Carnival Party!

As many of you may know, my business partner Debbie and I have started up an event planning business here in Orlando, Florida. This past weekend, we had the honor of coordinating an upscale carnival party for a special client. Now that the party is over, I'd love to share all the elements! The original concept was old world, vintage carnival. We wanted to convey our theme with a special ticket invitation:

The client's home had a gorgeous lakeside backyard. We put up a red and white striped tent, complete with flags on top, and paper lanterns hanging inside for elegant lighting. Red and white linens were placed on all cocktail and dinner tables.

I created a custom retro carnival banner for the front entryway:

We also created adorable customized mini water bottles for the event. I purchased poly waterproof labels from labelsbythesheet.com, since the bottles were going to be submerged in ice water:

Here's a closer look at the themed water bottle label:

Entertainment was going to be a key element of this party. And there was no shortage of it! To keep the guests thoroughly thrilled, we hired a dj, juggler, mime, fortune teller, and balloon artist to entertain and convey a lively and exciting carnival atmosphere.

 

Last, but not least, the affair was catered by the wonderful Arthur's Catering. The menu was specifically designed to convey the carnival theme. For example, mini funnel cakes were passed around in mini deep fryer baskets lined in parchment paper. The presentation was just fantastic. Here are some other fabulous items presented by Arthur's at the party:

Mini sliders with sweet potato fries

Sweet potato fries served in paper cones

We had an amazing flaming s'more station. The marshmallows were presented on wooden skewers, flambeed by the chef with a blow torch, and then immediately rolled in chocolate shavings and graham cracker crumbs. I have to tell you, I had seven of them myself! Absolutely delicious, and a huge hit with kids and adults alike!

Popcorn cupcake display:

Here's a closer look at the graphic I created for the cupcake wrapper:

 

Finally, we had an amazing entertainment station that made video flipbooks for the guests. Each guest was videotaped for 5 seconds, and then the video was created into a mini photo flipbook. I created a custom cover for the flipbooks, and almost 300 flipbooks were created for the guests of this 3 hour party. Here is a video example of one:

Here's a closer look at the flipbook cover:

The clients were thrilled, and a fun time was certainly had by all. It was such a pleasure to work with such a wonderful family to plan this lovely event. 

All photos and materials courtesy of Party Perfect.

Party Planner: Party Perfect 

Caterer: Arthur's Catering

Tent: Nelson's Tents

Website: www.partyperfectorlando.com

Comments

[Robin Senderowitz]

Great job Laura & Debbie!!! Loved the flipbooks and the flaming smores!!! Oh- and the popcorn cupcakes. It looks like a fabulous party!!! Congrats.

[Lynn Starling / Nelsons Tents and Events]

I couldnt have asked for a better team of Party Planners to work with on this event. We look foward to working with you in the future! Thank you!

[Maxine S.]

Wow! It seems like you did a fabulous job with this party. I can't believe all the wonderful little details and how beautifully it all came together. If I lived in Orlando I would definitely want you to do my next party. Any chance that you guys will travel?

[ABnCParties]

Laura - it looks wonderful. I am sure people had a great time and you must have enjoyed working with them. Best of luck, Judy