A Dozen Frugal and Green Birthday Party Ideas

We have a lot of spring birthdays here at the Granola Catholic House. So I have been in full swing of party planning for the last 2 months.  Two kids parties, down one to go.
So how do we keep it frugal and green at the same time? Well it is not hard. Often the two go hand in hand. Here are some tried and tested ways to make your next birthday party a green one without spending a lot of green.



Twelve Great Frugal and Green Birthday Tips 

1. Have an experience day birthday. Take the birthday child out for lunch a movie or concert. No packaging no wrapping paper.
2. Give the attendees refillable water bottles. I recently found BPA free aluminum water bottles at a dollar store. I let the kids decorate their water bottles with stickers so they could tell who’s was who’s.
3. Avoid the individual serving juice boxes and water bottles. For a recent party at the park I used one gallon water bottles and made the lemonade in the bottle
4. Have the kids make their own favors. No plastic crap to take home that will break in a day.
5. Wrap any gifts in newspaper, bandannas or cloth. The cloth and bandana can be reused several times.
6. If you must use disposable plates and cups have the kids write their names on the cups so they can reuse the same cup. (Sharpies work real well for this) Or better yet use compostable plates and utensils . Just be sure to throw in the compost pile afterwards and not regular trash. 
7. Use online invitations Evite  is a great source. Or make your own at home
8. If having an at home party vs. at the park use real plates, cups and silverware. You save money while reducing your environmental footprint
9. Cloth tables are a nicer and classier alternative to paper or plastic ones. If you can’t find one you like can buy cloth to coordinate or a bed sheet. Twin size sheets work well on most table sizes.
10. Have a smaller birthday party, If you school permits it you don’t have to invite every kid in the class. This will cut down on the waste you produce
11. Bake your own cake at home, you can really customize the cake, from ingredients to frosting to decorations.
12. Don’t fuss over theme parties, most kids are just happy to have a cake, play a couple of games and open presents.  (Summer Parties are made easy with the addition of water- Pumpkin lucks out with a pool party most years- easy entertaining for me too.)

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