Are you in the process of planning a birthday party for your little one? Today we are here to help with tips from southern mom,A�Ashleigh L Murriel, PhD. This Georgia mom threw her daughter, aA�Scarlett Gracea��s first birthday a true Georgia Peach Birthday Party. A�Get some inspiration onA�How to Plan a Southern Baby Party with Georgia Peach Style.
According to Dr. Murriel, “When I began brainstorming ideas for Scarlett Gracea��s first birthday celebration some of the ideas that immediately came to mind were the standard princess and ballerina themes for girls. Although these make for beautiful parties, I knew that at some point in the near future she would select one or both of these themes without my input. I wanted to select a theme that was as unique as she was and one that truly captured the essence of our little Scarlett Gracea��s personality and the sweet southern belle she is. The Sweet as a Georgia Peach theme was the perfect summation of that for a spring time 1st birthday celebration. It is youthful but still elegant, graceful and just down right sweet!”
Get some adorable inspiration today and share your baby party images with us as well!
How to Plan a Southern Baby Party with Georgia Peach Style
1)Brainstorming: When I began brainstorming ideas for Scarlett Gracea��s first birthday celebration some of the ideas that immediately came to mind were the standard princess and ballerina themes for girls. Although these make for beautiful parties, I knew that at some point in the near future she would select one or both of these themes without my input. I wanted to select a theme that was as unique as she was and one that truly captured the essence of our little Scarlett Gracea��s personality and the sweet southern belle she is. The Sweet as a Georgia Peach theme was the perfect summation of that for a spring time 1st birthday celebration. It is youthful but still elegant, graceful and just down right sweet!
2)The Planning Process: I had an amazing time planning for this celebration! What made it so exiting were the all of the details that captured the theme from the invitations (with peach stamps to match), to candy bar and cookie favors for adults, to the peach crate centerpieces, to the peach punch (with fresh peaches!), to peach tarts, to the custom wooden peach which was the perfect backdrop. Parents appreciated the peach themed book favors given to the children based on their age (James and the Giant Peach, Peach & Blue, and Each Peach, Pear, Plum) instead of candy or other sweets. The childrena��s table with child sized chivari chairs was also a highlight of the party–the children all enjoyed having this own appropriately sized table and seating!
3) Lessons Learned: There were many lessons learned for this first time mom! One thing that I learned in the planning process was that although first birthdaya��s are a celebration of the child, most of the attendees are likely adults or very young children. I was at a loss initially regarding activities for the children and infants who were invited, but came up with the idea of hiring a mother goose storyteller, which was one of the highlights of the afternoon. She provided 30 minutes of entertainment that was engaging and well suited for both older and younger children. The parents of younger children also enjoyed her and even sat with their infants during the presentation. I also learned how easy it was to do much of the personal touches on myself based on blogs like this one, my own brainstorming, and YouTube videos!
4)Less is more–incorporating the peach theme via the details mentioned previously was just enough without going overboard. I also found ways to incorporate other coordinating and accent colors that complimented the them. For example, instead of using party hats and blowers that were peach in color I used other colors that coordinated well and added life to the color scheme. You cannot have too many balloons for a children’s party. The balloons were really the finishing touch that really wowed the guests, adult and child alike. I used giant/oversized tulle covered balloons and gold metallic number one balloons at the dessert table, balloons on the peach crate centerpieces and a large balloon arch to frame the window in the room. My favorite use of balloons in the decor was a balloon runner on the children’s table draped the sides of the table. It was absolutely stunning.
Check out images from the party for more inspiration!
Vendors
Photographera��Roni B Photographywww.facebook.com/ronibphotos/
Venue- 103 West (East Ballroom) http://103west.com/
Cakes and Cookie favors- Adonai Desserts Atlanta www.adonaidessertsatlanta.com/
Book Favorsa��Amazon.com
Wooden Peach Backdrop-TheMonogramCompanySE www.etsy.com/shop/TheMonogramCompanySE
Invitations, Candy Bar Wrappers, Cake toppers, Peach Crate Signage, Welcome Sign, Number one guest boarda��La Belle Fete www.labellefete.com/
Childrena��s table, Adult and Child Chivari Chairsa��Sweet Seats www.sweetseatsatl.com/
Table Linensa�� CV Linens www.cvlinens.com/
Balloonsa��Balloons by J. Wesley www.facebook.com/daballoonman/
Event Planner, Crate Centerpieces and Dessert Table Designa��Ashleigh Murriel ashleigh.murriel@gmail.com
Mother Goose Storytellera��Magic Man Entertainmentwww.magicmanentertainment.com/
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Michiel is a Black Southern Belle living a lowcountry life. I love all things fashion, home decor and southern! When I am not running around doing fun stuff for Black Southern Belle, I live in antique stores and have a minor obsession with historic homes :)
