Michelle from I Do Invitations did such a great job with this darling VINTAGE CARNIVAL birthday-on-a-budget theme! Smart decorative elements like stylish paper banners, cute polka dot balloons, and colorful paper daisies make a big impact on the look without breaking the bank…

Some of you moms of little ones might recognize the grocery store “bear full of animal crackers” that has a front row seat at this party…. doesn’t he double nicely as part decor with the simple addition of a ribbon-tied carnival tag?! (You could always paint the lid to match your party’s colors for a different palette too!) In addition to being cute for a kids birthday party, this theme would also work well as a playful baby shower!

PARTY DETAILS, as told by Michelle…

“This was a styled shoot for my new Vintage Carnival Collection. All of the DIY Printable Files (invite, banner, cupcake toppers, water bottle labels, favor tags, bear label, food signs, etc.) are sold in my Etsy shop. The photographer was Ellie Piper of Photos by Vitella.

I immediately fell in love with this vintage-like color scheme and wanted to create something that could work for a boy or girl party (or both!) for almost any age. I also wanted to create something a little different and style a party that most everyone can easily do within a budget – something that was affordable and also something most everyone can re-create.

I found much of the decor in the Target dollar aisle — popcorn buckets and cotton candy and also found the bear full of animal crackers in the grocery aisle. I just added my own label and a pretty bow and it turned out to be a great focal point to the spread :) The plates, napkins, straws, cups, balloons, and cupcake liners came from Shop Sweet Lulu!
I made the cupcakes myself and purchased the cute decorated sugar cookies and strawberries from my local Jewel and simply added a craft stick and some ribbon to the cotton candy!

Not every party has to be all about breaking the bank and I wanted to show that with this new collection. I feel like the question I get asked the most is ‘How much did that party cost you?’ and I wanted to style a party that still looked great on a budget. I love the way the setup looks using a table I have in my office/loft from IKEA. I just took the drawers out and styled it from there — I love how each little box has it’s own little ‘showcase’.”