The ulitmate, magical DIY Harry Potter party -- fun video included!

If you are a Harry Potter fan, you are going to LOVE the DIY Harry Potter party video I made. I have ideas for invites, decor, costumes, wands, activites, games, food, party favours, and MORE!!!

Find all the details in the video I made here:

Every party needs an invitation to set the stage and let guests know what to expect. For this party, I used my home printer to create an acceptance letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Of course the letter was from the head mistress of Hogwarts --  Minerva McGonagall. I rolled up the invite like a sheet of parchment, tied it with a ribbon, and added a picture of the birthday boy. So easy… but so cute!

Creating an entrance to the magical world of Harry Potter is easy, inexpensive, and fun. Grab a dollar store paper tablecloth, sponges and red paint. Then, dip the sponge in the paint and press it onto the tablecloth to create a brick. Continue the process until the entire table cloth is covered. Hang it up in a doorway, and cut a slit in the middle to allow people to walk through. You can also make a 9 3/4 platform sign from a piece of dollar store foam board. This was a BIG hit at our party!

I wanted all the guests to get the full Harry Potter experience, so I set up a “Madam Malkins Robes for all Occasions” shop. Everyone could shop for robes (which were black capes I bought on clearance after Halloween). I also had homemade glasses and ties that the kids could decorate. 

Every wizard needs a wand, so I set up an Ollivander’s wand shop for the party guests. To make cheap wands, grab a package of dowels, hot glue, and brown paint from the dollar store. Drizzle hot glue around a dowel, let dry, and paint with brown paint. Then, if desired, you can add a jewel to the bottom like I did. Pretty fun, right?

I also thought it would be fun to let the kids shop for their school supplies at Flourish and Blotts… just like the characters did in the books and movies. I made a spell book from a duotang, and filled it with a list of spells, a word search, and some Harry Potter trivia. I also made quills by hot gluing feathers to the ends of pens. It was really easy to do, and a fun takeaway from the party.

Having simple Harry Potter games to occupy party guest is key. We played freeze tag to Harry Potter music, I made a “Pin the Scar on Harry” game, I turned an old box into a Harry Potter ball toss, and I made a pinata from a balloon covered in paper mâché. The kids really loved the Hedwig pinata!

Of course themed party food is an important part of any party, and I had a lot of fun with this one. I had lots of food laid out, but the stars of the show were two easy-to-make cakes. The first cake was a quidditch cake. I started with a plain chocolate cake, and added 3 quidditch posts made from paper straws and pipe cleaners covered in black electrical tape. Then, I added a snitch made from a Fererro Rocher chocolate and parchment paper wings.

The second cake was a rectangle cake that I carved into the shape of a crest. Then, I added a lightening bolt cut from a fruit roll up, a snitch, Bernie Bott’s every flavour jelly beans, and a chocolate frog. The cakes really were easy to make, and they turned out super-cute.

I love sending guests home with a fun goodie bag, and for this party, I had the perfect idea for a party favour. I set up Honeyduke’s sweet shop, and filled it with Harry Potter themed goodies. Each guest was given a bag to fill, and a fun tag to tie the top of the bag with. Some of the items in my shop included: bernie bott’s every flavour beans, golden snitches, black liquorice wands, Mad Eye Moody’s Eyeball Gun, Remus’s werewolf fangs, chocolate frogs, and fizzing whizbees.

Have I inspired you to host a Harry Potter party? You could also just grab a few of these ideas for a fun family movie night. Make sure you check out the video here, and let me know which of these ideas is your favourite.

♥ 

Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Unique and Budget-friendly DIY Graduation Candy Bar... with free signage and tags

I love a good party DIY... and what's better than a DIY Candy Bar. Today, I'm sharing my tips and tricks for putting together a fantastic candy bar on a budget. I'm even including FREE printable signage and tags.

Take a peek at the video (below) for all the information you need to put together your own impressive and budget-friendly candy bar. Then, come back here and download the free signage and tags.

To download this sign I designed: click on the picture below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 5x7 photo.

To download this sign I designed: click on the picture below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 5x7 photo.

To download this sign I designed: click on the picture below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 8x10 photo.

To download this sign I designed: click on the picture below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 8x10 photo.

To download the tags I designed: click on the pictures below, right-click, save them to your computer, and print it like a regular 4x6 photos.

FREE "bunny tail" Treat Labels for EASTER

I love a holiday treat, and these FREE labels make it SUPER easy to create custom Easter goodies. You can use them "as is", or you can use them to mix up some holiday cocktails / mocktails.

To make the "bunny tail" treat, grab a container of cotton candy, form it into balls, put it in bags, and add the cute tag I designed.

To download the FREE tags I designed: click on the photo below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 4x6 photo.

The bunny tails can be eaten on their own, but they can also be used to make a fun cocktail. Add some 7 up to a glass, and pop in the "bunny tail". Cute, right?

Do you like a holiday cocktail / mocktail? I hope you enjoy this fun drink idea for Easter.

♥ 
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Find MORE fun Easter ideas here.

Movie Night Snack Board

Spending time together as a family is not always easy... especially when kids are busy with after school and weekend activities/sports. In our house, we try to have a "family movie night" every Friday, and it is the highlight of the week for all of us. Making it special with simple snacks adds an extra element of fun. Check out our latest movie night treat... a movie night snack board.

I started with a few of my family's favourite snacks, small bowls I had in my cupboard, and a tray from the dollar store.

I covered the tray with popcorn, inserted the bowls, and filled the bowls with candy. Soooo easy... but soooo much fun!

This movie night snack board was a definite hit at our last movie night. I think my boys are going to be looking for it next week too!

I love a charcuterie board, and I think this is a really fun "sweet and salty" version the whole family will love, don't you? I highly recommend making this movie night snack board for your next movie night. It's simple, fun, and really tasty!

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Red and White CANADA DAY Dessert Buffet

Hosting a Canada Day BBQ is a time-honoured Canada Day tradition. And, when it comes to impressing guests and having fun, it's all about keeping things simple, serving delicious food, and displaying the food in a visually appealing way. Today, I am sharing my tips, tricks, and shortcuts for creating a SIMPLE DIY Canada Day Dessert Buffet that you are going to LOVE!

One trick for ensuring a buffet table looks clean and pulled together, is to use a simple colour scheme. And for Canada day, using "red and white" is the perfect way to make the display work well for the occasion. Use a red and white checkered tablecloth, a red and white backdrop, and a variety of red and white food. (I purchased my tablecloth at the dollar store, and my backdrop is a dollar store cardboard tri-fold decorated with red duct tape.)

Chocolate dipped strawberries look impressive, but they are sooooo easy to make. Melt white baker's chocolate in the microwave (according to package directions), dip "clean and dry" strawberries in the chocolate, and place the strawberries on a piece of wax paper in the fridge to harden.

And what is more Canadian than ketchup chips? (They even sell them at the Canadian pavillion at Epcot.) Place the red chips in red and white paper containers for a polished touch.

Kit Kats in their red and white wrappers are an easy addition too!

I also love the idea of offering guest individual portions of candy. Red in white candies in condiment containers are adorable... and help with portion control.

And who wouldn't love these individual cheesecakes in jam jars? I love that you can make these ahead of time, store them in the fridge, and serve them to guests when it is time for dessert. I used a boxed cheesecake mix, divided it between three jars, and topped the jars with red fruit topping. I used cherries, but strawberries and raspberries would work too.

All the elements of this red and white dessert buffet are simple to put together, but they look wonderful when you bring them all together. This is a fun way to feed a family, but it's great for a crowd too!

If you wanted more food options, you could try this simple Canada Day flag cake.

And these Canada Day ice cream sandwiches are fun too!

Don't you love the idea of hosting a BBQ with a red and white Canada Day dessert buffet? It's a simple idea that is festive, fun, and easy to put together. Happy Canada Day!!

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

PS - These are great ideas too...