Eight Great Alternatives to Traditional Party Favor Bags

Recently I read an article that stated that parents across the United States were fed up with kids party treat bags and wanted other parents to join them and stop giving them away. They are too expensive, they say. They take too much time to put together, and the items inside are full of sugar and are/or useless. In addition, they went on to explain that they thought parents were trying to overdo each other when it came time to make the to treat bags.

My first reaction was, "Yeah, they do take some time and they do cost a little bit of money." But then I thought, "Do away with them? Never!" You see, I think that party treat bags are fun to put together and this is how my child thanks their guests for coming to their party. After all, when you invite a child to your child's birthday party, a parent sets aside not only two or three hours out of their busy weekend to attend your child's party, but they also spend time shopping and wrapping the gift to your child. So in my mind party treat bags are another way saying "thank you" for coming to the party.

When it comes to party treat bags, you don't have to be stuck with buying a bunch of candy and useless plastic trinkets. It's easy to get creative and come up with fun, easy and inexpensive and useful items to hand out at the end of your child's. All it takes is a little thought and a little creativity. So it got me thinking about alternatives to the traditional parties treat bags filled with sugar and useless things.

Coupons: Here is a fun idea for a child's birthday. Go to your local ice cream shop and purchase enough one-dollar coupons for every child attending the party. Then purchase flat bottom ice cream cones from your local grocery store and place the coupons inside. You can wrap each ice cream cone in colorful plastic wrap or place in a Ziploc bag. You can do something similar with coupons for doughnuts, fast food restaurants and even grocery stores. If you ask around, some grocery stores will give these coupons for a piece of fruit or a cookie out of the bakery. Easy, cheap and useful.

Lanyards: Party favors did not have to be given out at the end of the birthday party. How about incorporating something useful that you will use for the party and make that your party favor. Lanyards are a good example. If you're planning a large birthday party with several kids, then you know it is hard to keep up with everybody--especially if you are in a public place such as a skating rink, bowling alley or mini golf. Go to your local dollar store and purchase colorful lanyards for each child at your birthday party. Then add a plastic name tag pocket and make a name tag on your computer for everyone to wear. This is cheap and useful, and it will help you keep track of all the kids at the party.

Hats: Kids love to wear hats and what better way to get your gas into the party spirit by giving them a hat to wear that relates to the child's birthday theme. When the party is over they can take that home and wear it again and again. Here are some examples: if your daughter wants to have a Princess party, then purchase inexpensive tiaras or crowns. How about a construction birthday party with hard hats or cowboy hat for a cowboy or cowgirl theme? The possibilities are endless when you use hats for an alternative to treat bags.

Music: Music CDs are good alternatives to party treat bags. You can have fun selecting your child's favorite songs and making a personalized CD on your computer. Add a fancy CD label to the CD in place in a colorful plastic case. Now you have a cool party favor that will always remind your child's party guests of the great time that they had at the birthday party.

Pictures: Do you have a Polaroid camera or quick access to a digital camera and a printer? If so, then you can take each child's picture and send it home as a party favor. Get creative with this idea, and before the child's party make a backdrop that relates to the party theme or put the kids in a group picture. You can take this idea one step further by also making this a party activity have the kids make picture frames from kits that you can purchase or make them out of Popsicle sticks. Not only does this keep them busy during the party, but it also serves as a useful and fun party favor.

Goldfish: Goldfish are fun and inexpensive party favors to hand out at your child's birthday party. This idea works well if you're having an animal or farm themed party, or even a carnival party. You can purchase goldfish for about $.25 apiece and find inexpensive glass containers for about a dollar or less. Goldfish require very little care and are easy to take care of. You can even give each child a small supply of goldfish food to take home. If you want to go with this idea, make sure that you talk to the parents first so they know their child is bringing a pet home and talk to the children about proper pet care.

T-shirts: Another great alternative to treat bags are T-shirts. Purchase inexpensive plain white T-shirts and tie dye them before the party. Then you can allow each child to decorate his or her own shirt with fabric markers and fabric paint. If you're having a party for older children, they can tie-dye their own T-shirts. If all this sounds like too much work, consider making iron ons with your computer and printer. You can personalize each shirt however you want. Or you can even take a group picture of the party guests and add that to an iron on.

Disposable Cameras: For about three dollars per party guests, you can purchase disposable cameras. Hand them out as the guests arrive so that they can take their own pictures during the party. If you use disposable cameras, make sure that you write each child's name with a permanent marker on their camera. Let them take them home so they will always have memories of the fun that they had. Another idea is to give each party guest an inexpensive photo album for his or her pictures. You can purchase these for about a dollar apiece.

As you can see, with a little creativity, there is no reason to get rid of party favor bags for your children's birthday parties. There are many great alternatives to candy and plastic trinkets--and you can be sure that the kids will love them.