Lizard Birthday Party Decorations

Decorating a lizard birthday party is lots of fun, and if you consider how to make every feature of the party a decorating component, once you have planned the decorations you will also know the games, the cake and the invitations. Since there are many different kinds of lizards that come in various sizes, shapes and colors, you can use a lizard birthday party decorating scheme that works with your birthday child's favorite colors.

Birthday party decorations serve to build the expectations of the guests and preview what the party might be for. Decorating starts with the invitations. It is easy to make lizard invitations using a computer or by hand. Start by downloading a clip art lizard. Either print enough copies to cut out and glue one to each hand-made invitation, or copy and paste the lizard image onto a computer-generated invitation. If you have the skills, paste the face of the birthday boy on the head of the lizard. Make a gigantic poster-size version of the invitation to decorate the front door on the day of the party. This way, every guest will know for sure that they are at the right place.

Setting the party table is a very important part of decorating. Each guest needs a place mat, a place card and a party hat, as well as a plate, napkin, fork and cup. Buy lizard stickers at a teacher supply store to decorate the outside of the white Styrofoam cups. Use the stickers to decorate plain blue (for skinks) or green (for iguanas) birthday party hats, which are available at party supply stores everywhere. Buy plain plates and napkins in your lizard's colors. Make a place card for each guest. Use the invitation you made as a start. However, instead of putting a picture of the birthday boy on the head of the lizard, put a picture of each guest. Then, place this where you want each person to sit at the party table. When they find their own picture, they will also know where to sit. This can be made ahead of time, or each guest can make her own as one of the party activities. Buy small toy plastic lizards to place as take-home favors at each child's place.

Make a birthday cake in the shape of a lizard that you can use as a centerpiece on the birthday party table. Bake several different-shaped layers of any flavor of cake that you want. You can use box mixes or make the cake from scratch. Lay out the layers on a large foil-covered piece of cardboard so that they make the approximate form of the lizard--a round layer for the head, a body, the legs and the tail carved from a sheet cake. Then use frosting to unify the image. Add candy to cover over any gaps. Pre-position the candles and--voila--the cake becomes a central feature of your lizard decoration scheme.

Create a Pin the Eye on the Lizard game. Start with a large piece of poster board, held in the landscape position, on which you draw the outline of the lizard. Use poster paints or markers to color the picture. Then, cut out the same number of lizard eyes from construction paper as there are guests. Label these pieces with the name of each guest. Hang the poster in a prominent place surrounded by balloons. During the party, blindfold the guests, turn them around and see which guest places the eye closest to the correct place on the poster. Use double-sided cellophane tape to attach the lizard eyes.

The most effective way to decorate a lizard party is to consider how to make every feature of the party serve as part of the decorations. Other suggestions include buying or making a lizard pinata, making lizard masks and including forest or jungle soundtracks to create the right ambiance. Of course, you should not forget to hang crepe paper streamers and balloons all around the room where the party will happen. If possible, borrow cages with live lizards and place them all around the room. This will make a zoo-like arena that the party guests will never forget. Be sure to give the guests directions about what to do and what not to do around live lizards if you will allow the guests to handle them.