Thomas and Friends Birthday Party Ideas

My youngest son absolutely loves trains and of course Thomas and Friends. Surprisingly he has not requested this party theme before he turned five! So this year was the year! I have had many birthday day parties for my children over the years, and although they were mainly shopped from Dollar Tree. All of those dollars do add up, to a pretty penny!!. So this year I wanted to make sure to stay low in budget but create a wonderful visual for our five-year-old to always remember. His Thomas and Friends birthday party ideas were very budget-friendly and a huge smile on his face.

Be sure to check out the video below for more details.

Freebies online

I always check for the freebies online that I can use for any birthday party or celebration first. I normally check on Pinterest or do a quick Google search for images that are free to use (non-commercial use). Normally they are linked back to other wonderful blogs with the same ideas in mind (they may have created or found themselves).

Mom Envy’s blog as some great free train printable ~ Click Here for you to grab for your next Thomas and Friends birthday party.

I like to look for banners, food menu tents,  signs or etc.

For this party, I was looking for signs and found these awesome railroads signs from Road Traffic Signs website ~ Click Here

The birthday banner is from DoodleBug Designs ~ Click here  

Printable faces of Thomas and Friends trains ~ Click here

Custom DIYs

Custom DIYs gives your party flair and uniqueness that no other party that has been created before. No matter how many DIYs and inspiration comes from Pinterest, Google or YouTube. Customs DIYs makes it your very own.

I used a contact paper holder, the inside part (purchase contact paper from Dollar Tree; these are sturdier than paper towel holders in my opinion) and painted it black (with craft glossy paint from Michaels). Then add hot glue to the signs and contact paper holder to stick them together.

To create the boxcars for the trains, I used the plastic bins that come in the plastic 3 drawers that you can find at our local WalMart or Target. Using a plastic table cloth by cutting it in half to cover the bins (Using clear packing tape to secure the tablecloth to the bin).

 

The backdrop that was used is just four foam boards from Dollar Tree that are taped together to create a large board. Although for my son’s birthday party, I folded in half to create a smaller display board.

Wrapping paper is a great option for covering your display board.

I will soon create a video showing how I make this display board and will insert video within this post.

The letter for my son’s name was from some alphabet Dollar Tree stickers that I already had on hand.

The tissue paper shreds inside of the boxcars were actually gift tissue paper that I found years ago on clearance.

Extra Additions

For party supplies, Amazon is my friend! If I can not find something in my local stores or I just do not want to hunt down certain party items I just head over to Amazon for a wide array of party theme choices.

Jesiah loves to dress up into different costumes so, I knew it would be awesome to find a Thomas the Train costume (CLICK HERE) for him to role play with on his birthday and every day.

Party supplies are sure to check out your local Dollar Tree and Walmart (supplies are less than $1.00).

 

My plan was to blow up his Thomas and Friends balloon bouquet ~CLICK HERE. But I thought we had more helium in the tank that we purchased for his party last year. FYI make sure you have plenty of helium for your party.

FOOD

For his birthday we had tacos as requested by the birthday boy. I thought a taco bar would be great for easy and convenient setup. The plan was to create little train cars out of the metal tins (from the Dollar Tree) and trace little black circles for the wheels for the train. Needless to say, I ran out of time due to our son’s birthday is on Father’s Day as well.

I love to get their birthday cakes from WalMart. They have a huge selection of cakes to choose from and they are affordable.

Birthdays parties are special and want it to make a lasting impression in the hearts of our loved ones. So it doesn’t have to cost hundreds of dollars for it to be meaningful.

Celebrate, Love, and Make Memories!!

Watch the video below for more birthday party details.