Minecraft Birthday Party

There is only one party theme that I swore I would never take on and it was Minecraft. I was not going to join the throng of crying cakers, buried in a sea of tiny squares. This would not happen to me. Instead, this year I was going to throw a Baltimore Ravens party with a detailed recreation of M&T Bank Stadium cake. Justin Tucker would be kicking from the 45 yard line with the birthday boy, Tristan, as a member of the Wolfpack.

See, I have a long standing love of Justin Tucker, from before he was widely known as the greatest kicker in NFL history. Maybe it’s because I’m an operatic vocal coach and he’s a classically-trained singer that we as a family were always drawn to him, but since Justin joined the Ravens, we’ve always had our son in Tucker jerseys, even when Tristan was so small that we had to have them custom made.

But Tucker couldn’t attend our party. We tried really hard, but this party fell on a big game weekend and it just wasn’t feasible. And so I made the mistake of telling my son that he could pick any theme he wanted and he chose of all things, MINECRAFT. Cue the screams of all cake makers in the world.

Here’s the problem - Minecraft is made up entirely of tiny little squares and is almost by definition, not beautiful. It’s 8-bit, pixelated graphics. And I love beautiful things! So I set out to make this party fun AND beautiful at the same time. And here was my attempt!

*Unless otherwise noted, all photography courtesy of* Elizabeth Rodenhizer Photography

The Cake

I videotaped this cake from start to finish and I will be making that available in the near future, but some explanation for now. The cake was a four-sided 14-inch cube - all four sides covered in modeling chocolate squares. On top was an edible (yes, edible!) book with wafer paper pages which was topped by a handcrafted sword covered in modeling chocolate. We designed a graphics page for the top which we printed on edible paper. The four sides were Creeper, TNT, Herobrine, and grass block (not shown).

The Hunger Bar

I have to admit that I knew absolutely nothing about Minecraft when I took on this party theme. A lot of time was spent in the car with my son who was only too happy to tell me every detail - continuing even when I asked him to stop. I tasked him with creating lists of food and beverage items and he was only too happy to oblige. The truth is, it actually made for a really fun time with him.

I called the food station the “Hunger Bar” and had this idea that guests would work their way from Hunger to Saturation. I designed all the signage and had our local printer produce them on vinyl.

Food included Minecraft favorites - Chicken, Mutton (gyro meat), Sticks (pretzel sticks), Mushroom Stew, Suspicious Stew (hummus), Pork and Melon (prosciutto & cantaloupe), Glow Berries (frosted grapes), Redstone Dust (pixie sticks), Enchanted Golden Apples (candy apples with gold coloring), Grass Blocks (crème de menthe brownies), Sand (Rice Krispie treats), Rotten Flesh (beef jerky), Carrots, Bread, and Honey for dipping.

The Brewing Stand

For beverages, I created a Minecraft brewing stand. My husband found a really cool brewing kit that we ordered from Amazon to which we added beakers and corked bottles for individual potions. I was surprised how much the kids were drawn to this station and they were all excited to drink the potions at the end of the night.

Mundane Potion (Iced Tea) and Awkward Potion (Green punch) along with personalized water bottles rounded out the Brewing Stand!

*If you would like to download labels and signage, please see details below.

The Crafting Table

As a fun activity for the kids, we sent our guests on a scavenger hunt through our yard. They were tasked with completing recipes. I designed these recipe cards and then cut custom holders with my Cricut that we placed in wood trays I found at the craft store. We devised a point system and the kids that earned the most were able to select from various Minecraft-related door prizes.

*Would you like a download of these recipe cards? Details below….

Prizes & Party Favors

Door prizes were earned by completing recipes. The top five point earners were allowed to select from a Minecraft tshirt, light-up torch, potion bottle, bow & arrow, and Minecraft sword.

All our young guests also received a goodie bag. I had a lot of fun pulling these together. We found an incredible Etsy vendor that made custom backpack keyrings for all the kids. Inside we included Minecraft Uno, pencils, sunglasses, creeper erasers, and bracelets.

The Decor

As much as I dreaded decorating for this party, it wound up being a lot of fun. Centerpieces included assorted Department 56 Minecraft villages, handcrafted pixel wood trees and flowers that I purchased off Etsy. I turned various colored windsocks into Minecraft creepers, TNT blocks, and skeletons by adding masks and craft paper to them. I was pretty excited to find a lot of square decor, including square boxwood trees and a square wreath for the front door. The wood sign with my son’s name was such a big hit and so beautifully made that it now hangs in his bedroom.

I created two friendly Minecraft characters with a lot of paint and glue. I did pre-purchase the heads, but created the rest of the figures with regular boxes, craft paint and insomnia.

While I am not afraid to take on almost any sort of craft, I have drawn the line at balloon design. I found a wonderful vendor and was thrilled to hire Make it a Glam Party Boutique to create 2 large Minecraft trees as well as a larger-than-life Herobrine balloon sculpture.

The Game Truck

It didn’t occur to me the brilliance of this choice until the party was well under way, but we arranged for a game truck to arrive an hour in to the party. Adults had an hour to socialize with the kids, enjoy a meal, and watch them play. And then the game truck arrived and all the kids disappeared for the rest of the party, giving the adults a chance to relax. It was such a great time and I would do this again in a heartbeat. The kids started by playing Minecraft, but the truck had a myriad of games available and they were allowed to select what they wanted to play. I think they had a great time!

The Invitation & Thank You Notes

Normally I like to hand letter invitations, but this party called for something different and I wanted it to feel like a gaming party right from the start. So this year I sent out a video invitation which I had custom-created by AnimatedInvite.

I knew a Minecraft party would be a lot of work and I was not wrong! But more than the work, my fear was that I wouldn’t be able to get to a place where I would be proud of the final look and I’m happy to say that I did. And the best part is that my son had a wonderful time and we have a lot of great family memories as a result.

And to Justin Tucker….Justin, this doesn’t have to be the end of us. I still love you. Next year my son turns ten. That’s a big birthday. We can still make this happen. This time you’ll be on the cake at (at least) the 48 yard line. And here’s a deal for you. You have a sweet young son and I make crazy cool cakes. I’ll sweeten the pot to get you here and offer you the cake of your choosing - any size, as crazy as you can imagine for your boy’s next birthday. Do we have a deal, Justin?

**Would you like a download of the potion stickers, recipe cards, Hunger/Saturation bar (ground signs), etc? Follow me on IG and subscribe to my blog. That’s all I ask! Then comment below and I will happily arrange to send you anything that I designed myself and have available!

Links & Details:

Photography: Elizabeth Rodenhizer Photography
Balloon Design: Make it a Glam Party Boutique
Invitation designer: AnimatedInvite
Minecraft Name Key Rings: KidSharpProductions
Pixel wood centerpiece trees & flowers: M&M Goodies
Tristan Grey/Black Wood Name Sign: KimisCosmos

Minecraft Madness