I don't want to do party bags

I never did party bags.

I did a large, decorated, homemade cupcake with a few jelly sweets sprinkled around the edge for each person at the end. Kids loved it. After the first 2 parties (one for each of my children close in age) everyone started doing the same.

One mum did £1 advent calendars (her son’s birthday was November). Kids loved it.

Party bags are mandatory. Don’t stress too much though - piece of cake, a few sweets and some stickers will do.

OMG. I just had an idea for a party that has probably never been done before. This is based on videos of a Secret Santa style office gift that seems to be popular in the Phillippines.

Instead of one big birthday present, everyone needs to buy an exact number of small presents as the number of kids attending. So each item can cost £1-4, depending on the gift budget is and how many guests. Each person takes turns pouring all the gifts on the table and kids will grab one each, almost Pinata style. Once every round is complete, every child has a goodie bag filled with better quality gifts than a standard one.

Bonus is that it saves the birthday child being deluged with tons of presents and not having the storage space for them. Every child also leaves with the same thng but knowing each item was thoughtfully purchased and it's a collection of things from all their friends.

I never do party bags- a slice of cake and a book instead (you can get 10 picture books for £10 in The Works).

Party bags are just full of tat that ends up in the bin, hate it when my son receives one 😂

We try to keep it plastic free. I got paper sweetie bags and chunky outdoor chalks. About 4 chalks fit in a bag. Seal with a white label that the child can decorate in preparation for the party.

You keep the cake in the kitchen/other place if you’ve hired somewhere. Then when it’s time, you light the candles, bring the cake out and sing happy birthday.

the cake then gets taken away back to the kitchen where you cut it up, wrap the pieces of cake in a napkin and put one into each party bag

Oodie, Uggs and an iPad????? Was it a sleepover or the Met Gala?

I'm with you! I hate party bags, I don't do them and hate receiving them. They're full of tat which I don't want in the house and sweets I don't want my child eating (but then can't stop as they're a gift). I think if you've paid for a venue, food, drinks and cake for all the kids, no one should mind about not getting a party bag. The parties I've been to have also not done party bags and I'd hoped they had been phased out since I was young haha

its essential

you hand them bags out and its a hint that party is over and to fuck off home

works every time!

cake:
You bring it out and sing happy birthday and blow out the candles.
I always then serve small pieces, but most people take it out to the kitchen, cut into slices and put it into party bags, wrapped in a paper napkin.

I don’t understand the big deal. If DH wants to do party bags then why stop him? What’s the harm?

Just put a piece of cake and a balloon in a paper bag, no stress needed!

Party bags have been around as long as I remember. Anyone else remember the fortune telling fish made of red cellophane?

I digress. I think you should swerve the more worthy ideas like seeds and craft kits. Go for sweets and cheap little toys - they don’t have to be disposable plastic, there’s marbles, mini slime/playdoh, fun pencil or pen, stick on moustache, face glitter, little notebook etc.

And serving the cake at the party is now more usual than sending it off in a napkin IME. Probably because people have realised how blooming weird that was.

I did the 10 for £10 books from the works and small party bags with fidget bracelets, mini jigsaw, stickers and chocolate buttons (amazon do bundles of things for cheap). I just couldn’t decide! The works do big bags of party bag tat with ten of each item if you want to keep it simple too! The books got the most excitement, and at least one person abandoned their party bag, so I think next year it will just be books and cake! I also got some mini cake boxes from the range, and gave people a choice whether to eat it or bring it home, and they all brought it home! One thing to say is sometimes you get a few siblings parents don’t tell you they are bringing, or people who haven’t rsvped and turn up anyway so have one or two spare party bags/books just in case (not the kids fault).

What age/no. of guests invited do party bags end? Is there a mathematical formula? If they are in year 6 and only inviting 3 friends to an activity - do you party bag?

We've had some really fun ones from DS' friends, a sunflower seedling was very popular, books are usual, ds had a spy theme one year at an activity place and they all got a small top secret notebook with an invisible ink pen, we've also used the small hobby craft kits like paint your own sun catcher or a small air dry clay kit (about £1.50 a child) , it doesn't have to be loads of little bits of plastic and sweets. The cake does have to be wrapped in a napkin though and shoved in the bag it's tradition! 😂

I’ve always sent cupcakes home individually in plastic wrap/packaging and had the main cake for family. Saves the cake getting stuck to the icing etc. we did candles on the big cake. Also saves cutting up at the party

I am an oldie and my kids had their first few parties at our home just playing games. Yes party bags were part of the deal.

Bird seed in a party bag? Is your child called Robin?

Muphry's Law: when you're trying to be an intellectual snob you are bound to use a spelling error that makes you look silly.

Our "circle" is as lofty as you like... having an oxbridge degree does not stop one from appreciating a plastic tube that goes brrrp.

Ahh, it’s the poor, common people who put “plastic tat” in bags. Your “upmarket/intellectuals” no doubt fill them with wooden toys and kale cakes. Do they give out fruit and toothbrushes at Halloween?

We bought a load of mugs from Home Bargains with whatever was the trend at the time, unicorns, emojis etc. and filled them with mini bags of Haribo then wrapped in cellophane. No plastic tat and cheap as chips. They went down well.

Every party I have been to has the cake straight after the candles are blown out (halfway through the party). Party bags are the norm, but haven’t seen much of the plastic tat. Put whatever you like in it though.

It's a down-vote from me for seeds though.

Seeds require parental input.

As such, they are in the category of homework that parents do 90% of the work for... you know, "make a model of a volcano", "draw your family tree with photos of each person".

Parents appreciate it when you give their kids stuff that keeps them quiet for a while so they can have a moment of peace. Or just me?

Part bags are as easy and cheap or as difficult and expensive as you want.

I've been to literal hundreds of parties with various kids from 1- 14 ISH

Party bags have ranged from things
One of the balloons from the hall and piece of the cake / a children's bible,/ a bag of plastic tat, /a bag of harbio and a pen.

The most lavish I've ever seen in party bags were;

£20 toy shop voucher, cone of sweets and a water bottle.

One where all the kids were given a Tamagotchi

And memorably, a sleepover part ly, where each kid was given an Oodie and some Uggs (which they all wore at the sleepover... and they were sent home with a sealed gift bag.... turned out they had all been sent home with a few bags of sweets, and an iPad each! (This was a friend's daughter that I picked up as a favour, we nearly crashed the car when she opened the "party bag" and pulled it out of the bag 😂)

But, point is, Never have i ever been to a kid's party where they weren't given at least a piece of cake to go home with.