Cactus Decor Theme Party Ideas For Nacho Average Baby Shower or Birthday Party

When two combined creative families planned a fun cactus theme party (in the south, it’s called a baby shower) to stick it to my daughter, Macy Elizabeth, we had a ton of fun. Welcoming my first grandchild, a boy – Fletcher Owen Fortner, was super important to me.

Growing up, my mom made birthdays special and knew how to decorate for a birthday party. Combine two interior designers (my mom and I) with my son-in-love’s mom, Eileen Fortner, the super teacher, along with my aunt who owns an award-winning florist, my aunt Paula who’s a retired principal of two schools, and a beautiful little cousin named Harlee willing to give up “box land” and my aunt Lynn’s house of accessories, and it’s like dynamite bringing everything together.

Thanks to Macy’s Pinterest boards and the party planner of Pinterest (I love you, Pinterest), we began planning everything cactus! Cactus-theme party invitations, cactus-theme party decorations, cactus-theme party food, cactus theme cupcakes, and a succulent cake! To date, no matter how many cacti Gete and I see, we say, “Macy would love this!” Now, I stop and capture photos of cactuses for Macy.

1. Design interesting cactus theme party or baby shower invitations with catchy copy.

Every great event begins with an invitation. The Nacho Average Baby Shower invitations were designed by Blue Bunny Studio in Australia. Whether for a personal event like this one, or a professional event, I love e-mailing invitations electronically. Invitees can immediately connect and R.S.V.P. no matter where they are. Paperless Post is my go-to source for creating a fun envelope-opening digital experience.

2. Select a venue with an easy backdrop to compliment the cactus theme party decor.

Venues and moods always matter to me. First, we discovered an amazing venue on Gainesville square called Main Street Market. The Market’s wild west brick walls, worn, stained tables, and chairs make the perfect backdrop for the cactus-themed fiesta.

3. Transform cardboard boxes into cactus or succulent shapes.

My beautiful, amazing, talented daughter loves Pinterest. I wrote the book Power of Pinterest in 2013, and lately, I need to rewrite the book immediately. There’s more power on Pinterest than my first 730 horsepower Dugan Racing Mustang. Macy’s Pinterest boards were full of “ideas” for crafting everything from cactus food to decorations.

My little 5-year-old cousin gave up a couple of her houses in Box City so that we could cut out cacti. Using a sponge with a handle, we paint the cardboard with leftover dark green paint. After the green we completely dry, we painted what seemed like millions of white swoops with an artist’s brush. The little white “V”s must be random vs. in a straight line. Macy was trying to be a bit too precise, and her cactus looked like a tire had run over it.

4. Use all types of cactus or succulents as a backdrop for the food table.

Along with our cardboard cacti, we mixed in cardboard cacti from Hobby Lobby and faux home decor cacti from Michael’s, and the food was also cacti.

5. Make cactus or succulent cupcakes in terracotta pots.

Believe it or not, making cactus cupcakes is not difficult, thanks to Cupcake Jemma on Youtube. I embedded her video on the secret way to base a cactus, just in case you’re wondering. Macy’s cake decorator made all the cupcakes and cake for her cactus-themed shower.

6. Decorate a basic cake with fake succulents or a real cactus.

There are some great faux succulents, but when it comes to plastic cacti, the artisans still need to improve. Macy’s cake decorator used a basic cake with faux succulents and a tiny cactus.

7. Create cactus themed cucumbers for the vegetable platter.

Macy says every southern shower has a vegetable tray. Her mom (aka me) asked Gete to please pick up extra cucumbers with tiny tomatoes to decorate the veggie platter. Recreate this by slicing the bottom off of the cucumber to stand it up. Then snap toothpicks in half and randomly stick them into the cucumber. Use a few cherry tomatoes to mimic cactus blooms.

8. Use a Mexican style blanket for the table cover.

There are several colorways you can take a cactus-themed party or, in this case, a baby shower. When Macy was a teenager, she chose the Mexican blanket, which was more of a color fiesta cactus theme. Before considering the idea of using this blanket, I considered burlap and a cream linen table cover, and we even tried a basic tan. The blanket looked the best.

9. Use gold accents! Yes, even in a cactus-themed party.

Admittingly, I had not seen another cactus-themed party with gold accents. When I saw these gold balloons, I knew we had to have them! Our little FOF is worth more than gold; the gold motto is “Spray it gold and watch it go. {I mean, glow}!” The quote came about when my mom and I would purchase the merchandise for our store. Sometimes color would keep it from selling, so we would say, “Spray it gold and watch it go!” Everything looks great, gold! And the gold merchandise always sold. You should see what we used to do with magnolia branches for Christmas decor.

10. Blow up pool floats for a cactus theme background.

Easy peasy! See my float list on Amazon for my favorite party-theme backdrops. There’s nothing quite like a float and balloons to get a party started, even a

5 Generations Together For One Little Man Who Will Most Likely Despise Cacti

Little Fletcher Owen Fortner will be the fifth generation on Macy’s side of the family. We are blessed to have my Nanny (far right), my mom, aka Gete, me (aka. Glamma Gaga), and Macy (The Mom) in our family. And in Alex’s family, his mom, Eileen, is the #BombDotCom. Plus, she’s the Super Grandma who took on the task of creating the beautiful balloon cactus decoration.

All Cactus Theme Party Decorations Are On This Shopping List

I know that shopping or finding the items necessary to create a Cactus Theme Party can be time-consuming. To save you, my friends, a ton of headaches we all went through, click here is my shopping list for things I bought on Amazon. P.S. You may have to click back and forth between the shopping list and your Amazon cart. They need to make it easier for you. I have vetted all of these products, and at the time we ordered, the quality was good. I hope you all enjoy creating, designing, and hosting your cactus or succulent theme party at much as we all did.

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P.S. Read my parenting tips and the advice I give my friends with kids.