Has it already been another year?! I can’t believe a year ago we were scrambling to put cardboard boxes together for my daughter’s “No Toy Gets Left Behind” Toy Story-themed party commemorating her fifth birthday! This year was especially fun, as Anabelle was more excited than she has been in years past and was convinced she was taller when she awoke on her actual birthday!
Grab your tiki torches and grass skirts for a Vintage Hawaiian Luau! Be inspired to throw a tropical party with fun ideas for decor, activities and favors!
When it came to deciding upon this year’s theme, we were inspired by the amazing and unforgettable family trip we took to Hawaii last month that was gifted to us by my incredibly generous in-laws! My little hula girl had so much fun and fell in love with the islands and has already decided to move there after she graduates from college! For the luau, I focused on a vintage Hawaiian feel reminiscent of the classic postcards, which inspired my design for the invitations, with digital images from Clip Art Corner, as well as the paper products throughout the luau.
Guests were welcomed to the luau with a bamboo sign and a cart similar to the ones found at the International Market Place in Waikiki! We dressed up a lemonade stand I had purchased from Joann Fabric and Crafts a couple years back with some hula skirts, offering some lei necklaces I made, as well as shell necklaces and beaded bracelets for all the “Junior Boys” and “Honey Girls”.
We re-purposed some wooden signs from The Dollar Tree by spray-painting them and decorating them with some of the luau activities and tropical flower stickers.
Because we anticipated a bit of a heat wave here in Vegas over the weekend, we set up a “Sunscreen Station” and made fans to keep guests cool and protected!
When searching for party inspiration on-line, I came upon these adorable grass hut umbrellas on Parents.com that we just had to replicate and pair with some buckets of sand and straw mats for guests of all ages to relax and enjoy!
The decor on the tables included natural tablecloths and runners, tropical fruits and framed vintage Hawaiian postcards. The plates and napkins included rich, vibrant colors and were topped with wooden forks with “ALOHA” stamped on the handles. Guests drank Hawaiian fruit punch, tropical juice and cold water out of both coconut and palm tree cups. The tables sat underneath a big gazebo, embellished with colorful tissue poms and brown paper lanterns, resembling coconuts.
The luau feast was presented on a table lined with a burlap tablecloth and a grass skirt and adorned with tropical and beach-inspired decor. Vintage luggage trunks presented a variety of Hawaiian chips, while red pig-shaped plates carried ham sandwiches to symbolize the traditional luau roasted pigs! The menu wouldn’t be complete without some teriyaki chicken, tropical fruit salad and ham and pineapple kebabs on palm tree picks. The food labels were made to look like little bamboo signs, displayed inside tiny metal buckets filled with crushed graham crackers and decorated with wooden surfboards {bookmarks!}.
When planning this party, the one thing Anabelle specifically requested was a volcano cake with sparkler candles! When I saw a volcano cake on Disney’s Spoonful, along with a recipe to make candied lava, I thought it would be perfect! I utilized the Wilton Classic Wonder Mold to bake a red velvet cake and added chocolate frosting and the erupting lava. But I just couldn’t have a party without cupcakes, which I organized on three levels: volcano, sand and sea. Just below the volcano sat the chocolate cupcakes with fondant plumeria flowers, torches, palm leaves and coconuts. The next layer included vanilla cupcakes topped with crushed graham cracker sand and embellishments, such as vintage surfboards, pineapples, wood “SURF” signs, ukuleles and flip flops {slippers} with drink umbrellas. The final level represented the ocean with light blue water frosting, sea turtles, tropical fish and coral, shells and sea life.
Also on the dessert table were gummy candy fruit kebabs displayed inside coconuts, Hawaiian pineapple candies and caramel popcorn in the most adorable tiki popcorn boxes designed by the amazing Piggy Bank Parties! The cute boxes brought added dimension to the table and were easy for small guests to carry! If you are not familiar with them, you have to check out all the amazing work they do, especially the creative and original favor boxes! The sides of the table were anchored by some tiki torches holding a banner with Anabelle’s name and embellished with a grass skirt.
If you are familiar with the parties I throw for my daughter, you know how much I love to have added entertainment for the children. This year, we were fortunate to have Mayra from Las Vegas Hula come and teach the kids about hula dancing and traditional instruments! Because a lot of the children happen to be boys, we included a Maori Warrior lesson, which also included tribal chin tattoos and headbands and was the perfect addition to keep their interest!
Other beach activities to keep the kids busy and having fun included bubble guns {you can never go wrong with bubbles!}, hula hoops, paddle balls and blow-up dolphins. And no luau is complete without a limbo contest!
It was so, so nice to see guests, young and old, relaxing, eating and playing under the umbrellas and the gazebo and enjoying a day at the “beach”! And since I come from a fashion background, it was especially fun that everyone came dressed up in their luau garb!
We even welcomed a special visitor to the luau who came to wish Anabelle a happy 6th birthday!
We just had to have some Hawaiian Host chocolates with macadamia nuts! And to combat the high temperatures, freezer pops were essential ~ our version of Hawaiian ice!
Anabelle’s volcano erupted with her requested sparklers as we sang “Happy Birthday”!
My sweet and incredibly talented friend, Jenny of Craft That Party makes the most adorable peg dolls and she surprised us with this precious little hula girl that just made Anabelle’s day! It was truly such a generous and thoughtful gift and an on-going memento of this celebration that will be added to her current collection of peg dolls from Jenny! Be sure to visit her Etsy store to see the cuteness she creates with this little wooden dolls!
To say “Mahalo” to her friends for coming and commemorating her birthday, Anabelle’s favors included tropical fish loofahs, after sun gel, hand sanitizer, stickers and air fresheners as a reminder of their time on the island! And a special “Mahalo” to our OHANA {family and dear friends} for all their incredible support and help in planning, executing and cleaning up after such a wonderful celebration! ALOHA!!! ♥
Merci Beaucoup!
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Stacy @ She's {kinda} Crafty says
AAAHHHHH- Mazing Lynlee!!! I love every last detail, especially the huge smile on Anabelle’s face!
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
You’re the sweetest, friend!!! Thank you so very much! ♥
MarieThomasDesigns says
Wow. This is beautiful! Every last detail.
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Oh, you are too, too sweet! Merci beaucoup for the super kind and generous words! ♥
Michelle says
WOW. Seriously amazing {as always}. LOVE those little tree hut umbrellas! So fun! What a lucky girl Anabelle is — you always go above and beyond! <3
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Oh, I just adore you, Michelle! So fun to have our celebrations around the same time! You know I just love your fab and colorful parties, friend! Means so much to me! ♥
Natalie Clause says
I just adore it all! She looks so cute and that party is amazing!
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Thanks so much, friend! So sad you guys couldn’t make it this year… you were definitely missed! ♥
Craft That Party says
OMG Lynlee, you did a fabulous job! Every detail is pure perfection. I would like to move into this party and live here forever! xoxo, J
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Oh, Jenny! Thank you, thank you, thank you! You made it even more special with your fabulous and unexpected surprise! Your generosity and sweetness is so very much appreciated! ♥
J. At Your Service says
This party is so freakin’ cool! I love it!! Great job girl!
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Thanks so much for the sweet words, J!!! I truly appreciate it! ♥
Nichcole says
LOVE this party, where can purchase ALL the paper items? Invitation, signs etc.?
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Thank you SO very much!!! I truly appreciate it! Unfortunately I don’t sell the paper products, but the digital clip art is available at Clip Art Corner! ♥
Brittany Schwaigert says
LYNLEE!!! This is outrageous!! It is seriously the Hawaii party to end all Hawaii parties. Every single detail is brilliant and your styling talent always astounds me. FAB job lady!
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Oh, my sweet Britt! You know any compliment from you is an absolute honor! Thank you so, so very much, friend!!! ♥
Ebony Sparkes says
OMG CUTE! Love love love it!!!
Ebony
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Awww, thanks SO very much, friend!!! I truly appreciate you taking the time to leave such a sweet comment! ♥
Anonymous says
I love this! I’m having a birthday luau for my little girl who’s turning 3 an i love the grass hut umbrella. How did you make them? Please let me know, that is perfect for the party. You did an awesome job 🙂
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Thank you so very much! I truly appreciate it! If you scroll above the photo, there’s a link to the Parents.com site that has the instructions! ♥
Icenogle Family says
Hello! Beautiful party! You did an amazing job. I have a quick question about the party printables?? Would you mind telling me which fonts you used? Also, where did you get the background brown digital paper? I didn’t see it available on Clipart Corner.
Thanks,
Lynlee's Petite Cakes says
Thank you so very much for the sweet words! The brown paper is also from Clipart Corner found within the “Vintage Paper” collection and the fonts are Sverige Script, Allura and Summertime. Hope this helps! 🙂
Emily T says
It’s stunning!! Is the floral border part of the vintage package? Where did you get the cupcake toppers?
Kassia says
Love your daughter’s dress! Where did you get it? Thanks!!
Lynlee says
Oh, thank you so much! I got it in Hawaii (on Oahu) in an outdoor shop in Waikiki! ♥
Michael says
I love your work! Where can I get the fonts/letters you used to spell “Anabelle”?
Michael says
I love your decorations! Where can I get the fonts/letters that you used to make the “Anabelle” name?