I think you could just throw a bunch on the ground and it would look pretty!
Thank you for the comment 
Love this! It’s simple and fun and very girly!! I’m filing this away for future reference!
terri, if you do try it, please let me know!
. thanks for visiting!
Origami is seriously like my favorite craft, ever. I LOVE this!
Nourhan, you should do an origami-inspired baked good! ha!
What a fantastic party! Very impressed that you did it for under $50, too!
Gorgeous photos in this post
thank you, maryanne!!! we just had to make use of what was in the house! that helped a lot! not needing flatware, plates or cups helped, too!
Those origami hair clips and apple cups were fantastic! If I knew how to make origami submarines (which must surely exist) this might be an option.
nami, let me see if i can figure those out for you!!!
Positively adorable! And so creative too!
thank you, alex! i hope your day is going better!!!
SO cute, SO fun, love how you wove the origami into every aspect of the party…just so cute all around! and I can’t imagine making all that origami, you are amazing! thank you for such a fabulous post!
Thank you so much, Jane!!! Origami is such a part of my upbringing that it hardly seems amazing…but it is a way to teach the kids about their own Asian heritage which is why it is found throughout our home! Thank you so much for the chance to showcase our party on DailyBuzz Moms! We just love this network!
It is really beautiful. I made my first crane the other day and it took me 10 minutes. SO I am in owe with all the origami you created for this party!
Stasha- the more you practice the crane, the faster you’ll be able to do it!!!! That’s one of the harder folds…many of these are very, very simple and quick!
This looks like so much fun! I’ve been wanting to try this and you’ve inspired me to do it. The great thing is, parties don’t have to be outrageous and expensive. My kids love to have friends over and do things at home because these days those are the parties that stand out. Great post.
Muddled Mom- If you do it, I would love to see it!!! Origami is a real hobby around here for us- My recommendation so that your fingers don’t blister is to start as early as you can and to just do a little every day!
Thank you so much for reading the post!
How many ways can you say AWESOME!! I was on the 9×9 with you and when I saw this post on Monday/Tuesday…I thought, there is no way I can compete with that..hahaha!! You did an amazing job my friend.
Mia- funny!!! I really loved your post and actually thought you were really good competition! Your pinata was so pretty and photographed so well! I actually think writing the post was a lot harder than throwing the party. haha! But, it was a lot of fun to do- all of it. Thanks for your comment!
This looks really great! The origami is so beautiful!
Thank you so much, Johanna!!!! We can do some at a play date with your kids!!!
Gorgeous! And very organized! I need to have you come organize our playroom.
Play rooms are kind of a ridiculous passion of mine- We do keep things organized where the kids can see everything because it seems like they explore more when we do that…The play room used to be much more HUGE- but we’ve pared down a lot as the kids got older and the visible shelving in the photos shows our Montessori Corner… Thank you for the visit!
love, love, love the flowers in their hair! how adorable!!
Laura- I loved your derby theme! I’ve had some local inquiries about the hair bows- I’ve been racking my brain trying to figure out how to make them more durable….maybe nail polish? Elmer’s spray glue is way too tacky! Thanks for the comment!
Tricia this is AWESOME!!!! Seriously, this party is SO neat and I love that you did it all yourself! LOVE it.
Adrienne- Thank you so much! It was a little bit of work- but our kids are worth the work, right?
Thanks for the comment!
The origami is so beautiful! http://bit.ly/Kodcs5
Thanks, Guy!
Wow, Tricia, your pics are fantastic! You have really stepped up the game with your blog. If I had small children at home, we would be getting some great ideas from your blog!
What fun! Carry on – you’re doing a great thing for parents and children out there.
Thanks, Mike! I’m learning, little by little- how to do this blogging thing!
I can’t believe you even take the time to look at my mom-blog when your kids are grown- but I so appreciate it, Mike! 
Glad your move is over!!!
Totally incredible party! I love that a year ago you were claiming to be some non-crafty type, but that was just being crafty on your part
Beautiful decorations and just a lovely DIY theme. I love it! (Btw, you have beautiful hair!)
Thank you! Y’know, Chrissy- If you and I ever got together to throw some parties or play dates, we’d be dangerous. hahaha!
Also, Chrissy- a year ago, I really thought I was un-creative and un-crafty. I actually had it in my mind that I could only really write research, academic or technical papers. The blog opened up a new world of creative writing. The same for crafts and arts. I thought I wasn’t any good at it- and now, I find it a very relaxing and rewarding way to spend my “me” time and time with my kids. Blogging is so great for so many reasons like this- and also because I “met” so many great folks through it like you!
Love this theme for a birthday party! I think my daughter would love something like this!
Danielle- Thank you! It was a lot of work to prepare for it- but we did save a lot of money.
Linda fiesta muy creativa como todo lo que tiene que ver con el origami.
mil gracias, magaly!!!
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