My baby is officially a big boy now - THE BIG "1"! How did this happen so fast? It was just yesterday that I was looking into his eyes for the first time. Since that very moment, I have spent every single day enjoying everything about him and he has filled my heart with immense joy and love. I have learned to sing, dance, laugh, and enjoy life like never before all because of this precious heart that I have been blessed to nurture. I am so proud to be his mommy!
I wanted to make his 1st birthday completely special and handmade with love. So, with three days to put it all together, two hands, a baby in tow, and a budget - it was game! I was able to pull it off, and I am so happy with how it all came together. Here's the rundown, so you can get inspired to recreate this easy setup!
So, I decided that a woodland theme would be so cute. I'm so over the mass commercialized characters, so I was looking for something more whimsical and off the beaten path. After scouring Pinterest, I was able to get inspired and come up with a bunch of ideas. You can view my Pinterest board HERE. I then made a list and planned out all of the supplies I needed, which made it super easy and stress-free when it came time to shop.
It turns out, I actually didn't really need all that much on my list. I improvised with stuff I already had at home, which worked out amazingly well. I also cut back on a lot of other ideas I had because I may have gotten a tiny bit excessive.
These garlands were one of the first things on my list. I purchased the largest marshmallows I could find (campfire ones) and strung them threw some beige and white twine to create this really fun marshmallow garland. I also had to use 3M hooks to hang these because they were pretty heavy.
Inspired by: Homegrown & Healthy
For my burlap garland, I purchased pre-cut burlap pendants and drew out the letters of his name with chalk. Taking white cardstock paper, I cut out triangles to alternate between the burlap. I punched holes in each corner and strung them through with twine. A large needle comes in handy here. I then used tape to secure the ends of the string to the wall and also made tiny bows out of string to tape on top of each end as a finishing touch.
Originally, I wanted to fill these wafer sugar cones with fruit, but they ended up looking like little rustic trees on their own, so I kept it as is. I love how they look!
Inspired by: On To Baby
These smores were so easy and quick to make. All I did was gently temper some semisweet chocolate with a little vegetable oil, dip the large marshmallows to coat just halfway, then coat the top with graham cracker crumbs. So fun and pretty.
Inspired by: Spaceships and Laserbeams
I found wood rounds at Marshall's and Target. The one's from Marshall's were larger and more expensive, but better quality. The ones from Target were in the arts and crafts section and were really affordable. I'll have a list of all of the supplies at the end of this post.
I found a frame that was lying around the house and decided to cover it with moss. I covered the frame in tape first, then glued the moss on top. This is more of a temporary hold, so I could remove it afterward and not damage the frame. I just placed a piece of white cardstock paper inside, then used a dry-erase marker to write "Uriah's Woodland One-derland".
Inspired by: Ruffled Blog
I wanted to incorporate a bunch of cute forest animal figurines. At Michael's, I was only able to find and purchase a wolf, so I was so glad that I came across a pack at Walmart that included a cub, wolf, fox, and fawn. They looked perfect alongside some piles of moss - like a miniature woodland.
Ar first, I tried looking for a number "1", but for some reason, it was so hard to find, so I came up with this easy DIY. I cut out the number from a styrofoam plate, then taped a wooden scewer to the back and spray painted it all metallic gold. The effect was amazing. It turned out looking like stone and had this really pretty texture to it.
For the base, I cut a foam ball in half and glued moss to it. This project was so simple and basically free for me since I had all of the supplies on hand. I placed "Bambi" on top, and it turned out perfect!
Inspired by: Ruffled Blog
I decided to go with a simple, white banana cake with honey buttercream frosting. It was supposed to be three layers, but I was so tired that I forgot to place the third layer on top! It was sooo good, guys. I wanted to do a healthy cake for Uriah, and this recipe was pretty clean. Instead of regular oil, I used coconut oil, and I cut down on the powdered sugar and used a little honey.
Cake recipe: Bake or Break | Frosting recipe: Wicked Good Kitchen | How to assemble a layer cake: Martha Stewart
This bunting was so cute and really easy to make. I just took two types of paper and cut out triangles, strung them on twine, and tied them to wooden skewers. I wrote the number "1" in the center with a black marker. It was perfect and super cute.
A single, white candle placed at the back was the finishing touch, along with the cub figurine. The cake was placed on the wood platter atop an inverted glass bowl.
I purchased one bunch of ferns and it turned out to be perfect for the cake centerpiece and little pieces to frame the table with. The moss also hid the bowl really nicely and created that natural look I was going for.
Not only did this cake look nice, but it tasted so good, almost like banana bread. This is definitely not one of those cakes that will go to waste if you have leftovers. It was 8" in diameter and the perfect size for us.
Since I couldn't find a white tablecloth in time, I just used a white sheet that I already had, and it worked out perfectly. The white backdrop made everything stand out so well.
I also made these chocolate covered pretzel sticks, which resembled birch branches. They were made from white chocolate and drizzled with milk chocolate. I had these vases on-hand, which displayed them so nicely.
Inspired by: Hostess With The Mostess
I had mason jars that I filled with the leftover marshmallows and a single fern. I love that rustic, yet clean look.
I also labeled each treat with wooden tags with fun names such as "Twigs" for the pretzel sticks, "Trees" for the sugar cones, and "Smores" for the marshmallows.
Here, Uriah is eyeing what he's going to grab first!
We had so much fun with this party, and it was so easy to put together. We even made sure to dress him up in his plaid shirt so he could look just like a lumberjack!
This cute garland just added that final touch. Since the big kids and adults got to eat pizza, I made Uriah miniature sized pineapple and ham pizzas, too. It was his first time eating pizza, and of course, he loved it! He was officially joining the big kids club.
Yummy... He had his hands full with all of those sweets.
I caught those little hands in action. Hmm... I wonder which one Uriah ate?
His daddy couldn't miss this day for the world.
His cousins and Auntie were there to celebrate too - and of course his curly-haired big bro was right there by his side!
It was such a joy to see my baby turn 1 and enjoy his birthday. I will never forget this day! It was too much fun for me, and Uriah skipped all of his naps, so that's a great indicator of how much fun he had, too. I love this cutie so much, and I am so happy with how this all turned out!
Supply List
Decor
- Wood Rounds: 2 - large, $9.99 each - Marshall's | 2 - small, $4.99 each - Target
- Forest Moss: $6.59 (40% off coupon) regular $10.99 - Michaels
- Boston Fern: 1 bush, $9.49 - Michaels
- Animal Figurines: Forest Grey Wolf, $4.99 - Michaels | Wildlife Figurine Set, $14.97 - Walmart
- DIY Cake Topper: Wooden skewers | 2 types of paper: 1 - rust, 1 - brown paper bag | Candles: $0.90 (clearance), Target | Twine | Animal figurine
- DIY Picture Frame: Old Frame | Moss | Tape | Glue
- DIY Number Stand: Styrofoam plate | Gold metallic spray paint | Moss | Foam ball (cut in half) | Animal figurine
- DIY Burlap Banner: Burlap Banner Kit, $7.99 - Michaels | White cardstock paper for pendants | Chalk | Twine: beige and white, $1.50 - Michaels
- DIY Marshmallow Garland: Large campfire marshmallows, $3.98 Walmart | Twine
- Repurposed glass vases
- Mason jars
- Wooden tags
Total Cost: $80.37
As you can see, most of the supplies, I already had on-hand. That's the fun in doing a DIY party. I'm pretty sure you can find a lot of these things lying around the house too! I didn't mind spending a little more on the wood platters because I definitely can use them in the future. I also could've saved a few dollars if I just cut out the burlap pieces for the banner myself. All in all, this was a super budget-friendly setup that is easily customizable and so much fun to put together.
If you plan on doing a woodland themed party for your little one, I hope this helps you get inspired with some ideas. It is super easy and so adorable. I tried to cover everything, so if I missed anything, let me know in the comments. Have fun!
Will you be putting a woodland themed party together? I'd love to hear about it in the comments!
Disclosure: Affiliate links are included.