Miss Ray is turning EIGHT, and this past summer we joined a fun little pool down the street so it was only right to throw a pool party. We start school before her actual birthday so we did a little end of Summer/ birthday party a week early! I started with a mood board as always, I wanted a colorful summer time vibe with an undertone of a country club/ vintage Caribbean feel.

See her past parties here:

ONE | TWO | THREE | FOUR | FIVE | SIX | SEVEN

I started by giving the “club” a custom name. I used Ray’s middle name, Summers and called it “The Pool at Summers Club”, I created a little logo and used it to brand things like towels, favors and menus.

The Invite

Lindsay of Itsy Bitsy Parties, designed the most gorgeous invitation. She made a custom Sunscreen bottle with all the party information, it came inside a little velum envelope. The outside of the envelope had the coolest detail of Pool tiles reading 8FT. Inside the envelope we also included a Club membership card to give that club vibe we were looking for!

I styled a flatlay at home, which turned out SO cute, but Dani and I also had some fun at the pool. We used a clear tray to float in the water and create a little floating flatlay. OBSESSED to say the least!

The Cabana

We rented out the little gazebo at our club to we had a space for shade and all the party things! We went super early in the morning to arrange the furniture how I wanted it. We did 10 little chairs right in front for each of the party guests. Inside we had a picnic table with all the food and treats, a round table for the favors, a cooler full of popsicles and noodles for the kids.

Each chair got a custom pool towel. Nottingham Embroidery embroidered each towel with the logo and it made it feel so polished and custom. The towels were great to have ready for the girls and they each took one home as a party of the favor. I used a Chalk Designs by Me tag for Ray’s special chair to add a little something.

The Table

Over all, I was keeping this party simple. I used what the club had and added in details. They had a white picnic table so I dressed It all up for the party. I brought my over-the-table rod to drape two extra custom towels and a bikini blanket. This blanket was the first thing I bought for Ray when I found out she was a girl, I wrapped her in it when she was born, so it was so much fun to use at her party.

I layered the table with all the things. We served hot dogs, Pringles, and fruit for the kids and let the adults order off the menu! I grabbed a hot dog warmer to keep the hotdogs fresh, and did custom condiments with them. The Pringles were one of my favorite parts. Itsy Bitsy made custom wraps and stickers for the cans to fit the party and they turned out SO MUCH FUN. I piled them high on cake stands. It was really fun to mix and match my cake stands, I have wanted to do this for years and I just love the color blocking.

I served a few trays of stunning cookies from Royally Iced, can you even with the little bathing suits!? I put together a HUGE board of fresh fruit for the kids to grab, and finished it off with fresh coconut.

For dessert, I was nervous to do anything that would melt. Candy salads are such a huge trend on socials so, I did something similar in a trifle dish. I used striped candy cups and each kids got a big cup of candy as their treat!

I left out piles of plates and napkins for the kids to use, it wasn’t a traditional setting, but it went just perfectly.

The Favor Table

In the corner I used a round table to add some other items. On both tables I used Cami Monet table runners in Yellow and pink stripes, it dressed up the existing tables so nicely.

On this table I had the party favors, guest book and drinks! I set out a drink dispenser with lemonade for the kids, I grabbed the cutest “here comes the fun” cups and flamingo stir sticks. I worked with Suburban Soiree to create Marco Polo cocktails napkins and they were one of my favorite things.

The kids took home a lot of different goodies, but I did one main goodie bag. I customized a clear pouch with her logo, and filled it with a mini brush and mini sunscreens and after sun from Vacation. I also had a basket of custom fans from Cami Monet, she did the most incredible art and each fan read “Cooler Than You”. They were perfect as a photo prop and for all the guests to stay cool.

Her guest book was The Diver, I loved the lucky penny reference to her Lucky #7 party. I finished the table with pool floats from Bello Sole. These were a HUGE hit and so beautiful. The girls LOVED the small ones and didn’t stop playing with them in the water.

Popsicles + Pool Noodles

I grabbed a big rolling cooler for the party, it’s been on my list forever and I am so excited to have this for every party moving forward. We filled the cooler with mini waters, capri suns, sparkling water and tons of POPSICLES. I hung my Pool Boy button above the cooler for an extra touch.

Remember that pink hamper I have been sharing for months? I bought it for this party. I filled it ip with pool noodles for all the kids! I used a Take One tag and it was the perfect thing to hold the noodles, and wet towels after!

The Outfits

The girls all got new swim suits from Zara, I also grabbed them oversized t shirts as they cover ups, it’s giving Annie James in Napa, if you ask me. Ray wore her aunts RAY Bans- that literally could’t be more perfect.

I wore the cutest pool float cover up I got a few months ago from Anthro and had to bring my Pool Clutch from Studio DIY. You realize how fitting a theme is when you have items from 100 years ago, that fit too well.

The party was just so much fun. I was so stressed over it raining, and not only did it not rain, it was the perfect overcast day for everyone to stay cool. Dani came to town to shoot all these stunning photos and capture the fun We had so much fun playing with the water and the items (minus the water snake she had to remove from the water at 9am).

We had family come to the party and soak up the birthday girl! It was the perfect day to celebrate our little Ray of Sunshine. Thank you to all my amazing vendors who made this happen, you truly RULE THE POOL.

Get in on the fun and listen to our playlist for your next day at the pool.

Shop the party HERE

XO,

Kelsey

Event design @house.of.fete 
Host + florals @kelseyklos 
Photographer @danilaceyphotographs 
Invite + Pringle’s @itsybitsypartieskc 
Towels @nottinghamembroidery 
Floats @bellosoleswim 
Fans + table runners @camimonet 
Favors @vacationinc
Cookies @royallyiced 
Acrylics @acrylicsticks
Tags @chalkdesignsbyme 
Party supplies @shopsweetlulu 
Napkins @suburban_soiree