Pirate party: Jackson is 5!

Amazing is the only word that can describe this pirate theme party! My incredibly crafty customer Sharon created this over-the-top, too-much-fun-for-words party for her son, Jackson. I’m in awe because – despite how grand this party is – just about everything is handmade (with some thrifty shortcuts, too!).

X marks the spot! The “X” is made of cardboard and tied with a jute cord. And just wait until you see what’s in the back yard…

Is this not the most amazing pirate ship ever!! Or actually, ships – it’s a little hard to tell in this picture at first, but there are TWO ships set up side-by-side! To make them, Sharon purchased plans from Mr. McGroovy’s to use as a base template. She says, “We picked up free cardboard boxes from an appliance distribution warehouse. I purchased cheap paint from the Home Depot ‘oops’ end cap in the paint aisle. It took about four hours to put the ships together and a couple of hours to paint and embellish them. We assembled the ship pieces in the garage and pulled them out to the lawn and enlisted neighbors to help paint. To make the banners, I cut burlap into rough triangles and sewed it over a jute cord.”

There were loads of games planned to keep the kids entertained. Sharon says, “Every party guest got a simple treasure map with stations marked on it. Each station had a prize or activity. Walk the plank for a felt pirate hat and gold coin, bean bag toss for bandana braids and an eye patch, a tattoo station where they traded a gold coin for temporary ink, a treasure chest to collect necklaces and rings, and then the kids gathered at the ships for the magic show.”

All afternoon, the kids were entertained by REAL pirates! “We hired talented junior entertainers from DFW Kids Parties & Events,” Sharon says. “Capt. ‘Zach’ Sparrow ran around with the kids to find treasure, then performed a magic show. We had a limbo dance and made balloon swords before cake, snacks and presents.”

Here you can see that the ships were set up side-by-side with an “ocean” in the middle, which can only mean…

…cannonball fight!! The “cannonballs” were Styrofoam balls from the craft store that were spray painted black.

The kids obviously had such a blast playing on the pirate ships!

A treasure chest holds Jackson’s birthday gifts and a printable banner serves as the backdrop.

Thirsty pirates could grab water with personalized labels.

Instead of a sheet cake, Jackson had treasure map cupcakes! The “sand” is made from crushed Nilla Wafers and the treasure map lines are made from licorice laces. Sharon also added some mini pirate toys for decoration. (I love the shark and octopus!)

Jackson wore a pirate costume (purchased at Halloween), and also some homemade Jack Sparrow braids.

At the end of the party there was one more bit of treasure, to go! Sharon says, “I made the loot bags by folding burlap rectangles, sewing two edges and using leather cord for the drawstrings. I cut an ‘X’ template and painted each bag using the template.” Inside each loot bag, the pirates found snack packages of Pirate’s Booty, some gold doubloons, a gold chocolate bar, and a mini spyglass.

This is truly one of my favorite parties ever! Thank you for sharing, Sharon, and happy birthday to Jackson! : )

Shop for personalized pirate theme party paper goods and printables here.
Or, check out more pirate party ideas on Pinterest or here on my blog!