You’re invited to Finn’s Train & Railroad-Themed 4th Birthday Celebration!
I officially have a FOUR-YEAR-OLD, can you believe it!? I know many of you have been here since I was pregnant with him, so I’m having all the mom feels knowing it’s been 4 years. We recently threw Finn a Train & Railroad-Themed 4th Birthday Party and I’m bringing you ALL the affordable DIY Birthday party ideas.
MY BEST TIPS FOR KID’S BIRTHDAY PARTY DECOR
Over the last four years of DIYing Finn’s parties, I’ve learned that practical decor you’ll use again is the way to go. Before I made a ton of small super-themed decorations, and while they were cute for the party, I was left with so much stuff we didn’t use afterward. So for this party, I wanted to purchase and create items I could repurpose in Finn’s bedroom.
I was surprised, but when I started to plan this party, I had a hard time finding what I wanted for the party, so I realized I was going to have to DIY and get creative to get what I envisioned.
I got my first Cricut machine back in 2016 for my wedding and I have used it for parties and events ever since! This is my fourth year of using it to create custom party decor, but I’ve also made tons of gifts, thrown many bridal and baby showers, and used it to save on Bachelorette parties.
DIY BIRTHDAY PARTY DECOR WITH A CRICUT
Disclosure: Cricut sponsored this video on my YouTube channel.
I have gotten my money’s worth out of all the machines that I have and everything I’m making in this video with my Cricut machine will be available on design space so you can go in Click make it and use it for your own party quickly easy super simple and then you’ll have more time back to enjoy the party.
If you’re new to the Cricut world, Cricuts are smart cutting machines that can also help you write, and score, plus they have a variety of sizes and capabilities so there’s a Cricut for different needs. I’m using my Cricut Maker 3 today, but my most recommended machine is the Explore line of machines. Both machines are the same size, and both the Explore & Maker 3’s are compatible with Cricut’s smart materials, but for hobby crafters 9 times out of 10 the Explore will do all the things you need.
Cricut machine comes with Cricut design space free software which I’ll be using today to show you how I’ve designed all of my train party stuff. You can head over to my Design Space profile here.
I’m excited to be sharing TONS of Dollar Tree Birthday Party Ideas for Dollar Tree Birthday party decorations, Dollar Tree Birthday party favors, and DIY Dollar Tree Birthday Party decorations. I found so many adorable train party supplies from Dollar Tree which gave me a ton of Birthday Party ideas from Dollar Tree with those Dollar Tree party supplies! Come along as I show you how you can also throw an epic Dollar Tree birthday party!
Today I’m sharing a TON of Train Birthday Decoration Ideas – including how to DIY a Dollar Tree balloon garland for less than $20! That’s right, they are easy AND affordable!
I’ll also share how to easily create this cardboard steam train (that would also make a great Polar Express Train). It came together for under $40 and was an amazing statement piece for the party. I’m also sharing and a ton of other train birthday party DIY ideas in the video below!
If you’re looking for other themes, last year I did a dinosaur party, it was Disney’s Cars and the year before that I did a DIY Bluey party for Finn’s 1st Birthday.
A huge thank you to Cricut for sponsoring the video on my channel and helping me throw this epic train-themed birthday party for Mr. Finn!
EASY CRICUT TRAIN BIRTHDAY DECOR
Below you can click to use my Cricut Design Space projects for your own train birthday party. Simply click the project and then select “open in Design Space” when prompted.
You can check out my entire Design Space profile here.
How To Make an Easy DIY Dollar Tree Train-Themed Balloon Garland – Under $20
Check out my video for my full-proof way to DIY an AMAZING balloon garland every time. I made this one for around $20 and you can too! Here’s what you’ll need:
Balloon Pump – Amazon
Balloons – Amazon
Command Strips to hook it to the wall – Amazon
Fishing Line for Garland – Amazon
Double Stick Tape – Amazon
Happy B-Day Baloons – Dollar Tree
Backdrop Stand (optional but super helpful if you don’t have a wall to hook the garland to) – Amazon
HOW TO MAKE A STEAM TRAIN FROM CARDBOARD – A FULL TUTORIAL
One thing I knew I wanted to make was this large cardboard train. If you’ve been around awhile, you know I made a big cardboard semi-truck 2 years ago inspired by Disney’s Cars movies and it was a hit – so I wanted to do something similar for a steam train. I searched high and low, and couldn’t find a good comprehensive tutorial so I wung my way through it so I made the mistakes – and now I can show you how to make your own. This would also make a wonderful prop for Christmas-time for Polar Express-themed things!
And what’s a steam train without the steam? I love to do balloon garlands at my parties and making it double for the steam was such a fun touch.
When I tell you balloon garlands are so easy, I promise they are. They look like you tried super hard, but once you know my secrets, you’ll be able to whip them up so fast! One thing I would recommend is a balloon pump like this – I got mine from Amazon for around $20 and I’ve more than gotten my money’s worth out of it.
Check out the video below for the tutorial to make these easy DIY cardboard steam train for your next party! I’ll walk you through it step-by-step!
What you’ll need to build this 3D Large Cardboard Train:
1 – XL Moving Box – mine are from Home Depot
2 – Medium Moving Boxes – Home Depot
Extra Cardboard
1 – Hat Box 3-Pack, Hobby Lobby
1 – 12″ Cement Tube cut to 28″
1 – Shipping Tube cut in half
Black Spray Paint
Gray Spray Paint
Hot Glue Gun & Hot Glue
Hobby Knife
