the cowboy party we had for our son’s 6th birthday was so much fun. there is plenty of iconic wild west symbolism that can bring atmosphere and set the scene for a legendary party for heroes, outlaws, gunslingers, sheriffs, bandits and brave pioneers.
i designed invitations with a wild west font that i found online, printed them on brown paper, rolled and tied each one up with a rope. guests love a good invitation, it gets excitement building ahead and encourages dressing up, which always brings a good vibe to a party.
we used straw bales for seating and chose a colour palette of red, blue and brown. we decked the garden with handmade bunting coordinated with check blankets and gingham napkins. enamelware is a really good investment for children’s parties, it can be used time and time again and doesn't break. our enamel pots, jugs, mugs and plates looked great on the table alongside cactuses planted in small buckets.
it helps having a creative husband. he painted signs on old wooden wine cases and made a hoopla from kindling. i remembered party games from my childhood including apple bobbing and pin the tail on the donkey, and we turned the trampoline into a ‘jail’. live music from some folk jazz musicians we stumbled across in a market the week before helped settle the children when they arrived – by the end they were dancing merrily to country and western riffs!
we raided local charity shops for old plaid shirts which we cut up and used for bandannas, handkerchiefs and party bags. each one was individually labelled with the children’s names, using rubber stamps.
we had lots of fun designing themed party food, from mini hot dogs, to grilled corn-on-the-cob and sausages with little bowls of ketchup and american style mustard. finally I bought every child the coolest cowboy hat to take home when they left. these were dotted these round the room as decoration during the party.
I hope this inspires you to get creative at home.
teresa