LIFESTYLE PARTY PLANNING
Pippa’s party tricks
d Within a budget
Have a themed party at home or
a sports party in a local park. You can buy a sports kit and have fun with egg and spoon races, sack races and welly throwing. Take along a picnic and some party food boxes. Explore my family’s Party Pieces website for products including pre-filled party bags, pass the parcel kits and decorating kits.
www.partypieces.co.uk
d Top choice
Football parties at Westway
Sports Centre cost from £100 for a coach for over two hours with organised games and matches. Girls might jump at the chance to go riding at the Westway Stables; £39 per-child including grooming, team games and a bespoke menu. Animal Man offers a live animal
experience including bird-eating spiders and emperor scorpions – prices from £220 for 1 hour (food and drink not included but no restriction on numbers).
A YogaBugs party will focus
on warm-ups, breathing and postures. One-hour parties, which include an adventure story interwoven with yoga-related games and activities, costs £10 per-head for up to 12 children.
d Push the boat out
Hamleys birthday tea party offers
a lively atmosphere at London’s largest toy store. Includes two hours of entertainment, activities, birthday tea and goody bags (£499 for 10 children). For the ultimate party
celebration, contact party organisers Kasimira to plan a jaw-dropping themed party, including Harry Potter or Alice in Wonderland extravaganzas. Contact them directly for a quote. Or for a lavish affair, invite your
girl to be a princess for the day in the magical surroundings of The Dorchester Penthouse and Pavilion, featuring a ballet lesson from the English National Ballet themselves (£195 per child).
Popular party foods include
fruit kebabs, vegetable crudités and dips, shaped sandwiches
with delicious child-friendly fi llings, mini burgers and sausages,
✒ has fun. First and foremost, make sure your child actually wants a party. A general rule is that parties should last no more than three hours, preventing children from getting grumpy and tired. Also, don’t hold the party too far from home as it makes logistical planning very diffi cult, particularly with city traffi c. Organisation is the key, especially
when children are very young. Make sure you have plenty of help (older siblings, nannies or family members). You may need people to take children to the loo, attend to bumps or just be a spare lap for cuddles. If the child is old enough, try to incorporate them into the planning; they will enjoy being part of it. Keep a few tricks up your sleeve;
spare party games and activities – lively and quiet ones – to ensure children don’t get bored. Remember to set an area aside for birthday presents and keep a note of who the gifts are from. You’ll need this for the thank you letters after the party. Lastly, don’t forget the party bags and have a few spare for extra guests, siblings and helpers. So how many people should you
invite? Numbers will often be dictated by the venue and whether the party is indoors or outdoors. It’s easier to host a larger group of children outside. Try not to invite too big an age range or guests your child doesn’t know. For toddlers and children under four years old, keep numbers limited and remember to also invite parents or nannies. For children of four and over, parents aren’t essential but keep numbers reasonable (between six and 12 children) and don’t feel obliged to invite the whole class. However, a word of warning here about sensitivity: schools ask that situations such as this are dealt with tactfully so that no-one feels offended. What you should never do is to invite more than half the class and leave just a few children out, as
68 FIRST ELEVEN SUMMER 2010
this seems unkind. Sending
out invitations discreetly after school or emailing invitations will help avoid hurt feelings. If you are worried about going over budget, perhaps think about having a joint party and team up with another family – this is particularly good if children have mutual friends. Planning and expenses can then be shared. Whatever you decide, try to avoid
getting stressed during the party – remember you’re celebrating your child’s special day. So, get your camera out and smile, because if there’s one annual event which always turns up in the family photo album, it’s the birthday party. %
Pippa Middleton recently launched
an online party magazine for parents,
d T e Party Times
www.partypieces.co.uk/thepartytimes
Suggestions
Create a day to remember with the help of a professional party entertainer. Remember that entertainers, caterers and party planners tend to get booked up far in advance and are often busier at weekends, so book in advance.
Antonia Spicer
www.antoniaspicer.co.uk
Animal Man
www.animalman.co.uk
Bertie and Boo
www.bertieandboo.com
Betty Blythe
www.bettyblythe.co.uk
Cookie Crumbles
www.cookiecrumbles.net
The Dorchester
www.thedorchester.com
Hats and Bells
www.hatsandbells.com
Kasimira
www.kasimira.com
Mad Science Parties
www.madscience.org
Maggie & Rose
www.maggieand
rose.com
Party Pieces
www.partypieces.co.uk
Westway Sports Centre
www.westwaysports
centre.org.uk
YogaBugs
www.yogabugs.com
fi sh ‘n’ chips and for pudding, mini fairy cakes, jelly and ice cream will never fail
WWW.FIRSTELEVENMAGAZINE.CO.UK
PHOTOS: ISTOCKPHOTO, ASHOK RODRIGUES PREVIOUS PAGE: ISTOCKPHOTO, PAMSPIX/LISA THORNBERG
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