5 Ways to Save Money on a Birthday Party

Who wants to save money ?Before Lia’s 1st birthday I had  spent the past summer working out ways to keep this celebration budget friendly. My friends will tell you that I tend to go above and beyond in the decorations & party planning area of my life. In the past these parties cost me an arm and a leg! Finally after 2 kids & a good 12 parties under my belt I found a few tricks to help save!

1.Make your own decorations

I know this could be easier said than done for some, but Pinterest has so many budget friendly and easy to make decorations anyone can do it! Keeping it simple is also a great way to save money! Keeping it DIY is also a fun way to save money too!

2.Buy Supplies Ahead of Time

I don’t like to wait until a week before to start buying what I need. I typically pick a theme with enough time to slowly buy what we need. I make a list early on with the things I need and keep an eye out for sales or coupons. Dollar stores are a great place to pick up things too.

3.Don’t Buy Invitations

I made just about all the invitations to all of our past events, but found it to be both time consuming and costly. If I need to make a physical invitation I make sure to buy ink & cardstock to print myself.

I went with a more modern approach and I designed an invitation which I text, emailed, and sent on Facebook to others. I made a Facebook event for everyone to see the information easily. Canva is a great easy to use website you can use to make yours.

4.Make your own Food

This is probably the biggest money saver for us. Coming from a Mexican family there is no such thing as finger foods. When family members come to our parties everyone is expecting a full meal.

We typically have nachos and fruit for people to munch on & a main meal. For her baptism we spent $600 on a taco man…yes it was delicious and more convenient for us, but it was a HUGE expense. This time around we decided to make our food. Pulled pork for an easy win along with potato salad & buns! It cut our food cost by 5/6 ! We spent $100 on all the food for 75 people or so.

Related: Rustic Woodland Baby Shower

5.Don’t Serve Alcohol

I know for some this is a no brainer. It is such an unnecessary expense. The way I see it is-this is a party meant for kids. Yes I love my friends and family being a part of it, but everyone can still have a good time without it!

I was so happy to have stayed within our budget this time around. I hope these tips work for you too! If you have any other money saving tips I would love to know! Leave them in the comments.