Is it really summer without having a splash in the pool? One of the best ways to beat the summer heat is by jumping right into the cool refreshing water, and if you happen to have a birthday in the summer or know someone who does, why not make a party of it! At Ellie and Piper, we can all agree that pool parties are one of the best kinds of parties.

We’re featuring two ways to throw the best pool party in town! Even the littlest babies love to take a dip in the pool, and two of our loyal Ellie and Piper party lovers threw amazing pool parties for their one-year-olds. Sierra, Grey’s mama, a motherhood blogger and creator, and Ridge’s mom Meghan who partnered with Lisa, the owner of Modern Party Company, both threw their sons “The Big One” themed pool parties for their first birthdays. Both parties had different variations on the overall theme, but each looked like an amazingly good time.

Pool Party Themed Party Supplies

No party is complete without balloons, and both Sierra and Lisa went all out during their party planning in the balloon department. For Grey’s party, Sierra went with a tropical, surfer pool party theme. She chose fun, bright colors like orange, red, and yellow and incorporated them into the various blues in her balloon garland. Meanwhile, Lisa dressed up Meghan’s backyard in varying pastel blues and ivory to recreate cool, calming ocean waves. Both parties had balloon garlands just about everywhere, decorating every available pillar and awning to really set the vibe.

With their balloons and color schemes chosen, it was time to set up the rest of the party! For Sierra, she honed in on the tropical side of her party theme. Tropical leaves in beautiful blue-green hues were everywhere - on the walls, tucked throughout the food platters, and even tied onto her birthday presents for Grey. You can even add our Fiesta Palm Leaf Garlands for your own party to crank up the tropical feel. Above her food table, Sierra created a stunning wall display of round, woven fans with tropical leaves tucked throughout them. Beneath it, she hung overlapping rows of navy blue and teal rosettes while sky blue and orange rosettes hung around the rest of the party. 

More leaves were arranged in a woven vase on the food table that Sierra had covered with a burnt orange striped tablecloth. She decided on a buffet-style meal for her guests and set up delicious fruits and mouth-watering finger foods on white platters. This included a platter of the most adorable arrangement of custom cookies made just for Grey. Our Rectangular Palm Leaf Serving Platters would also be a great option that would fit perfectly with Sierra’s theme. The custom teal, surfboard-shaped “The Big One” sign and the wooden surfboards with a photo montage of Grey’s first year were the finishing touches for her tablescape.

For Ridge’s party, Lisa and Meghan chose a more refined look for their tables. Long wooden tables were set up around the backyard pool with white chairs placed around them for guests. Each table was equipped with a long creamy white macrame table runner and a gorgeous centerpiece of green florals with dots of orange and white roses and baby’s breath for just a hint of eye-catching color. Lisa also added a blue and cream ombre felt garland to run down the table and cute little Volkswagen vans with custom decals of Ridge’s name on them.

On her table, Sierra created a tablescape fit for a tropical oasis. She started with the same orange striped tablecloths from the food tables and built from there. Her plates consisted of a faux-wood look created with our Large Natural Bamboo Fiber Plate as a charger with our Oh Happy Day Forest Green Paper Plate on top. Each plate was topped with the Meri Meri Blue Striped Napkin and a Square Palm Leaf Dessert Plate with alternating Navy Blue and Mint Fine Stripes Paper Cups and an extra Dark Teal Napkin beside them. The final touches were the custom blue and orange keychains with Grey’s name and birthday and another tropical leaf to tie into the rest of her decor.

Similar to Sierra's tablescape, Lisa and Meghan also used layered plates for their table, starting with a faux-wood charger. Layering plates is a great way to add a dynamic visual effect to your table. Our Round Palm Leaf Serving Platters would greatly add to Meghan and Lisa's table. On top of the charger plate, they stacked our Large Cream Simply Eco Paper Plate and the Oh Happy Day Sky Blue Paper Plates in the smaller 7" size. The Meri Meri Mint and Cream Napkins were fanned out beside each plate, paired with a wooden fork. Finally, a large ocean blue goblet was set beside each place setting to complete the elegant look that Megan and Lisa were aiming for.

Because parties for one-year-olds tend to be mainly adult family and friends, Meghan asked Allure & Alchemy to run a cocktail bar during the party. They were serving refreshing drinks for guests to enjoy poolside from Shag Carpet Props’ Volkswagen cocktail bar. Custom vinyl waves and surf’s up signs along with a beach bucket of super cute custom drink stirrers of Ridge riding a surfboard decorated the bar top.

Both Sierra and Meghan had similarly styled cakes for their parties. Each one, of course, was water-themed, and Sierra even had a second mini cake just for Grey that matched. Grey’s birthday cake was all white buttercream with beautiful white and blue isomalt waves splashing up one side. It was topped with a wooden topper designed with palm trees and “one” carved on a surfboard. When it came time to blow out the candle, Grey made his first birthday wish on a shark birthday candle.

Ridge’s cake was similar in style, except the wave design was on the frosting itself. A blue to ivory ombre design created a wave-like effect up the entire cake. Ridge’s custom cake topper, along with wooden waves, topped the cake to bring the design together. A blue number one candle was added before Ridge smashed into his first birthday cake.

Grey and Ridge each had such perfectly themed first birthday parties. Whether you go for the more tropical surfer vibe or an elegant ocean theme, pool parties are sure to be a blast no matter what. For more party ideas, be sure to join our Facebook group, where you can collaborate with other Ellie and Piper party lovers to create the party of your dreams!