Greens, golds and jungle leaves and animal prints have been are everywhere in fashion as well as home deco which means creating a themed room or party is easy when so much is so easily available. The theme ‘go wild’ is something I’ve used a few times using the same few items but creating different set ups. I wanted to share how easy it is to create bespoke sets ups using some house hold items and a few simple props.

With my son turning one and being a huge animal fan and a little ‘wild’ him self, a themed party incorporating these was easy. Jungle or wild parties are an easy party to hold for any age and theres plenty of ideas out there to get inspired, but actually creating them on a budget and without having a spare room full of props may seem harder, but I believe its not!

Invitations are not essential these days with so many forms of communication, a digital option is sometimes quicker and more cost effective especially if invite numbers are smaller, but as a graphic designer I’ll use any excuse to get designing, especially when its party related but the design it self is just as effective whether printed or emailed, black silhouette animals and gold accents, I used some left over gold heat dust I had from a previous job to add a touch of sparkle too, but gold stickers or use a gold pen to add the same extra focal points!

Customise home items

You may find you have plenty of things around the house which can be adapted or dressed up to make your ‘wild’ feel wild. Use what you have already, soft toys or figures, binoculars, drums, plants (real or fake) all make great props with no cost.

There are also items which you may not immediately think of for your props but can be great ‘neutral’ pros, a wooden toy create is really useful, it can be used to hold party favours or as table height stand for your party table set up, so think materials, anything wooden could be used as an extra prop. Update photos frames you already have to feature black and white photos of the birthday boy or girl or even make mini signs or labels in your party theme, it can be a good way to avoid buying additional frames (thats you’ll not use afterwards) but will all add to your table arrangements and can easily be changed back once the party is over.

A letter light box can easily be changed to display a party message of your choice and be reused again and again for any theme, so could be a good low cost investment. Don’t forget food can also help theme a party a bunch of bananas or apples get the core colours into your decoration and can be eaten afterwards. Following a colour palette of greens, yellows, browns and golds will all help make it feel ‘jungly’, wild like in style.

INVESTMENT Props

Although you don’t want to buy lots of items that you’ll have no use after the party, I’m a believe a few key items can be used for multiple celebrations and decorations. Over the years I’ve collected plates and cake stands which I’ve used again and again and as there plain in colour they can be used for a wider selection of events so i recommend having a couple of key crockery pieces that are great for displays.

Soft fabrics, cushion covers are also easily changed to add the colour into you room theme and will cost very little, if you don’t have some in the right colours, use them indoor an out to add seating or add to a play teepee or tent for some ‘wild’ fun.

For this wild party I did buy a 2m leaved garland, x2 large leaf sprays (to put in pots/vases I had already), this small amount of re-usable greenery I have used for a wendy house jungle den and a tropical cocktail party so don’t see these investments as a one time use item they can be very universal for lots of themes.

get creative

You don’t have to be the most crafty person or have lots of special tools to create something. I recycled a cardboard wrapping paper roll and old postal box to create a jungle warning sign, just scissors, a black pen and some sticky tape needed, effective and can be a fun recycling project!

Fancy dress is another fun part of a ‘go wild’ party and we already have a huge collection of head pieces but you can easily pick up some ears or masks to get in character and i used make up I had to facepaint spots and strips, clothing we had (or swimsuits) were combined with parts form other fancy dress outfits to complete the looks. Other family members when all out with handmade papier-mâché masks which could be a fun idea for older children to create there own costumes.

Bespoke vests are easy to make too with some glitter iron on and a white vest but there really effective and I used the vest again for a cake smash, they also make a cute keepsake, have a go you’ll be customising everything after you see how simple it is! You don’t need special machine you can cut iron on material with scissors and make templates to trace as a guide.

Cake & treats

Of course any party needs cake, you can create a simple on trend cake with a plain buttercream cake, some plastic animals (you can customise so they wear party hats, these can be made by hand with a craft knife and glue gun (on of my must have craft tools). You don’t need to be fancy to create something they’ll love and on a plus if you want to add some themed toys or plastic figures you could make them a gift so they get to keep them afterwards.

Party bags (or boxes in this case) have become a staple at almost all kids parties with sweetie cones and cake being a must. With the animal theme of course the cupcakes would be themed but you don’t have too fondant decorate, children just love cake regards-less of the decoration, sprinkles would be just as big hit! I have found that having a smaller actual birthday cake for just us to eat and candle blowing and individual cupcakes makes it much easier to portion out cake for everyone to take home. Sweet cones also do not need to be branded they can just follow the same colour pallet you have picked in sweetie colour or ribbon tie.

I prefer simple kraft boxes or bags over the old style plastic ones and adding some name tags and stickers to plain boxes or bags can instantly create a bespoke feel, you do not have to print things you can hand write them or get the birthday boy or girl to help, we all love a personalised handwritten tag.

Have fun creating and I’d love to hear about your ‘go wild’ parties and if these ideas were helpful! #staywild