This is one that I have been thinking about and planning for awhile, so I am SO EXCITED to finally get to share it with you! First, it’s my first blog post about something I am extremely passionate about – a good theme {coupled with some party planning 😉 }. Theme above all else is my motto {just kidding, the fun is always first, but theme is a close second}. And second, it was such a fun Valentine’s Day celebration that can easily be adapted to any holiday or quite frankly, any day you want to spruce up with some extra pixie dust and magic. So let’s dive in!
1. The Inspiration
A good theme always starts with a little spark, and this was no exception. It all started with a pair of ears and blossomed from there…
The Ears. Mid-January, Disney released these Valentine’s Day Minnie Mouse Ears. I thought they were adorable but debated on buying them. They did, however, get my wheels turning on a fun Valentine’s Day photo shoot {maybe a cute, critter photo}. Then, I saw the dress {see below}, and I had a clear vision. I had decided. I would buy the ears. I went to Disney Springs to purchase and found….them gone. Sold Out. Thus, my quest began. I tried EVERYWHERE – Springs {multiple days}, Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Contemporary, Grand Floridian, and even Polynesian. Nothing. In the Wind. Vanished. A failed quest. ‘Twas a sad day. But then, a ray of hope. A shining light. A coworker to the rescue. So, Julia, if you’re reading this, thanks for letting me borrow your ears. 😉
All of this to say: 1. Don’t regret it. Buy the merch. 2. Julia saved the day.
The Dress. I saw this dress on Janie & Jack and immediately knew I wanted to pair it with the ears. Same colors. Quilted material. Little hearts. YES. PLEASE.
The Book. I had the outfit, now I just needed some decorations and a fun theme…So where to go when in need of inspiration? A book, of course! Disney books has some AMAZING options to help inspire and guide for all your Disney theming needs. I have a handful of books that I often turn to when I’m looking for some inspiration, especially recipes. I found this Mickey Split and Chocolate Dipped Strawberries in my Disney Eats book {linked below} and felt it all fall into place.
The Date. Valentine’s Day fell on a Sunday. Sunday Picnic. “Sundae” Picnic. You get it. 😉
2. The Details
After scavenging my leftover, birthday decoration supplies, I decided that I wanted to set the scene in our backyard {picnic vibes} with our patio furniture {cozy, picnic vibes} and add some cute, Valentine-centered touches, specifically a balloon arch with a pastel, Valentine palette {read: what color balloons I had in the pantry that were Valentine acceptable} and Valentine-feeling foods {pink smoothies, chocolate covered Mickey strawberries, and Mickey sundaes}.
To recreate the scene, what you’ll need:
- balloons
- balloon tape
- command strips
- patio furniture {or anything you have! A couch would look cute too or even a dining room table}
- recipe ingredients
- outfits that inspire you {go for the bold 😉 }
3. The Prep
The Night Before:
Balloons. Do yourself a favor. Do the balloons the night before. I waited to do the day of during the kids’ nap and definitely regretted it. I would wait to hang the balloons until day of but setting up the arch and getting the balloons arranged the way you want can be done the night before.
The Day Of:
Food Prepping, Furniture Staging, & Tablescaping {looking at you, Lisa 😉 }
Food Prep. If you plan on doing the same recipes {strawberries, smoothies, and sundaes}, I recommend doing the strawberries first. I had a two hour window to prep, and that was enough time for them to harden before I pulled them out {placed in freezer}. This could also be done in the morning and placed in the fridge instead. Then, smoothie {either earlier and place in fridge or right before}. And lastly, the sundaes {do this right before you are ready to take pictures}.
Furniture Staging. Arrange the furniture however speaks to you. For me, this was how it sang:
Table Scaping. Add the little details to the table to tie in the theme. For this shoot, it was the food. Unfortunately, I ran out of time to make the pink smoothies {those balloons…again, seriously recommend doing the night before}, but I planned to add two of those in mason jars with red and white striped paper straws to fill in the remaining space.
4. The Final Look
Viola! It is time! Pull out that camera, let the kids at that chocolate, and soak up the fun!
5. The Tips
I want to add a couple of tips that I learned the hard way {wah wah}. Hopefully, these will help make your sundae picnic planning even easier.
Balloon Compressor. I bought this to prep for my daughter’s birthday party. Best. {Party-Planning} Purchase. Ever. I have this one. I wouldn’t say it’s the best quality, but it gets the job done and the price was right. Bonus: it came with balloon tape {use this to make the balloon arch} and balloon dots.
Light Matters. Apparently, the sun moves throughout the day…? Who knew, right? I got everything set up and realized that half of the set up was in the shadows and half was in the light. Keep this in mind and work to have everything in either all shadow or all light {recommend light}. If this does happen to you, you can work around it by angling your camera to capture the subject matter all in one side. For ours, I came in from the top right to get the kids all in the shadows {example below}.
Balloons + FL Grass. Apparently, balloons and Florida grass do not mix together well…upon contact, the balloons pop. That was a super fun discovery. Essentially, half popped while I was putting the balloon arch up. Recommend using a party planning buddy when hanging balloon arches up outside and waiting until the last minute to hang outside {wind can also be tricky}.
Sundae Secrets. I got these bowls from Amazon. I LOVE the look they gave the sundaes, but they were deeper than I realized so make sure to pay attention to your scoops and fruit for the Mickey ears. I ended up adding another of layer of fruit to push the scoop up so the ears cleared the top rim.
Smoothie Tip. As I mentioned, I ran out of time to add the strawberry smoothies. I wanted to add that extra pink and red to pull some more Valentine theming in, but alas, here we are. This is what I planned to use to make that happen, in case you would like to add it.
And there you have it! All the details necessary to have your very own sundae picnic. Happy picnicking!
Until next time…Stay Magical!
Jasmine
*Disclaimer: All opinions shared are in no way affiliated with the Walt Disney Company. They are completely my own and shared from a Disney guest perspective.