Preppy Turtle {Real Party}

I can’t believe my little baby girl is three, it still seems like yesterday when we came home from the hospital with this tiny, wrinkly, brand new person. As she has grown, we have come to know her as a sweet and loving little girl, with one of her greatest loves being animals. Several months ago at the Miami Zoo, we were able to watch the tortoises being fed and she was enthralled. Immediately the Lilly Pulitzer Tort Partyware line came to mind, and she and I started planning her pool birthday party. Being a graphic designer, not a party planner, I had to look for a lot of inspiration from some unbelievable party planners {and their blogs} to figure it out.  We all ended up having an wonderful time and she had an incredibly amazing day!

I illustrated her “turtle” graphic first, wanting it to coordinate with the Lilly designs, but making sure it was still original and unique. {All Party Designs available in Paper & Pigtails Shop} Second, I had to decide how to display everything at a clubhouse pool party when I couldn’t use anything breakable!!! Yes, the cake stands, apothecary jars, and lovely glass containers I see in beautiful featured parties were forbidden. Instead, I made my own cupcake stands out of plastic trays and upside down cups, and scoured stores for pretty and modern BPA-free plastic serving pieces! How do you think it turned out?

How cute are these pink and green taffy wands from Kate Landers Events?

The donuts were a HUGE hit! The birthday party started at 10am {good toddler time} so having donuts and Cheerios in cupcake liners and snack cups was essential and greatly appreciated by sugar hungry toddlers.

The sweets table was modern, clean, bright and full of snacks for kids of all ages! The donuts and cherrios for earlier, the Taffy Wands {from Kate Landers Events} and Turtle Suckers {from Melville Candies} were take home treats, along with the gumballs that the kids put in little baggies to take home.

We love these old fashioned paper straws and had fun dressing them up with our DIY straw flags!

My daughter and I made these sweet streamers with extra party material and we had so much fun doing them together! I will post how later this week {easiest project ever!}.

Pinwheels set the stage for fun on the kids table! I made arrangements using the big Lilly Pulitzer Tort pinwheels and custom made amazing white pinwheels from Twirlie Whirlies that were set into the most “kid AND eco-friendly” vases – BlumeBoxes!

Each child had a lunch box customized with a sticker and filled with a sandwich, chips, and a green apple.

Of course, the biggest hit of the party was the pool and splash area, which we filled with these sweet turtle rafts! They were loved by not only the kids at the party, but also the kids enjoying the day at the club pool with their families!

As the cake came out, the kids started gathering around….

Could that fondant turtle be ANY CUTER? Custom made by Two Sugar Babies to match the invite. The birthday girl loved every moment.

{Stunning Photography Courtesy of Courtney Vickers Photography}

Seeing her face full of excitement and pride in front of her table, was my favorite moment of the day. Happy Birthday Baby Girl, I hope your party was everything that made you smile!

One of the best highlights of planning this party, was meeting and working with some truly AMAZING vendors who made this entire experience so much more. Huge thanks to the Amazing Help I had with this party!

Kate Landers Events – Taffy Wands {and party inspiration}

Custom White on White Pinwheels – Twirlie Whirlies

Fondant Cake and Cupcake Toppers – Two Sugar Babies

Sweet Turtle Sugar Cookies {even had a glittery flower}  –  Sugar and Flour

Custom Table Runner and Turtle Plushies – Georgia Grace Designs

Turtle Pops – Melville Candy Company

Lilly Pulitzer Plates, Napkins, and Paper Straws – Modern Lola

White Kids Vases – BlumeBox

Lunch Boxes – Bake it Pretty

0 thoughts on “Preppy Turtle {Real Party}”

  1. Kori, These photos are BEAUTIFUL! They truly capture the essence of the party! And, yum, seeing the pics of all the sweets is making me very hungry! I have to say that the fondant turtles on the cupcakes were the most delectable things I have consumed in a long time! 🙂

    Thank you for having us be part of that celebration!!

  2. A-mazing! Love it SO much! Where in the world did you find pink chairs!? They match perfectly. i LOVE the donuts served up in the cupcake liners! VERY cute. And toddler friendly. I also love the striped sandwich bags included in the kids boxes! So adorable. The details are darling…you really did a super fabulous job Kori! LOVE it all!!! Sharing on my facebook fan page…SO cute!!

  3. I’ve been waiting to see this adorable party since I first saw the sneak peek! It was worth the wait;o) Donuts are always a hit~ even better in cupcake liners! Love~ Love~ Love Two Sugar Babies, and the little lunch boxes. Love it all;o)

  4. Oh wow, I love everything about this party! The streamers, the turtle with bling, the pinwheels, the colors, the way you displayed everything. It’s all perfect. And your daughter is ADORABLE!!! Congrats!

  5. Absolute perfection. I love the fondant turtles & the stuffed/fabric turtles. The Cheerio presentation is adorable. You know I am the number one fan of donuts:) The pinwheels are just precious. Beautiful, inspiring, and total perfection:)

  6. Sorry I couldn’t make it-the party looked way better than Vegas!! You know Lilly would’ve totally been on that raft with Julia and Charlotte!! LOL You know I’m a fan of anything Lilly Pulitzer…not to mention, pink and green! Great Job 🙂

  7. Everything looked so beautiful!!! I love the color combo and all the details. You had tons of fantastic ideas. I was wondering about the pink chairs too and that BEAUTIFUL brooch on top of the turtle. Great job!

    BTW: This is my firs time visiting your blog! 🙂

  8. Oh my goodness, it’s just so so scrumptious! You seem like a party planner to me! Love the colors and all of the details, especially the fabric turtle and the turtle cake topper. And also LOVE it because I had a TURTLE THEMED birthday for my son a few months ago. It’s so cute to see the theme used in a girly way. Would love to share your pics on my site and would love love to get your comments on my turtle party. Visit here: http://lovepartydetails.blogspot.com/search/label/Birthday%20Party%3A%20Turtle

    Great stuff!

    Omae @ Love is in the Details

  9. Been seeing this all over Twitter and now with my computer is back I’m seeing what all the fuss is! Love it, love it, awesome job mama!

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  12. Thank you so very very much to everyone for looking and commenting on my daughters party!!! I am completely overwhelmed with the sweet responses I have received! I gather inspiration from so many of you everyday and it’s just an honor for you to take the time to look at it! Thank you again!

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