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Parties in Wonderland

A Very Merry Unbirthday Celebration in a Mad World

By Heather FosterPublished 3 years ago 4 min read
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Collage of photos capturing the props we made for my daughter’s 9th birthday party

My mom likes to tell the story of me as a toddler, proudly explaining my art. I had apparently used the entirety of a purple crayon, just filling the page. I named it “Real Purple” which was my favorite color through much of my childhood. She would display my artwork on the refrigerator, like most moms do. But she also framed a lot of it. I can recall vividly, the finger painting that hung high above the cabinets in the kitchen with the vaulted ceilings. It was matted, behind glass and hung with loving pride for all to see. My great uncle Seymour painted incredibly, using oil pastels. His art was also displayed around our home. In seeing my own artwork displayed, similar to his, I couldn’t help but feel like this meant I was also an artist. My mother always encouraged my creativity which is probably why an adult, I still enjoy drawing, painting, scrapbooking, bedazzling, singing, dancing and writing. Of course, I still enjoy purple. Now as a mother, I also love sharing my appreciation for arts and crafts. It is rewarding to show my children how you can make something incredible using just your mind and a few simple supplies. It is also quite beneficial to be able to make something rather than to buy it.

Party planning is also a form of creativity I enjoy and I find it is a fun way to share with many people at once. My own children have had themed and well-decorated birthday parties since before they could remember. On several occasions I have made cut-outs for the party-goers to use as photo props. One year we had a mermaid themed pool party and I painted a gaggle of mermaids on a piece of cardboard and even the moms wanted to stop for the photo op.

This past year was a strange one. Covid-19 threatened to cancel my daughter’s 9th birthday party. Many people opted for doing the drive-by parties and that is what I was leaning towards until it occurred to me to use the strangeness in our favor. What is a more appropriate theme for a world that has gone mad than Alice in Wonderland? We set up socially distant crafting stations in the backyard using cloth-covered TV trays and each of my daughter’s friends had their own set of supplies. The main activity was to bedazzle a pack of facemasks. This also served as one of the party favors and it was big hit with the children and their parents.

Since the party was in the yard, I wanted to give the overwhelming impression that they were in a bit of a Wonderland. I wanted these girls to feel like they had traveled here to the tea party the same way Alice had and were surrounded by magic. It was a lot of space to cover. I bought pom-poms and lanterns, streamers to hang from the trees for an enchanted effect but that was not going to be enough. We needed to fill the space with the characters too. Originally, I was looking to buy them, for the sake of time. I am a mother of two kids and I also work full time so I try not to bite off more than I can chew. However, when I found the White Rabbit on Etsy, he was $45 and well, with the number of characters I wanted, these were going to cost us a pretty penny if we went that route. So, I decided, why buy from another artist, when I can just be one? I decided I would just draw and paint them myself. I started with the White Rabbit, just to see if I could pull it off. After he was painted on poster board, I cut him out with my scissors and backed him with cardboard using rubber cement so he could stand.

The children were excited and inspired by him and wanted to be involved. We continued with making the Cheshire Cat (my favorite, because, purple), the Queen of Hearts, the Mad Hatter, and a few cards, which my children were happy to help paint. When they were all cut and mounted, we decorated the yard with them. The party goers came, masked, for their unusual, CDC approved, outdoor event, and everyone marveled at the job we did. My daughter said it was her favorite party ever. I like to think it had a lot to do with the fact she got take some credit for helping with the artwork.

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About the Creator

Heather Foster

For me, writing is just something I enjoy doing. I have written a novel and I am in the process of getting it published. Follow my on Instagram - @BottledFirefliesNovel

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