How to Throw a Cool Frozen Party

The birthday girl (Sources: Anna costume available here); plastic icicles via Amazon

Our living room dressed up for the party. My brother--who works in the lighting industry--rigged up the blue lights. Gave the room a very cool, chilly feel, huh?

My parents made these adorable foam head pieces for the (kid) guests. We got the idea for them here.

I set out little bowls of powdered sugar donuts, mini chocolate chips, and dried apricots (that I had cut into carrot-like shapes), so that kids could "build a snowman." (Idea was inspired by the post here.)

 

My mom made this cake--even the blue candy "ice" shards!) Isn't it awesome? Fun facts: The inside is actually blue, and the Frozen figures are toys. Find them here. (We got the idea from this pin.) Snowflake tablecloth via Amazon.

When it was time for dessert, each kid got a cupcake (from Sweet in Hoboken, NJ) topped with a cute little 3D snowman topper (via Amazon), and--my piece de resistance--snowman milk bottles that I made myself inspired by this pin. Sources: plastic milk bottles from Amazon, wire ribbon from Amazon (hint: ribbon with wire in it makes it easier to form a scarf-like shape), straws from GlitterDaisyShop; top hats were printables via Pink Peppermint Prints)

"Anna," "Elsa," and the birthday girl (The characters are from Bella Princess. My daughter totally loved them, and--once they finally arrived!--they were great with her. Before they left, she invited them back for a "playdate.")

Mom and the birthday girl's little bro I considered dressing him in a snowman costume, but came (halfway) to my senses and put him in jeans and a snowman tee shirt instead. On me: Sweater, J.Crew; necklace, J.Crew (old); jeans, Rag & Bone.

The favors: Frozen Little Golden Book (via Amazon); bubble bath snowball (via SunKidGifts on Etsy); Frozen stickers; blue and silver candy (you can buy colored M&Ms in bulk--or be a masochist like me and buy some jumbo bags of Easter M&Ms and then hand-separate the baby blues and lavenders); personalized "Thanks snow much!" labels (via Offspring Trends on Etsy). Everything was tied up with snowflake ribbon (via Amazon).

While my work/social media/blog life typically revolves around beauty and fashion, I have another side. And that is a side that loves throwing parties. Specifically, I love me a theme party. Give me a theme (and a few hours on Pinterest) and I can go a little crazy. (Some might say a little overboard?) So when my daughter decided she wanted a Frozen party for her fourth birthday, I went to town. And since the prep for it pretty much consumed my life for weeks (!), I can't let the moment pass without sharing it here. If you have your own little Elsa/Anna/Olaf fan at home, here are a few things that worked for our party and might help you with yours. And if you don't, well...the photos are cute, right?

1) Get creative when searching for wintery stuff. If you have a kid with a November, December, or January birthday, you're going to be golden since that's when all the Christmas decorations are going to be available in full force. With a March birthday, I was a bit more limited, but there was still a ton out there. I got almost everything on Amazon and Etsy, and had the best luck when I searched for terms like snowflake, frozen, snowman, or winter wonderland. Most things weren't specifically official Frozen merchandise, but who cares? (I prefer that. Generic snowflake and wintery items will make your party look cooler, less cookie-cutter.)

2) Create a wintery playlist. We made one with songs from the Frozen soundtrack, as well as a few tunes with a "cold" theme, so that it was a good mix of kid music and stuff that wouldn't drive adults crazy. Besides the Frozen music, our playlist included songs like Cold as Ice, Ice Ice Baby, Hazy Shade of Winter, Cold-Hearted--you get the picture.

3) Name your food. We served Ice Krispie Treats, Frosty Cupcakes, Not-So-Frozen Pizza Muffins, Trolls in a Blanket, Reindeer Fingers, and so on. (Thank you, thank you. I'll be here all night...) Another fun touch: We cut styrofoam balls in half to form "snowball" placecard holders and stuck the labels in those.

4) Drag out your Christmas decorations. Anything that's more silvery/icy-colored (and less red/green blatant Christmas-y) will work. I hung blue and white glass snowmen from my chandelier and sconces, put white faux trees and a silver star tree topper on the mantle, wrapped a crystal-y garland around the banister, and so on.

5) Plan some Frozen games. We had booked "Elsa" and "Anna" to come to lead a show, but they got stuck in traffic and were over an hour late. (Eek.) Luckily we had a few Frozen-themed activities to pass the time. Kids could build a snowman donut, play pin the nose on Olaf, or paint snowflake designs on black construction paper (FYI, equal parts epsom salts and water creates a crystallized snowflake effect when it dries. I got that idea here.) But the biggest hit? This Indoor Snowball Fight set. The squishy balls look--and feel--very similar to (non-cold) snow, and since they're balls that you're actually allowed to throw in the house (and at each other) the kids went completely nuts for them. 

6) Stay cool. The day before 40-plus people show up to your house for the Frozen party that you have been planning for two months, your kid will inevitably tell you that she actually wants a My Little Pony party. In this situation, try not to lose it. To borrow a phrase from Elsa (and, well, Adele Nazeem), let it go. Or better yet, drink some wine. 

By Alyssa Hertzig