Are you looking for an
innovative but inexpensive birthday
party idea for children? We have one
that might be right up your alley. If
you have a good thrift store near by,
consider taking a group of children
to it and give them each a specific
dollar amount to spend. Have the children
find “dress-up” clothes
for a “tea party.” Hats,
wigs, walking sticks, handbags, jewelry,
shoes or boots, in addition to interesting
clothes, can make very dramatic party
costumes.
You can often work with the thrift
store staff a few weeks in advance
by having them keep an eye out for
good tea party accessories and keep
them in a back room for you until
your big day. Another idea (in case
the pick'ins are slim on party day)
is to shop for these items yourself
weeks in advance, store them in a
trunk, and then have the children
search thorough the “party trunk”
for their costume of choice.
You can have the traditional pizza
and birthday cake lunch, or have a
birthday tea party with more fancy
treats. Then when the party is over,
you can either give the children the
outfit they wore as their party favor,
or have them return the items to the
party trunk for future use. Either
way, a good time will be had by all.
An added bonus is that children will
get a chance to use their imaginations
instead of playing video games or
jumping in ball pits.
Diva
tea party tips:
Find
a thrift store with a flair for
the dramatic.
Shop
well in advance of the party and
either find and purchase some
dramatic clothing items and accessories
to create you own dress up trunk,
or to use as back-up in case there
are not enough appropriate items
on party day.
Encourage
the children to use their imaginations
and to act out various roles while
they are in costume.
