to think party bags are the work of the devil?

[bejeezus]

I've stopped doing them....

Even if they cost £1.50 for contents and you have 10, that's blinkin' £15! But its easy to spend more than that. And have more kids at party

They are invariably filled with crap that is disgarded by child onto pile of discarded crap at home

They are pointless, a needless expense, and irritating

Do you do them? What do you put in them? How much does it cost you?

[OutragedAtThePriceOfFreddos]

YABU, I love party bags! making them and seeing what my ds's get in them.

I've always done them, but once I did a cup wrapped in cellophane instead, with a few bits of crap inside, and once I did lucky dip.

I can't even remember what I've put in them, it's been a couple of years since I've done them.

[Olbasoil]

No I stopped, it became stupid and competitive.

[Pandemoniaa]

I hate competitive party bagging. What's wrong with taking a bit of cake home? I was lucky though. It was only at the very end of ds1 & 2's party bag days when they came home from a party with bags that included a small but expensive toy. Admittedly, the parents could easily afford this but it raised the game in a very unhelpful manner.

[Seona1973]

I use them as a way to end the party i.e. 'get your party bag, it's time to go home'. I do sweets/lolly, a glostick, crisps and maybe some bubbles or a stretchy man plus the slice of cake.

[ErnesttheBavarian]

I don't do them - I do an activity and they take home what they make, plus a couple of sweets. Last week I did a party, they all decorated a cup, (cost 50p each) so it was about half an hour activity plus at the end they took their masterpiece home with a few sweets in. So I had an activity to keep them quiet, they got a present, and it was something they or their parents will be able to use.

My dc have come back with varying things but most often ranging from nothing at all to a little bag full of sweets. Never expressed an opinion so I don't think they're that bothered either way.

So if you don't want to, don't bother, they don't care ime

[jojane]

I am terrible, I get totally carried away and I buy things forgetting hiw much I have already bought!!
For DDs party on sun the girls have - cardboard tiara, princess hair bobble, crown ring, sheet of princess stickers, royal finger puppet, a sweet ring, little plack of sweets, plastic necklace, princess pencil, princess mirror sticker, couple of choc coins
Boys have dragon glider, bubble sword, finger puppet, stickers, sweets, choc coins, couple of plastic k night figures, jumping frog and a whistle.
Will also have a piece of cake and a princess or knight cake pop


One year I did giant floor puzzles instead, we're only£1.15 so cheaper than doing a party bag

I always try and theme the bag to match the party, DDs last year was Dora so I made little felt Dora maps and the bags were purple paper with purple ribbon to make it into a backpack, things inside we're magic stars, little magnifying glasses glow sticks etc.

[crazygracieuk]

I usually get sticker/colouring/activity books from Pundland/Wilkos or the Book People and offer with some cake.

I bought a set of Star Wars sticker books from the Book People at 8 for £8 ish? Which will be used for ds2's birthday.

My other son has a birthday over Easter so I buy Easter Eggs at wherever has the best deal do about a quid?

[boredandrestless]

jojane will all that princess stuff even fit into a party bag?! That's a lot of stuff!

I do slice of cake, balloon to blow up, little minibag of sweets, and maybe a little party bag type toy. Homebargains always sell these things cheaply.

[Pandemoniaa]

There's no way I'd have done separate party bags for boys and girls. Call me a woolly old liberal gimmer if you like but I've got no time for gender stereotyping. Certainly, the little girls my dcs were friends with would have been horrified if all they'd got was princessy stuff! I can easily imagine them ambushing the boys and "liberating" their party bags.

[shrinkingnora]

Worst party bag moment ever - the stuff you have scrimped to buy for the birthday girl turning out to be the same as what's in the party bag. It was horrible.

[UptoapointLordCopper]

I did one where they fold their own origami boxes, decorate them and take home a piece of birthday cake in it. Party bags? That's so last year.

[CleoSmackYa]

I'm doing those sweetie cones this year, and hoping they work out cheaper!

[dotty2]

They serve a useful function: 'the party's over now, time to go home'. Agree re. plastic tat. I used to try and buy tasteful ethical, fairtrade stuff to put in them but have got over myself now and just do sweets in a nice bag with maybe a book/bubbles/the thing they've made at the party.

[freddiefrog]

I buy packs of books from The Book People or wherever and split them up and a piece of cake, small packet of Haribo and job done.

You can get packs of about 10 books for around a tenner

[toysoldiers]

Gosh shrinkingnora, that must have been horrible .

I've never had it happen exactly but have often come home and realised party bag contents cost more than our gift.

It's all ridiculous.

[noramum]

In DD's class the latest fashion are sweet cones which a local shop does for £1. The children love them, apart from DD who doesn't eat non-chocolate sweets.

Her party (5th birthday) is on Sunday and I ordered packs of books from the Book People as freddiefrog said. £0.99 per book, a mini-chocolate bar, cake and that's it. I just wonder what some parents may think as the books are fairly big and the RRP is £4.99 (printed on the back of the book).

But after last year where I spent a fortune I decided either sweets or books/sticker books etc and that's it.

[TigerFeet]

I really love doing them I have to admit... but then I live a dull existence at times

Some friends and I went away last weekend for the 30th birthday of one of our group and I did party bags for that - she loves ladybirds so it was a ladybird bag with a ladybird bobble, rubber, pencil sharpener etc. We all have small girls so it's not as if it would all end up in the back of a cupboard or in a bin.

For dd1 (8YO) recently all the guests decorated their own fairy cake which went in a box, and they also got a bag with a party popper, some sweets and a couple of those glowstick things. Went down v well and I agree with posters upthread who said they indicate that the party is over and it's time to get out of my house so I can open the wine go home.

[blisterpack]

jojane I'm sure you're very nice but that there is the very definition of the party bags of the devil .

[CharltonHairstyle]

I put IPods and caviar in mine

[bejeezus]

Surely the patents have to arrive before you can end the party and chuck em out?

[dotty2]

IME parents arriving not always a strong enough signal that it's time to go! And for little ones parents often stay anyway (and need a hint themselves).

[Rosebud05]

Just don't do them. Just say "Oh, i didn't do party bags, though hope that you had a lovely time", smile and think no more about it.

[shrinkingnora]

Toysoldiers - it was totally humiliating but they were perfectly nice about it. I don't think they had previously realised how much we were struggling.

[freddiefrog]

noramum ohh, I'd never noticed that before.

I've ordered a pack of "Summer Holiday Activity" books from the Book People (sticker books, things to make out of tin foil type things) for DD2's party next week - it was a tenner for 15 books so with a piece of cake and a packet of sweet, less than a £1 all in, but they have £2.99 printed on the back of each book.