Peter Rabbit Party for a First Birthday
A Peter Rabbit Party is perfect for spring!
I'm very excited to share a darling first birthday party with you today done by Amy in Salt Lake City, Utah. Amy is also an interior designer that I have known for years. She does everything with the highest attention to detail, so when I heard about her party idea I made her promise to let me feature it. Regardless of any stumbling blocks {which she'll tell you in her own words} the party was a smashing success. Without further ado, I'll hand the reins to Amy and let her take you on a tour of the party.
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Peter Rabbit Party Theme
Picking a theme for my daughter's first birthday was easy. Being a British mum in the USA, I knew there was one thing that would be fairly unique and also very English. I had the perfect location to tie it all together, so we decided on Peter Rabbit in Mr. McGregor’s Garden.
I hadn't quite banked on Peter Rabbit being so hard to find in the USA, so a lot of the props and decor ended up being DIY but it was a lot of fun really getting involved in the process and making things for the party.
Peter Rabbit Party Invitations
The first DIY was the party invitation. I could have done something elaborate but sticking with a “classic” look, I downloaded a font similar to the one used on the Beatrix Potter books and made an invite with was reminiscent of one of the famous book covers. The invites were sent in simple recycled paper envelopes with Peter Rabbit confetti inside. Printing and assembling them cost me less than $1 per invite. I was really pleased with how they turned out and was amazed at how much people loved them.
Wonderful “Garden Park” Venue
We were lucky enough to use an old carriage house at our local church building, which was once a family home. The “cottagey” outbuilding stands in a beautiful, lush garden and made for the perfect “Mr. McGregor’s house”.
I wanted to carry the theme outside, so I made Beatrix Potter cut outs attached to BBQ skewers and placed them leading up the path to the cottage door. The little figures were adorable and helped guide people in. We also placed gardening tools, veggies and seed packets at the entrance to the house.
The color palette was a beautiful baby blue, the blue coming from Peter Rabbits’ famous coat. To make the decor more inviting and warm, I added pink, white and gold. It helped to brighten the space and was an easy color palette for buying supplies.
Peter Rabbit Party Decorations
Anything and Everything! I got pink, blue and white crepe paper streamers. We used balloons in our color palette and used matching colored raffia to tie them. I made paper banners from a kit that you can buy at Michael's. I added my own paper floral accents to make them a little more special. We had a long tassel garland too in the same color palette. Most of the decor to “fill” the space was inexpensive paper decorations; my favorite things were actually the twisted $1 crepe paper streamers. They are so effective. We served our food in “cabbage” shaped ceramics set on slices of logs, we used mini clay pots, a toy “rabbit” in a rustic wire cage, fresh and artificial flowers and plants…anything that looked “garden like” and it was a lot of fun. I used an assortment of Beatrix Potter postcards to fill large blank spaces of the wall and Peter Rabbit die cut confetti on the tables, neither the postcards or confetti was really needed but it helped bring in more of the “Peter Rabbit” theme and they were both things that I already had hanging around so it was at no extra expense.
We played a British game called “pass the parcel”. I didn't realize that the children had no idea how to play it and that it isn't common here in the USA, so after so quick explanation the game began and the children loved ripping open the package to claim a prize. They got so excited about the game and I loved watching them all eager to win a prize.
Peter Rabbit Party Menu Ideas
Since many family and friends were in attendance the menu needed to cater to both children and adults. I served several different types of salad:
- Garbanzo and mixed bean cous cous salad
- Roasted golden and purple beet arugula salad with honey goats cheese, raspberries and balsamic reduction
- Caprese Salad with Spinach and prosciutto
- Fruit platter with “flower” shaped fruits
- A “no rabbits” mixed veggie assortment platter
- Hummus and chips, multi colored carrot sticks and ranch
Peter Rabbit Themed Sweets
Our menu started out very healthy, but in the end I added more treats! I wanted children in attendance to say “wow” for the two short hours that they were there. I also was pretty excited to see them try the vegetable looking chocolates that I had prepared. Admittedly some were wondering if I was trying to trick them when I offered them chocolate peas… I think they were pleasantly surprised!
Chocolate “vegetables” in Oreo “dirt”. Orange chocolate dipped strawberries to look like carrots. Green chocolate molded to look like peas in a pod, and little cabbages. The cabbages were made just like rice crispy treats but with corn flakes instead.
Carrot Cake cupcakes, Chocolate Cupcakes and Chocolate “dirt” pudding that was actually made with avocado, the kids didn't seem to notice and it was a huge hit.
Peter Rabbit Drinks
We had a few sparkling fruit drinks like pink lemonade and blackberry spritzer. A glass dispenser of water with cucumber and blood orange slices that tasted wonderful! All of the children went back for more water.
Real Parties – What went wrong?
Everything that could have gone wrong went wrong. Luckily, my guests did not notice that I was running really behind schedule but I did spend the party makeup free with wild hair as I just hadn't had time to get ready and barely managed to get the food out as guests were arriving. Never underestimate just how much TIME things take to prepare. I would have three or four friends help me with different things if I had to do the party again. Because I had also been so busy, I didn't take any photos, I would HIRE SOMEONE or delegate it to one person to do this next time.
Most guests didn't RSVP until just before the party, so the room as we had decorated it was suddenly going to be overcrowded and we had to open the room up, leaving a lot of rather unsightly clutter on display. I didn't have to time move things or put up extra decor. Just roll with it if this happen to you, don't get as stressed as I did. I am almost certain that the guests didn't even notice!
My laptop also stopped working so music, which was pretty crucial for the children's party game, came by way of my iPhone, which was harder to hear. Again, don't stress about things like that, the children didn't care. Bottom line is that everyone had fun. Especially this girl…
Peter Rabbit Party in Mr. McGregor's Garden Party Source List
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Dollar Tree
The Dollar Store is a treasure trove of great party finds. I got all of my mini clay pots, seeds, paper streamers and party game “gifts” from the dollar store. The children were far more impressed with the $1 toys that they “won” than the Peter Rabbit plush toy that had originally been intended to be the “big prize”. I am glad that we stuck to the dollar gifts.
- Mini Terra Cotta pots
- Flower seeds
- Paper streamers
- Party game gifts: puzzles, glow sticks, necklaces, and bracelets
I also found balloons, table covers, party plates and cutlery all in the right colors at the dollar store. It saved me so much money as opposed to buying everything at a big box party supply store.
Etsy
Etsy has to be credited for one of the favorite items that I bought for the party. A 3D printed Peter Rabbit cookie cutter. I LOVE how these cookies looked and its something that I will use again and again. The wonderful 3D printed cookie cutter came from the Etsy shop “LUCERLU”. Sadly the owner is currently taking a break from selling but there are many other amazing 3D printed cutters on the Etsy website.
The Peter Rabbit confetti came from a wonderful Etsy shop, Toad Hollow, and arrived really quickly for my invites.
I already had the Beatrix Potter pillows. I ordered them from an Etsy shop, Maison Vogue.
I will always look to Etsy for unique things, especially as I love buying from small creatives over big corporations.
Michael's
Michaels provided lots of paper goods for the party including:
- Paper banner kit
- A selection of colored balloons
- The helium tank
- Sprinkles
Amazon
Amazon provided the Peter Rabbit Cupcake decor and napkins from British brand Meri Meri, which sells tons of very pretty party decor in the USA but the Peter Rabbit line is more limited in the USA.
- Peter Rabbit Plush Toy
- Peter Rabbit cupcake toppers
- Peter Rabbit large napkins
- Peter Rabit small napkins
- Pea Pod candy mold
- Grass baking cups
- Carrot cookie cutters
- Gold, Pink, and White Tassel banners
- Alt – Similar Raffia carrot garland
- Alt- Carrot shaped cellophane treat bags {Amy used regular clear bags with orange gummy bears and dressed them up with cute green tulle. If you're in a time crunch these are a great alternative!}
Other Sources
- “Beatrix Potter” style font St. Nicholas from Dafont.
- Cabbage shaped Portuguese ceramics were available at Homegoods stores.
- Vintage chairs, metal flower containers, wooden boxes and artificial flowers were from local interior design store “Details“.
Feature Summary
Amy did a great job pulling this theme together especially since this was her VERY FIRST children's party! I know how hard it is to start out. It seems like you've got it all handled and then the morning of the party feels like a disaster. Luckily we are usually the only ones who know {or care} what doesn't get done the “right” way. I was lucky enough to attend this event and right after the party she swore she'd never do another children's party again…only to email me a week later saying she was already thinking about ways to improve the next one! She's hooked and I totally get it. There's something so magical about a children's party. Seeing the light in their eyes. Watching the magic of the moment. Something usually reserved for Christmas morning that we can glimpse briefly at birthday time. You can read more tips about Planning your first children's party here for an awesome free printable checklist to make your event SO much easier.
I also have to laugh because Amy, as a Mom, feels the way I do about sugary treats {I say NO to dessert buffets} and apologized because even she got sucked in to needing a dessert buffet. {It's ok, I forgave her! wink} Although I still have to hand it to her. Her carrot cupcakes were amazing with lots of carrot, raisins, and real cream cheese frosting. The chocolate pudding made with avocados was a new recipe for me, one that I've since tried at home and my kiddos didn't notice either! She had a few sweets but the overall menu was an amazing array of salads. She may have felt like she gave in, but she balanced the dessert table with lots of really great food. Real food. And I tip my party hat to that!
Amy, thank you so much for sharing your daughter's special day with us.
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I love all your ideas, where did you get the bunny cut outs?
It’s probably too late to be of use – but my friend just searched for Peter Rabbit images and printed them on cardstock at home. You may be able to find some die-cut images online but that’s pretty easy to do.