And reading books in bed is always another good World Book Day activity!

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt – Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury

This perennial favourite has endless movement possibilities. Yesterday I did a dance session at a pre school based around this story but you can easily adapt some of these ideas to at home. First pack a little back pack for your expedition – with a map, binoculars (you could make some out of cardboard tubes if you don’t have any), torch and some snacks. Make sure you hide a bear somewhere in the house for your children to find. To make swishy swashy grass you could hang strips of material or ribbon from a doorway for the children to run through (always supervise this to avoid tangles etc) or the children can make themselves into swishy swasy grass. For the river you can put out pieces of paper as stepping stones to cross, mud – go out in the garden and have a stomp around in wellies and you could then have a mini assault course indoors climbing under and over chairs to get to a den where the bear is hidden.

Tiger Who Came to Tea – Judith Kerr

How about organising a tea party for the Tiger to attend! You could make cakes or buns together and then set out a tea table for all your child’s teddies to attend. Afterwards you could set up a little shop for Sophie and her Mum to visit to replace all the food the Tiger has eaten with play food or tins from the cupboard. You could even play cafes, as Sophie and her Mum and Dad have to visit one for tea, making your own menus etc.

Finally you could make a tea plate for the Tiger – just take one paper plate and let your children design a tea for the Tiger, you can use wool for spaghetti, stick pasta shapes on and cut out paper or foam shapes for other food.

Fatty Cat – Simon Bruce Montgomery & Alexandra Columbo

In this story a fat cat convinces some mice that the moon is made out of cheese, so the mice make a rocket to get to the moon. How about making a junk model spaceship for the mice to fly away in?

You could also experiment making recipes with your children that use cheese!

Those are a few of our favourites but I’m sure that most of the ideas can be adapted for some other children’s favourites too. Do let us know of any great World Book Day activities you have got up to below.

Adele at the Brits (Image from Yahoo.co.uk)

I was delighted to hear that I have been nominated for the What’s On 4 Kids awards as Best Children’s Entertainment. I think I have enough nominations to see me through to the voting stage but won’t know for definite until next week so if you’d like to make doubly sure here are the details for nominations.

You will need to click here and then you will need to enter the following details:-

Nominee Name – Act One Parties
Nominee location – Guildford, Surrey
Nominee Contact name – Joanne McGowan
Nominee email – joanne.mcgowan@hotmail.co.uk
Nominee contact tel – 07956182488
Nominee category – Best Children’s Party Entertainment

Nominations close on the 29th February and then if I get through to voting then that opens on the 7th March through to the 6th May and I will post details of how to vote then. Fingers crossed!

I could play it cool and say it is great just to be nominated but I would love to get through to the next round. I love what I do and I work really hard for it so to get recognition like this is great.

I promise if I get through to the voting and then manage to get enough votes to go to the Finals in June I won’t make too gushing a speech or sing like Adele (I might steal some of her style ideas though). Apart from how lovely it would be to win an award I may get to meet some Cbeebies icon (Mister Maker presented some of the awards last year!) and that would do my street cred with my target audience no end of good.

So please VOTE ACT ONE PARTIES

The party was going to be an almost equal mix of girls and boys but this theme is great for both genders as there are strong boy and girl characters. It also makes a delightful alternative for girls to the ever popular Princess party.

Some of the most popular activities on the day were measuring the children to see who was Parctically Perfect in every way, A Spoonful of Sugar race – using sugar cubes for an alternative take on the egg and spoon race, Chalk picture drawing that we all jumped over to land in Jolly Holiday land, Horse race with hobby horses and my favourite – I love to Laugh!, a joke telling game where the children told there favourite jokes. They were some corkers!

Practically Perfect Measuring stick

The mum at this party had also put lots of effort into theming the food and decorations. There were chocolate spoons full of sugar, carousel horse shaped cookies and helium balloons and an absolutely gorgeous sweet table. The children loved selecting their favourite treats.

And how is this for a fantastic Mary Poppins cake.

I asked the Mum where she got her inspiration from and it was mainly from the internet and that actually it was all very cheap to do, just time consuming!

It was a lovely party and I hope to be able to use the theme again.

I am used to doing the entertainment side of things so that was no problem. We had a Cars assault course, racing through tunnels, round tyres etc, a cars race where the children popped car costumes on, Race official dress up race – putting on high vis jackets, hats and waving race flags at the finish line as well as lots of traditional party games too. I was also lucky and found a pop up Lightning McQueen tent and ball pond in Sainsbury’s the week before the party, marked right down in price, that were a great hit with some of my son’s smaller friends.

For name tags my husband made pit passes where we popped a photo of each child on and then laminated them and secured them with a safety pin. I know many of my son’s friends still have their passes pinned on their walls so a lovely memento.

I wanted to have a go at theming some of the decorations and food, something I don’t usually get involved with. There were lots of ideas on the internet and I soon created a Pinterest board with lots of car related ideas. For the table I created a road runner out of black card and white paint and placed lots of toy cars along it. I served the food in car food boxes from Party Delights. I always think that food boxes are better for guaging quantities and we certainly didn’t have much in the way of waste and the kids loved them.

I wanted a dessert table to display the lovely cakes that Yours Tastefully had made. The cupcakes were put on my son’s play road track and I also managed to source a Petrol Pump drinks dispenser and also some Route 66 style road signs on a recent trip to the US.

The party was great fun and it was enjoyable, if time consuming, creating theming for the party but really worth it. I now know why people like to hire me to entertain at their parties, it is hard work doing everything!

My little race car driver!

Tell us a little bit about how you started your business up? (I.e. when and why?)

Throughout my school years I was indecisive with what career I wanted, however I definitely knew that I didn’t want to be stuck at a desk, and working within the media was always an idea that captured me. I left school and qualified as a Beauty Therapist, and then went on to study Hair and Make-up for theatre/TV. Since graduating in summer 2010 I was instantly forced into the ‘real world’ and spent a period of time brainstorming ideas to help increase my work flow and start building a business. I worked alongside Nomis Creative, a designer who helped create a brand identity and design all related advertising material. My biggest asset is the development of the new website, which acts as an online portfolio for potential clients, and aids the growth of new business.

How does a typical week go at Kayleigh Hemphill Hair and Make-up?

What is a typical week? The exciting thing is you never know who or what job is waiting to contact you, and as I work in many different fields of the industry it really can be anything. I guess if I had to comment on a ‘typical week’ it would be a combination of exploring other avenues of new work whilst also focusing on the jobs I have today, not forgetting to keep up with the admin and accounts.

What are your ambitions for Kayleigh Hemphill Hair and Make Up?

Starting up isn’t easy but currently the business is successfully growing and capturing new clients that range from brides-to-be through to established production companies. In the future my aim for K Hair and Make-up is to be a successful agency for leading make-up artists, where new artists can gain the very best training from industry professionals and be lead firmly into their chosen career.

What are the best and worst aspects of the job?

Sometimes it can be difficult working by yourself and ensuring you get your business presence heard alongside so many other talented individuals, so the best is seeing all my hard work pay off through an increase in client numbers whilst gaining new experiences within the industry. The worst has to be when I’m stuck in the office doing the admin/accounts tasks, but as they say, someone’s gotta do it!

Which era of style inspires you the most?

The classic 1940’s make-up; you can’t go wrong! Elegant pinned back hair and simple eye-catching make-up.

What is the most unusual job/commission you have been asked to do?

I genuinely believe I have been quite lucky in regards to the jobs I have been asked to. The only unusual thing that I can say takes place quite often is on a day of filming, and once edited, you will find me somewhere on set showing off my limited acting skills. If you blink you’ll miss me so keep your eyes peeled…

Have you a favourite job you have done?

Amongst many, I recently worked on a wonderful bridal party. Throughout the hosts wedding they were the nicest, most welcoming family. The best thing was that the wedding was inspired by the 1940’s/50’s so I was able to be extremely creative.

Is there anyone famous you would like to style for?

Where do I start….? Up there with a few would have to be Beyoncé; a classy, beautiful women. From there, I just know we could go on to be best friends.

What would your one bit of advice be for anyone starting up a small business?

Think outside the box! Working in a creative industry allows me to be creative with my business ideas and also helps me stand out from the crowd. Don’t dwell on your mistakes, learn from them and use them to help you go forward with your business. Most of all be patient yet persistent!

For more details on Kayleigh’s work please visit her website

Shyness can be a very hard thing to overcome but it doesn’t mean that the child will enjoy the activities any less or doesn’t want to join in, they quite often just need the reassurance that it will be OK. If I spot a shy child at a party I will do my best to come across and have a chat, maybe ask them how they think an activity is going. It doesn’t matter if I don’t get an answer, what matters is they feel they have been included and inclusion at any level is half way to making someone feel comfortable. I will keep doing this until hopefully the child is happy to join in and even if they don’t come and join us in the throng they will at least feel included.

I am often told by parents when booking that the birthday child is shy, but even the most confident of children can suddenly become overwhelmed with shyness when they realise that they are the centre of attention. Here are some of the things I have found to work when shyness takes over.

Consider the amount of children you are inviting – I once remember taking a booking from a parent who said her child was extremely shy and could I spend some individual time with her child at the party to put her at ease. Fine. She then said she was planning on inviting 40 children! Number size can work in 2 ways. A shy child can feel more comfortable if they just have a few friends that they know extremely well at their party. They may find it easier to relax and certainly your entertainer will be able to spend much more time with each child if the numbers are fewer. However saying that I do know of some shy children who feel more comfortable in a slightly larger group where they can disappear a bit and not feel they are the centre of attention. I would advise any parent to use their judgement and ask their child what they may prefer. In any case I would say that many more than 20 is likely to be too overwhelming for a child who finds it difficult in these situations.

Don’t be late! – If your child is a guest at a party and finds it hard to join in one of the worst things you can do, in my opinion, is turn up after the party has started. Even the most confident of children will find it hard to walk in to a party in full swing and just join in. It also makes it difficult for the entertainer to assess how a child is going to react. At my parties I am always there before the official party start time watching the children play and interact, having a chat with them etc. I can quickly ascertain any children who may have trouble joining in and consider how best to include them, with a late arrival it is difficult to do this. Getting there in time also means that the child has time to adjust to the surroundings therefore feeling more comfortable about joining in later on.

Friendly faces – I am always surprised when I have been told a child is particularly shy that all their trusted relatives disappear from the room to sort food etc. Obviously there is lots for the family to do on party day but quite often just having a friendly face in the room with a child, reassuring them and maybe even joining in with them can make all the difference. Quite often the first time the birthday child will have met me will be on the day and although I will do my best to chat and reassure them, there is nothing like a close family member around to make everything seem good.

Join in – Yes you may feel a bit silly to start with but sometimes if your child sees you joining in and having fun they will gradually follow your lead. After a short time you will usually find they are happy to join in on their own. And you never know you may even find that you enjoy it!

In Reverse – I have lost count of the amount of people who have told me they have a very outgoing child who then gets overcome with shyness on the day and for those that have told me their child is particularly shy and are then amazed to see them joining in everything at the party. One thing that you can say about children is that they are full of surprises!

Do let me know of any other techniques that you have found have worked well.

Ruth from Fancy Dress Code

Tell us a little bit about how you started your business up? (i.e. when and why?)
I started Fancy Dress Code 3 years ago because my children were young and when they were invited to fancy dress parties, I struggled to find a good selection of dressing up outfits on the high street.

How does a typical week go at Fancy Dress Code?
I constantly monitor my emails and twitter, of course, to keep up to date with queries and orders. By midday all my next day delivery orders are processed and despatched. I try to keep the website up to date with stock availability and can still be working late at night but I enjoy doing it.

What are your ambitions for Fancy Dress Code?
I have recently expanded into a second sister website and business, Fancy Dress Bash, so I hope to optimize that site so I can run both successfully with some different products.

Cowboy

The worst part of the job is because I work from home, I sometimes forget to switch off at night and relax.

Girl Pirate

Is there anyone famous you would like to provide a costume for and what costume would it be?
That’s a tough question. I think it would have to be Roy Cropper from Coronation Street. I would like to get rid of that awful cardigan and shopping bag he wears and dress him up as a stunning prince charming!

What are your tips for putting together a great fancy dress outfit together on a budget?
I think you don’t always need to buy a full costume and sometimes a wig, hat, and accessories or face paint can look just as effective depending on what you want to dress up as.

Batman

To see all the costumes Ruth has on offer please visit Fancy Dress Bash and Fancy Dress Code

You can also follow Ruth on Twitter

Sandwiches – there are always loads left over! My advice would be to allow half a sandwich (1 slice of bread) per child. Keep fillings simple – cheese, ham, cream cheese, jam or marmite all seem to go down well. I saw a lovely plate of beautifully decorated salami sandwiches at a party once that weren’t even touched. Another way to get children to eat sandwiches is to cut them out with cookie cutters into interesting shapes, thus eliminating crusts. At my own son’s birthday parties I have in the past done teddy bears, trains, dinosaurs but I have also seen rockets and stars and other parties – anything goes and the children generally tend to eat more of them. Here are some ideas I have seen on the internet – first, ideal for a princess party from creativepartyblog.com

Beautiful Tiara sandwiches from creativepartyblog.com

Some car sandwiches from jackandizzy.blogspot.com

Car sandwiches - jackandizzy.blogspot.com

And finally if you are feeling adventurous how about these from hostessblog.com

Creative sandwiches from hostessblog.com

Naughty or Nice? – Firstly I think we need to give our kids a bit more credit. They are so savvy today about healthy eating that at all the parties I have attended the children always seem to choose a good balance. Of course they love the crisps and biscuits and cakes but they also choose fruit and vegetables too. Making fruit and vegetables look interesting is always a good idea – kebabs work really well and making something out of fruit and veg can be appealing too. These fruit veg and savoury kebabs look great from superhealthykids.com

Fab Kebabs from superhealthykids.com

And these fruit pops look delicious from innocentcatering.com.au

Fruit Pops from innocentcatering.com.au

For my son’s Cars party we made little cars out of apple quarters and grapes, held together by a cocktail stick which I saw on catchmyparty.com.

Inspiration for my sons Cars Party, image from catchmyparty.com

At a lovely Fairy party I entertained at recently they had Enchanted Toadstools (half a cherry tomato on top of a cube of cheese), Pixie Sticks (Various Crudites), Fairy Wands (Grapes on a skewer) and Forest Berries (Raisins and Dried Cranberries). The kids loved them.

Some lovely real life Fairy party food - Enchanted Toadstools, Fairy Wands and Pixie Sticks

Another party I once entertained at brought the crisps out 5 minutes after the tea had begun. I commended the mum on this idea as the children had tucked into the sandwiches and more healthy items quite happily. She admitted that she had just forgotten to bring them out!

Food boxes vs Plates – This is very much personal choice. In my opinion it is easier to guage accurate portions when you put individual items into food boxes. Below is a pirate one from boywondergifts.co.uk who are a great source for boys partyware and gifts. Food boxes are also easier to transport and to tidy up afterwards as they seem to create less mess. I have tended to put the savoury stuff in the food boxes and then bring out the sweet things on platters afterwards.

Pirate Boxes from boywondergifts.co.uk

Hot food – It is far easier to have all cold stuff particularly if the party is not at home as hall ovens can be unreliable and take far longer to cook . It also makes timing when to break trickier to organise. However I did a party at a clients home once where they served up a big pot of Bolognese with garlic bread and it went down a storm and didn’t take long to organise as they just reheated it at food time.

How long and when? – Many people ask me how long they should allow for food. In my experience children rarely take longer than 20 mins to eat and sometimes can be done in 10! Do be wary of party venues that give you an hours play and then an hour to eat! I know of many people who have been stuck in a small party room for 40 minutes with no activities planned and children literally climbing the walls. Once they have eaten they are full of energy again so do have an activity planned for afterwards, something energetic but that doesn’t require too much concentration. Dancing games are always good as are familiar games like Duck Duck Goose.

People also ask when best to have food. I feel that about half way in is always good as they will have worked up an appetite and you won’t have as much time to fill afterwards when concentration is likely to be low but energy levels high.

I hope these tips are helpful for those of you planning your next childrens party. Please do share any tips you have for children’s party food below and I would welcome any questions too.

Joanna Taylor

Tell us a little bit about how you started your business up? (i.e. when and why?)
I first set up my business back in September 2010 but did so alongside employed work. It took me until May 2011 before I focused on my business full time. I decided to work for myself as I wanted to have the full flexibility of working around my family commitments. I wanted to be able to work hours that suited me and so that I could get the most out of my day. The reason for starting up a social media management & training company was that I knew it was something that I could do from home and that it was a service rather than a product that I could provide. I also knew that I had all the right skills to do a good job!

How does a typical week go at Wise Words SM?
There is never a typical week! This is one of the things I love about the job – no two weeks are the same  I will always complete the daily account management tasks but then anything could happen – from arranging/delivering training courses, networking, mentoring, administration or just dealing with whatever happens to come up!

What are your ambitions for Wise Words SM?
I would like to see the business grow and to take on at least one more member of staff in 2012. I would like to see the business recognised as the leading social media company within the local area and to gain a reputation of being good at what we do. We aim to gain new business by word of mouth, rather than scheduled marketing.

What are the best and worst aspects of the job?
The best part of the job is the variety of the work, as it means that there is no chance of getting bored. Because I look after lots of accounts for different types of businesses, I take on various personalities, depending on who I am tweeting for. I am also able to choose who I work with.

Joanna and family

If you had to choose one area of social media which one would you say is best for a new business starting out?
I would always start with Twitter as it allows you access to a vast amount of people in a very short space of time. Twitter allows you to search for people that could be interested in your product or service (in your local area) and it then allows you the opportunity to connect with these people.

What is your top tip for getting started in social media?
Get advice from someone who already uses social media and has it working well for them. I don’t necessarily mean advice from a social media manager but maybe a friend who uses a few platforms. I give this as a top tip as sometimes getting it wrong on social media is worse than not doing it at all.

Is there any famous person who you would like to manage their social media?
I have to confess, as boring as it might seem, I am not too fussed on the celebrity world! But if the England netball team needed a hand, I would be more than happy to help!
Ok, maybe Ant & Dec – they would be great fun to manage…….

What would your one bit of advice be for anyone starting up a small business?
Think big and do things differently to the other businesses that are in your field. It may sound a scary bit of advice but it does work. (I was given this advice and it has served me well.)

You can find details of Wise Words Social Media on their website or follow Joanna on Twitter

Photo by Becs Viveash

1 party entertainer (me!)
has entertained at –

145 parties/events

Age 5 has been the top birthday age this year and I’ve entertained at 64 five year olds birthday parties (including my son!), closely followed by 40 age four birthday boys and girls, 24 six year olds and 18 three year olds and a handful of 7,8,9,10, 1 and 2 year olds birthday parties.

The busiest month for Act One Parties was September, closely followed by October, December and July all tying for second place with the quietest month being August.

The most popular theme was without a doubt Princesses and Pirates, closely followed just by Princesses. In third place there is a tie between Superheroes/Ben 10 and Peppa Pig, very closely followed by Pirates as a single theme and then Mamma Mia. Beyond that I have covered themes such as Talent Shows/Pop Stars, Dora the Explorer, High School Musical, Disney, Firefighters, Fairies, Dinosaurs, Toy Story, C Beebies, Super Mario, Harry Potter, Total Wipeout, Spongebob, Tangled, Scooby Doo, Star Wars/Space, Robots, Transport, Hello Kitty and some one offs such as Narnia, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Animals, Alice in Wonderland, Lazytown, Winx Club, The Simpsons and Moshi Monsters!

My most popular costume is without doubt my Pink Fairy Princess, with SuperJo and Pirate Jo coming in second.

My most worn costume - Photography by Kerry J Photography

With 31 parties already booked in for 2012 I am hoping that 2012 will be just as much fun as 2011 for Act One Parties!