When my kids ask for character birthday parties, I like to blend a few special store bought items with a couple homemade touches. (Like this Spiderman party.) Today I’m sharing a Modern Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Party we created. I ordered this party pack from Target. It included all the basics – plates, cups, napkins, balloons, candles, etc. I also got a few  turtle shells for the kids to dress up in and some other ninja accessories (like these) for them to play with. Then, I did a few simple DIYs to tie the party together. I picked up red, orange, purple and blue felt to make ninja masks for everyone to wear during the party. I made some easy homemade favor bags that we filled with lots of green prizes and treats. For games I made some silver ninja stars for a game where the kids had to throw them into a bucket and a homemade Pin the Turtle on the Pizza. Altogether, this party took less than an afternoon to pull together.

Project #1: Favor Bags | Materials Needed: Muslin Bags, Green Dye, Paper, Colored Felt, Hot Glue Gun, Green Treats. Step 1: Follow the instructions on the box to dye your bags green. Step 2: Create a paper template for mini masks that fit on the green bag (and tie in the back.) Step 3: Use your template to cut out masks from red, orange, purple and blue felt. Step 4: Once the bags are dry, glue the masks onto the bags. Step 5: Fill with small, green treats.

Project #2: Eye Masks | Materials Needed: Paper, Red, Orange, Purple & Blue Felt, Scissors. Step 1: Create a template by drawing out a mask onto a piece of paper. (We used an image of the Ninja turtles to see how their masks were shaped.) You may need to measure your child’s face to see where the eyes should be. Cut it out. Step 2: Use the paper template to trace the mask shape onto the colored felt & cut it out. Make sure you leave enough room on the sides to tie the mask onto a child’s head.

Project #3: Ninja Stars Game | Materials Needed: Silver Paper, Origami Star Template, Bucket. We made these using this tutorial online to fold the stars. To play the game, we had the kids line up and try to throw the stars into a bucket.

Project #4: Pin the Turtle on the Pizza | Materials Needed: Butcher Paper, Colored Paper, Precision Ruler, Pen, & Scissors or X-Acto Knife. Step 1: To create our pizza template, we used a precision ruler to draw a circle onto a big piece of butcher paper. Then, we used the same ruler to draw a smaller circle inside the original circle. We drew straight lines through the circle so there were 8 equal slices and then cut out a slice as a template. Step 2: Trace your slice onto brown piece of paper and cut it out. Repeat this step until you have 8 slices. Step 3: Cut off the top of the slice template so only the small circle inside remains. Trace this on to 8 pieces of red paper and cut it out. Step 4: Glue each slice of red paper onto the slices of brown paper. Then glue them back onto butcher paper in a circular pizza shape (to give it a base.) We made fun triangle toppings using leftover paper. Step 5: To make the mini turtles, cut out circles of green paper and top them with mini paper masks.

This post is sponsored by Target. More Turtles, More Bold and Daring Fun: Blur the lines of fantasy and reality with your favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at Target.

All photography by Sarah Hebenstreit of Modern Kids Photography for Oh Happy Day