This is the first time I was able to sit down and blog again for a couple of hours since I November. I had lots of things going on and I didn’t had time to do my regular posts here. I’m way behind schedule.

Anyway, last November 30, my baby’s 1st birthday party finally pushed through and I can say it was a succesful one. Kharl had a good time on his party which was the most important thing for us.

As promised, I’m sharing here the preparations and suppliers I got for the party, as well as some feedback for their services.

Venue: Shakey’s Bluewave Macapagal Branch
Rate: 9 stars
Budget: Php 18,655.10

I’m giving them a 9 since I didn’t had any problem with them. They even let me reschedule the party when Kharl got sick and we can’t push with the event on the original date. Anggie, who was the events coordinator, was really hands on with the party and she was good for keeping me updated before the event. Since we were expecting around 70-80 guests, the party was held at Bluewave’s Courtyard which was just beside Shakey’s store. It was an open space but it was not that hot and there were fans all over the place. Good thing Bluewave do not have any events scheduled for that day so we were able to have the party outside (the inside of Shakey’s Macapagal branch were a little crowded). We got 8 Monster meal deal which I requested to be served buffet style. Actually, we only ordered 7 but got short since there were also latecomers, so I ordered additional food. We had to wait for a couple of minutes for the addtional food which was ok since it didn’t take too long. Anggie was also the party host and she was ok. She gets the attention of the kids for the games which was tough considering the kids were all over the place. Overall, I like their services, their food and the venue.

Decors/Balloons: Party Republiq
Rate: 7 stars
Budget: Php 3,300

Despite the rescheduled event, Ms Clarice of Party republiq still accommodated me on the rescheduled date, though they already have an event to attend to that day. But because of this, they were not able to personally arrange the balloons on the venue. What they did was to go there really early and delivered the balloons and just left instructions with Shakey’s on how to arrange them. Actually, they wanted to arrange it already but the Bluewave admin won’t allow them, as preparations on the courtyard can only be done 3 hours before the event. So the original plan I requested for the arrangement was not done. Also, I requested metallic balloons for the party but at the event, everything was made of matte balloons. According to Ms Clarice, she used matte because metallic ones are good if the party is indoors or air-conditioned. In our case, there’s a high risk that they would get brittle and pop easily. Sad to say, I wasn’t too happy for the service I got but I’m still giving them a rate of 7 because the pre-arranged balloons were kind of ok and they’re easy to talk to. I got their 3,000 package that includes 2pcs 4-5 ft Balloon Pillar w/ topper, 1 cake arch, 10pcs table centerpiece and 60 pcs shower balloon. Then they have Php 300.00 delivery fee.

Tarpaulin: Alvin Tiamzon / Party Republiq
Rate: 9 stars
Budget: Php 800

I had one of my officemates, Alvin, create the layout for the tarpaulin. He is very good at layouts and designs and I liked the design he came up for the tarp. Very simple just as I requested. Then I had Party Republiq print the tarp. It costs 20 pesos/sq mt and I requested for a 5×8 size.

Chocolate Fountain: Big Tummy Cakes
Rate: 10 stars
Budget: Php 2800.00

The chocolate fountain was one of the highlights of the party. Everyone enjoyed it and they’re all asking where I got it. I chose their Php 2,500 pAckage which is good for 80-100 guests. Package includes 1 chocolate fountain machine (they actually used two in the event which is superb), 3 non-fruit dippers (marshmallows, stick-o wafer sticks and graham crackers), 2 fruit dippers (banana, apple) and 2 kilos chocolate fondue. The chocolate was really yummy though I was only able to eat a few since I was so busy entertaining guests. Ms Aira was the one who personally attended the event. Two thumbs up for them.

Photo coverage: JRaon Photography
Rate: 10 stars
Budget: Php 3,465

As always, I got Jay Raon as our official photographer. we really loved the our pictures before on Kharl’s baptismal so we got him again for Kharl’s birthday. He was early on the event so he was able to get some shots of the before party happening. He sent the DVD of pictures in less than a week. We love everything so I highly recommend his services. Since this is his second time to cover an event of ours, he gave a 10% discount. Yey!!

Cake: ProjectHappiness (PH) Bakehouse
Rate: 10 stars
Budget: Php 4,000

I originally had a different cake supplier for my baby’s party. Since the party was scheduled, we were able to get the cake that we ordered on the day it was cancelled. I was disappointed because I didn’t like the outcome of the cake. So a week before the rescheduled party, I searched for a different supplier. Good thing I attended the PMC Grand EB (Bloggers) and I was able to talk to sis Iris who owns ProjectHappiness Bakehouse. I saw the cake that one of the bloggers ordered and I was impressed. Plus, I got to taste one of the cupcakes ordered also from her. So, I decided to order the cake from her. I was so glad she accommodated my order despite the short notice. I chose her package Php 3,450 which includes a 6″ fondant cake, 48 pcs cupcakes (3oz) and a cupcake tower. I also added 1 dozen cupcakes more for Php 504. She gave me a free smash cake for the baby (which I really loved) and a discount for the delivery. The cake turned out to be what I really have in mind and I’m really glad for that. She was able to follow all the requests I gave her like the details on the cake, colors of the cupcakes, etc.

Clowns/Magicians:
Rate: 10 stars
Budget: Php 2,000

I had my cousin, who works for a party needs supplier, do the clown/magician thing. They were pretty good if I may say so and they gave me a discount which is nice. The kids looked like they enjoyed their magic show which is nice. Good job guys! Plus they also did some balloon twisting. PM me if you want to get their services. I know they also offer face painting, and other party needs.

Invitations: D.I.Y.
Budget: Php 80.00

I personally created the layout for the birthday invitation using Photoshop. I searched the net for some samples and got ideas from there. Then I just bought photo paper from National Bookstore and printed it myself. Everybody loves the invitation. I’m thinking of making a business out of it. Haha!! PM me if you’re interested.

Standee: D.I.Y
Budget: Php 620.00

This was not in the original plan. But as I was reading forums in the net, I got the idea of making a standee for the party. I wanted to have a life-size standee for Kharl. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to take a picture of him standing up. So I just used one of his studio photos. Creating it was a blast. It was easy though time consuming. But it was worth it. Materials used were foam board, double sided, cutter and the tarpaulin where I had the design printed. Breakdown of expenses is as follows:

• Tarpaulin (got it printed in Tutuban): Php 150 for a 2×3 tarp (25pesos/sq mt)
• Foam board: 400
• Double sided: 70

Birthday costume: Tutuban Mall
Budget: Php 750

We were able to buy Kharl’s costume in a store at Tutuban Mall. The jacket, which was really cute costs Php 500 and the black ferrari polo shirt was Pho 250.

Loot bags/Giveaways: Divisoria
Budget: Php 2,000

The package we got from Shakey’s already includes 30pcs loot bags for the kids. But it was not in Cars theme so we still got loot bags from Divisoria Mall. If you’re looking for party items and for giveaways, go to the basement floor of Divisoria mall because that is where the cheap but nice items are. Our loot bag contains a whiteboard, towel, candies, toy cars, school supplies, cotton candy and tumbler. And then I got some fan for the girls. We also bought around 12-15 toys for the pabitin. The wood used was only 20pesos. All in all, we only spent around php 200 for the giveaways.

The part was fun-filled and even though it was a weekday, people were able to attend the party. More people would have been able to come if the party was pushed through on the original date. Well, everything went fine, which was good. Till the next party!!