"The Very Hungry Caterpillar" Birthday Party Decoration Ideas

With this being the first day of Spring, I thought it would be appropriate to share Vann's The Very Hungry Caterpillar 2nd birthday party. It was such a fun theme decorating in the vibrant colors of Eric Carle's Artwork. And I think it turned out pretty cute...and budget friendly!

I dreamed of having a The Very Hungry Caterpillar party for my son Vann since he was just a newborn, but when he was turning one year old, our home was flooded and we were forced to live in a hotel for 5 months. So when his birthday rolled around, I got prepping for the Hungriest Caterpillar Party the ever was!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday Party

Since Vann's birthday falls during the springtime and The Very Hungry Caterpillar lives in the garden, I made his birthday party "garden" themed. A pair of rain boots and a cute sign I designed using Eric Carle paint backgrounds for the letters, greeted guests when they arrived at the party.

I also made a collage of photos of my boy celebrating the past year of his life. I had a colorful photoshoot right before the party, and the photos tied right in.

For the party hats, I made two different versions. Kids could either choose to wear party hats with a caterpillar, or headbands with a caterpillar.

How to Make Hungry Caterpillar Party Hats and Headbands

I made these fun caterpillar headbands and hats by glueing pom pons using a hot glue gun to them. a red on for the head, and two colors of green for the body. I ordered fabric headbands online, and the party hats I made with colored cardstock and elastic thread. I cut them out using a party hat template that I found on Pinterest.

To finish off the caterpillar, I used paint dabs for the eyes, and pieces of ribbon for the antenna. I absolutely love how they turned out, and they were pretty easy to make too.

For the outside table decorations, I put three long banquet tables together and covered them with a white table cloth. I rented white chairs for pretty cheap...this was a necessity, because I needed a lot of seating. I also attached a balloon to each of the chairs to achieve the look I wanted.

The only bummer was the wind! I envisioned each chair having its own colorful balloon. However, the wind tangled all the balloons together, so two big bunches of balloons would have to do.

For the table center pieces, I found colorful round placemats in primary colors. I thought they reminded me of Eric Carle art. I used potted plants lined up on the colorful round placemats. I found the pots and the fake plants at IKEA. 

Inside each plant, I tucked in cardstock circle with quote from the pages of The Very Hungry Caterpillar story, along with an illustration printed on it. I glued a popsicle stick between the two rounds of cardstock. Each side was identical so that both sides of the table could see it.

I just love how it turned out! Do you see The Very Hungry Caterpillar Plushie? You have to get one if you are throwing a The Very Hungry Caterpillar party.

I guess I forgot to take any photos of the food, I can't seem to find them. But at the party we served BRUNCH! Our menu included: cereal served in colorful bowls, ham and egg cups, muffins, salad, fruit and fresh squeezed juices.

If you are looking for an easy party menu, this is it. Brunch foods are so easy to prep.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Dessert Idea

My most favorite part of the party were these The Very Hungry Caterpillar Push Cakes® made by my friend Kristin of Meringue Bake Shop. They were actually the first thing I really wanted at the party when I decided that the theme was a The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

When I told Kristin of my vision, she helped figure out how to make them and then these The Very Hungry Caterpillar Push Cakes® were born.

And not only are these little guys cute, they are also YUMMY.  Meringue Bake Shop makes the best Push Cakes®, which is no surprise, as she is the original creator of push-up cakes. yep, she started the craze.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday Party Activity

For the activity at the party, I bought plants, flowers and terra cotta pots, which the children could paint and plant flowers in. It was a GREAT activity and adults and kids enjoyed painting the pots. They also made awesome party favors that actually had use after the party.

I bought all the pots, flowers and soil at my local home improvement store. The paint and paint brushes were from my local craft store.

All the paint got a little messy, but the kids loved it, and i am pretty sure the other parents were glad that their kids were making that mess at my house and not theirs.

We ended the birthday party singing "Happy Birthday" and cracking into Vann's birthday Whacky Cake, also made by Kristin of Meringue Bake Shop.

If you have never heard of a Whacky Cake, then I must tell you what it is. A Whacky Cake is a cake that has a hard candy shell. When it is time to serve the cake, the guest of honor gets to WHACK the cake with a hammer.

When the cake is whacked, the candy shell breaks, and guests get a candy surprise. yep, the cake is filled with candy!

Little hands and big hands will be reaching for the treats inside the Whacky Cake. It is not just a birthday cake, it's a birthday cake experience that is so much fun! The perfect way to end Vann's "The Very Hungry Caterpillar"birthday party.

This little The Very Hungry Caterpillar garden party may have been simple, but it ended up being the perfect way to celebrate Spring and my little man Vann. I can't believe that it has already been 3 years since this party, and that he will be turning 5 in just over a month. Where does time go?