Reese’s DIY glamping birthday party was a vision from the start. She wanted her 12th birthday to be perfect, and when I say perfect, I mean a cabin-in-the-woods, cozy and creative, with just the right tween girl vibe. But she was missing one major detail when it came to birthday party planning: a theme. She was all over the place, but nothing was just right (we’ve all been there, haven’t we?).

I threw out theme after theme, even suggested color palettes with no theme, and she spent her screen time hours browsing Pinterest like a girl on a mission, but nothing stuck.

Then one day, while I was working on a new “Two Dozen Roses” banner for a customer, she peeked over my shoulder and said, “Ooooh!” and that was it!! The thing about me is I can plan an entire party in my head in about 12 seconds, I already saw the whole Nashville party vibe and was so excited for this theme until she completely shot it down. Wait, what? We talked disco cowgirl (nope), chic western (also nope), but when I realized she liked the design of the banner, not the theme and leaned into the aesthesis, glamping popped into my head. It was the perfect vibe for a cabin birthday party weekend with friends, and she was totally on board and loved the final banner. Queue the hallelujah chorus!

So I’ll walk you through how we pulled off stations like a glow up nail bar, camp hair bows, log-round art, and even a s’mores dessert bar, and my goal as always is to be on a budget, but not look like it!

Choosing the Glamping Theme and Color Palette

Pinterest wasn't much help for glamping party ideas, everything seemed to have a $1,000+ budget. Sorry kiddo, each of your friends can’t have their own tent and mattress for the sleepover unless we win the lottery soon. It’s super important to me to create parties that real people can use for inspiration, and even as the Queen of DIY on a budget, personalized tents weren’t happening. So, we were on our own to bring this theme to life.

We spent some time perfecting her “sunset sorbet” color scheme, and after that, everything fell into place! My gorgeous zinnias from the garden matched her palette perfectly, and I was thrilled to work them into the décor. The weather was shifting toward fall, so we spent the weeks leading up to her party eyeing those blooms and hoping they’d hang on.

My first step is always creating their birthday banner and we both loved how this one turned out. There’s nothing better than getting it just right for her. We joke that I’ve created a little party monster (can’t be too mad when she gets it from her mama), but I love that she has opinions and a creative vision. I’m just here to help bring them to life. I also mean this literally; her party was at my Dad's cabin that had just been finished and was 100% unfurnished, so it was a "bring your own camp chair" and transport EVERYTHING for a sleepover birthday, to say I had a massive checklist of supplies to remember was an understatement. She had a literal trailer for party supplies. Honestly, when I was loading the trailer I was thinking I had reached a new level of what the heck am I doing!? But spoiler alert, like always...totally worth it.

The “Glow Up” Manicure Station

Reese had some really cute “station” ideas for her DIY glamping birthday party, and this one was 100% her vision. She isn’t *super* girly, and it felt so her to have glow in the dark nail polish instead! The glow-in-the-dark nail polish was actually shockingly cheap and worked surprisingly well. 

As she gets older and more involved with party planning, I’ve been trying to pass along my frugal party-planning habits of balancing the budget between purchases, DIY, and what we already own. She nailed it (pun intended). She used her party budget to buy the glow-in-the-dark nail polish, repurposed picture frames from my office for the sign, and used log rounds her grandpa cut for her to display everything. It's like the something old, something new- but applied to party planning! 

Paint and Create: Log Round Art Craft Station

This craft station was all Reese too! She was inspired when she saw the acrylic paints at the dollar store, and knew we could cut more log rounds from the property. The paint palettes and brushes were supplies we already had, so an entire DIY glamping craft station for about six dollars.

Honestly, when I set up stations, I never care if kids actually do them, it’s just nice to give them options. But the girls went straight for this one. Each painted their own log round, some mountain scenes, some abstract art, and all of them adorable.

It was the perfect mix of rustic and artsy—so fitting for a cabin birthday party—and doubled as the perfect take-home favor.

Camp Hair, But Make It Cute: DIY Hair Bow Station

Okay, I’ll take credit for this one. I had this sign idea in my head “Camp Hair, But Make It Cute” and was thrilled when Reese approved the hair bow station activity. She humored me by letting me set it up, but I used my party budget for this one. I have this sign available as a digital download in my shop too!

The girls didn’t touch the hair bow activity during the party, but later that night during the sleepover, they braided each other’s hair and added bows and I was so happy they did because how cute is this pic of her crew? It was equal parts chaos and creativity!

The S’mores Bar Dessert Table

This dessert table went through about twelve planning stages before landing here. Reese desperately wanted an ice cream cake, I wanted a dessert overload and logistically, both of those were terrible ideas with an hour travel time to the cabin.

Then she suggested a S’mores Bar, we were both totally in. It’s also hands-down the cheapest dessert table I’ve ever made and the easiest to transport. We hijacked my old gardening table from the garage (ya know, the one we built for her fifth birthday party 😭 a woodland camping theme) and gave it new life. We also found a way to make her ice cream dreams come true and her Dad made his famous homemade vanilla ice cream at the cabin to go with the s’mores. 

Grandpa came through again and cut us some fresh log rounds to use as risers for the trays. The pink serving trays were actually tops from an old cake plate set I bought for a baby shower years ago, and I was thrilled to reuse them. She didn't want too much pink at the party so we brought back up ideas but when it was all laid out she totally loved it. I did splurge for the bunting banner from Amazon ($14) and it was WAY better quality than I was expecting and it strung perfectly on the patio!

For dessert supplies, we grabbed the fancy graham crackers from Trader Joe’s (if you know, you know) and hit up the dollar store for Halloween chocolates and her signature Reese’s. It all came together so perfectly and she was thrilled. I had a huge balloon garland in mind to cover the corner of the patio, but it was starting to get really windy so I figured I'd better not press my luck and get this set up while I could and was glad I made the pivot. It was the final touch on the party, and I was ready to sit by the campfire and eat my smores! 

This party felt so her - creative, not too girly- but some pops, and being outdoors in the PNW. We didn’t have Pinterest-perfect tents or a massive budget, but we had the best time, and it all came together in the best way.

Happy 12th, Reese. You dreamed it up, and it was magic.

If you enjoyed this blog, I would be forever grateful if you would take a minute to pin an image or two! It helps small business owners like myself more than you know! Thank you!

Pin it for Later