Indie’s ‘Take 5!’ Movie Buff Birthday Bash!

Another year, another super fun birthday party in the books! Over on Pinterest, I was drowning in a sea of “Five is a Vibe” hippie themes… and I was desperate to do something different, so I racked my brain and decided we’d totally be able to pull off a movie theme! The best part about this theme for all of you readers is that you can pretty much swap out 5 for any age/number and it would totally work! So read on for party details and inspo, vendors, and of course… event photos!

The most important step in planning a big birthday bash is to secure the location, and this time I got really really lucky. My babysitter, Kelsie Daniels, also happens to own a brand new vocal studio called One Voice in Butler, NJ where she teaches lessons in all things theatrics to kids of all ages! The space is wide open with an industrial feel, a wall full of mirrors, and a dance floor – but the biggest value was having her expertise as a part of our event! She gathered the kids around and did some theatrical warmup games with them before teaching them (and filming!) a whole “eleven o’clock number” from the movie TROLLS (one of Indie’s favorites).

Before this, we broke the ice by gathering around some tables with our friends at Creative Kids NJ who helped the kids DIY their own party favors – their very own star on the “Hollywood” Walk of Fame! They used all kinds of gems, letters for their names, and of course had to do their iconic handprints. I can always count on Creative Kids to come up with a craft that is both fun for the littles and totally, perfectly on-theme with my inspiration! They bring everything that’s needed, set it all up, and walk the kids through the entire project. They also have their own space in Scotch Plains, NJ!

We had our bounce house up and running the entire time which is always a huge hit (worth every penny), and Balloons By D decorated it to match the unbelievable popcorn setup she did by our cake table! How cool was that!? Probably my favorite balloon arch she’s done to date. It was the talk of the party. I saw so much “movie buff” inspiration for a party like this, and everything was black, red & gold… super glitzy… it just was not vibing for me – but when I came across this idea, I knew we had to make it our own and incorporate it. I’m so glad we did, and Balloons by D nails it every single time.

I can’t forget to mention that I worked with Petite Seats again on kids’ tables! This time we did black picnic style tables with benches, and it worked out so well because it really lent itself to the ‘blackbox theatre’ feel of the One Voice studio space. We also opted for a kids’ height cake table, which looked super cute too (…but peep the hilarious footage of us leaning too hard and the cupcakes going flying! How could I not include those pics?!)

Speaking of cupcakes – let’s get into our sweets: Splurge Bakery comes in hot with a cake every single time, and this one was no exception. Typically, I send them a photo and they copy it pretty much exactly, with minor tweaks… and I think that is so wild, because I can barely copy a drawing with crayon. It blows my mind! Gina from Sweet Charlie’s Confections did an incredible job on our cupcakes, and also on reading my mind – because I basically told her to mix it up and give us a bit of in-theme variety and they came out absolutely flawless!! I really do love working with repeat vendors because they start to really “get” me, and it makes party planning and even day-of setup that much easier.

I’d say everyone at this Oscar-worthy bash had a blast! We “screened” a little movie short during pizza, but I’d say 90% of this four and five year old crowd was too excited to get back to the bounce house and frankly, I don’t blame them… but they did enjoy watching themselves back on the big screen when Kelsie reappeared with a quick video edit of their Trolls dance! It was a really cute touch. Special shoutout to my friends at SwankyShank for creating custom tees for Indie & Stevie to match our theme. (The back of Indie’s tee is hysterical!) There are so many ways you could do a movie theme party for virtually any age. It can be as easy as popcorn & pajamas at home… or as big as rolling out your own red carpet.

Of course, I saved the best (the photos!) for last. Scroll through the entire super fun gallery – taken flawlessly by Chloe at New Moon Photography! Having a photographer at my events is SO important to me. Sure… I can take my own pictures. I actually enjoy it. Sometimes, I even wish I were the one doing it because I am a self proclaimed control freak! But truth be told – there is absolutely NO way that I could be a good host, a good mom, and actually enjoy my childrens’ birthday parties and milestone events if I were tasked with running around capturing every little detail. I feel such a huge sense of relief in knowing that I have a competent and capable photographer that knows what I like to see, and is able to capture the event the way that I would. Chloe… you crushed it! Follow along with us on Instagram to stay in the loop – next party will be Stevie’s birthday in September! I better get to planning!