40 & Fabulous Birthday Celebration

Easy and economical 40th birthday celebration

A new decade is always a big deal! Yes, Turning forty, fifty, or sixty is a big deal.

We must celebrate that new chapter of our lives in a special way!

It's been a wonderful summer so far. Great temperatures, the ability to go to most places, but overall, this summer we're having the gift of family!

The beautiful lady you see there to my side is Juliana, our niece. She lives in Florida, but this year we are glad that she chose the D.C. metro area to enjoy a needed vacation. We've been happy to spend time with her and her family.

This past weekend we celebrated Juliana's big FOUR-O with a family reunion where we tried to express how special she is and to propel her into the new decade ahead.

As usual, Pilar my SIL was in charge of the food, while I got to bring a few decorating touches to her house. Even though décor isn't a necessity, I think it does help in making the event more special, providing timeless memories.

Let me show you how we put together this 40th birthday celebration in hopes that you can grab ideas for your own event.

I would've loved to have the celebration outside in my SIL's beautiful garden, but the temperature was already too high. For some of the guests that would've been agonizing, so indoors it was.

If you go for an outdoor party, I recommend plenty of tables and poles where you could hang lights and décor pieces from.

SAY IT WITH SIGNS

Paper is the most inexpensive item I use to decorate a room. What you print on those papers is what brings the atmosphere to the party.

Pick a set of colors to use throughout - My theme was casual glam using black, rose gold, gold, and a few touches of mint.

The signs were all black, white, and gold. You can find thousands of very inexpensive printables online that you can download and print in your own home.

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I used regular letter size paper to print out these signs. Then, I mounted each of them on black foam boards to make them look larger.

I used 20 x 40 foam boards that I cut in half using an X-Acto knife. Oh, and I loved using crafter's tape to mount the prints onto the boards. For setting them onto the wall I always use gaffer's tape.

| 40th Birthday Sign Pack |

PHOTO PROPS

Photo props bring lots of fun to any party!

I bought this fringed backdrop at Party City and I really liked all the color and texture it added to the photos. What I didn't like about it was the setup. Luckily, I opened the package at home the day before the event and found out that all nine pieces of fringe were separate. They have to be mounted one by one onto the wall.

| Backdrop | Backdrop - similar | Paper Fans |

Cardboard picture frames were another fun photo prop.

easy and economical ways to celebrate a birthday

| Photo Prop Frames - similar |

BALLOONS

You can skip most decorations, but balloons certainly bring a whole level of enjoyment to a party. In my book, they're a synonym of party! Here is my daughter posing for a shot.

FOOD

Last but definitely not least, lots of great food are essential to any good party. We all brought a dish, but my SIL prepared some of our all-time favorites... Mac and cheese casserole, green beans, potato salad... Look at that, it was all delicious!