To actually really like party bags (giving them and receiving them)

[Wideeyedcarrrot]

Most times when I see a party bag thread it's people saying that hate getting them or giving them,
I love them - I don't mean that in a smug way - but I genuinely don't see why people get so grumpy about them and refer repeatedly to them as 'plastic tat.' Small children love plastic tat! That's the point surely? And they're never just played with for five minutes, in our house ds hoards them and carries them rounds and tips them out to examine his treasures.
He likes to give a bag to each guest at the end of his parties too. I'm not suggesting they need to be expensive (ds doesn't actually particularly care what's in them, he brands it all 'awesome') small bag of sweets, little toy and a balloon.

Ds's party is in a few weeks and I'm looking forward to doing the party bags. Does that make me weird? There seems such hatred towards them everywhere online. Plus they surely stop at about age 8 or 9, you don't need to do them until they're at school so the party bag years, when they're so innocently thrilled with a bouncy ball, are really short.

Even at £1 a bag, for a whole class party that adds £30 onto the cost! All very well to say have a small party but I don't want the party to be dictated by the -bloody- party bags. My kids never play with the stuff in them, so haven't personally witnessed the joy they apparently bring and when it's my turn to do them I feel I might as well stuff £30 plus straight into the bin and cut out the middle man. Not a party bag fan.

Durham...put children tat in. Bubbles, those whistle that roll, penny sweets, something to make...your 18 year will love it. Id love one if you got a spare one. Dont do adult one. Who wants a shot when they can have a whustle that rolls... Anyone remember those ugle monsters that you put on your finger. I remember their smell. Plaster-scene... You have to have that....

Correct my typos....

We only ever had quite small parties for dd and we enjoyed making them.

I agree, Durham. Stuff they can play with, and bubbles are a must. As are loveheart sweets and/or sherbert dippers.

I once paid a teenage sibling of one of DS's friends to be an extra pair of hands at a party, and made her a party bag as well. She was more pleased with that than with the cash

I don't get the hate, either! You can do a reasonable one for about £1-£1.50. My children (not grabby at all!) would be disappointed if they didn't get one. They're not a new thing - I'm a 70s chld, and I'm pretty sure we got them all the way back then.

I've enrolled my oldest dd to help fill the party bags, she is 22 and is sad that we never thought of party bags for her 18th. She was shopping today and came home with drumstick lollies, stickers, freddo bars ( 25p each...... When I last bought them they were 10p ). So we are off to a good start, you are right though, bubbles are a must

I love doing party bags and theme them to the party
Ie I did a Dora the explorer party and made purple back packs out of purple paper bags and purple ribbon (did orange for the boys as Diego) with little maps made out of felt, compass wrist watches, glow sticks, whistles and magnifying glasses as well as some Magic stars
Dds Last party was a frozen one so I found lush paper bags with snowflakes on and printed off pictures of elsa and glued them to ther Not and attached some leftover snowflake material I had For her dress, I found some cheap blue and purple bracelet sets with snowflake charms.

My dd (3) loves them, it has been the main thing she's talked about before and after the parties she's gone to (she is quite materialistic).
I didn't mind doing them for her party, as I quite like hunting for bargains. I was dismayed by the quality of some toy cars I had got from Poundland (they had looked ok in the packet), but when I saw the pleasure with which my dd and her friend played with them the whole time it took to clear up from the party, my dismay disappeared! It's true, children do love tat!

I love doing party bags too. It's an outlet for my bargain hunting, and the kids seem so pleased to get them.

Another here who Loves party bags!
I'm almost as excited as DS to see what's in them when he gets one and loved making his with him. (Especially as we had leftover mini lollies!)

Yanbu. Ds(4.5) loves a party bag. He hoards it all forever. I like buying tat and preparing bags for parties. I'm not a big fan of sweets in a bag. One sweet treat is enough I think.

I love party bags, too. I did party bags for all the children at our wedding, party bags for my sister's hen party and love doing themed bags for DD's birthday parties. Her birthday isn't until July but I've been squirrelling away bits and bobs for weeks now.

Last year, the theme was dinosaurs and I found cardboard palaeontologist bags and filled them with dinosaur soaps, stickers, stationery: bags of dino-awesomeness.

This year's party is looking set to be a pony party. I am sorely tempted to buy bales of hay for the children to sit on in the garden but that would be a ridiculous and extreme extravagance (and I've gone off-topic of party bags now.)

I do luffs them though...

I LOVE doing them!

It's my DS1's 8th birthday in June and I've already sorted the party bags. I have bought some retro popcorn style cardboard tubs which I'll fill with some yummy sweets. And I ordered a set of 16 plush minecraft teddies (one for each guest) from Aliexpress (cheap and cheerful but excellent quality) from Aliexpress that arrived last week. He's going to be over the moon handing them out to his friends