Planning a party can be fun, but it can also be incredibly overwhelming! Figuring out the theme, guest list, invitations, food, decor, activities, favors…it can get stressful when thinking about all that goes into a party. But with each of those party-planning aspects comes an opportunity to make environmentally-conscious choices. An added benefit to making those choices is that they can end up saving you money! When I was planning my baby’s first birthday party, I knew I wanted to make it as sustainable as possible. I succeeded in some areas, and could definitely improve in others, so I wanted to share my experience with anyone who might want to make their next bash a little more eco-friendly!

Skip the Balloons

One of the most popular party decorations are balloons, but they are harmful to the environment. According to ENCenter.org:

All released balloons, whether they are released intentionally or not, return to Earth as ugly litter – including those marketed as “biodegradable latex”. Balloons kill countless animals and cause dangerous power outages. They can travel thousands of miles and pollute the most remote and pristine places. Balloons return to the land and sea where they can be mistaken for food and eaten by animals. Sea turtles, dolphins, whales, fish and birds have been reported with balloons in their stomachs and ribbons and strings can lead to entanglement, causing death.

Even if they aren’t being released, they take a really long time to break down even if they are properly disposed of. Mylar balloons take even longer than latex to break down, though the one upside to them is that if you deflate them (using a straw), so you can re-inflate them again if stored properly.

There are plenty of alternative ways to add color to your party without balloons! I knew I wanted to have one main focal point that worked as a background for photos. I made this rainbow backdrop in two separate layers, and it took quite a while but it made a big impact! I used a paper cutter to punch out hearts and sewed them together in columns, then I sewed them all together at the top. I ordered ribbon in coordinating colors and cut them to be the same length as the heart columns, then sewed them all together at the top. I ended up with two layers that I attached only once I set it up at my parent’s house, where the party was being held.

I chose ribbon because I knew I could re-use it (it’s perfect for wrapping Poshmark packages!) and paper can be recycled, though colored paper and small pieces may not be accepted in every facility. The paper hearts would also be great for Valentine’s Day! I actually ended up really loving the finished product of the backdrop so much that instead of repurposing it, I plan to use it for other future festivities. When it has run it’s course, I know it won’t go right into the landfill.

Wren’s high chair tray decorations were a miniature version of the rainbow heart backdrop. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

My mom got crafty with tissue paper and turned them into giant flowers, using wooden sticks as the stems. She made miniature ones to go on the tables too!

Ditch Plastic Party Favors

While party favors aren’t a necessity, if you do choose to offer them for your guests, don’t waste your time on plastic junk that will likely get thrown out after a day or two. I saw these Waldorf ribbon toys on Pinterest and thought they’d make a good parting gift for the babies coming to our party. I ordered wooden rings that were pre-oiled so they won’t crack, and saved money by ordering “seconds” aka items that had small discolorations in the wood or weren’t perfect since I was covering them with ribbon anyway.

I ordered ribbon in a rainbow of colors, cut them up and tied them on the rings. Super easy and if you have older kids, you could definitely have them help make these! I’ve gotten great reviews from parents that their kids love these favors, and pets also seem to enjoy them too. We repurposed a donut wall hanger so that these favors could double as decor!

Close up of the handmade Waldorf ribbon toy. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

Borrowed ball pit & balls and musical instruments for babies to play with. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

Mini cupcakes on top of a repurposed cake stand, topped with rainbow heart cutouts. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

Borrow Items from Friends & Repurpose Household Items

Ask around and see if your friends have anything you can use for the party. It saves you money and it’s kinder to the environment than purchasing something new. For our party we borrowed a gorgeous rainbow tablecloth from Carrie Colbert (who had an amazing rainbow-themed party for her daughter’s first birthday!), a kiddie pool from another friend, and balls to fill the pool from another. We added some musical instruments that we had at our house and the kids loved it! For activities, babies don’t need much to be entertained, so keep it simple.

Rainbow tablecloth from Carrie Colbert, topped with rainbow food on repurposed cake stands and glass bowls and plates. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

My mom borrowed some placards from her office to display signs for the guest book and party favors, and we re-used the dessert stands from my wedding and my sister’s wedding for the food. The donut wall from my sister’s wedding was perfect for displaying the party favors. The guest book is a story book we found online that happened to feature a character with the same name as our baby. I recommend using a story book as a guest book (as opposed to a traditional guest book composed only of blank pages), because everytime it is read, you get the bonus of reading kind messages left by party-goers and talking about the people who attended the party!

We also brought some of our wooden rainbow toys to use as decor for the party (seen on the photo table and on the food table). These doubled as toys for the babies! For more decor, we printed out the monthly photos we took, and made shadow boxes that we use as decor in our home now that list some memories and favorites from the first year.

Monthly photos with wooden rainbow toy as decor in the background. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

Rainbow food on rainbow tablecloth with wooden rainbow in the background. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

Vegan smash cake with rainbow heart sprinkles. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

Repurposed vase stuffed with tissue and filled with lollipops (which double as another party favor!). Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography

Even your attire can be borrowed or thrifted! We found this denim jacket at a thrift shop and added a custom name patch to the back, and it was the perfect way to tie in the theme and make it wearable for a long time.

Thrifted denim jacket with custom name patch. Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography.

Save trees by using electronic invitations

For our invitations, we opted out of mailing physical invites. There are a few options online for e-invitations including Evite, Paperless Post and Punchbowl. They have features including letting you know when someone has opened the invite, RSVP’d, allows them to mark how many adults/children are coming, and reminds guests to RSVP as well as attend the event (with periodic reminders sent out leading up to the event). You can choose from a pre-made design or upload your own. I used Canva to upload my own design as I couldn’t find one I really loved, and it was really easy. There are also options for adding a gift registry and you can set up polls for things like dietary requests/meal selections.

We requested no gifts (we already have so much, and it can be awkward to request only sustainably/ethically made gifts), but added the option for people to donate used toys, books and clothes to the non-profit agency where I work. It was a win-win solution, as many attendees had children who had outgrown infant items and these were taking up space in their homes, and gave them an opportunity to support a great cause while also extending the life of these items!

Serve Plant-Based Food

Oreos are an easy vegan treat to serve, as they are naturally free of animal products! Photo credit Hannah Meluch Photography

There are so many delicious treats you can prepare and/or purchase for a birthday party that don’t include animal products. Cakes are especially easy to veganize! There are lots of milk, butter and egg substitutes out there, and I promise no one will know the difference. Many babies have allergies, so having dairy-free options at birthday parties will be appreciated by many! We had our party in the late morning, so instead of serving a traditional meal we offered a plethora of sweets and snacks. Rainbow fruit skewers are an easy way to add lots of color & nutrition (for adults, as babies can’t have whole grapes and the skewers themselves can be dangerous). Not everything we served was vegan, so we made sure to communicate to guests what foods were and were not vegan.

Every Little Change Adds Up

There are many things I could have done to be more sustainable with this party. Some of the tablecloths were made of plastic and purchased on Amazon (though I did reuse these as much as possible before having to throw away), not all types of paper/tissue paper can be recycled, not all of the food was plant-based, and some items were purchased new. But the main point I hope you take away is that every eco-friendly choice adds up, and that there are lots of different areas where you can make those choices so that they fit with your lifestyle. Even if you only borrow one item instead of purchasing it new, or only use electronic invitations instead of paper, or only swap one dairy food item with a vegan version, you’re doing your part in protecting the environment!