American Girl Kit Kittredge hit the big screen last summer in the adventure of a lifetime! Kit’s story takes place during the depression in America. This is a fantastic movie, and makes for a great summer party too! An American Girl party can be done as a tea party or slumber party.

 american_girl_party.jpg

Special Note: Do not assume that your party guests will have American Girl dolls. It would be very fun if everyone could bring her American Girl doll, but make sure that everyone has one BEFORE you request that people bring them. You can either check with parents before your send invitations out, or discuss it when they RSVP for their child. Otherwise, it will be quite awkward for a guest to attend who doesn’t have an American Girl doll.

 

For the Invitation:

Purchase old-fashioned taffy sheets, and repackage them using colorful cellophane. Attach a vintage-inspired postcard to the taffy, and write all of the party details on the postcard. Hand-deliver these invitations to your guests to get them in the mood of the party.

 

For the Activities:

Make jewelry for either all of the guests’ dolls or for the birthday girl’s doll. Small beaded bracelets, necklaces, belts, and hair clips are all great ides.

Make crafts for the dolls. Buy different colors of clay at a local craft store. Have the girls make doll-sized cookies, ice cream cones, chocolate bars, pancakes, waffles, lollipops, etc. Bake the clay at 275 degrees for fifteen minutes, and let the creations cool.

Use a Xerox machine to photocopy and enlarge your daughter’s favorite American Girl paper doll and different outfits for her. At the party, hang the doll on the wall. Have the girls decorate different dresses, hats, etc., for it. Make sure to provide clothes from other paper doll sets and eras so the doll gets many different looks. Imagine American Girl Julie wearing Kaya’s clothes! What fun!

If you are having a slumber party, have the guests watch the American Girl movies: Samantha: An American Girl Holiday and Felicity: An American Girl Adventure.
For the movie, make up trays of sweet and salty treats, including popcorn, pretzels, raisins, M&M’s, sweet cereal, or graham crackers. Dish them up into rolled tubes of brown paper for an old-fashioned way to enjoy the snacks.

american_girl_poster.jpg 

Make sleeping bags for the dolls to sleep in for the night. Buy fleece and cut it into pieces 12″ wide x 22″ long. Fold the fleece over and keep it open on three sides. Place the fold on the left. Cut 3″ out of the lower right corner and 3″ deep slits 1” apart around the bottom and halfway up the right side. Round the upper right hand corner and pin the fabric so it does not slip. Have the girls tie the slits of fabric to each other (the top one to the bottom one … make sure they stay lined up). This creates a perfect sleeping spot for the dolls and a great goody item for the guests to take home.

Have an American Girl fashion show. Dress the dolls up in accessories from a craft or dime store. Boas, hats, belts, purses, and hair clips are all great accessory options.

 

Kit, 1934:

Kit’s story centers around the hobo life and is the first American Girl movie to be released in the cinemas. Here are some activities to match the movie:
• Decorate the party room with Hobo signs, and have guests guess what each symbol stands for.
• Just like the librarian in the movie, have the guests create their own mini-stories using paper, a hole punch, craft supplies, and yarn for binding.
• Put on a magic show.
• Have a dance competition to mimic the eccentric dancer that moves into the house. Kick up some moves with or without the dolls.

 american_girl.jpg

For the Party Menu:

If you are having a tea party, serve small sandwiches filled with cream cheese and jam, chicken salad, or cucumber and dill. Mini scones with jam and clotted cream would also be lovely. Small lemon tarts, brownies, and mini cupcakes would make wonderful sweet treats.

For a slumber party, prairie food would be a good choice. Hot dogs, baked beans, cole slaw, and chips and dips would make a great menu. Don’t forget the sweet-and-salty snack mix too!

 

For the Goodies:

Send the guests home with the crafts they made. Additionally, you can provide a small wicker basket for them to carry their items in. Other things that would be fun are mini homemade bread loaves, rag dolls, and old-fashioned penny candy.

 

Article Submitted by Lisa Kothari

Lisa Kothari is the Founder and President of Peppers and Pollywogs, a kids’ party planning company.  Visit our experts page to read more about Lisa Kothari and our party planning experts.

Shop PurpleTrail’s collection of birthday party invitations for kids