How to Plan a Creative Colour-Themed Birthday Party

It’ll happen: The birthday child will exclaim “I want a yellow party!” or “Can my birthday be purple?” Before you even think about waving a white flag, take a look at our easy ideas for planning a colour-themed party. 

Yellow. They picked yellow. Mustard and bananas for everyone and call it a day? Not so fast. With a little creativity, any colour of the rainbow can easily become the basis of your next celebration. Plus, imagine a world free of trademarks and copyrights and the price tags to go with them! No bargain-hunting for knock off Teenage Mutant Fighting Reptiles for you this year.  Construction paper and food colouring can go a long way for a colour-themed party, where “it was all yellow.” (C’mon, name the band.) 

Entertainment and Activity Ideas 

Scroll to the age of your party guests and give some of these activities a whirl.

Toddler/Preschool: Slap down some newspaper and break out the paint (shades of the theme colours only, of course). Make it an art show with a colour-themed prize and have the kids pick a winner. Cake or cupcake decorating could be off your plate and onto theirs as well, and this could work for any age group, based on how much mess you’re willing to clean up later.

Middle Childhood: who doesn’t love a good pinata? Stick to the palette of choice for the pinata itself but for the inner bounty as well. (Yellow party goodies could include lemon lifesavers, Oh Henry bars (if nuts are okay), Mike and Ikes, etc.)  A balloon, some coloured tissue paper, water and flour paste and a couple of days of drying time are all you need. Note to self: It gets destroyed anyways, nobody remembers what it looked like. Take this example and either work with one balloon, or use two and join them together.

Young Teen/Teenager: Break out tie-dye packets in the chosen shade and couple them with inexpensive white, cotton T-shirts. Show them how to prepare their shirts for different designs with shirt folding methods and elastic placement. The beauty part is, the shirt doubles as a party favour. This doesn’t need to be limited to shirts, either; there are lots of creative ways to have fun with tie-dye.

What to Serve at a Colour-Themed Birthday Party 

This one is contingent on the colour selection, but the options are endless. Fruits and veggies come in every colour of the rainbow. A few drops of food colouring can help turn any grilled cheese, pizza crust, cake or cupcake into the theme colour. Bulk food stores have good selections of colour-specific treats, and hopefully ice cream comes naturally in the colour of choice. Add napkins, paper plates, cups and utensils of a similar shade and you’re all set.

Loot Bag Ideas 

If your theme colour is popular enough, grab some markers or highlighters from a office supply story. You may need to search out an art store if anything out of the ordinary is needed. Hair accessories, socks and other basic items kids love can be easily sourced. Throw a few candies or toys that match the scheme. =

Extra Tips and Tricks 

This theme can be so much fun! Find some silly songs that match the colour and make a party playlist. Smart LED lightbulbs that change colour can help turn any room into the place to be. Cut out some numbers that reflect the age of the birthday kid from coloured construction paper and plaster your walls with them (11 is a great age for this—good luck if your kid is turning 8!). 

Looking for more tips, tricks, ideas and recipes to plan the perfect party? Check out our birthday hub.