We’re headed to the beach today! This Colorful “Sharks & Surfers” Twin Birthday sent in by Courtney Portner is absolutely *swimming* in creative party ideas. From the clever sandcastle centerpiece and personalized beach towel favors to the tropical and chomp-worthy treats with a modern twist, I can’t wait to dive in to all these fun details with you below!

P.S. The Arctic Shark Glacier Punch Recipe I made a few years back would be a perfect drink idea for this party too. ;)

PARTY HIGHLIGHTS to look out for:

• Ombre “wave” cake and adorable shark cake pops from Simply Desserts Online
• Sandcastle centerpiece, personalized towel party favors & punched paper party hats
• Fondant shark, wave & surfboard cupcake toppers + playful boy and girl surfer silhouette wrappers
• Hibiscus flower, beach scene (with tiny flip flops!) and surfboard-shaped cookies
• Mason jars with bright stripe straws, kid surfer decals, personalized wood surfboards & blue ice sharks!

PARTY DETAILS, as told by Courtney…

Designing a party that combined my daughter’s obsession with sharks and my son’s passion for surfing seemed like a fun theme for my twin’s sixth birthday party.

Using a variety of vibrant colors, Anders Ruff created party printables featuring the silhouettes of sharks and surfers. These images were highlighted throughout the party on a variety of things including the cupcake toppers, party hats and even the party favor aquarium bowls.

Kids feasted on a variety of shark themed desserts including cake pops formed as sharks, surfboard shaped cookies accented with sharks and even a large fondant shark relaxing by the waves on the ocean-themed cake. Silhouettes of surfers adorned the top of the cake along with a variety of cookies. Fondant surfboards and waves perched on cupcakes as cookies iced like ocean waves peeked through. One sweet addition was cookies decorated as a beach scene with boy and girl flip flops cast among the sand.

Sand castles helped prop up the plethora of desserts and also served as the centerpiece of the party table. Friends located their seat at the party table by finding their personalized wood surfboard dangling from their drink jar. But they had to be weary of those suspicious looking blue ice sharks awaiting their arrival in the cups! If those sharks made too much of a splash, guests could use their personalized beach towels to quickly wipe those drops of water away.

While waiting for their buddies to arrive, each child decorated a personalized surfboard with stickers and crayons. The main feature entertainment was a vendor who brought a traveling “sea creature” touch tank which including crabs, fish and even a small shark for the kids to touch.

The party culminated with the kids breaking open not one – but two – piñatas – shark shaped of course!