Little Maddy loves owls, so when it came to choosing a theme for her 1st birthday party, the decision was easy – owls! ‘I wanted to make it a little different so we based it around illustrator Kelli Murray’s cute ‘Be Brave’ owl,’ said stylist and photographer Joni from Chasing Arrows. ‘I gave the styling a bit of a modern twist, but kept it girly and cute seeing as it is Maddy’s 1st birthday party’.

The arrows used in Kelli Murray’s owl drawing inspired the use of arrows on the sweets table and arrow-themed bunting across the front of the table, while the pops of colour, silver, and patterns, such as the triangles, stripes and dots, helped to give the party a modern feel. Using a colour palette of pink, turquoise, silver, black and soft yellow, Joni decorated the party with hand painted owls, a giant silver number 1 balloon, a tassel garland, balloons, flowers and mini honeycomb balls, as well as handmade elements like the hand painted welcome sign and photo booth backdrop.

‘Then of course we had loads of owls scattered everywhere to tie in the owl theme,’ said Joni. Joni’s advice for others planning their child’s birthday party? ‘Give yourself enough time to get creative and be able to add a lot of personal, handmade touches to the event… also make sure you have someone on hand on the day to photograph your event. They can capture all the little details you worked so hard to put together and the important moments like cutting the cake,’ said Joni.

Photography, Planning + Styling Chasing Arrows | Event Venue Private Residence | Catering + Drinks Homemade | Stationery Evite

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Maddy's 1st Birthday