I am happy to welcome Natalie Stern from Katarina’s Paperie/Confetti Diaries as a guest blogger!  She is sharing adorable ideas for a patriotic party and FREE printables!  Find the link for the free printables at the end of the post!  Thanks, Natalie!!

We are so excited to be back at The Party Wagon sharing our free printable patriotic party collection available in our shop, Katarina’s Paperie, now. Fourth of July is one of our favorite holidays. There’s something about styling a celebration using red, white and blue that makes me feel so happy. I love sharing this joy of summer with all of our friends and family. For this year’s patriotic collection, we combined classic stripes and polka dots to create a colorful and fun design that would be perfect for any barbecue, picnic or other patriotic themed party.

We filled the dessert table with classic American treats. Root beer floats served in milk bottles with red striped paper straws…

Chocolate cupcakes with vanilla icing and red, white and blue star sprinkles decked out the cupcake stand. We added some cupcake liners from our red, white and blue cupcake liner mix for some added color.

Firecracker fruit parfaits served in mini dessert cups also added a patriotic touch.

Other desserts included star shaped raspberry jam sandwich cookies, patriotic fruit kabobs on wooden lollipop sticks and bags of popcorn.

Each place at the table was set in the red, white and blue theme. We started with a red placemat, added a white plate and topped the place setting with a decorative red plate. Underneath each white plate was a hand painted linen napkin featuring Liberty and America. Along side each place setting was a utensils set including a wooden fork and spoon. Each set was wrapped in a white doily and slid inside a mini red striped bag. What a cute way to package utensils!

Any July 4th celebration wouldn’t be complete without some s’mores. We created a s’mores kit as a special favor for guests. Each blue bucket was decorated with ribbon and centerpiece circles from our printable patriotic collection. We filled the buckets with wrapped graham crackers, chocolate bars and marshmallows. Just add a favor tag and you’ll be all set!

Other decorations included handcrafted star candle holders. We used one of the candle holders as a centerpiece on top of the cupcake stand. We filled the bottom with sand and added red, white and blue gumball tubes from our shop. We also included centerpiece circles and stars from the printable collection. Star cutouts were added to the cupcake stand for a patriotic feel.

Some tips to styling your Fourth of July table:

1. Layer, Layer, Layer! – When thinking about how you want your place setting to look, think in layers. Start with a main dish or charger and build up from there. Add decorative or colorful plates, a napkin, utensils, a favor or even a creative place card to create a beautiful place for your guests to enjoy a meal or desserts.

2. Use a White Tablecloth – The best base for any table setting is white. It provides a neutral background for other colors in your design pop off of. Keep some around in different sizes, so you’re always ready for any party.

3. Transform Everyday Objects into Something New – Instead of buying new decorations, transform everyday items into holiday themed accessories. The candleholders were found at the dollar store. Some simple red, white and blue tissue paper star cutouts decoupaged on changed them into a Fourth of July decoration.

4. Use Printables in New Ways – One of the great things about party printable collections is that you can use different elements in creative ways. Cupcake toppers can also be added to napkin rings, favor bags, the dessert table and so much more. We added our small star cutouts to our cupcake stand, marshmallow bags in our s’mores kits and even created stick decorations for fun.

5. Style Your Desserts to Add a Pretty Touch – As everyone knows, your eyes eat before your stomach. Make your food look extra pretty by styling your desserts (and main dishes). Add pretty food packaging, embellish serving trays (printables are great for this!) and even break large desserts down into mini servings. Guests feel so special when they receive an individual dessert!

Thanks for sharing such a fantastic patriotic party and styling tips, Natalie!

You can find this FREE printable patriotic collection at their shop, Katarina’s Paperie, as well as many of the party accessories featured. Learn more about many of the DIY projects for this party on their blog, Confetti Diaries.