Any adventurous child or adult will love an Indiana Jones birthday party. What makes this theme so much fun is that many of the party supplies, cake, and decorations can be handmade. Cool Party Favors Business Manager and ultimate kid party host Carole created an Indiana Jones bash for her son Logan. I was lucky enough to attend with my son and he LOVED it. Carole is our guest blog writer and so that I don’t make any mistakes about how she made everything, I am using her words and photos.
Decorations: We had chocolate coins and various treasure (beads, bead necklaces, jewels) We had plastic snakes and various bugs around the house. The whips were made from duct tape covered bamboo and braided jute.
The vines were made from jute and cut plastic tablecloths and streamers. The “idols” to be found for the treasure hunt were found at Salvation Army as was the treasure chest.
The sign was raffia and cardboard. We had plastic pith helmets from the dollar store.
Indiana Jones Party Favors: The bags were made from felt and braided jute. The “pea shooters” were made from cut bamboo sticks and fuzz balls as ammo.
The Cake: One of my favorite parts of the party was viewing and eating the Indiana Jones adventure cake. (If I close my eyes, I can still taste it.) Carole’s mother Patricia made it with lots of love, chocolate and creativity. Here is how she created this masterpiece:
The batter was made from two cake mixes-two rounds out of one and 24 cupcakes out of the other. The chocolate frosting is actually one displayed on the Hershey’s cocoa box. Pat doubled the recipe to account for the vast surface that needed frosting. She also added extra milk to give the effect of dribbling dirt down the mountain top and adding a rough texture. She put a layer of frosting on one of the rounds and added a second layer. She then added cupcakes placed upside-down to represent hills. Then a final drizzling of chocolate frosting allowing the thin frosting to enter cracks and crevices of the mountain. The frosting even helped to create mini caves. Candy chocolate rocks were added. Finally Pat washed some rubber snakes, fake shrubs, and various Indiana Jones characters. This cake was a huge hit!
Games: Carole and her family took great care and time putting together a treasure hunt with clues throughout the house, yard and even extended to neighbor’s houses. This took a good deal of time for the kids to read each clue to find the next one. The winning team got a small prize and bragging rights. I think that the other team got a prize as well. My son is still taking about this game.