Practical Joke Party

My daughter always keeps me on my toes requesting unique birthday themes, and this year was no exception when she asked for a practical joke birthday party. Reese is a bit of a prankster and her infectious giggles fill this house, so I wasn’t surprised by her request at all and knew it would be a fun theme and party!

She invited six good friends over for her first ever slumber party, and there were giggles and happy laughs all night long. You couldn’t ask for a better eighth birthday!

PRINTABLES

The first step was to design an invitation. When I asked her what kind of graphic she wanted on her invitation, she told me a whoopee cushion. You want a WHAT?!?! She insisted, so I crossed my fingers that parents would find it funny rather than tacky. I contacted my friend Kori of Kori Clark Design to help with the illustrations and she blew us away with some awesome graphics I used on the invitation. She’s pretty amazing.

Once I created the invitation, we put them in small boxes with a $1 gag from U.S. Toy. We hand delivered the invitations for an extra special touch and so I could meet the parents since I didn’t know all of them prior.

I also created favor tags, food flags and a fun cake topper shaped like a whoopee cushion to compliment our invitation.

FOOD

My daughter had very strong opinions on what she wanted to eat. We put our heads together and enlisted the help of some friends to create a fun dessert table with some of her favorite foods to share with her friends.

The cake is a Chantilly Cake from Whole Foods. It is stuffed with berries and is the birthday girl’s favorite! I created a whoopee cushion topper with the number “8″ and added a couple of gag flies as an extra surprise.

One of Reese’s favorite gags is Snakes in a Can, so I somehow wanted to recreate that. I thought churros kind of looked like snakes (maybe?), so I saved an aluminum can, made a printable that said Reese’s Fancy Mixed Nuts, wrapped it around the can and stuffed it with churros like they were springing out of the can.

My friend Brittany of Edible Details helped out with some pretty awesome fondant toppers. My daughter loves fondant, and Brittany has been a part of every birthday celebration. How cute are these chickens, right? (Don’t worry, the fly is just another gag.) I put them on top of store-bought chocolate cupcakes form Whole Foods.

Linda of Frog Prince Cake and Cookie Design made the cutest little whoopee cushion cookies. The polka dots were so adorable! I put them in the favor bags, but I confess I hated to give them away. I really wanted to hide them and keep them for myself. They were so cute!

Another of Reese’s favorite gags is Rattlesnake Eggs. Apothecary jars were filled with SweetWorks gumballs, and one of her gags was used as a food label.

Whoopie Pies are a favorite around here, and I try to sneak them in any way I can. I made strawberry whoopie pies (or known in this party as “Whoopee Pies”) and rolled them in sprinkles. I stuck in a few food flags I made and a couple of fake flies. Our guests were definitely surprised when they saw the flies!

Krista of Cookies With Character is an amazing artist, and Reese loves her cookies. Krista always makes a special cookie just for the birthday child, and it is one of Reese’s favorite birthday traditions. Krista did a great job matching the invitation!

DECOR

For decor, I repurposed lots of props and cake stands from around the house, and used Reese's collection of gags. Snakes in a can, chattering teeth, a rubber chicken, and a vintage soda pop crate all served a purpose as decor. I'm still not sure why a rubber chicken is a classic practical joke, but it isn't unusual in this house to find that a mischievous person has stuffed a rubber chicken in your purse or sock drawer. It gives us the giggles and made the party more meaningful to us.

For the table, I purchased some Felt-fetti from Shop Sweet Lulu to add some extra color. I then used scrap book paper in similar colors to make a polka dots backdrop on the wall for some fun and to match the plates and favor bags. I also created the banner to match her invitation and hung it directly behind the cake.

Shauna of Cupcake With Character made me the tablecloth for another party, and I love using it every chance I get. It’s so pretty!

PARTY FAVORS

I put together some fun party favors for our guests in those cute polka dot Toot Sweet Party Bags. I created a whoopee cushion favor tag tied on with twine and stuffed the bags with a whoopee cushion, a cute cookie from Frog Prince Cake and Cookie Design, a squirt ring, snapping gum or chattering teeth, a pair of disguise glasses, and some candy. The kids loved them!

I put the favor bags on top of a vintage trunk along with an art print I picked up at a flea market. I just loved the retro face and thought the quote “If it’s not fun, I don’t do it!” was kind of fitting. I also put a few gags on the table—bug ice cubes and disguise glasses.

Vendor Credits:
- Printables, Styling and Photography | Three Little Monkeys Studio
- Practical joke illustrations | Kori Clark Design
- $1 Practical Jokes and Snakes in a Can| U.S. Toy
- Fondant cupcake toppers | Edible Details
- Chantilly Cake and Cupcakes | Whole Foods
- Churros | Costco
- Gumballs | SweetWorks
- Whoopee Cushion Cookies | Frog Prince Cake and Cookie Design
- Toot Sweet Plates, Napkins and Party Bags, Felt-fetti, and Long Tall Sally Soda Pop Straws | Shop Sweet Lulu
- Practical Joke Sugar Cookies | Cookies With Character
- Ruffled Tablecloth | Cupcake With Character