
Rustic “Apple of My Eye” First Birthday Party
Hi there! It’s HWTM Contributor Amber here from Amber Lay Events back to share a very special Apple of My Eye First Birthday! Special not only because it was for Amber Milner’s (our Northern California Event Manager and a great friend’s) daughter Brielle, but also because we partnered with HWTM on the party printables! Printables are the key element when it comes to carrying out a theme and tying a party together. You can find the Instant Download Version of this HWTM collection on Etsy.
PARTY HIGHLIGHTS to look out for:
- Book Page Apples + Stars made out of Painted Branches
- Apple Tealight Centerpieces & DIY “Vintage Blue Glass” Mason Jar Floral Arrangements
- Homemade & Upcycled Apple Butter Favors with “Thanks a bunch” tags
- Caramel fondue and an apple quinoa salad
- DIY apple tote bag party activity
PARTY DETAILS, as told by Amber…
Theme
Ever since little Brielle came into this world she has truly been the apple of her mom and dad’s eyes so an “Apple of My Eye” theme was a must. From there we decided stick with a color pallet of apple red and apple green but mixed it up with a soft coral pink and the ever so popular teal for a fresh and bright look. We wanted the party to have a vintage and rustic feel yet a modern vibe too so we added burlap, canvas, and wood wherever we could to create the rustic elements while the printables along with other party decor helped carry out the vintage look with lots of intricate details but kept the party modern at the same time with bold colors and modern patterns and shapes. When I was younger I always remembered cutting into apples to find the seeds shaped into a star so I knew that was going to be a key element as well.
Decor
- DIY Book Page Apples
- DIY Stars made out of painted branches
- DIY Vintage Shutter Picture Wall
- DIY Hanging Fabric Pom Poms
- DIY Vintag Blue Glass Mason Jar Floral Centerpieces
- DIY Apple Tealight Centerpieces
- DIY Faux Apple Garland for Brielle’s Highchair
- Chairback Ties made with Printable Silhouettes and colorful ribbons
- Vintage Frames with Printable Signs and Printable Silhouettes
- Printable Birthday Banner
- Fabric backdrops with fabric strips
- Printables Drink Stirrers and Food Picks
- DIY Star Cake Toppers
- DIY Hollowed Out Apple Cups with Cinnamon Stick Straws
- Vintage Wooden Box with plastic bag of ice to keep the water cold without ruining the Printable Water Bottle Labels
Food
- Quinoa Apple Salad
- Sliced Apples
- Apple Chips
- Mini Caramelized Apple Puffs
- Apple, Cheese & Cracker Plate
Dessert
- Carmel Apple Fondue
- Apple Pie with star cutouts
- Apple Crumb Cake
- Spiced Apple Cupcakes
- Vanilla Ribbon Iced Smash Cake
Drinks
- Apple Sangria
- Hot Apple Cider with Rum
- Hot Apple Cider
- Mini Apple Shaped Apple Juices
- Water Bottles
Favors
Amber Milner saved all of Brielle’s baby food jars to use as the containers for the homemade apple butter favors. After she removed all the labels and cleaned them she filled each jar with homemade apple butter and then covered the lids with a circle of fabric. To secure the fabric circles she wrapped each piece with twine and attached a custom Apple of My Eye thank you tag.
Activities
Since we had several youngsters at the party we decided to set up a coloring and canvas tote painting table. We had custom apple themed coloring sheets with crayons for the kids to make colorful pieces of art. We also had apples sliced in half along with paint, brushes, and canvas totes for them to stamp their own bags. The sliced apple stamps actually show the stars the seeds inside the apple create! These were great keepsakes for the kids to put their coloring pages in and their apple butter favors!

- Event Design & Planning, Food & Favors: Amber Lay Events
- Party Printables: Hostess with the Mostess
- Photography: Moments to Remember Photography Studio
- Floral Arrangements: Amber Lay Events
- Apple Crumb Cake: Family Friend Monique Milner
- Spiced Apple Cupcakes: Family Friend Nick Milner
9 Comments
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I am loving every detail of your work, Amber! So creative and inspiring!
This is so very adorable. I’ve never seen this theme for a party and it is lovely. And LOVE the printables!!!!
I want to use this theme for my twin girls birthday party in November, but do I say “Apple of my eye,” “apples of our eyes,” or “apples of my eye”
Hi Emily, I would go with “apples of our eye” :) Good luck party planning and if you message our Etsy team, we are able to accomodate customization on this collection to work for twins!
Thank you! I am trying to do some of the DIY decor you mentioned just by looking at the pictures…but having a hard time finding fabric that isn’t apple overload or look like it belongs in a kitchen. Where did you find the fabric for the runners that is also used in the rag tie streamers?
wondering if you have the recipe for the Quinoa Apple Salad?