Need goody bag ideas (sans dollar store junk) for DD's birthday party...

[jerseygirl07067]

I hate those goody bags with all of the cr*p from the dollar store that we get at parties. Many of the toys in them are a choking hazard since we still have a baby in the house.

That being said, I too have been guilty of putting that junk in the bags we give out too. Though I've tried to be a bit more functional....I've done crayola crayons, colored pencils, pretzels or goldfish, instead of a bunch of candy, a granola bar, and stickers, memo pad, etc.

But I want something different. Any ideas? My cousin once went to a birthday party and each child received a beach towel with their name embroidered on it. Great idea, but not for my budget. One of my DDs went to a Taylor Swift themed party and the mom made t-shirts for all of the kids with a Taylor Swift iron and and their names. I thought that was kind of neat, and it didn't seem very pricey based on what she told me. She used some kind of make your own tranfer using an image from the computer.

Anyhoo, I need ideas!

[georgiegirl]

We just did sidewalk chalk (bought a huge bin on it from target and then tied 5 different colored pieces with a ribbon for each kid), cheese-its, and fruit snacks.

What about buying sand pails with shovels (from the dollar store) and personalizing them. You could put bubbles and sidewalk chalk inside.

[Jen841]

What about a book that goes with the theme of the party or a coloring book? You could print your own coloring pages too.

We did a pizza party and gave everyone a Bob the Builder pizza book.

Other ideas... bubble bath, set of new markers, purse for girls, we did bat/ball sets for kids, some sort of a draw string bag,...

[BabyH]

We have a few older kids that will be coming to DS 1st bday, so I have some goody bags for them that include Silly Bands (the real ones were $1/pack at Kroger), Bubbles (I got them for everyone, I think they were $5/6 at Target), an individually wrapped Boogie Wipe (just because they are fun, $4/12 at BRU), and these little birthday rubber ducks that are from Oriental Trading but I got on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/DOZEN-BIRTHDAY-PARTY-Rubber-DUCKIES/dp/B000E5VEBA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1300730738&sr=8-1 .

The bags I have made up for the younger kids include the Boogie Wipe, duck and bubbles, but also a individually wrapped prune because they are DS' favorite :)

[elizabethkott]

For J's goody bags, I raided Michael's, of all places. They had a bunch of really great stuff! We tied in the theme of the exhibits we visited at the Children's Museum; harmonicas for the music room, bubbles (pack of 6 for $3) for the bubble room, paint pads (75 cents each) for the art room... each item was about $1 or less, so each bag was about $3.

[ohsara430]

Just thinking out loud:
beach towels, just not personalized
hats (bucket hats, baseball caps, visors)
sunglasses
Sand pale/bucket
flower pot, you could personalize with their name or if you need an activity for the party let them decorate with foam stickies.

Do you have a theme you are working with?

[logan's mom]

How old is your daughter turning and is there a party theme?

So cute things that I have seen....."fun" socks. I know you can often find them at Target or mamapedia has this deal : http://deals.mamapedia.com/deals/kidssocks-com

-decorated flip flops-get cheap flip flops from ON or a craft store and glue on bows and ribbons

-cute headbands

[lizzywednesday]

We just gave out goody bags at my DD's 1st birthday party and I requested bubbles, something to eat (I opted for organic rice crispy treats from TJs) and I didn't have any idea what else. I sent my dad shopping & he put in mini Slinky-Dogs, which isn't exactly what you were looking for, and a tube of mini M&Ms ... but I love the idea of the sidewalk chalk! (Maybe next year. We'll see what our theme will be then.)

[lowrioh]

We got some recycled crayons from Etsy to give as favors for DDs birthday and they seemed to be a big hit. There are a bunch of sellers a variety of shapes etc.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/70372425/recycled-crayons-cowboy-boots-hats?ref=sr_list_35&ga_search_query=recycled+crayons&ga_page=2&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

[jacksmomtobe]

I created coloring books using free coloring pages based on the theme of my kids' parties. I used coversheet paper to create front and back covers. On the cover I wrote Thank You For Coming to DD's 4th Birthday Party. I used colored font on the front cover. They came out really nice and were very simple & cheap to make.

[mom2binsd]

I think the pail with chalk and bubbles is perfect!!!

[fauve01]

OP not sure how old your DC is, but one of the best favors we did was a box of character band aids and a toothbrush (picked by DD at Target ;)) when my dd turned 4. she still likes bandaids at 7.5...

if you're crafty, the other best favor we did was I made initial pillows. for instance, Zoe got a Z pillow, Gaby got a G pillow, Ethan got an E, etc. DD picked the fabric (horses all over!) and helped cut out the pattern pieces and helped stuff the pillows. Those would be good for most ages i think.
ETA link: the pillows looked like these (you could use tinkerbell fabric):
http://mccallpattern.mccall.com/m3274-products-6969.php?page_id=106

hth,
Anne

[Tondi G]

we've done

Kites from the dollar store ... and then pinata candy

Buckets/pails and shovel from Party City with sun glasses and a bottle of bubbles inside

Box of animal crackers, twisty straws and crayons

popcorn cups (Target $1 aisle , this was for DS's 9th b-day we took 10 boys to the movies)

Construction hats from oriental trading and a little truck

[jerseygirl07067]

Great ideas! This has been fun to read. I forgot to mention DD is going to be 6 and she wants a Tinkerbell theme. But I could tweak many of the suggestions to go along with the theme. :)

[jenstring95]

Great ideas! This has been fun to read. I forgot to mention DD is going to be 6 and she wants a Tinkerbell theme. But I could tweak many of the suggestions to go along with the theme. :)

What about wands and wings? You could maybe even make the wands at the party (not sure how to make a wand, but it can't be too hard, right?). A friend of mine got wings at the dollar store for party favors, but they have held up well and my DD still wears them over 1 1/2 years later.

[Melbel]

DD2 is having a fairy/butterfly (?) birthday party. To hold the items, I found metal buckets with imprinted flowers in the Target $1 section on clearance. I will probably also include some flower seeds for a fairy/butterfly garden, along with bubles, fairy wings (Dollar Tree), magic wands (Dollar Tree).

Have you considered crayon rolls paired with a coloring book? There are some pretty inexpensive ones on etsy, and you may be able to get a lower price if you are ordering a bunch. See, e.g.,

http://www.etsy.com/listing/51440846/tinkerbell-crayon-roll-with-elastic?ref=sr_list_1&ga_search_query=tinkerbell+crayon+roll&ga_order=price_asc&ga_page=0&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

http://www.etsy.com/listing/68208260/tinkerbell-mini-crayon-roll?ref=sr_list_2&ga_search_query=tinkerbell+crayon+roll&ga_order=price_asc&ga_page=0&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53088351/zebra-and-purple-mini-crayon-roll-party (Tinker Bell fabric listed as an option)

You could also do personalized Tinkerbell scrabble tile pendants for $3: http://www.etsy.com/listing/67156624/scrabble-tile-pendant-tinkerbell-name?ref=sr_list_6&ga_search_query=tinkerbell+scrabble+tile&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

We have also used buckets/pails to hold jump ropes, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, etc.

I have found nice totes at Justice on clearance that the girls were able to reuse.

We have had girls decorate inexpensive flip flops with "jewels".

I have used laminated bag tags to personalize party favors (later used for many of the girls dance bags).

HTH! :)

[jent]

Thanks for starting this thread! I am starting to think about DD's bday party and was going to ask something similar.

So I'll piggyback a question if you don't mind... DD wants "fairies" on her cake but she will be having both boys and girls to her party. Anyone have ideas for fairy-inspired party favors that are not too girly? I myself am stumped, so I'm figuring we'll just have a regular party, non-gender-specific favors and a fairy cake. Love some of the other suggestions, especially the sidewalk chalk. DD's friend did the bucket-and-shovel thing last year, so I can't copy that.