Pony Themed First Birthday Party

July 30, 2023 Carolina Villarreal

Photography by Candi Noble Photography

Are you ready to saddle up for a delightful and whimsical celebration? Look no further! I recently created the perfect setting for an unforgettable birthday party that combines the charm of rustic aesthetics with the enchantment of ponies for one of my clients. Read on to see how I set up this Pony-Themed Birthday Party Picnic!

Welcome

First, I set up a welcome sign near the entrance to my client’s yard. The sign featured the guest of honor’s name, as well as a graphic of a pretty pony and gorgeous floral details in shades of pink. It was set on an easel stand, and surrounded by a bubbly pastel balloon garland. Balloons make such a big impact on the look and feel of a party, and I wanted to greet guests with a touch of whimsy from the get-go.

Decor

Inside the yard, it was time to go big. Besides balloon garlands, one of my favorite elements to decorate a party with are giant marquee letters or numbers. In this case, we used them to spell out ONE - the age of the birthday girl! To make it stand out even further, I added another balloon garland - this one with splashes of faux florals throughout for a bit more embellishment.

Then, on each of the tables, I set out some lovely floral and greenery arrangements in pastel hues to match the party’s color scheme and feel. Simple glass jars are a classy choice of vase that keeps the focus on the flowers.

For the low picnic table seating, I used three glass mason jars to create a line of flowers down the middle of the table. I added a few taller faux flowers to these for a bit more height and a rustic meadow feel. Can’t you just picture a pony grazing in a flowery meadow?!

Entertainment

Because this party was for young children, I knew I needed to create spaces for them to play and get their energy out while parents enjoyed gathering and celebrating. First, we brought in a white bounce castle, and decorated it with a couple of balloon garlands. The bigger balloon garland on the castle was such a show-stopper! I love how it blends the party colors in various sizes for an organic feel.

In front of the bounce castle, we set up a play mat with a ball pit, slide, and various climbing and riding toys for the children to play with. We kept these neutral colored so as not to distract from the party’s color scheme with bright primary colors.

Then, we set up a couple of small play tents on rugs near the picnic table and filled them with cozy pillows. These provide the perfect place for children to get away from the group for a bit when needed - their own comfy relaxation zones! We decorated one with another balloon garland, and the other with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers.

Food & Drink

For this party, the food became part of the decor! The food table was covered with a staggering array of charcuterie meats, cheeses, breads, fruits and more. It’s almost as fun to look at as it is to eat! Adding some greenery and florals throughout the food really helps to add visual intrigue and tie this table to the rest of the party.

In addition to the charcuterie, we had a variety of delicious appetizers served.

For drinks, we created a cute signature cocktail - “Pen’s Pony Tail”. We presented it with a sign matching the party’s welcome sign for a cohesive look.

Birthday Cakes & Desserts

Next, my favorite part of any party - the desserts. I just love setting up a beautiful dessert station to showcase sweet treats - it’s the part of the party I can really indulge in my desire to decorate and guests can indulge in their desire for sweets! For this pony-themed party, I used three rustic pieces of furniture to hold a variety of desserts.

First, white painted wooden ladder. On the top step, I placed a cake stand with some mini pies and a caramel apple tied with a pretty brown bow. On the back shelf of the ladder, I stacked a couple of small pink decorative suitcases and added a stand with individually wrapped, gorgeously decorated sugar cookies on top. These are perfect for guests to either enjoy during the celebration, or to take home as party favors.

Then, in the middle of the dessert area, I placed a vintage pink dresser. This provided a couple of places to put desserts. On top, I placed the two birthday cakes front and center - a gorgeous iridescent pink main cake with a pony topper, and a cute smash cake for the birthday girl with a “1” topper.

I love the ribbon frosting detail and the fondant name plaque on the main cake. But the tiny rose buds on the smash cake have my heart! So sweet. I also placed a couple of bowls of colorful macarons on the top of the dresser to take up a bit more of the space and add dimension.

Then, I opened the first drawer of the dresser to provide more space for sweet treats! I placed more individually wrapped cookie favors into treat stands to give them enough height to not get buried inside the drawer.

Finally, I used a rustic push cart to hold the last of the sweets in the dessert station: more caramel apples adorned with brown ribbon, and a plate of pony party-themed cookies - unwrapped for easy eating! To decorate the cart a bit more, I added a watering can filled with faux meadow flowers. This also helped the dessert station tie perfectly with the picnic table setting.

I loved setting this party up, and that the client allowed us to play with the pony theme without going too over-the-top with it. The result was a tasteful celebration where rustic elegance meets pony-inspired accents.

What do you think of this pony-themed birthday party picnic? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

And if you’re in the Austin area and want some help planning or styling a celebration, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

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