If you’re planning birthday decorations on a budget, it can be tough to find things without breaking your bank. Let’s face it; buying decorations from your local party store can quickly add up to be very expensive. So, finding alternatives can mean the difference between a bland party and one that your guests will never forget. Fortunately, there are tons of great birthday decorations that you can make yourself on inexpensively that don’t require special skills or materials to pull off.
You can save a lot of money by making some of the birthday decorations yourself by getting creative with common household items. Below, you will find a collection of some of my favorite birthday decorations on a budget that won’t look like you tried to go cheap.
Fork Placeholders
When you’re decorating for a birthday party, it really is the little things that make the biggest difference. One simple idea is to cut out little shapes from card stock or construction paper such as butterflies or hearts. You can then write each guest’s name on the shape an slip it into the tines of a fork to create lovely placeholders for only a few pennies.
Birthday Sparklers
Sparklers are one of the cheapest an easiest options available, and they are also quite versatile. Most people are familiar with the regular “stick” type of sparklers, but there are other versions that are better suited for birthdays. For instance, you can use birthday sparkler candles on your cake instead of regular ones. Regular birthday candles are a classic tradition, but but sparkler candles are much more impressive. Best of all, it’s an affordable way to add fun birthday decorations on a budget.
Animal Toy Candle Holders
You can really jazz up the look of a birthday cake by making a few candle holders out of animal toys. You can usually pick up a bag of plastic animal toys at the dollar store. Options include squirrels, dogs, or other various shapes and they make a great foundation for your birthday candles. Or, perhaps you want to have a teenage mutant ninja turtles themed party. Simply spray paint the toys and insert a cheap plastic candle holder into their back. then, you’re ready to dress up the birthday candles with everyone’s favorite animals.
Water Balloons for Ice
If you are having your birthday party in the summer, you want to serve up some ice cold bottled water. Usually, people would just bring out a bucket and fill it with ice. However, if you want a more colorful touch, you can fill the bucket with various colored water balloons that you’ve frozen in advance. The frozen balloons will look very nice at the party. Plus, they will keep your water bottles ice cold for many, many hours; even on the hottest days.
Tissue Paper Garland
Creating your own garland out of tissue paper is a fun way to add some variety and color to your birthday party. First, grab a few stacks of tissue paper. Then, cut out some shapes like flowers or stars. Lastly, use scotch tape to fasten them to a long piece of fishing line. The results will be best if you use multiple colors of tissue paper and stagger them in a pattern, and you may want to recruit some helpers to get the job done quicker.
Wooden Flowers
Flowers are simple and elegant option for any situation. However, they are quite expensive if you head to your local florist to buy them. Instead, consider choosing an alternative the real thing such as paper or wood versions. My personal favorite are wooden roses because they look authentic without costing a small fortune. Furthermore, a little spritz of flower scented spray will make them almost identical to the sense. However, they last almost forever and make great favors for your guests. Overall, there are few birthday decorations on a budget that can even come close to their overall value.
Decorative Cups
Many people who craft are already familiar with washi tape. But for those who aren’t, it is essentially scotch tape with decorations or patterns already printed on the roll. This makes it an ideal choice for all craft projects, but especially birthday party decorations. Simply buy some inexpensive clear plastic cups and wrap a section of washi tape around each one. Now, you instantly have a very decorative plastic cup for serving punch that only cost you a few pennies to decorate!
Whether you choose something simple like water balloons or something more exotic like birthday sparklers, you don’t have to spend a lot of money. It’s almost like an art form to create birthday decorations on a budget, but it will be worth it in the end. Just stay focused and come up with creative solutions. In the end, you’ll be happy to have the extra money in your pockets!
