A Star-Studded 40th Birthday Party

Last week was a big week for Hubby.  That’s right.  The big 4-0.  We originally thought we’d have a low-key celebration with just the family, but then changed our minds and decided to go for a star-studded birthday bash with friends!  In honor of his love for movies, I planned a movie-themed costume party where each guest came dressed as a character {any character} from one of Hubby’s favorite, long list of movies.  In honor of the Hollywood vibe, the color scheme was red, black, gold, and silver!

 

Guests were greeted with a red carpet and the Academy Awards music montage playing through speakers.  I am a big believer in the power of music to set the tone for an event, so for me, the welcome music was a must-have!  Here’s a {link} to the music we used.

 

On the porch was a step-and-repeat that Hubby had constructed for me out of PVC pipe.  In case you don’t know, a step-and-repeat is the backdrop that stars always have their picture taken on whenever they are at the event.  My step-and-repeat was covered with two $1 black plastic tablecloths and featured the logo of our event – Michael’s 40th.

 

Here’s a look at the graphics that I added to the step-and-repeat.  It took me forever and a day to cut out all of the circles and stick them to the black backdrop!

 

With almost 30 guests coming, I needed to rent tables, chairs, and linens to set up in our backyard.  Buffet tables were set up in the back and a local restaurant delivered food later in the evening.

 

I got the idea for these centerpieces from a picture on Pinterest, but decided to make my own version.  I used apothecary jars filled with colored jelly beans and graphics that I had made attached to paper fans and inserted into the jelly beans on bamboo skewers.

 

On each table, I had printed up some trivia questions and answers based on Hubby’s favorite movies and TV shows.

 

There were two sets of cards and each one was two sided – questions on the front and answers on the back.  Here’s an example.

 

I did have appetizers available, but I also put together a Concession stand {playing on the movie theme}, for guests with a sweet tooth.  I included popcorn, jelly bellies, trail mix, candy bars, licorice, and non-alcoholic beverages.

 

On the bar, I had set out wine, along with a tub of bottled beverages, plus this amazing Ya-Ya Punch recipe that we renamed Sith Scorcher in keeping with the party’s theme.  I also tried making Strawberry Margarita Jello Shots and they were surprisingly easy!  Definitely worth trying!

 

Once all of the guests had arrived, I moved the step-and-repeat from the front porch to the back where I had set up a selfie station.  You can download my photo booth sign for FREE {here}.

 

I provided props for the guests, but since everyone was dressed up already, we mostly posed in just our costumes.

 

Now let’s chat about the cake!!  Just around the corner from me is an amazingly talented lady that I met through the kids’ school and she creates incredible, edible works of art!  Hubby and son are both into watching WWE wrestling together, so I thought it would be fun to give him a wrestling themed cake and Carol of Quite Contrary Cakes really delivered!

 

We had a great time all around!  Captain Jack Sparrow helped DJ for a while, lots of superheroes were in attendance, and even Batman drove out for the big day!

 

Needless to say, I slept for about 10 hours the next day!!