I have had this party theme in my mind for almost a year now, and was so excited that my daughter thought it sounded fun. As with other parties I plan, many times I choose a theme where decor is hard to find, and I have to make up most of the activities, which is what I did here as well. A few days before the party, we were able to go to Peery's Egyptian Theater in Ogden, Utah for some photographs. It is a beautiful old building that was recently restored. The outside photos were enchanting, because the lighting was so perfect! Do you like the Egyptian collar? I ordered it straight from Egypt. I found it on ebay, and with shipping from Egypt, it cost about $16. I made her dress with fabric I found at Wal mart on clearance for $1 per yard!!! This photo was kind of fun :) It is a wall in the theater. This is one from the inside. They have this large fire curtain that is painted in an Egyptian mural, and AWESOME! I don't know how to work the settings on my camera very well, so I had a hard time getting good shots inside the theater. There was also a big organ in the middle of the stage, so I was unable to get the large mural photo I had hoped for, but I got some good ones anyway. Here's a peek at the invitation. I designed it in Picmonkey. Each girl got a ring, and it cost me less that $.10 each to make. They were so excited, and many of them wore the rings to school in the days after they got the invitation, and to the party. The lady with the cat is a free coloring page I found HERE, and matted and shrunk to the size I wanted in Picasa. I started looking in the classifieds a few months ago, and found a bunch or Egyptian papyrus for $5 each - SCORE! I put them all over my house to decorate. I bought 5 papyri and 2 plates. I also got an Egyptian papyrus from my mother-in-law, that happened to belong to Sophie's great grand parents, so that was special. I designated different areas in my home for activities and decor. When the girls came in the front door, they were each given an Egyptian headband, that I made with gold sequin ribbon and black elastic from Hobby Lobby. See them on the plate below? This was the main display table on my island in my kitchen. Do you like the Nefertiti head? It is a brats doll I found at the thrift store for $3. I removed the wig, and wrapped her head with butcher paper and wide floral ribbon in my color theme. The, "reed," plates pictured below, are for the girls to take with them, and put all their favors in after the party. I got them at the thrift store 10 for $1. Less expensive than buying gift bags, and way more cool! I placed the materials for our first activity on the table in the front room. All the other decore on the table is thrifted. Here is a closer look. The first thing we made was paddle dolls. In researching Ancient Egypt, I saw pictures of actual paddle dolls that were found in tombs, so I decided it would be fun to recreate them for the girls. I made them out of wood, and cut them out with my scroll saw, and drilled holes for their hair with our drill press. You could do it with cardboard and a hole punch, or even card stock if you are not into the wood thing. The girls got really creative, and the dolls were darling. I showed them pictures of authentic dolls, and they seemed to think it was pretty cool that they were making something that looked so close to the real thing. Here's the example I made. In all the photos I found of real paddle dolls, the patterns were very geometric, so that's what we did, using an index card as a guide. We drew on the dolls with sharpies, and galaxy markers, after making the initial marks with pencil. None of the authentic dolls that I have seen ever have a face. The next activity was an Egyptian photo booth. Again, I had never seen an Egyptian photo booth, so I had to come up with props myself. I mostly used coloring pages printed on card stock. You can find links on my EGYPTIAN BIRTHDAY PARTY Pinterest Board. They are sitting on a tray I found at the thrift store a few months ago. My daughter and I spent a few hours working on the hieroglyphic wall a few nights before the party. That's $3 worth of butcher paper (6 yards), and well worth the money! My daughter drew the whole first panel! She is awesome! The girls seemed a little awkward at first. but loosened right up, and had a blast taking photos! They loved the props. Walking like an Egyptian! The last thing we did after opening presents was the girls got to make their own cartouche, or hieroglyphic signature. The girls got to pick up an Egyptian hieroglyphic alphabet I found online, and framed to the colors I wanted in Picasa. They also took a piece of cardboard I got from the grocery store, when they were stocking the yogurt... I am resourceful, I tell you! I liked the way the edges were cut, and thought they looked a bit like a tablet. The yogurt man thought I was a weirdo. They also got to take a book mark I made. These were a fun touch, with the eye of Horus charm. Before they left, they got to grab a Nefertiti head necklace in the party colors. And.. my signature, a handmade clothespin Egyptian doll. I am LOVING art deco style and art nuveau styles, and Egyptian Revival was popular at a similar time. I wanted to make these little ladies look a little Egyptian Revival, and gave them a bit of a flapper hairdo. I have a feeling Egyptian revival will gain popularity again in the near future. I can feel it ;) As I mentioned before, they got to put all their loot on this, "papyrus," plate. Clever, and fitting, I thought! I designed the thank you note in Picasa, and attached it to the tray with a toothpick and tape. What a haul! Believe it or not, I didn't spend much at all. Have a Happy and Creative Day, and walk like an Egyptian! Risa