Oktoberfest Celebration
Oktoberfest Celebration. When I was a little girl, my parents took me to an Oktoberfest Celebration. I don’t remember much about it, other than my dad spoke in German to a few of the older men there. I was awestruck…how was this my dad? What in the world was he saying? How come some of the words sound like a sneeze? This was the first time I remember him speaking in German. Ever since that first Oktoberfest Celebration I have been infatuated with them…
My Dad shared more of his family history with me as I grew up; his father was from an immigrant family, and my grandfather didn’t speak much German. His family moved to America when it was less than desirable to be of German ancestry. My Grandfather’s family even changed his first and their last name. I have always been so intrigued by our family’s heritage, and, obviously, parties. So, parties from my family’s heritage, I am totally in love with! And this twist on a traditional Oktoberfest party by Made of Sugar and Spice…I die! Seriously, I love it all so much!
Oktoberfest Fall Fete
Oktoberfest is one of my favorite times of year. I suppose being of German descent, and having lived in Germany for just over five years, probably has a lot to do with it! My love for the German culture even extends to my favorite breed of dog – the dachshund, aka weenie dog, doxie, sausage dog…the nicknames go on and on. I grew up with the breed, and have two of my own now, and something about them is just so stinking adorable to me. Their long awkward bodies; the way the walk; their long floppy ears, and chunky paws – every little bit of them makes me smile! I have been itching to throw a doxie-themed party for a while now, and the light bulb clicked on bright and shiny when I started planning this year’s Oktoberfest girls’ night out at Made of Sugar and Spice. It was a total “aha” moment – German festival – German dogs – DUH combine the two! Luckily for me I have a graphic design genius in my sweet friend Jen of Jen T. by Design, and even luckier still, she was all in for a design that was destined to be looooong on fun! So, dust off your lederhosen, shimmy into your dirndl, and prepare yourself for some weenie dog overload!
I wanted to remain true to the traditional colors of Oktoberfest, light blue and white. But, I also wanted a pop of yellow, which is found in the center of edelweiss, a flower found in the Bavarian Alps. We carried the edelweiss throughout the entire décor, adding it to our straws, utensils, bottle wrappers, and backs of the little’s chairs.
I found the wooden dachshund cutouts on Etsy, and stained them a rich brown, then added little flowers as a “crown”. Keeping with that theme, one of our crafts for the evening was an “edelweiss” flower head crown. The guests loved piling on the flowers!
Our second craft was painting dachshund silhouettes. Each one turned out so cute and unique. We pre-traced the dachshund shape onto the canvas prior to the event, and the girls had fun adding their own personal touches to them the night of!
We had a not so traditional German dinner of cheese pizza (käse-pizza if you want to make it at least sound German!), but I figured most little girls aren’t too keen on eating bratwurst and spaetzle. Cheese pizza is usually a crowd pleaser so we rolled with it! The medley of desserts consisted of ladyfingers dipped in melted chocolate (again, not a German treat, but they are long and I thought they mimicked the doxie’s bodies! LOL!); chocolate dipped pretzels (brezel in German), and cupcakes. I always like to have a variety of zucker-laden choices for the little guests. Are you enjoying your German language lesson so far?
After several rounds of the “Der Ententanz” (the original title of what most now know as the “Chicken Dance”), we got dolled up and had a fashion show. We rounded out the evening with a movie and puffmais (popcorn), which was served in the cutest cones crafted from paper that Jen T designed. I absolutely love when a theme can be tied together from start to finish!
Danke schön for taking a peek into our fun night! Hope you enjoyed our fall fete, and perhaps found a little inspiration to create your own Oktoberfest-themed party!
Credits:
Party Styling: Made of Sugar and Spice
Graphic Design: Jen T. by Design
Photography: Moments by Maredith
https://www.momentsbymaredith.com/
Wooden Doxie Laser Cuts: Anne Layne Too
https://www.etsy.com/shop/AnneLayneToo
Tags : German, Girls Night Out, Halloween, Made of Sugar and Spice, Oktoberfest
