Laser Tag Party Styling

My son's birthday is in January, which means all parties are INDOORS. So far we've done a Chuckie Cheese party, a Pump-It-Up party and a Sports Complex party. This year was the Laser Tag party. I must tell you, that it is tough for me to shell out the bucks for this kind of entertainment. The DIY party giver in me feels like every party should be crafted and presented in my home at very little cost. But as my sister and I have discussed, you really don't save any money by keeping the party at home. You spend the same amount of cash AND you have to clean up twice (before and after guests). And since Oliver is the charmed third child, we are all about simplicity and the least amount of cleaning as possible!

Having a party away from your home doesn't mean it can't have some great style and incorporate some DIY crafty enhanced details! The invitation was designed to look like lasers shooting across the card. I was actually petrified to show my son the design I made. I was certain that it would not appeal to him because it didn't have guns on the invitation, which any of you mothers of boys knows that guns and other projectiles are the ultimate in cool stuff. To my great surprise, he absolutely LOVED the invitation. And he got the laser beam concept right away. *whew!*

Since the invitation was the initiation to the party theme, we kept the laser beams throughout the other party fun. I created cupcake wraps to match and added another pattern to keep things from getting too visually boring. I designed 2" round stickers to use on the cupcake toppers and on the party gifts ($1 glow necklaces) and labels for mini bottles of water. I let the laser place take care of the plates and napkins since it was included in my party package.

One really fun addition to the party materials were arm bands that said "Team Oliver". I thought they'd be dual-purpose by helping me identify the kids as they ran amok in the laser arena and add an element of team spirit. Oliver was more than happy to help me put those together.

 Here are the simple instructions:
1. I cut strips of white muslin from a past/failed sewing project and left the edges raw. I can hear my older sister's silent screams of torture right now. She's a "real" sewer and raw edges give her conniptions. But I contest that raw edges are much more primitive and rugged in this instance! The length was about 18" and the width about 4".

2. Then I printed out the design onto the iron-on transfer paper and cut out the individual pieces. Remember the design has to be printed backwards!

3. Oliver helped me iron the design onto the fabric and ho! we were finished.

Laser Cupcakes
1. The cupcakes were frosted with vanilla buttercream.

2. The laser beam design was created by first melting some white chocolate (8 chips for each color--you don't need much) and tinting the chocolate with food coloring (red, blue & green).

3. I cooled the chocolate until it was still liquid but not burning hot and put it into a zip-top sandwich sized bag. I cut a tiny hole at the corner of the bag and made sweeping motions across the tray of cupcakes. And as I usually discover in life, less is more. Keep it simple, kid!

The laser invitations are available via Pingg as both a digital e-vite and a paper option. I will also set this party theme up as a printable on my Margot Madison Creative etsy shop. You can purchase the "blanks" or pay to have me personalize with your child's name and print out the party on your own.