Two Groovy! Be inspired by this Flower Power party

The 70s vibes were high for Sienna's groovy second birthday party. Her mum, Samah Shaw shares their day with us.

WHERE WAS THE LOCATION AND WHAT WAS THE THEME?

We selected a ‘Two Groovy’ theme as it suited Sienna in so many ways. While she has a lot of energy and style, with a vivacious approach to life, she is also a pretty ‘hip’ toddler who loves dressing up and throwing on any hats, sunglasses or shoes that she sees. The ‘groovy’ vibe resonates with her character and the way she pulls off her style. I call her my little fashionista – which is true as she enjoys dressing up and carrying off each style with a mischievous grin.

TELL US ABOUT THE PARTY...

The party was a real hit with all. The Good Party Co.'s soft play equipment setup was a really easy way for a large number of toddlers to have fun, experiment with different levels of challenges and interact with each other. It was also a bonus that it was fully gated so the parents could enjoy a drink, knowing the kids were safe. The main act was an incredible bubble show by Irina from Party Makers, and it had all the adults riveted too as the giant bubbles were produced. There were bubbles within bubbles, bubbles being pulled through another bubble, smoke inserted into bubbles and even having the adult AND toddler fully encased in one giant-sized bubble – awesome!

We had a delicious grazing table for the adults and had some traditional party food for the toddlers including fairy bread, themed cookies by none other than the talented Yelena from Cookoo Sweets, hundreds and thousands biscuits, rainbow cupcakes, bon-bons with treats inside and a lovely banana cake with raspberry icing decorated with 70’s style flowers, made by yours truly. Millie Creative worked magic with an outstanding balloon garland, signage and backdrop that helped underpin the party. Meanwhile Liv from SoFlo Partyware supplied the beautiful party decorations including the flower wall, party hats, tableware, and the bon-bons which I personalised with all the guests’ names using my Cricut. It was an elegant touch to the table layout that also doubled as a practical means of a seating arrangement.

WERE THERE ANY SPECIAL MOMENTS THAT STOOD OUT?

The funniest moment had to be our initial planning getting turned upside down as the weather blindsided us. It completely changed our plans from having the party at our house to moving to an alternative indoor site – plans that changed only three hours out from the start time! It sure is amazing how fast you can move when you need to do a full reshuffle, juggling a sleeping toddler, another one that tries to ‘help’ with everything, and only finishing the setup literally seconds before all the guests arrived. Talk about cutting it close!

TIPS FOR PLANNING A SECOND BIRTHDAY PARTY?

If you live in Auckland, always have a back-up indoor venue! We had anticipated that the weather may turn on us, so a few months earlier had arranged an alternative site that was large enough to accommodate  our planned play equipment. Thank goodness – as the rain came through hard and heavy at times during the day. Hire a photographer for a couple of hours – or at the very least, delegate a friend to take photos for you. It’s hard enough hosting an event, let alone trying to capture every detail, and photos of the guests. This is what you’ll look back on, so it’s nice to have some physical memories too.

For more kids' party inspo follow Samah on Instagram @ohmyshaw_.

SHOUT-OUT to the PARTY PEOPLE

Party decorations: SoFlo Partyware, soflo.co.nz; Bespoke event styling: Millie Creative, milliecreative.co.nz; Soft play hire: The Good Party Co., thegoodparty.co.nz; Kids entertainment company: Party Makers, partymakers-nz.com; Premium handcrafted cookies: Cookoo Sweets, cookoosweets.co.nz; Cake topper and birthday board: Creators Lane NZ, creatorslane.co.nz; Photographer: Mishaela Wallan, @thecreativemish.

Daydream Society Flora Tableware Collection, from $13 NZD, daydreamsociety.com, Citta Amano Cushion Cover in biscuit/tea, $79.90, and Cotton Velvet Cushion Cover in pecan, $54.90, cittadesign.com; Jamie Kay Organic Cotton Muslin Eleanor Top in mauve shadow, $49.99, jamiekay.co.nz; Meri Meri Flower Napkins 16pk, $17.99, and Meri Meri Pastel Flower Wall, $145, both from soflo.co.nz; With Love For Kids Bell Bottoms, $32.44 NZD, theiconic.co.nz; Milk x Soda Sunglasses in poppy white, $36.50, and Sunglass Strap in flowers, $14.50, littlewhimsy.co.nz; Pretty Brave London Boot in peony, $120, littletrooper.co.nz; Avalon Sunshine 'Two groovy' cake topper, $26.77 NZD, avalonsunshinehq.com.