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The moment my son took interest in LEGOs, I knew it was just a matter of time before I incorporated it as a theme for an upcoming birthday.  So for his big 0-5 birthday at the end of May, I took all those Pinterest pins I saved and created some really cool stuff (if I should say so myself!). Thanks to the pinners for providing awesome ideas for what turned out to be well worth all the time spent on these creations!

 

LEGO party favors:

1) Crayons – This pin by estylo jewelry pretty much started my LEGO craze! It seemed like such a cool party favor and even more fun to make. I purchased the LEGO molds from Amazon and found that one crayon for the LEGO man and two for the bricks was the right amount.

  

2) Memo pad – To accompany the crayons, I customized memo pads that were really inexpensive. All I did was cut construction paper and punch out circles (so much faster than cutting them out!) to make them look like LEGO bricks.

3) Lollipops – To see what else I could make with the LEGO molds that I purchased, I wanted to try lollipops. I found this pin by Tonya Staab and knew I had to give it a shot. The instructions call for snipping the LEGO mold to insert the lollipop stick but I could not bear to do so; instead, I used a bendy straw as the “stick”. Instead of using cellophane to wrap the candy, I just used snack/sandwich bags and cut off the top – tie it off with ribbon and voila!

   

HINDSIGHT: I should have inserted a skewer stick inside to hold the weight of the brick lollipops (I learned this after having watched my kids eat one!)

4) Gummies – This was the ultimate part of the gift bag and it was so fun to make. I used the recipe from skip to my lou and found that no modifications were necessary – 2 packets of unflavored gelatin (I used the Knox brand) and one small box of flavored gelatin (I used the Jolly Rancher brand as well as JELLO) and 1/3 cup of water. I made a batch in every color of the rainbow!

   

5) Magnets – This was a very fast project using magnet tape, hot glue and LEGO bricks. I just hot glued the magnets to the brick…it was that simple. I put two magnets in each gift bag.

6) Gift bag (to hold everything above!) – This project was probably the most time-consuming but probably the most rewarding. I wanted a gift bag that was not only cute but also reusable. I took this opportunity to try yet another Pinterest pin – a nifty DIY screenprinting technique by Calico Skies. I made a LEGO man template and used acrylic paint…I had so many colors and just went to town playing around with different color combinations.

   

EXTRA TIP: Because the screenprinting technique requires quite a bit of saturation, I put a DVD case inside the bag so that it would not bleed (the paint wiped right off the case). Additionally, I used a combination of cardboard and paintbrush to apply the paint. After I removed the nylon, if the paint didn’t cover the entire shape, I used the tip of a mechanical pencil (no lead!) and dipped it in the paint to cover the space. And for the couple of times where the paint may have bled to another part, all I did was wait for it to dry completely and then take paint the color of the bag (not the LEGO man!) and go back in with my pencil to “unfill” the space!

The best part was that I used only one template to make all 14 bags (AND one T-shirt; see below); I wasn’t sure how well the nylon/Mod Podge would hold up after each rinse, but it did just fine!

7) Bag tags – I created personalized gift tags using my nifty PowerPoint skills :). I am happy to share a free downloadable template here!

 

I also added a bracelet for the girls and kazoo for the boys to round out the gift bags.

LEGO decorations:

1) Garland/birthday sign – Using felt that I already had in my stash, I cut out 2″ X 3″ rectangles. I dipped the end of a dowel into acrylic paint of a similar color to the felt to create the LEGO brick. After it dried, I just sewed them onto a string of ribbon (for the table, I sewed the felt pieces onto seam binding). For the Happy Birthday banner, I had originally planned on making it myself but I happened to find a felt one from Target; I did however customize it by adding paint dots for the LEGO effect. It turned out great and added an instant pop of color to the house!

 

2) Crown – This is truly a one-of-a-kind birthday crown! This was kind of a “wing it” project as it was something I thought of one evening before my son went to bed. I used plain printer paper and created a band to measure my son’s head and then taped the paper rectangles to get an idea for placement. Then I started measuring and cutting my fabric. I used Peltex Ultra firm fusible interfacing that would hold the shape of the crown.

 

Once I had the shape completed, I applied the same dotting technique I used for the garland (except I used the eraser end of a pencil) for the LEGO part. Doesn’t he just look like a LEGO prince?!

HINDSIGHT: You know they always say to measure twice and cut once, right? Well, I didn’t (I did say that this was a “wing it” project, right?!). I hadn’t factored in the overlap where the Velcro would be and was off by two inches, yikes! But my creative sewing skills kicked in and I was able to save the project!

3) T-shirt for the birthday boy – Using the same template for the gift bags, I made my boy a LEGO man T-shirt to wear the day of the party. As I knew I’d have to wash the shirt afterwards, I applied the permanent heat bond technique by getting freezer paper and ironing it on the painted area (after it was completely dry, of course). I’ve washed it since and it still looks like it did when I had first painted it! (Below is my boy with the roasted suckling pig we ordered for the special occasion – yum!)

 

4) Juice box wrapper – This was a cute idea I found on Pinterest by Over the Big Moon. I modified it a little by adding 6 small circles to make it resemble a LEGO brick a little more. It was an evening project where I just cut construction paper and punched out circles.

 

5) Vase – My boy actually asked for flowers for his birthday so I obliged with a vase that contained larger LEGO pieces. I just inserted a smaller vase inside a large one and filled the LEGOs in between.

 

6) Cake – I did nothing but place an order. Actually I drew a rough sketch of what I envisioned and just handed it to the Target baker – they did a fabulous job on it and I don’t think I was even charged extra for the custom design. Thanks Target!

 

Whew…I’m tired all over again from re-counting what I did for his 5th birthday. But it was so worth it. Some would say I went a little overboard, but I just chose where I wanted to focus my time and attention. I figured I’d have much more fun making all that I did versus slaving away in the kitchen and not being able to enjoy my son’s special day. Plus I think the kids will remember/enjoy the LEGO goodies long after (and not what they ate at the party – well, maybe that cool LEGO cake!).

I hope you found some inspiration for your little guy or gal…I have a two-year reprieve before I need to start thinking about my girl’s 5th birthday 😛