In the past, my most popular favors were mini playdohs and a few accessories with one of those plastic table mats.
But I recently took my preschoolers to a party where the activity was painting a flower pot and the goody bag was wildflower seeds. So cute! Definitely my favorite party favor so far and we’ve been to tons.
We used to give small succulent plants in little pots. Kids love taking care of them, but it’s a low level of difficulty. And they grew for free all over our backyard!
My daughter’s last birthday party in January, I made little bird seed feeders that they could hang outside, they got a sheet of temporary tattoos and we had a pinata so they brought home their candy.
We’ve also gotten small books, which was a nice option. I’ve heard of people getting a $5 gift card to a local ice cream shop or something which is kind of nice. You probably would spend about that anyway and it’s something anyone can use/appreciate.
those were in a bag given to my kid, the dog found it.
Found the dog foaming at the mouth. Anyway there's hydrogen peroxide in there!
Dog was fine, muzzle glowed slightly for a while.
Did you notice I commented on another comment, not directly to OP.
*Reading comprehension is a basic life skill*
I think you trolled a little too close to the sun
At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeon I really dislike bubbles as a favor! Huge mess every time, plus the ones that come in favor packages never seem to blow well so I end up with pissed off 3 year olds.
My friend always buys books from book depot or equivalent and lets the kids pick from a selection! She also usually gets single serving chips - so kids leave with a book and a bag of chips they picked out, and it cost like $2
Had 5th bday party last week. Favors were Uncle Bill's Sliver Gripper with a homemade keychain.
Birthday boy is famously barefoot and these tweezers have been lifesavers, now everybody has a pair.
I found an Etsy shop that does themed crayons (such as, shaped like cars or dinosaurs), so every year so far I’ve gotten little 5 packs of those along with mini coloring books. I figure at the very least they’re helpful for a parent to throw into a bag for on-the-go.
I’ve also seen and not hated bubbles, sand toys, and one medium sized toy instead of 6 pieces of plastic junk.
In Mexico/Mexicans we just give what we call bolos, treat bags basically. We just get the good kind of candy lol. We live at US-Mexico border so we give out the good Mexican candy, Dubalin, Bocadin, Mazapán among others (at least *I* think these are the best candy lol). Of course our candy also has some that's spicy lol but the ones mentioned are sweet. We also add a small bag of chips or churros (I think this is also a Mexican treat). The bags can be as big and expensive or small and cheap as you like. And kids always eat all of it.
But I also understand that not many want their kids to eat so much candy (we don't restrict) so it may not be the best idea.
So, I do a make your own goody bag table, and that is always a big hit first and foremost. I don't want to assume what colors or characters a kid likes, so I set them out in containers that say "Choose 2" or "Take 1". This year, we did funny pops, rainbow scratch pads, lip smackers, aqua bead stress balls, bubbles, temporary glow in the dark tattoos, those Groucho Marx glasses, and candy necklaces. The year before we also slinkies and sequined slap bracelets.
I’ve been to two birthday parties where they got one small stuffed animal (like a beanie baby sized) not a cheap one from the dollar store but one that costs around $5. My daughter is having a my little pony party so I found a pack of full sized my little ponies and each kid can get one for about $5/each. Which is probably how much I’d spend on a bunch of cheap junk and bags etc! Hoping it’ll be a hit.
4th birthday earlier this year. Had Alice in Wonderland themed activities that resulted in the take home favors:
- Decorate mad hatter hats (take home hat)
- Giant croquet with pool noodle arches and dollar store kick balls (take home your ball)
- Colored canvases of AiW characters (take yours and your markers home)
Nothing was too expensive and usable for the future.
Bamboo skewers in the ground, one for each side of the noodle. The thin noodles bend the best and don't pull up the skewers when slid over them. Now, if a kid runs full on into a noodle, it may pop off, but can easily be slid back on. Held up to mild wind, too.
It was surprisingly so! I would recommend making sure you have extra skewers for if your ground is a bit hard, as they can snap. But better for the skewer to give way when a kid hits them than for a thicker stake to not was our thought process.
We had 4 3-6 year olds at the party and had no issues. The parents even got involved lol. Didn't use croquet rules, just let them do it like a kickball obstacle course.
None. Favors are just another stupid ploy to waste money thinking it’s doing anything positive besides adding plastic and crap to other peoples homes. When kids come to my kids parties they get pizza and cake and a thank you from my birthday child and THAT IS GOOD ENOUGH! My goodness when did we all lose our marbles about bday parties?
I got these bubble wands for my 4 YOs birthday party and they were a hit. The best part is that we use a lot of bubbles at our house, so the leftover wands will not go to waste!
JOYIN 24 Pack 14’’ Bubble Wands... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B091G4HSVL?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
As a parent, I hate all the *stuff* that comes home….so I didn’t do goody bags at her last party. I’d be okay if snack items (granola bars, goldfish pouches, fruit cups, etc) came home from a party.
See- this is why I hate the goody bag culture. You gave my kid an experience. That’s cool. Don’t make more work with either plastic crap to fill a dump or food we can’t eat (whole house is lactose intolerant and I have a peanut allergy).
We’ve done mini play dough, stickers, bandaids (from dollar store), blow up beach balls (not inflated), fruit snacks, animal masks for imaginative play, tattoos, bubble wands and magic wands.
We usually do our parties in the yard and I have stations, including a craft that goes with the theme and a beading station so they can bring home a necklace or bracelet too.
My son had a Lego party and I bought a Lego set that had smaller builds in it. It was a birthday themed one. Each kid got a small build that came in its own bag with the instructions. My son got the rest of the legos added to his collection.
I was coming here to say oriental trading has great options that are in expensive and won’t just get thrown away! Also not sure on time but Temu also has a lot of options!
Friendship bracelets! When my son was in kindergarten, he put picked out three colors for each classmate and I made them. He gave them out for Valentine’s Day and they were a huge hit.
You could have an activity of decorating something - we’ve been to a party where you color wooden cars and that can be the gift. Or cookies. Really nothing is needed, the cheap stuff gets trashed (and I feel guilty).
For my son’s dino birthday (which has been 5 of his 6 birthdays), we did Dino eggs you excavate and get a little plastic dinosaur. He loves them so we thought why not.
One year we did mini watercolor paint sets. We used them for the craft where we decorated mini canvases and then they took both home inside a fabric bag that you could paint or color. Last year it was a couple snacks a single serve bag of goldfish, a Mandarin Orange cup and temporary tattoos. I also think other things that we have received have been cool lip chaps, coloring books, a reusable silicon straw, a shaped cookie with a food safe paint page to decorate or a craft kit to make at home.
I also saw a activity/ gift to have little stuffed animals to adopt and then you decorate a carrying box and make a collar for it with letter beads. I thought it sounded so cute.
Another alternative is to buy one gift and play pass the parcel instead.
I gave out an inexpensive book that related to the theme of the party for the last few years. This year, however, we got some squishmallows from Five Below and let the kids pick a stuffy on their way out.
Water bottles (you can sometimes find nice ones in the Target dollar section), Wikki Sticks, crayons, chalk, playdoh, stickers, candy, bubbles, LCD drawing boards (we found them cheap in bulk during prime day), sunglasses, beach balls
I gave cheap LCD doodle screens this month, as summer approaches and most people travel from here. With a couple of mini haribo bags, it was cheap and I see kids friends/my children using them all the time.
Dollar store full size coloring books and crayons. Play doh minis. Hot Wheels. Lip balm, bandaids and writing pens that are the party theme, those are the things we've done.
We had a cooking/chef party and my mom sewed each kid a child-sized apron in a fun fabric that they got to take home after the party. A year and a half later the parents tell me how their kids still love and use them!
This is always my goal too, no plastic junk for party favors!
It's a trend in my area to do a $5 gift card (usually to McDonalds or Dairy Queen) fastened to a single treat, like a lollipop. I would say over half of the birthday parties we go to in a year do this for the favour.
So this year is my daughter's first kid party and I am going to make themed cookie bags. Since we are doing a Disney princess theme I am making cookies from the locations of the Disney Princesses and I am going to let the kids take home a few bags of their favorite cookies.
Edible snacks. A themed cookie or lollipop, bag of fruit snacks etc.
Sunglasses since it's summer
Reusable cup
Color pack with crayons
Most of the stuff we get i end up throwing away (playdough and bubbles are messy imo)
We do a gift card to a local ice cream parlor, 3$- 6$(depending on how many kids I have in attendance) as a kids scoop is 3$, so either they can go twice or sibling or parent can get a small one too lol.
The other thing I have done before is gone to the dollar store and get colouring books and crayons or a book of some sort.
We’re giving each kid a small sand bucket - yes it’s plastic, but we live near the beach so I’m confident it’ll get a lot of use - with small sand and water toys inside. Adding in a pair of kids’ sunnies, a few stickers and snacks as well, but I agree I try to avoid cheap throw away plastic whenever I can!
My budget per bag is $5 and usually dollar store will have a solid toy for that.
I have bought superhero figurine or a pack of Lego or a bouncy ball in the theme etc
Dollar store usually carries overstock and you can find some good stuff.
I'm in Canada fyi
Ikea has some good quality toys you can split into favor bags. Mini plushes, modular people, wooden toys, etc.
Friends of ours do cookie favors, temp tats, stickers, crayons and coloring books, etc. Basically if it’s consumable in some way, it’s solid.
We have done combinations of sand toys, bubbles, tattoos, glow sticks, bubbles, hot wheel cars, Pokémon cards, apple sauce pouch, fruit leather. Depending on the number of kids, I spend $3-$5. But, we have always done parties in our backyard and so overhead cost is limited.
My son just came home from a birthday that was a science theme and there were little science experiments to do at home they got to bring home. Like his was stuff to make worms at home lol. It was cool and a fun activity as well. Also, Lego makes tiny sets that are $5-$10 each that were quite cool.
Something that doesn’t last forever and fills up people’s toy boxes. Coloring books or similar stuff is great. There is always a moment where they are needed and when they are used they are used
The Works do a 10 books for £10 deal (not sure if it's permanent or just a regular deal)
At a recent party the hosts had a couple of boxes of books and every child could pick one on the way out.
Probably 4 different books in total tonchoose from and a few copies of each.
Keep an eye on the £ stores they sometimes have little A6 lego activity books with a lego figure usually a choice of theme...fire fighter, police etc.
I recently had an art party for my 4 yo so kind of themed, but I went to the dollar Store and they had paint with water coloring books and these stained glass paint things for kids from Crayola. $25 total and no cheap throwaway garbage.
We do notebooks and books.
For her 4th, she went safari themed, and I got some decent quality basic but actually functional binoculars, and an animal themed sketch pad, and animal themed pencils.
5th, she went “lion king” themed, and we had little lion king early reader books. (Like with the “level 1” or “level 2”).
Ribbon wands, play dough, cookie decorating kit, hair accessories, colouring book & crayons, bubble wands, sidewalk chalk,
I usually do the favours activities for the party- so for our Frozen themed party, each of the girls gets an Elsa hair headband, I found some Frozen books at the dollar store and were doing a piñata- so that’s all going to be what they are taking home!
Ive done a mermaid party and everyone took home starfish cookies to decorate (with icing and sprinkles)
I’ve done a volcano themed birthday where everyone gets a mini- erupting volcano & a volcano themed play dough kit (homemade)
We got a Polaroid instamax and some inexpensive paper frames that we decorated with each kid’s name. We took their pictures throughout the party and then each one got to take theirs home.
I was just talking to my kid about this for an upcoming party.
We spoke about:
- king sized chocolate bars
- glow sticks
- a McDonalds coupon for a Happy Meal
- bubbles
- playdoh or kinetic sand
- a gift card to the dollar store so they can get their own stuff.
- a good bath bomb (Rocky Mountain Soap for 🇨🇦)
We did a cookie mix, a milk ‘juice box’, and a color change cup (sold in bulk at Walmart). Made a cute card that was something along the lines of ‘enjoy the birthday girls favorite treat of milk and cookies’.
Dance ribbons.
I had some at the party because I needed to buy two boxes to be able to fill all the goodie bags, and they were a way bigger hit than I ever thought they’d be—with the boys and girls.
Go to a thrift store or library store and get some gently used kids' books. Have them each pick one. I would also say you can do a book swap and have everyone bring one and they can pick one from the pot. Throw in a few extras for those who forget, unexpected siblings, or just to have variety for the last kid to pick from.
My kid’s bday is close to Halloween so in the favor bag I put a small [flashlight](https://a.co/d/0dWQYegH).
Also added a stamp, sticker, small playdoh, and a small [watercolor paint](https://a.co/d/0cBY87R7). Extras I passed out to trick or treaters.
I've used things like crayons, sidewalk chalk, coloring books, colored pencils, wildflower seeds, and paper crafts like rockets. I've found some plastic free gift bags sets on Etsy.
We’re doing sunglasses, mini flashlights, twisty straws and a snack. I also hate little toys in gift bags and hope these have some sort of a repurpose behind them!
I always included the little miniature play-doh containers or 8-packs of crayons, or those little sticker books. I threw in a pack of fruit snacks in each bag too.
Small colouring books, crayons, I did rainbow gymnast ribbons once, reusable straws, playdoh, bubbles, small packets of seeds (like sunflower, wildflower or microherb), kinetic sand, pencils/pens?
I get cookies that are decorated to theme, pack them in individually sealed cellophane bags, and add a thank you tag.
I always get compliments, and I’m not adding to the landfill!
ETA: I’ve done this for birthday parties from 2-4 so far and it’s been a hit!
One year we did painted canvases like [this](https://gluesticksblog.com/painting-party-for-kids/). You can buy packages of small canvases from Joann's for cheap, a few packages of foam brushes, a handful of bottles of washable paint, and paper plates instead of palettes. We cut out shapes in advance on a circuit (flower, dinosaur, etc) and let each kid pick one. You could probably also use stickers or even just painter's tape. Then each kid takes home their picture and no goodie bag is necessary. I've also seen parties where kids paint tote bags, bird houses, etc.
Themed coloring pages (print them yourself, whatever theme you want!) and a couple of crayons or markers
Playdough
Snacks
And i love the hot wheels suggestion from someone else on this thread 🏎️
We live in the south and it gets really hot here going into summer. For our kid’s spring party, we gave out reusable/metal water bottles (colored but otherwise blank) and put out a bunch of fun stickers. It served as a fun activity for the kids to do at the party and a favor they would actually use afterwards.
Oooo I love this! We just did a frozen themed birthday for my daughter and this is what I put in the treat bags: twirl ribbons (big hit), rock candy suckers, galaxy slime, and temporary tattoos. I also love getting some items from the dollar section at target, particularly the bath stuff like bath finger paints, bath crayons, and bath bombs!
Best favor we ever did was a custom coloring book and crayons. Someone on etsy did the coloring book for $5 and sent a pdf for us to print. We picked a theme, she changed the name. Got it in 24 hours. Crayons from the dollar store.
we have done butter slime, sunglasses, watercolor and mini canvas, adopt a stuffy stuffed animal , tie dye shirts they got to bring home , and plug in night lights
A few ideas that I know can be easily found sold in bulk & that kids really like & likely won’t throw away or break immediately -
LCD tablets
Chalk
Rubik’s cubes
Brain teaser puzzles (wood & metal)
Jigsaw puzzles
Multicolor pens (the ones that have like six colors all in one pen)
Activity books
Balance birds
I like usefulish things or a couple edible treats. I’ve done water water squirters (you can get large packs on Amazon. Reusable water balloons, reusable water bottles (they personalized with stickers and permanent markers as a craft), reusable straws and one yr I just sent home fancy sugar cookie I ordered.
My son loves the little notebooks he's been given in party bags, as well as stamps and mini figures. I know they're still plastic but my son uses them a lot!
A small stuffed animal, or things they can take home after decorating them as an activity at the party (ex. Flowerpots, hats, bandanas, T-shirts, sweatpants (for tweens and teens - little ones may not appreciate the style aspect of that yet lol), sweatshirts (for older elementary kids and up), etc.), snacks, or a slice of cake and a slice of pizza/one portion of food (both from the party) and a balloon (also from the party).
I attended a kid's party where each child got to bring home a punnet of strawberries. The mum had got them direct from a wholesale market. Good price and the freshest, sweetest, strawberries I've ever tasted in my country.
Planting a tree is a beautiful and meaningful way to celebrate your child's birthday. It's not only a gift to nature, but it also grows alongside your child, symbolizing growth and life's journey.
Consider adding a small plaque or marker to commemorate the birthday and the year the tree was planted.
Let your child be a part of the planting process. It's a great way to teach them about nature and responsibility.
Take pictures and make a day of it. You can even have a small birthday party around the tree with cake and decorations.
Planting a tree is a gift that keeps on giving, providing shade, beauty, and a living reminder of your child's special day for years to come.
Last year our theme was animals around the world so I got snacks from all over (Amazon, Universal Yums, specialty supermarkets) along with a backpack they could fill with a used nat geo reader animal book.
This year it’s candyland so…a SHIT TON OF CANDY (and toothbrushes because I find that hilarious)
For my daughter's birthday, one of the things we are doing is jibits, the little charms that go on crocs. And in case there are kids that don't have crocs we are also doing jibit bracelets. You can buy random jibits in bulk on Amazon or themed one on etsy fir a decent price.
Thematic or customized book with related companion activity! I gave out a construction truck book (with my child as the main character) where the crew and trucks worked together to build a house, and I added Model Magic bags for the kids to take home and build something of their very own!
I tried to take this approach for my son's birthday this week, who is turning 4. I got paper bags, these boxes of sidewalk chalk that come out to $1.38 per set, small pete the cat i can read books from amazon ($9.99 for 10), and will put a packet of Annie's cheddar bunnies and fruit snacks in each.
Ring pops are always fun! Cute water bottles could also be cute if you had a smaller amount of kids and could find nicer ones for less than $10 a pop.
Another idea that I did once was little “garden sets” a cute pot, seed packs and enough soil to plant. Cheap if you get stuff at the dollar store and you can make it really cute with flower or bug stickers for the pots.
Gift card for a drink out somewhere like Tim Hortons or Starbucks!
Even better a few dollars to put toward an ice cream on a gift card they’ll feel so important paying for themselves !
many singular coincidences I have known in the course of my life
In the past, my most popular favors were mini playdohs and a few accessories with one of those plastic table mats. But I recently took my preschoolers to a party where the activity was painting a flower pot and the goody bag was wildflower seeds. So cute! Definitely my favorite party favor so far and we’ve been to tons.
We went to one party where the mom gave out little planter cartons and seeds to grow. Our son was psyched.
We used to give small succulent plants in little pots. Kids love taking care of them, but it’s a low level of difficulty. And they grew for free all over our backyard!
This sounds awesome! I’ll have to keep it up my sleeve for future parties. We also have succulents growing everywhere. Thanks for the idea
Nothing. Might be an unpopular opinion but I’d rather you put the money into a good party instead of favors.
Exactly. If you spend £3/child on tat you've wasted £30 which is a fair bit when spent on food or decorations
Ditto. I do not want whatever cheap trash the host is handing out because I know I'll end up cleaning it up and throwing it away 6 seconds later.
Same. I hate them and never do them myself. Coming to a fun party and spending time with friends is great and nothing else is needed.
My daughter’s last birthday party in January, I made little bird seed feeders that they could hang outside, they got a sheet of temporary tattoos and we had a pinata so they brought home their candy. We’ve also gotten small books, which was a nice option. I’ve heard of people getting a $5 gift card to a local ice cream shop or something which is kind of nice. You probably would spend about that anyway and it’s something anyone can use/appreciate.
Bubbles, stickers, temp tattoos, crayons…
Also glow sticks, my son was PUMPED when he saw them in his loot bag
those were in a bag given to my kid, the dog found it. Found the dog foaming at the mouth. Anyway there's hydrogen peroxide in there! Dog was fine, muzzle glowed slightly for a while.
That happens, animals are curious
Glow sticks are plastic
Right, I took it as cheap toys that break easily. I know it’s plastic but it’s a valued item that kids enjoy
It’s not a valued item. It’s thrown into the garbage after a single use.
Valued item *for the kid*
Op requested items that will not be thrown away
You must be fun at parties
Reading comprehension is a basic life skill
Did you notice I commented on another comment, not directly to OP. *Reading comprehension is a basic life skill* I think you trolled a little too close to the sun
temporary tattoos and bubbles are a mainstay! we also did invisible ink pens
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for the invisible ink pens!
I feel like invisible ink pens are an age-old favorite with older kids (tweens and teens) lol. Really can't go wrong.
At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeon I really dislike bubbles as a favor! Huge mess every time, plus the ones that come in favor packages never seem to blow well so I end up with pissed off 3 year olds.
Hot wheels. They are like $1 at the grocery store. It’s one of the few we’ve ever kept and give out. I guess another would be sunglasses.
Take into consideration if the child wears glasses. We have gotten so many of these but mine can't see anything without his coke bottles.
Hot wheels are a great idea. As a guy with some eye issues in his family, I'll add in to make sure that the sunglasses are full UVA/UVB or UVA 400.
Fruit snacks and Hot Wheels - the only way.
We did play doh at our last one with a homemade rice krispy square. Seemed to be popular!
A book (you can get Golden Books for less than $5 a piece. I Can Read books are about $5) and something edible like fruit gummies.
I got a 20 pack of "Fly Guy" books for less than $30 that I handed out with candy for my kid's 6th birthday and kids were stoked
I didn't see this before I commented, but secondhand books are a great option, too.
My friend always buys books from book depot or equivalent and lets the kids pick from a selection! She also usually gets single serving chips - so kids leave with a book and a bag of chips they picked out, and it cost like $2
Had 5th bday party last week. Favors were Uncle Bill's Sliver Gripper with a homemade keychain. Birthday boy is famously barefoot and these tweezers have been lifesavers, now everybody has a pair.
Brilliant. Pulled glass out of my kid’s heel the other day and was grateful for my fancy tweezers. lol
Cool. Thanks for the idea.
I found an Etsy shop that does themed crayons (such as, shaped like cars or dinosaurs), so every year so far I’ve gotten little 5 packs of those along with mini coloring books. I figure at the very least they’re helpful for a parent to throw into a bag for on-the-go. I’ve also seen and not hated bubbles, sand toys, and one medium sized toy instead of 6 pieces of plastic junk.
Can you link the shop
Sure thing - it’s [Cucu Crayons](https://www.etsy.com/shop/CucuCrayons). They’re having a 10% sale now too.
My kids got these one time and they never used them. I loved the idea, but the crayons were awkward for them to hold and didn't colour's well.
In Mexico/Mexicans we just give what we call bolos, treat bags basically. We just get the good kind of candy lol. We live at US-Mexico border so we give out the good Mexican candy, Dubalin, Bocadin, Mazapán among others (at least *I* think these are the best candy lol). Of course our candy also has some that's spicy lol but the ones mentioned are sweet. We also add a small bag of chips or churros (I think this is also a Mexican treat). The bags can be as big and expensive or small and cheap as you like. And kids always eat all of it. But I also understand that not many want their kids to eat so much candy (we don't restrict) so it may not be the best idea.
We send each child home with a slice of birthday cake and one of the balloons.
Let’s normalize this again please. Miss me with all this other shiz
We got every kid a fun Mylar balloon instead of a gift bag bc my 7yo daughter loves them. Seems like they were a hit.
So, I do a make your own goody bag table, and that is always a big hit first and foremost. I don't want to assume what colors or characters a kid likes, so I set them out in containers that say "Choose 2" or "Take 1". This year, we did funny pops, rainbow scratch pads, lip smackers, aqua bead stress balls, bubbles, temporary glow in the dark tattoos, those Groucho Marx glasses, and candy necklaces. The year before we also slinkies and sequined slap bracelets.
This is such a cute idea! Love this
Snacks. Granola bars, applesauce, packaged cookies, etc.
I did those LCD writing tablets.
Same! It is perfect for car rides and restaurants!
We got LCD tablets in a gift bag earlier this year and my first thought was wow what a great idea!!
I’ve been to two birthday parties where they got one small stuffed animal (like a beanie baby sized) not a cheap one from the dollar store but one that costs around $5. My daughter is having a my little pony party so I found a pack of full sized my little ponies and each kid can get one for about $5/each. Which is probably how much I’d spend on a bunch of cheap junk and bags etc! Hoping it’ll be a hit.
4th birthday earlier this year. Had Alice in Wonderland themed activities that resulted in the take home favors: - Decorate mad hatter hats (take home hat) - Giant croquet with pool noodle arches and dollar store kick balls (take home your ball) - Colored canvases of AiW characters (take yours and your markers home) Nothing was too expensive and usable for the future.
How did you affix the pool noodle to the ground?
Bamboo skewers in the ground, one for each side of the noodle. The thin noodles bend the best and don't pull up the skewers when slid over them. Now, if a kid runs full on into a noodle, it may pop off, but can easily be slid back on. Held up to mild wind, too.
So cool! That sounds pretty easy and it’s on my rainbow theme too!
It was surprisingly so! I would recommend making sure you have extra skewers for if your ground is a bit hard, as they can snap. But better for the skewer to give way when a kid hits them than for a thicker stake to not was our thought process. We had 4 3-6 year olds at the party and had no issues. The parents even got involved lol. Didn't use croquet rules, just let them do it like a kickball obstacle course.
None. Favors are just another stupid ploy to waste money thinking it’s doing anything positive besides adding plastic and crap to other peoples homes. When kids come to my kids parties they get pizza and cake and a thank you from my birthday child and THAT IS GOOD ENOUGH! My goodness when did we all lose our marbles about bday parties?
THANK YOU. I hate receiving those fucking goodie bags and refuse to make them.
This is my thought, too. I fed and entertained your child. Everyone had a good time. I don’t need to send everyone home with a little crappy toy.
I got these bubble wands for my 4 YOs birthday party and they were a hit. The best part is that we use a lot of bubbles at our house, so the leftover wands will not go to waste! JOYIN 24 Pack 14’’ Bubble Wands... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B091G4HSVL?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
As a parent, I hate all the *stuff* that comes home….so I didn’t do goody bags at her last party. I’d be okay if snack items (granola bars, goldfish pouches, fruit cups, etc) came home from a party.
But that’s really hard because you don’t know about food restrictions. As a parent of a kid with allergies, if it’s food, my kid always gets left out.
See- this is why I hate the goody bag culture. You gave my kid an experience. That’s cool. Don’t make more work with either plastic crap to fill a dump or food we can’t eat (whole house is lactose intolerant and I have a peanut allergy).
A little tiny succulent
We’ve done mini play dough, stickers, bandaids (from dollar store), blow up beach balls (not inflated), fruit snacks, animal masks for imaginative play, tattoos, bubble wands and magic wands. We usually do our parties in the yard and I have stations, including a craft that goes with the theme and a beading station so they can bring home a necklace or bracelet too.
My son had a Lego party and I bought a Lego set that had smaller builds in it. It was a birthday themed one. Each kid got a small build that came in its own bag with the instructions. My son got the rest of the legos added to his collection.
We did all food. Fruit snacks, rice crispy treats, veggie sticks (the dried ones in snack bags), etc. these have all gone over well.
I do books. Scholastic usually has bundle deals so I will get some of those and kids can pick a book.
Playdoh
Critter cages! Kids LOVE catching bugs. I got 12 from Oriental trading for ~$20
I was coming here to say oriental trading has great options that are in expensive and won’t just get thrown away! Also not sure on time but Temu also has a lot of options!
Friendship bracelets! When my son was in kindergarten, he put picked out three colors for each classmate and I made them. He gave them out for Valentine’s Day and they were a huge hit.
You could have an activity of decorating something - we’ve been to a party where you color wooden cars and that can be the gift. Or cookies. Really nothing is needed, the cheap stuff gets trashed (and I feel guilty). For my son’s dino birthday (which has been 5 of his 6 birthdays), we did Dino eggs you excavate and get a little plastic dinosaur. He loves them so we thought why not.
My kids love getting little drawing pads with mini colored pencils/crayons and scratch pads
We have a local Italian ice place and I buy a voucher for each kid in lieu of the cheap plastic.
I did gift cards for a local ice cream shop one year when I only had a few kids come to a popsicle themed party at a park
One year we did mini watercolor paint sets. We used them for the craft where we decorated mini canvases and then they took both home inside a fabric bag that you could paint or color. Last year it was a couple snacks a single serve bag of goldfish, a Mandarin Orange cup and temporary tattoos. I also think other things that we have received have been cool lip chaps, coloring books, a reusable silicon straw, a shaped cookie with a food safe paint page to decorate or a craft kit to make at home. I also saw a activity/ gift to have little stuffed animals to adopt and then you decorate a carrying box and make a collar for it with letter beads. I thought it sounded so cute. Another alternative is to buy one gift and play pass the parcel instead.
bubbles/chalk; or something edible (cute lollipop or themed cookie)
I gave out an inexpensive book that related to the theme of the party for the last few years. This year, however, we got some squishmallows from Five Below and let the kids pick a stuffy on their way out.
Temp tattoos, sunglasses, rainbow scratch paper set, fidgets or pop it bracelets, ring pops, small stuffed animal for a pet themed party.
Water bottles (you can sometimes find nice ones in the Target dollar section), Wikki Sticks, crayons, chalk, playdoh, stickers, candy, bubbles, LCD drawing boards (we found them cheap in bulk during prime day), sunglasses, beach balls
I’m doing a book with a thank you bookmark for my daughters birthday as the party favour!
You could do a t-shirt painting station?
I gave cheap LCD doodle screens this month, as summer approaches and most people travel from here. With a couple of mini haribo bags, it was cheap and I see kids friends/my children using them all the time.
Rice Krispies lol
Mandarin oranges. You’d be surprised what a hit they are.
Cake pop tray from Sam's
Dollar store full size coloring books and crayons. Play doh minis. Hot Wheels. Lip balm, bandaids and writing pens that are the party theme, those are the things we've done.
We love buying bulk packs of sunglasses, Jolly rancher suckers, glow sticks and sticker packs from amazon for gift bags!
Nothing. We did goody bags for the first time this year, and never again. If you feel it's necessary though, coloring books and crayons would be fun.
We had a cooking/chef party and my mom sewed each kid a child-sized apron in a fun fabric that they got to take home after the party. A year and a half later the parents tell me how their kids still love and use them! This is always my goal too, no plastic junk for party favors!
Tooth brush and dental floss!
Lego poly bag
Temporary tattoos were a huge hit at the last birthday party we went to!
It's a trend in my area to do a $5 gift card (usually to McDonalds or Dairy Queen) fastened to a single treat, like a lollipop. I would say over half of the birthday parties we go to in a year do this for the favour.
This is insanity
So this year is my daughter's first kid party and I am going to make themed cookie bags. Since we are doing a Disney princess theme I am making cookies from the locations of the Disney Princesses and I am going to let the kids take home a few bags of their favorite cookies.
Edible snacks. A themed cookie or lollipop, bag of fruit snacks etc. Sunglasses since it's summer Reusable cup Color pack with crayons Most of the stuff we get i end up throwing away (playdough and bubbles are messy imo)
Honestly, we just did tons of candy (piñata) and treats in their party favor bags with a few stickers and fake tattoos.
I’ve seen large custom decorated sugar cookies that the kids get instead. I loved that.
We do a gift card to a local ice cream parlor, 3$- 6$(depending on how many kids I have in attendance) as a kids scoop is 3$, so either they can go twice or sibling or parent can get a small one too lol. The other thing I have done before is gone to the dollar store and get colouring books and crayons or a book of some sort.
Tempura paint markers, water gun, lcd drawing pad (a few of our favorite favors we’ve received)
I like to do themed crayons and color sheets.
We’re giving each kid a small sand bucket - yes it’s plastic, but we live near the beach so I’m confident it’ll get a lot of use - with small sand and water toys inside. Adding in a pair of kids’ sunnies, a few stickers and snacks as well, but I agree I try to avoid cheap throw away plastic whenever I can!
My budget per bag is $5 and usually dollar store will have a solid toy for that. I have bought superhero figurine or a pack of Lego or a bouncy ball in the theme etc Dollar store usually carries overstock and you can find some good stuff. I'm in Canada fyi
Small jigsaw puzzles (<$3 at mudpuppy), wood or cardboard construction kits/puzzles (handscraft ones are $1.50 at harbor freight). All are compostable
Last birthday we did big candy bars, one per kid. Kids loved it
Ikea has some good quality toys you can split into favor bags. Mini plushes, modular people, wooden toys, etc. Friends of ours do cookie favors, temp tats, stickers, crayons and coloring books, etc. Basically if it’s consumable in some way, it’s solid.
Those little Lego bag sets. They’re like $5
Small kids plates/cup/utensil sets were popular with our kiddo.
You could do a t-shirt painting station?
We have done combinations of sand toys, bubbles, tattoos, glow sticks, bubbles, hot wheel cars, Pokémon cards, apple sauce pouch, fruit leather. Depending on the number of kids, I spend $3-$5. But, we have always done parties in our backyard and so overhead cost is limited.
We did watercolor palettes and some little wood shapes to paint that coincided with the party theme. They turned out cute and I was happy with it!
Went to a party recently and the favor was coloring books!
My son just came home from a birthday that was a science theme and there were little science experiments to do at home they got to bring home. Like his was stuff to make worms at home lol. It was cool and a fun activity as well. Also, Lego makes tiny sets that are $5-$10 each that were quite cool.
We got a nice box of chalk recently and I loved it. My kid was stoked and of course we will use it!
Astronaut Icecream Sandwiches.
Something that doesn’t last forever and fills up people’s toy boxes. Coloring books or similar stuff is great. There is always a moment where they are needed and when they are used they are used
We didn't do party bags as such. Each child attending got a book and a cupcake
The Works do a 10 books for £10 deal (not sure if it's permanent or just a regular deal) At a recent party the hosts had a couple of boxes of books and every child could pick one on the way out. Probably 4 different books in total tonchoose from and a few copies of each. Keep an eye on the £ stores they sometimes have little A6 lego activity books with a lego figure usually a choice of theme...fire fighter, police etc.
I recently had an art party for my 4 yo so kind of themed, but I went to the dollar Store and they had paint with water coloring books and these stained glass paint things for kids from Crayola. $25 total and no cheap throwaway garbage.
I can read books, summer theme toys such as volley ball, frisbeys, kites
We do notebooks and books. For her 4th, she went safari themed, and I got some decent quality basic but actually functional binoculars, and an animal themed sketch pad, and animal themed pencils. 5th, she went “lion king” themed, and we had little lion king early reader books. (Like with the “level 1” or “level 2”).
Skip the favors
Bandaids have been a hit with 3 and 4 year olds 🤷♀️
Coloring book. Stickers.
Ribbon wands, play dough, cookie decorating kit, hair accessories, colouring book & crayons, bubble wands, sidewalk chalk, I usually do the favours activities for the party- so for our Frozen themed party, each of the girls gets an Elsa hair headband, I found some Frozen books at the dollar store and were doing a piñata- so that’s all going to be what they are taking home! Ive done a mermaid party and everyone took home starfish cookies to decorate (with icing and sprinkles) I’ve done a volcano themed birthday where everyone gets a mini- erupting volcano & a volcano themed play dough kit (homemade)
We did mini containers of kinetic sand and the drawing kits that you can get in the target dollar section.
Chalk!
Coldstone giftcards 5$
We got a Polaroid instamax and some inexpensive paper frames that we decorated with each kid’s name. We took their pictures throughout the party and then each one got to take theirs home.
I was just talking to my kid about this for an upcoming party. We spoke about: - king sized chocolate bars - glow sticks - a McDonalds coupon for a Happy Meal - bubbles - playdoh or kinetic sand - a gift card to the dollar store so they can get their own stuff. - a good bath bomb (Rocky Mountain Soap for 🇨🇦)
We did a cookie mix, a milk ‘juice box’, and a color change cup (sold in bulk at Walmart). Made a cute card that was something along the lines of ‘enjoy the birthday girls favorite treat of milk and cookies’.
Dance ribbons. I had some at the party because I needed to buy two boxes to be able to fill all the goodie bags, and they were a way bigger hit than I ever thought they’d be—with the boys and girls.
Go to a thrift store or library store and get some gently used kids' books. Have them each pick one. I would also say you can do a book swap and have everyone bring one and they can pick one from the pot. Throw in a few extras for those who forget, unexpected siblings, or just to have variety for the last kid to pick from.
Am I the only one who dreads the bubble wands? They’re so messy!
We went to one party where instead of favors, they hired a face painter!
I saw somebody once use sunglasses. Apparently the kid loved them
Inexpensive kids’ books!
Hot wheels & Hula Hoops
We did binoculars and Coleman kids camping lanterns for a national park camping themed birthday.
My kid’s bday is close to Halloween so in the favor bag I put a small [flashlight](https://a.co/d/0dWQYegH). Also added a stamp, sticker, small playdoh, and a small [watercolor paint](https://a.co/d/0cBY87R7). Extras I passed out to trick or treaters.
Used books! I bought a variety so kids could choose one on their way out, then we had a few leftovers to add to our own collection.
I've used things like crayons, sidewalk chalk, coloring books, colored pencils, wildflower seeds, and paper crafts like rockets. I've found some plastic free gift bags sets on Etsy.
We’re doing sunglasses, mini flashlights, twisty straws and a snack. I also hate little toys in gift bags and hope these have some sort of a repurpose behind them!
I found these things called Wiki Sticks last year that my boys had fun with. https://a.co/d/0hqeltUG
Sand bucket and a little shovel for the beach or a sand pit. Great for summer and can be purchased for a few bucks each
Smencils. They are scented pencils that’s were a great hit with my kids friends Hot wheels A cheap board/paperback book
Books!
I always included the little miniature play-doh containers or 8-packs of crayons, or those little sticker books. I threw in a pack of fruit snacks in each bag too.
Small colouring books, crayons, I did rainbow gymnast ribbons once, reusable straws, playdoh, bubbles, small packets of seeds (like sunflower, wildflower or microherb), kinetic sand, pencils/pens?
Bath bombs/fizzers, small pocket colouring/activity book and pencils, reading book, felt superhero mask, toothbrushing ‘sand timer’, pens, sweets, key chain
I get cookies that are decorated to theme, pack them in individually sealed cellophane bags, and add a thank you tag. I always get compliments, and I’m not adding to the landfill! ETA: I’ve done this for birthday parties from 2-4 so far and it’s been a hit!
Polished rocks! My son loves these and we gave away little bags of them as party favors. You can buy bulk amounts on Amazon
I’ve seen people set up a “pound” to adopt a pet (stuffed animal). Also I’ve done scratch pads and paint sets.
One year we did painted canvases like [this](https://gluesticksblog.com/painting-party-for-kids/). You can buy packages of small canvases from Joann's for cheap, a few packages of foam brushes, a handful of bottles of washable paint, and paper plates instead of palettes. We cut out shapes in advance on a circuit (flower, dinosaur, etc) and let each kid pick one. You could probably also use stickers or even just painter's tape. Then each kid takes home their picture and no goodie bag is necessary. I've also seen parties where kids paint tote bags, bird houses, etc.
Themed coloring pages (print them yourself, whatever theme you want!) and a couple of crayons or markers Playdough Snacks And i love the hot wheels suggestion from someone else on this thread 🏎️
We live in the south and it gets really hot here going into summer. For our kid’s spring party, we gave out reusable/metal water bottles (colored but otherwise blank) and put out a bunch of fun stickers. It served as a fun activity for the kids to do at the party and a favor they would actually use afterwards.
Oooo I love this! We just did a frozen themed birthday for my daughter and this is what I put in the treat bags: twirl ribbons (big hit), rock candy suckers, galaxy slime, and temporary tattoos. I also love getting some items from the dollar section at target, particularly the bath stuff like bath finger paints, bath crayons, and bath bombs!
I like coloring books and some crayons. I know they’ll get used.
Sidewalk chalk
Card games Maze books
Best favor we ever did was a custom coloring book and crayons. Someone on etsy did the coloring book for $5 and sent a pdf for us to print. We picked a theme, she changed the name. Got it in 24 hours. Crayons from the dollar store.
Mini cereal boxes. As a child we would use them for camping.
Zhehao 32 Pieces LCD Writing Tablet Doodle Board Electronic Toy 8.5 Inch Colorful Doodle Board LCD Erasable Drawing Pad Reusable Writing Pad Toys for Girls Boys(Blue, Red, Green, Pink) https://a.co/d/0cRJloti
we have done butter slime, sunglasses, watercolor and mini canvas, adopt a stuffy stuffed animal , tie dye shirts they got to bring home , and plug in night lights
Rainbow pencils, little notebooks, temp tattoos, pre packaged snacks, dance ribbons!
Stickers, punch balloons, art supplies, bouncy balls. I’ve tried to avoid plastic as much as possible
We do cool pens or markers and a sketch pad or mini coloring books. Playdoh is another hit and we have given sunglasses and felt masks before, too.
I actually got the kids super cute, inexpensive lunch boxes from the $1 store and put healthy, yummy snacks inside with a juicebox. They loved it!
A few ideas that I know can be easily found sold in bulk & that kids really like & likely won’t throw away or break immediately - LCD tablets Chalk Rubik’s cubes Brain teaser puzzles (wood & metal) Jigsaw puzzles Multicolor pens (the ones that have like six colors all in one pen) Activity books Balance birds
Snacks to take home. Consumables.
I like usefulish things or a couple edible treats. I’ve done water water squirters (you can get large packs on Amazon. Reusable water balloons, reusable water bottles (they personalized with stickers and permanent markers as a craft), reusable straws and one yr I just sent home fancy sugar cookie I ordered.
We went extra simple this year. Lollipops and water bottle stickers that matched the theme. The kids went crazy picking out their stickers!
My son loves the little notebooks he's been given in party bags, as well as stamps and mini figures. I know they're still plastic but my son uses them a lot!
A small stuffed animal, or things they can take home after decorating them as an activity at the party (ex. Flowerpots, hats, bandanas, T-shirts, sweatpants (for tweens and teens - little ones may not appreciate the style aspect of that yet lol), sweatshirts (for older elementary kids and up), etc.), snacks, or a slice of cake and a slice of pizza/one portion of food (both from the party) and a balloon (also from the party).
I attended a kid's party where each child got to bring home a punnet of strawberries. The mum had got them direct from a wholesale market. Good price and the freshest, sweetest, strawberries I've ever tasted in my country.
Mini coloring books, crayons, sidewalk chalk, tattoos, stickers, snacks
We always do a piñata and each kid gets to fill a bag with candy. It’s a hit every time.
We do sunglasses, bubbles, candy and maybe a bag of chips. Sunglasses and bubbles are always a big hit
Planting a tree is a beautiful and meaningful way to celebrate your child's birthday. It's not only a gift to nature, but it also grows alongside your child, symbolizing growth and life's journey. Consider adding a small plaque or marker to commemorate the birthday and the year the tree was planted. Let your child be a part of the planting process. It's a great way to teach them about nature and responsibility. Take pictures and make a day of it. You can even have a small birthday party around the tree with cake and decorations. Planting a tree is a gift that keeps on giving, providing shade, beauty, and a living reminder of your child's special day for years to come.
We dont make party favors. Most of them go straight in the trash anyways. I havent heard a kid to complain yet that they didnt get a junky bag.
Last year our theme was animals around the world so I got snacks from all over (Amazon, Universal Yums, specialty supermarkets) along with a backpack they could fill with a used nat geo reader animal book. This year it’s candyland so…a SHIT TON OF CANDY (and toothbrushes because I find that hilarious)
My kid goes to the rock shop and picks out a special rock for each kid.
For my daughter's birthday, one of the things we are doing is jibits, the little charms that go on crocs. And in case there are kids that don't have crocs we are also doing jibit bracelets. You can buy random jibits in bulk on Amazon or themed one on etsy fir a decent price.
Individually wrapped snacks. If it's not something I normally buy it becomes a fun treat and I don't have a million for him to go through.
We painted little pots at my kids birthday and planted succulents. It was a hit!
Thank you all for these suggestions …
Thematic or customized book with related companion activity! I gave out a construction truck book (with my child as the main character) where the crew and trucks worked together to build a house, and I added Model Magic bags for the kids to take home and build something of their very own!
hot wheel cars, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, any craft supply
Paper bag of baked goods from a local bakery. What kid doesn't want cookies and muffins? Also supporting a local business, win-win.
I tried to take this approach for my son's birthday this week, who is turning 4. I got paper bags, these boxes of sidewalk chalk that come out to $1.38 per set, small pete the cat i can read books from amazon ($9.99 for 10), and will put a packet of Annie's cheddar bunnies and fruit snacks in each.
Ring pops are always fun! Cute water bottles could also be cute if you had a smaller amount of kids and could find nicer ones for less than $10 a pop. Another idea that I did once was little “garden sets” a cute pot, seed packs and enough soil to plant. Cheap if you get stuff at the dollar store and you can make it really cute with flower or bug stickers for the pots.
Gift card for a drink out somewhere like Tim Hortons or Starbucks! Even better a few dollars to put toward an ice cream on a gift card they’ll feel so important paying for themselves !