Planning your child’s birthday party takes serious skill. Not only are you taking on a sugar-fuelled army of kiddos, but dealing with the venue, food, entertainer, and *gasp* other parents, can leave you feeling deflated and stressed on a day that should be special. Not to mention your own little angel, who may or may not choose to behave themselves on the day.

Keen to minimise any hassle and maximise fun for everyone involved? 

Our entertainers have compiled together their knowledge from many years of experiencing the good, the bad, and the surprisingly calm children’s parties, to give you 10 top tips to help you make the most out of your little one’s big day.

Please do pass our words of wisdom on to other parents you know – we’ve got to stick together!

1. Say Goodbye to the ‘Whole Class Invitation’

The first step of planning your child’s birthday party is deciding numbers, and though they may want their whole class of 40 children attending (more presents!), realistically this is a recipe for disaster. Don’t be guilt-tripped by the dreaded ‘payback’ invite (“our kid got an invite to their party, so now we have to invite their kids”); not only will this skyrocket the price for you, but the entertainer’s attention will be spread too thin, meaning less fun all round. For this reason, we recommend 25 children or less. HuffPost’s not being invited to parties builds resilience is a great read for more information on this.

2. Entertainment Comes First

While we’re on the subject of entertainers, booking your entertainer BEFORE the venue is a great idea! A hall is just a hall at the end of the day, but a well-chosen entertainer makes the party. Click HERE to book one of our fabulous entertainers. 

3. Pre-Cut the Cake

Cutting the birthday cake before the party for the party bags, or alternatively providing cupcakes, saves a lot of time, mess, and hassle. Do you really want to miss the last 15 minutes of your child’s special day cutting up cake and missing the magical memories?

4. Make your Party Bags Practical

Why spend money on tat that you know the children will never use just to fill a party bag? Get creative – small story books and arts and crafts are great, affordable and most importantly usable options to entertain children and parents alike!

5. Caffeine is NOT the Answer

Although the day may prompt all the parents to want a caffeine kick, running around like a headless chicken at the start of the party, trying to remember who wants sugar and who wants soya milk for 20-30 varieties of teas and coffees, is not a good idea. Why not save yourself the time and stress by providing a buffet of nibbles and drinks for the parents, to allow them to help themselves to Pimms and fruit juice instead?

6. The Struggles of the Spotlight

It’s hard being the centre of attention on your big day, and most children certainly feel the pressure. From our experience, constantly filming and fussing over your child when they’re not joining in can leave them feeling self-conscious and stressed, which is the last thing you want during a fun-filled party!

7. Wait Until Lunch!

Any entertainer knows the struggle of trying to complete all our action-packed party activities when the kids are distracted by nibbles. After all, it’s hard to do the limbo or hold a parachute with a doughnut in hand! We find a designated food break of around 30 minutes allows for maximum entertainment and helps the event run much more smoothly, so that you’re fully getting your money’s worth on your child’s special day.

8. Sweet Temptations

Speaking of lunch, we all can relate to the temptation of choosing the big chocolate muffin over the cheese sandwich. Therefore, you should allow 10/15 minutes for the kids to eat their savoury food before bringing out the sweet treats, unless of course you want to be eating leftover sandwiches for the next week!

9. It’s a No to Party Blow(ers)

Trust us, 25 children with party blowers at lunch is not fun for parents or entertainers alike: the entertainers can’t be heard even over the PA system, and you are sure to go home without your hearing. That doesn’t mean the kids should miss out on this party classic altogether though; why not pop them in the party bags to annoy the parents when they get home? (Just don’t tell them we told you to…)

10. The Palaver of Packing Up 

Although packing away before the end of the event to save precious time can be tempting, the reality is very different: noisy, distracting, and quite frankly, dangerous! It’s not useful or practical for bored parents to start lugging chairs and tables across a hall whilst your poor entertainer attempts to organise a relay race to end the party with a bang… You have paid for enough time at the venue to pack down after the guests have left.

And Voila!

Following all these tips will be sure to give your little one a day to remember, the perfect princess party. You can thank us later!

Working as a staff nurse on a busy NHS ward, I would get likened to a certain famous frozen queen almost every day by patients, so when a friend asked me to dress as Elsa for a family fun day, I jumped at the opportunity.

Nevertheless, I was absolutely stunned by the reaction: hundreds of children queuing to take photos with little old me! From then onwards, I was inundated with requests to attend events and birthday parties. Five years later, and entertaining children is not only my full-time job, but also my total passion in life.

I have been recognized as Elsa countless times in public, most commonly on trains and in supermarkets. I can’t remember how many times people have shouted ‘Let it Go’ at me in public, it happens so often! Even on the other side of the world, I’m unable to shake my Frozen resemblance. Whilst on holiday in Vietnam, local people would point and compare me against Frozen merchandise.

Some of my career highlights include introducing ITV Racing, being featured in various national and international publications, including The Sun and The Daily Star, as well as starring in a YouTube video with over 7 million views!

Even after having entertained at over 1000 parties, you never lose the special, rewarding feeling of meeting a child whilst dressed as their favourite character, their ultimate idol. I still get goose bumps as I twirl and dance, looking down at all the gorgeous little girls in their princess dresses copying my every move, completely in awe.

The reaction from the little ones makes me sometimes forget that I’m not actually a magical ice princess who lives in a castle! Like Father Christmas, it is undoubtedly the children who bring the character to life, and their spirit is really the heart and soul of my work. I believe that the few years when children believe in unicorns, fairies and magic are truly precious, and I’m so blessed to be in a position to bring that fairy tale to life. As cliché as it sounds, when they ask me so earnestly, “what is your palace like”, or exclaim “I thought you were just on the telly, I can’t believe I’ve actually met you!”, for a moment it makes me forget reality and get completely lost in the magic. 

Princess Lydia xx

Snow Princess Parties 

Managing Director 

Throwing the perfect unicorn party –

It’s a normal day. Everything is going well, until you hear these dreaded words from your little one, jumping up at down with excitement: “I want a unicorn party, Mummy!” You dismiss it as a phase, but as you begin to hear these demands more and more, the panic sets in. “How on earth am I meant to pull off a magical, yet affordable party for my child in just a few months?!” Well, panic over; Snow Princess Parties are here to help! From decorations to entertainment, food and added extras, our entertainers have shared their secrets for a unicorn party full of magic and sparkle. So, let’s get started!

1. Glamming up the Venue : Unicorn party decoration

Keeping it Simple:

Whether you’re hiring a hall or braving 10 screaming kids in your house, transforming your venue into a magical unicorn utopia will make your child’s birthday dreams come true. And this doesn’t have to cost you the earth either! Bunting and balloons in purples, blues and pinks, are a simple yet effective way to transform your venue. Hang them up around the room, above doors, and even on the outside fences and bushes to keep the magic alive. Coloured balloons are also great to have outside the venue, for people to spot the party destination! If you want to go all out, you can even buy some helium balloons which will entertain the children for hours (until one inevitably let’s go and the balloon floats away)!

To keep the magic alive even when the children are eating, why not pick up some unicorn plates, cups and tablecloths? These are cheap and easy to find, both online and in your local supermarket. After all, who doesn’t want to eat in style on their birthday?

Adding the Extra Sparkle:

So now you have the basics, why not jazz things up a little more?! A great way to do this is with a presentation table. Here you can display the birthday cake and other sweets, party bags, name banners and lots more! This also acts as a great photo backdrop, for you to remember the magic of the day. The big “Happy Birthday” moment will be more wonderful than ever; everyone gathered around this beautiful display will make the birthday child feel super special.

2. A Piece of Cake: Unicorn birthday cake ideas

Now that the decorations are out of the way, it’s time to turn our attention to the star of the show: the cake. This is the part most parents shudder at the thought of. Will everyone be whispering behind your back at the school run on Monday, about how poor the cake tasted? Is it worth the risk of making it yourself? Or do hire a professional baker? Aahhhhh!

Instead of panicking, start by looking at some of these beautiful cakes that we’ve seen at parties over the years for inspiration. Unfortunately, the decision of baking a cake or hiring someone to do it for you is something we can’t help you with, so we’re going to have to leave that to your judgement! Cupcakes are another great option to add if you are not looking to have anything too big, or you might even want to go for both. Whatever your decision may be, give your party a cake Mary Berry would be proud of!

3. All Fun and Games

Now for the fun part! Entertainment can make or break your party, so it is something that needs careful consideration. Thankfully, this is our area of expertise, so you’re in safe hands with this advice!

A Helping Hand:

Hiring an entertainer is a great way to remove the stress of entertaining masses of screaming children all by yourself. We provide beautiful professional unicorn entertainers (pictured on the right) who keep the children entertained from start to finish, providing a sound system, music, games and prizes! You can sit back and have a well-deserved break, whilst our entertainers take care of everything for you. Visit our website www.snowpriness.co.uk for more information.
Its important to pick a company carefully and investigate everything they offer, making sure they tick all your boxes.

Jumping for Joy:

You might want to hire a bouncy castle as your entertainment. These can be used in halls or even in your garden if you are having a summer garden party. The kids will be occupied for hours!

Going Solo:

Are you feeling super brave? Then why not save some money and entertain all the children yourself? Grab yourself a speaker, create a playlist and you’re ready to go with the music! But how do you stop them from running riot? If you’re having a house party, setting up a table with some arts and crafts is a fun way to keep them entertained, but remember to cover everything with a cloth, tissues or newspaper. Your beautiful white carpet might not look as good when its covered in pink pen! Some fun crafty activities could be decorating their own crown, colouring in or even creating their own Unicorn! Another option is to run a disco style party: you can never go wrong with the classics like ‘pass the parcel’ or ‘musical statues’ (but they must freeze as unicorns)! You can also pick up some great games online or in your local shop, such as pin the horn on the unicorn or a unicorn piñata. You will be the envy of all the other parents once they hear that you successfully entertained 25 five-year olds by yourself!

4. An Extra Sprinkle of Magic

Now you’ve got the basics for a sensational unicorn party, there are plenty of easy ways to make the day even more unforgettable.

Dreams Do Come True:

Having a real-life unicorn at your party sounds like every adult’s dream, let alone every child’s! So why not make that a reality? This will definitely be a great surprise and provide everlasting memories for everyone there.

Glitz and Glam:

A bit of glitter makes everything better, so why not create the ultimate unicorn vibes and glitter everyone up?! Setting up your own glitter booth or hiring a glitter artist to complete the job for you are great options to delight the children. There are many talented artists you can hire, but we can recommend www.unistylez.com who also use all biodegradable glitter!

And… Pose!

A photo booth is another great little extra for your party, and it’s super easy to do yourself! Grab yourself a unicorn backdrop and hang this up on a wall, or anywhere appropriate. You can buy, print out, or even make your own backdrop, by using a plain coloured sheet and adding some balloons! Gather some fun props for the children (you can get creative with these!) and finally a willing adult with a phone to take photos. It’s as easy as that! You will then have lots of wonderful memories of your perfect unicorn party, that’ll last forever!

The Finishing Touch…

The one thing every child wants to remember the special day is a party bag! But why not jazz up this typical cliché and give unicorns instead? It’s something different, fun and will last a lot longer. Even the adults will be lining up for this special treat! But if you want to do party bags that’s totally fine too; simply pick up some unicorn party bags at your local shop or online and add anything you like. Some examples of things you could add are sweets, colouring sheets and pencils, stickers, hair clips, mini unicorns and much more! Get creative with it!

And Voila!

Those are the ingredients to a perfect Unicorn Party! The party you were once dreading when first started reading this is now something you can’t wait to start planning! We would love to hear all about your party and see all your pictures. You can send these to katy@snowprincess.co.uk.