After the fun our neighborhood had kicking off summer with a "Rock the Block" Summer Block Party we decided to recreate the experience and celebrate the start of fall! With social distancing still a concern, we had to get creative and celebrate on a much smaller scale and you can too. No one wants to miss out on all the staples of fall: hayrack rides, hot apple cider, pumpkin patch photos and everything pumpkin spice! We set up our party in the driveway and backyard to create a fun, socially distanced fall festival.
Kick things off by hand delivering invitations, talking to neighbors from their porches and explaining how the neighborhood fall festival will work while keeping social distancing in mind. Then, give neighbors access to a Google scheduler to book a time slot for their family. We had everything up and open for 3 days so families could pop over when their schedules allowed. A few more families joined us after seeing how much fun our block party was!
Balloons never fail to bring joy to party guests! We set up a huge balloon arch and photo backdrop for our neighbors. A color palette of coral, blush, sage, sea, vintage teal, mustard, sand and rose gold really capture the feeling of fall.
We used a 50-Ft. Balloon Decorating Strip for the arch and a technique called double stuffing to achieve the unique, matte balloon color palette. For example, beige is created using a peach & blush balloon combination, sand by using blush with brown stuffed inside, olive or sage uses a lime & brown combination and mustard yellow is gold with a rose gold balloon stuffed inside. Smaller sized balloons are mixed in with glue dots.
At the front of the driveway I provided sanitizer, face masks, and other necessities people may need for their comfort & safety. Then we stood back and were able to chat from a distance while families enjoyed the photo booth.
A DIY Fall Color Block Backdrop decorated with painted leaves and fall puns such as "Everyday I'm Rustlin" and "Give Em' Pumpkin to Talk About" made a great focal point for photos. Learn how to create this backdrop HERE.
Jumbo Pumpkin Classroom Cutouts make fantastic, humorous props for the kids to show their strength. Finally, they can lift the biggest of pumpkins with ease!
We extended the fall vignette to each side of the backdrop and created a modern, mini pumpkin patch in the same stunning color palette.
On one side we used a 24" Decorative Hay Bale and an array of brown stained DIY Unfinished Wood Crates to create a display of varying levels. On each level we placed a mix of real pumpkins, painted DIY Ceramic Pumpkins and painted White Craft Pumpkins. Bump up the warm glow by painting stems metallic rose gold. Then we added Small Clear Hurricane Candle Holders and a teal painted DIY Unfinished Wood Fall Cutout as accents.
On top of the hay bale we displayed small favors for the kids to take home. We painted Mini Pumpkin Candy Buckets coral with metallic rose gold features and filled them with a mix of Starbursts and Sixlets® Sparkling Coral Chocolate Candy.
Next to this display, we set up a table of treats for everyone! Fall favorites such as pumpkin spice infused desserts and sparkling apple cider with all the trimmings were laid out. Make sure to provide cinnamon sticks, cloves, nutmeg and fruit slices for garnish. Use 13" Decorative Hay Bales and crates for varied display heights on the table.
The kids loved using these Clear Jack-O'-Lantern Plastic Mugs for their hot cider and Metallic Rose Gold Hexagon Paper Dessert Plates for some yummy pumpkin spice muffins!
Let guests know what beverages are available using an Orange Craft Pumpkin. Paint the pumpkin green and use a cutting machine to cut the menu out of vinyl in your favorite font, then adhere it to the pumpkin. You could also use a metallic chalk marker to write out the menu onto the pumpkin.
We also painted a DIY Unfinished Wood Slat Pumpkin coral to create a fun pumpkin spice sign using a cutting machine and vinyl. Add the same label on a smaller scale to Deluxe White Coffee Cups to create a cohesive look! Finally, we added a sprinkling of acorns, mini Fall Foam Pumpkins and a Pink Glass Bud Vase of dried grasses as decorative accents.
With fall comes lower temperatures, so you may want to think about providing guests with blankets and throws while they join you for cider around the fire pit. We also made a "Fall Festival" sign using a Stained Wood Sign. We placed our sign on a painted easel for visibility. This doubles as a welcome and a sign for the start of a new neighborhood tradition.
We always like to provide a wide array of beverages for guests. We put colder options in a cooler and painted a DIY Unfinished Wood Fall Cutouts to use as an accent. Tip: Use removable putty to hold this in place without damaging your cooler.
A kids' cider stand was the final touch for this fall vignette. The kids loved this traditional farm stand decorated with the Mind's Eye Harvest Leaf Banner, Fall Foam Pumpkins and Artificial Acorns.
The kids ooed and ahhhed over these adorable Frosty White Coffee Paper Cups decorated with a strip of masking tape and Pumpkin Spice Latte Self-Adhesive Shapes.
Who am I kidding, it was obviously the Foil Wrapped Caramels in a Large Clear Cylinder Plastic Container and the Glass Jar Set filled with honey sticks and Sixlets® Sparkling Coral Chocolate Candy that made this cider stand a fan favorite!
For families that have been at home together for quite sometime, staging a pumpkin patch can give them the change in scenery they're craving!
Central to the backyard festivities, a Fall Pumpkin Crafting Station was filled with all sorts of decorating options. This station was large enough to hold up to two families crafting at a time. Individual decorating sets were put out for kids and individual kits were kept on- hand to replenish for the next family. Get a full supply list and all the steps to create this epic crafting station HERE.
We made sure to provide extra Hand Sanitizer and Glovies® Disposable Kids Gloves for an added level of safety.
Who knew how much fun gloves could be, especially when they come in an array of fun colors?
These DIY Halloween Slow-Rising Squishies were all the rage at this party. We learned a lot from the kids with this craft. If you gently sand the squishes with sandpaper, the paint/markers last a lot longer and don't crack as much over time. Good to know! Order more squishies than you think you'll need because each child will want to take multiple home!
Small Pumpkin Face Craft Kits are a great size for decorating small pumpkins or DIY Ceramic Mini Pumpkins, which can be kept as a keepsake. We also put out Halloween stickers & Unicorn Pumpkin Stickers for the kids to get creative with.
Pumpkin Decorating Craft Kits are available for all shapes and sizes of pumpkins and even come in themes. We were able to quite literally have something for everyone at an affordable price!
Wipe or spray down craft supplies that are not individual packs (such as acrylics, puffy paints and Sharpies®) between families.
Ring pops are a favorite in the classroom and for every kids' party we've ever hosted. The fall themed Candy Corn Ring Lollipops did not disappoint!
Games were a huge success at our summer block party, so we made sure to include lots of opportunities for some family-friendly competition at our neighborhood fall festival.
We reused and set up some of the 11 Color-Blocked Outdoor Summer Games and also added some new games into the mix. Our families used a Giant Backyard Dominoes Game to build, stack, topple and play the traditional dominoes game.
We also created a brand new DIY Oversized Pumpkin Checkers Set in our muted fall palette. Give em' pumpkin to talk about and find out how to make yours HERE.
Everyone was keen to take on the checkers master, Sparky the dog!
With DIY Unfinished Wood Box Frames left over from making the checkerboard we made a "pun-tastic" sign to decorate the players table. This was simple to create with paint and a quick vinyl cut.
A set of squash or gourds made for a fun game of fall bowling for the older tweens.
Neighborhood hayrack rides sound out of the question? Think again! We put 20" FloraCraft® Decorative Straw Hay Bales into our utility garden cart to create a mini version of this fun activity. This version got all the smiles and resulted in the cutest of photos too!
Another fall favorite in our neighborhood is bobbing for apples. While this may seem like one that can't possibly be done during a pandemic, we found a way to make it work and it was a blast!
We set our station next to our backyard hose and refilled the large tub with water after each family. Gave the tub a wipe down and then have each family use their own bag of apples for bobbing. We personalized each Large Brown Kraft Paper Gift Bags with a strip of masking tape and their name applied in vinyl.
This also gave our family a great excuse to go apple picking at our favorite apple orchard before the party!
With the willingness to receive an absolute soaking comes reward (not just apples!). We filled bushel baskets with prizes for the kids to choose from.
Peg Game Boredom Buster Kits are a fun option and even better, they keep the kids entertained.
The favorites by far were the Mini Plush Pumpkins and the Reversible Sequin Plush Pumpkins. There is something so satisfying about flipping those sequins back and forth!
For our neighborhood, and I'm sure yours too, it wouldn't be fall without a s'more to close out the day's festivities. For the families that came during later time slots, we fired up the pit and cooked up sweet delights together. For those who stopped by earlier in the day, we used cellophane gift bags to send them home with a DIY s'more kit that they could use at home!
Pick your favorite font and cut out fun "Graham, Mallow, Chocolate, Graham" labels in vinyl to make s'mores storage out of Half-Gallon Cylinder Jars with Lids.
Finally, give your s'mores cooking sticks a quick fall makeover by gluing painted DIY Unfinished Wood Leaf Shapes in the same party color palette.
We love getting creative so that we can still spend time with our neighbors! It's the little things that count and reunite us during these times.
The best part is that we can roll this all out again next year and hopefully enjoy it a little closer together next time!
