Ella was seriously into Toy Story prior to her second birthday. For her party, I wanted to incorporate her love of all things "Ka-bee" (or Cowboy/Woody-to non-Ella speakers), but also her love of all things fancy. Enter-Ella's Cowgirl Party! I found a pair of adorable pink cowboy boots and a pink tutu for her to wear, and I went from there with her party theme. This party has been my favorite to create, as I found a lot of great ideas, and was able to really personalize them to my taste!
Next on my to-do list was the cake. I knew I wanted a cake covered in cow spots. I decided to make a double layer 8" cake. I filled the cake with buttercream frosting made from scratch, and then frosted it in the same buttercream. (this was before I knew to fill cakes with pudding-YUM!) I tinted some of the buttercream pink, and piped that around the bottom of the cake with a star tip. Next up was the fondant. I purchased pre-made fondant and tinted it brown. I then rolled it out, and cut out cow spots with a sharp knife. I laid them carefully on the cake, and was really pleased with the way it turned out. The cake was still missing something, so I decided to make a cowboy hat, and the number 2. To make the hat, I rolled out 2 circles of pink fondant and one strip of the brown fondant. I carved a small divet into the top of a large marshmallow, and covered the marshmallow in buttercream. Then I covered it with one of the pink circles. I then placed the pink covered marshmallow on top of the other pink circle, and added the brown strip around the base of that hat. I curled up the sides of bottom circle. When I was finished, I was impressed that it actually looked like a hat! (all that time watching cake shows on TV paid off!) To accompany my cake, I made about 40 chocolate cupcakes and frosted them with pink buttercream, and topped them with brown sprinkles-cute and easy-peasy!
For decoration, I used several paper lanterns in pink and white, and hung them from tree branches with ribbons. I also made a few signs with pictures of Ella, and added some cute "cowgirl" sayings using Picasa and Picnik. My favorite sign was this one below. I blew it up to an 18x24 print, put it on foam core, and added a long dowel. I tied ribbon around it and stuck it in one my hay bales.
We used the hay bales as seating for the kids, but they made for a great place for a photo op too! We even got a picture of our pug, Jax!
In order to keep with the theme, I wanted to serve Cowboy grub. We had pulled pork sandwiches, corn on the cobb, baked beans, mac and cheese and corn bread. I ordered the pork from our grocery store, and was able to make the rest in advance, so that I was able to enjoy the party and not have to worry about the food! I also made some "smore's on a stick" using marshmallows, chocolate, graham crackers(or sometimes sprinkles) and lollipop sticks. The kids loved them! I didn't plan for any games at this party because Ella was only 2, and not into that yet. The day was beautiful, and we just enjoyed spending time with our family and friends!
-Momma of a Cowgirl, Lindsay
No comments:
Post a Comment