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Mexican fiesta party

The vibrant colours, festive food and traditional games make a Mexican fiesta a fantastic theme for a child’s birthday party

Set the scene

Décor can be simple but stunning if you just stick to the bold colours, stripes and patterns. Fringed paper flags and decorations lend a fiesta atmosphere and are easy to make from brightly coloured tissue paper – get your kids cutting!

Invitation

Our invitation is simple and stylish. You will need:

1 sheet of A4 cardboard (in any colour) to make approximately three invitations.
On computer, divide an A4 document into 3 and set out the traditional Mexican greeting, “ola amigos!” onto each panel.
On a separate document, type the party details – venue, date, time and so forth.
Print out the one side onto the coloured cardboard, turn it over and print the party details.
Cut the cardboard into the three panels, about the size of an envelope.
Snip colourful pieces of tissue paper into fringes and glue onto the boarders of the card. You can overlap these for a creative effect.

Say thank-you

Mini cactuses make a quirky and reasonably-priced take home present. We bought our mini cactuses from The Flower Spot for R10.

Party games

Party piñata

The Mexican piñata – a large, hollow paper maché figure filled with sweets and treats – is the hot item at parties right now.

The piñata is a great addition to the party; it looks pretty, and it combines a fun activity with the party gifts and sweets.

A donkey shape is traditional, but you can make your piñata as simple or as elaborate as you please – we went for a simple egg shape and dramatic fringing to suit our theme. You’ll need to
make the piñata a few days in advance of the party, as it takes a while to dry. Here’s how:

What you need

1 large balloon
Newspaper or plain newsprint (available at craft stockists) torn up into strips
Wallpaper paste
Tissue paper in various bright colours
Bostik Clear glue
Strong cord
Ribbons in various colours
Sweets or party favours

What to do

Inflate the balloon. Mix the wallpaper glue according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Dip the newspaper strips into the glue one at a time and place them on the balloon overlapping slightly. Do this until the entire balloon is covered. It helps to stand the balloon in a bowl so that it does not roll around.
Leave to dry overnight. Add two more layers.
Your piñata is ready for decoration when completely dry. You can tell this when the balloon starts to pull away from the paper on its own and deflates completely, inside the ball.
Cut the tissue paper into strips about 3cm in depth and snip to create the fringes.
Glue the first fringe around the diameter of the papermaché in the centre with the tassles sticking up. Then follow with another one below, overlapping the first fringe slightly. Keep going until the bottom half of the balloon is covered.
Turn the balloon over and cover the second half with the fringing.
Using a craft knife, make a small door at the top of the piñata and fi ll with sweets or party favours. Insert a length of ribbon in the top, close the door and tape it down firmly.
Knot a few lengths of different coloured ribbons together at one end. Cut a small hole in the bottom of the piñata and thread the ribbons through, leaving them to hang out. Tape the hole closed at the bottom and cover the tape with fringing.

To play piñata, piñata

Hang the piñata from a tree so that it is about head height.
Each child gets a chance to try and crack open the piñata using a big stick.
Get all the children to stay well away from the child who’s having his go. Blindfold the child and let him have a go at swinging his stick at the piñata. Then the next child and the next, until it finally breaks apart and the sweets and treats fall out.

How many sweets?

Fill a glass jar with sweets in the colours of your party – count the sweets as you put them in. Each child gets a chance to guess how many sweets are in the jar. Write down each child’s name and his guess.

The person whose guess is closest gets to keep the jar of sweets as a prize. If you don’t want to be doling out mounds of sweets, you can fill the jar with marble.