I am having a luau in July. So far I have made a Luau Photo prop out of cardboard and paint. I drew a woman in a bikini top and grass skirt and a muscle man in a wrap on the cardboard and cut the faces out. I also made a surfboard welcome (Aloha) sign for the front door out of cardboard. I am using paper bags, cut in slits , but leaving a little room to tape it on the table, as my grass table skirt. I got fake flowers and thread to make leis for my guests and decorating. Will use some fake flowers to just decorate with also. I bought cheap netting and make cardboard fish to put in the net as decoration. I will be using PVC pipe and paper bags to make a bar and grass skirt for it, using a long not very wide piece of plywood as the bar top.
You can make tiki dudes by using toilet paper tubes and painting them. Make surf boards by cutting card board and painting it. Get fishing net and glue star fish shells and so on to it
Luckily for you she is only going to be 1. I did this theme for my daughters 15th birthday. 1. You can buy lei's cheap at a dollar store. (We spent about $20) 2. We made skirts out of a crape like material. (they don't last after getting wet, lol) $10 3. Coconuts are really inexpensive, and you can make really cool cups out of them, just crack them open (you will need a strong knife and a hammer) scrap all the coconut out of them (save for tray), wipe them out with lime or lemon juice (this will help keep them from molding) let them dry. They are ready to be drank out of. $5 4. Buy some pineapple slices, arrange on a tray with your coconut, add some canned cherries. (this makes a beautiful centrepiece). $3 5. We made palm trees out of cardboard and spray paint. (green & brown are the only colors you will need.) $4
My girlfriend threw a luau for her 5 year old daughter. She went to the yardage store and bought some material. She used this to make table clothes and sarongs for the little girls attending. She also bought fake flowers and hot glued them to bobby pins for hair accessories. She used straw baskets on the table, and made cardboard tiki's , palm trees and put a few unlit yard torches around. The cake was pineapple upside down for the guest, the daughter had her individual cake. The coolest thing was this net she hung, with fake plastic starfish and crabs & stuff. She downloaded Hawaiian music off the Internet, and played a home made CD.
Making your own luau decorations is a great idea if your don't break the bank on supplies! But you can also sign up for coupons at Party City and then get a bunch of luau decorations cheap. They have a ton of stuff, and they're sending out coupons all the time.
