Summer Daze & Starry Nights -13yr- Sunset Dance

Theme/Idea:  Summer Daze & Starry Nights" Girls 13th. Birthday pool/pizza & dance/karaoke party!  Every year my daughter has the first birthday party of the school year in the beginning of September.  Because of that I like to invite everyone from class as it is good bonding time and "get to know you" time for the classmates.  Every year we have outlandish parties because I'm the "creative" type and I usually spend a month or more MAKING things to keep costs down.  We have done the scavenger hunt which was amazing we have done a huge rock band/idol contest party which was a huge hit.  We wanted to do something different this year but something that would appeal to boys and girls and have more of a "teen" atmosphere.  We live in Florida so we wanted to incorporate sun and fun but we also wanted to extend the party and have a nighttime atmosphere as well.  So we decided to do "Summer Daze and Starry Nights."  This is going to be a pool/pizza party at a local pool where we have rented a corner of the pool that has a huge tent and picnic tables perfect for decorating - also - right next door to the pool is a house that has been turned into a hall which we are also renting and we are going to turn into a summer nights or "starry nights" teen dance club!  So we will have a pool & pizza party as well as a teen dance club with DJ/karaoke to follow.  The pool/pizza portion of the party will be from 1:00 - 4:00.

INVITATIONS: The invitations were sent out three weeks in advance.  I made beautiful tropical invitations with a pool wave on the bottom inside a bamboo border with the dark shadow of a line of people dancing in the water and hibiscus bunches on the ends incorporating the pool party/dance theme on the invitations. Some of the writing included: Jenna’s 13th.Birthday Bash! - Saturday September 8  - POOL PARTY & TEEN DANCE CLUB!       Join your friends POOLSIDE to celebrate -  the end of summer & the beginning  -  of the TEENS !  Bring your swimsuit  -  towel flip flops & your best sundress -  or tropical shirt & dress to impress -  for the SUNSET DANCE & KARAOKE!  -  Games prizes contests a funny photo -  booth (bring your digital camera) PIZZA -  & a table FULL of desserts! Dance to -  the hottest summer hits by DJ Paul-Z!  The back of the invite included contact and RSVP information more detailed info on time/date/location what to wear and bring.  The parents calling have loved the invitations!  Wait until they see the party! 

DECORATIONS: The pool area will be decorated with tropical décor leis beach balls hibiscus bright pink and green everywhere.  There will be a hula hoop contest at the pool and the pool has two water slides. There will also be pizza/soda served at the pool between 2:00 - 3:00 as an early dinner.  The pool house has agreed to play our music which we will provide tropical music such as the beach boys and wipeout just good ol' summer music for the kids to swim and play to.  There will be several adults supervising and a lifeguard is on duty as well as we are having about 40 kids between classmates friends and family.  The girls will leave the pool area an hour early at 3:00.  They will take quick showers at the pool and then they've been instructed to bring a sundress for the dance. Boys are asked to bring tropical shirts to wear to the dance and there will be a prize for "loudest tropical shirt." They boys can stay in the pool until the girls are "ready."  After showers the girls will venture into the "Starry Nights dance hall" where the hall will be decorated beautifully in black with bright hot pink lime green yellow and bermuda blue accents everywhere!  The dance portion of the party will be from 4:00 - 7:00. 

The entry to the club will have a door deco with porthole that says "Dancing Nightly" and tropical decorations adorning the entrance helium balloons pinned to the ground with golf tees lining the walkway and a "bouncer" (uncle Eric wearing black "security" tshirt) checking names at the door where he will mess with some of the kids telling them they're "not on the list" before letting them in.  LOL  (He has a good sense of humor and can pull this off well.) Each kid will get a stick on "VIP" bracelet to get in the front door.   Hanging from the ceiling will be large lit up lanterns in the 4 main colors twinkle lights everywhere and huge puff balls that were carefully made at home by Mom. Also around the room are huge glitter hibiscus cutouts and glitter palm tree cutouts. Mom also made 30 huge gorgeous bright tissue flowers of different varieties that will be used throughout and hanging down from the ceiling.  The ceiling will be draped with three colored streamers sewn together and gathered on the sewing machine(by mom) for a fancy streamer effect and icicle lights will hang down all around the outside of the room.

The two walls behind the DJ/dance floor area will be covered in black paper then curtains of metallic silver and stars everywhere for a dance floor effect.  The DJ is bringing laser lights and a fog machine and will be set up in one corner of the large room.  In another corner that has a wall that is recessed and is a perfect 5 1/2 foot wide we are making a backdrop of sky blue against the whole wall clouds and two 6' palm trees bowing on either side with 3d tissue leaves that stick out from the wall. Across the "sky" there will be a rainbow that reads in stenciled letters cut out of bright shiny colored cardstock "Teenage Dreams." Two powerful flashlights will be taped above this area in a criss cross fashion so that lights shine down on the backdrop.  There will be a decorated basket sitting on the floor by this "photo booth" that says "try me on" - it will be filled with things like big funny sunglasses stick on mustaches foil wigs afro wig feather boas masquerade feather masks funny noses/glasses sombrero sailor hat pirate hat pirate hook goofy crazy jewelry rock accessories cowboy hats grass skirts n leis glam costume stuff all kinds of crazy dress up items for kids to put on and take funny pictures in!  This should really be a hit of the party. 

A sign outside the homemade "photo booth" area will read: "Step in the scene and strike a pose Guys grab a moustache or funny fake nose Girls wear a boa or shades and get all glam And take some pix for Facebook or Instagram! Share your memories with your friends So for months to come the fun never ends!" The photo booth will have disposable cameras for their use as well as we have encouraged them on the invitations to bring their phones/ipods to take photos.

CAKE/CUPCAKES: There will be three more tables set up in the room one will be a main table that will hold in the center a three tiered cupcake stand which I have made from 3 graduated sized cake tiers bought with my 50% off fabric store coupons and 2 white columns glued between them its as pretty and roomy as the cupcake trays I saw for over $100 and cost under $20. It will be lined with tropical leaves before the cupcakes are placed on it and a number "13" coming from the top in hot pink/lime green.  The cupcakes will be strawberry and chocolate with coconut flavored icing in the colors hot pink lime green sand colored/bermuda blue.  Half (the pink and green cupcakes) will have brightly colored hibiscus flowers that I am painstakingly making out of gum paste and hand painting/dusting (folks beware this is a very time consuming process if you want the flower to look real) and the other half (sand colored/bermuda blue will have a summer scene with umbrellas with a beach ball candy flip flop candy and little beach towel made of gum paste. 

Also on that table are two beautiful tropical flower arrangements on either side with hot pink hibiscus green tropical flowers and bamboo sticks as accents I have put them in plain clear vases that I have from home and around the vases I am overlapping four large sea grape leaves which I picked from our property at the beach tied around the vases with raffia.  The table tops of all three tables will be black plastic tablecloths.  Each of the three tables will have a different plastic table skirt color hot pink lime green and bermuda blue.  Under the tables I am taping white christmas lights hanging down so that we get the effect of the glowing skirt colors in the dark room.  Then I have purchased black fishing net to hang over the front/sides of all tables and brightly colored starfish to scatter about the net.  This black net over the glowing bright table skirts should give a nice contrasting effect.  The tabletops will also have large sea grape leaves scattered in center as a runner and bright hibiscus and palm tree confetti scattered about.

PARTY SNACKS:  The next main table will consist of two large fountains.  1 - a chocolate fountain and 2 - a three tiered light up punch fountain.  Many different serving bowls/dishes were purchased in acrylic neon hot pink and lime green to hold the many tropical fruits and treats to dunk in the chocolate fountain.  There will be all of your basic fruits for dunking with various brightly colored novelty picks some fans flip flops palm trees umbrellas hibiscus tissue fruits etc. Marshmallows pretzel rods graham crackers and angel cake will also be dunking favorites.  There will also be toppings like coconut m&m's and crushed candies for dunking in after the chocolate. Hanging behind this table will be a sign that says "Tropical Treats."  The punch bowl will hold a neon green tropical punch with colorful ice cubes with frozen strawberries kiwi and pineapple in them all the colors of the party.  Tropical tableware and cups will be on this table. Also 40 acrylic brightly colored "cocktail" looking drink glasses were purchased and we have a neice dressing up as the cocktail waitress who will be filling everyones glasses with soda all night.  The sodas (2 liter bottles) will be kept in a small kiddy pool near the entryway filled with ice.  Attached to each glass will be a tropical cocktail name tag for their glass so the kids know which glass is theirs.

One of my favorite additions is two handmade palm trees one large - 7' and one 5' to place in a corner for effect.  A large tropical bird was ordered and will sit on one of the palm trees.  Also three brown balloons will adorn each tree as coconuts.  These trees were made for practically NOTHING out of two microphone stands that I had from my Rock Band game empty cellophane rolls from wrapping the prizes folded paper lunch bags and poster board cut out to make palm fronds.  They look AMAZING!  The last table will be a small table in a corner with a chair next to it decorated in pink satin fabric tied with raffia and homemade tissue paper flowers with a home made banner above it that says "Teen Queen Jenna" - the banner was made from letters stenciled and cut from cardstock in the neon/bright colors on black backgrounds with tan/brown paper behind it cut in frazzled strips around the edges to look tropical.  It turned out amazing also!  This will be the gift table and chair she will sit in to open gifts.  Another huge 15 foot banner was made with a background of hot pink blue yellow and lime green 8 1/2 x 11 card stock cut into hibiscus basic 5 leaf shape black smaller cardstock paper mattes then bright letters one per flower that says "Happy 13th. Birthday Jenna" which will hang from wall to wall all along the back wall when you walk in. 

ACTIVITIES/GAMES/FAVORS:  In the girls restroom there will be a tropically decorated basket with products like hair spray gel deodorant makeup mouthwash for the girls to freshen up and primp after their showers.  We will also have a curling iron/straightener plugged in for "bad hair days."  Music will be playing during the 3:00 - 4:00 getting ready hour.  During the dance there will be several contests.  One will be a karaoke contest.  It is not based on best performance.  It is based on effort!  Throughout the night ANYONE daring enough to get up and sing will receive a raffle ticket for every song sung.  Then at the end the raffle prize is going to be a big movie popcorn bowl filled with movie candy microwave popcorn and 2 movie tickets purchased at a discount club for $14.  There will be about 20 other prizes throughout the night.  They will be for the hula hoop contest dance-off and the DJ will be asking questions about the birthday girl all night and the first one to come up to the DJ with the right answer wins a prize! 

We will also have a crazy game of musical chairs in the center of the dance floor with 30 chairs in a circle and hot potato with a beach ball.  Other small prizes & candy will be in a bucket next to DJ and will be randomly thrown to the crowd throughout the night.  We decided that the kids are too old for party favor baggies so throwing things out into the crowd on the dance floor is a a way for them to take home little prizes and treats without it looking too little-kiddish.  8" hibiscus beach balls were purchased and will be thrown onto the dance floor as well at times and will be fun for the crowd to keep bouncing it up as they dance.  There is a large indoor back porch area which will be an adult sitting area with magazines comfortable chairs and a place for adults to get away from the noise of the party but be close enough to check on the kids at all times.  This will have a "no teens allowed" or "grown ups zone" sign so that we can keep it peaceful out there.  At the end of the dance 10 girls will be sleeping over the house for the "after party."  It is always fun for me to throw my creative mind into planning these parties and I do it because I love doing it and I love the chance it gives the kids to really become close at the beginning of the school year even if it takes a month or two to make everything to keep the cost down.     "