Unicorn Valentine Box

I have been planning on making  a Unicorn Valentine Box since last Valentine's Day, and now with our frequent snow days lately, I have had the chance.    I consider this project to also be part of the Dollar Store Challenge, because all of the supplies came from the dollar store. 

You do not need to buy a box for you unicorn, but I found this really nice one  that was white with a big slot already in it.  I went ahead and bought it, since I did not have a good shoe box at home.   I found it on sale at Meijer for $2.39.  I have also seen these before at Target, and the craft store. You may also find a file box at the dollar store that will work as well. 

I painted four cardboard tubes white, since I decide to make my unicorn white to match the box I found.  I did almost make it purple though. :) 

In the wrapping and party aisles, I found several things that would work for the mane and tail.  My favorites were the pre-curled ribbon bows, and the Tissue Tassel Garland.  Because I loved the colors (they come in several others too) I chose to use the ribbon bows. I bought  two of them for this project. Each bow is made up on three smaller bows. 

I also found several options for the head. The plastic cup and floral foam were my two favorites in size and shape. 

This is what it would look like if you go with the floral foam.  TIP- Do not open the package of foam, leave it wrapped in plastic.  I found out the hard way that it is actually 5 smaller blocks that needed to be put back together with tape. 

I decided to go with the plastic water cup, because it looks more realistic to me. It would be ideal if I found a white cup but there are a variety of things that can be done to make it white.  I thought about painting it, but decided to wrap it with white paper that I found in the wrapping section. 

I hot glue the legs in place to the bottom of the box.  

I separate the ribbon bow into the smaller separate bows to have more control on where I wanted them to go.  

I used four of the small pieces for the mane, and two for the tail.  I really love the look of the curls! 

I had self adhesive craft foam on hand, but it was originally bought from the dollar store in the craft aisle.  I had considered using black for the snout but it was too dark next to the light colors of the unicorn.  Since it was Valentine's Day, I decided to cut out some pink hearts instead. 

I may need to go back and take a few more pictures, because I do not have a close up of the eyes. I used some of the pink craft foam to my her eyelashes as well. You can kind of see them under her mane.  The horn is a piece of pink card stock rolled into a cone shape, and then glued into place. 

You now have an unicorn that is ready for the class party, and to receive all of her Valentines.  (I am actually teaching a 5th grade class that day, so I might take mine to school with me.) 

Depending on the supplies you already have, the estimated cost for this unicorn is $5 or less. 

Happy Valentine's Day!! 

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Unicorn Party Mix

Recently I shared how to host an Unicorn Candy Buffet on a Budget. One of the treats I put on the buffet was Unicorn Party Mix.  I love these types of treats, because they are super easy to make, and can be customized for all sorts of themes and parties.  

I started this party mix with Bugles.  I chose them because they look like Unicorn horns.  I lined a cookie sheet with wax paper, and then arranged the Bugles in a single layer. 

While I was making the party mix, I was also making Unicorn Horn Pretzels.  I had melted a bag of white chocolate chips and divided it between the two snacks. I drizzled the chocolate over the bugles with a spoon.  I tried to get it on as many pieces as I could, some pieces got more than others. Once I added colored mini marshmallows I realized I forgot to take a picture of just the chocolate.  The marshmallows remind me of unicorn "poop". 

I then added a couple of different kinds of sprinkles and candy.  I had a box of rainbow nerds, so I added some of those. I also added some silver and pink sugar sprinkles.  

My favorite cereal is Lucky Charms.  While making this party mix, I saw a box of cereal sitting nearby.  I realized that some of the marshmallows were perfect for a unicorn mix.  I added some purple horseshoes, pink hearts, and rainbows. 

Once you add all the ingredients that you want to add, set it out for your party, or store in a air tight container to use for later.    A word of warning, this stuff is addictive! It is the perfect mix of sweet and salty.  Once you start eating it, it is hard to stop.  

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An Unicorn Candy Buffet on a Budget

Disclosure: This blog uses affiliate links to the products used in this post. 

If you have been on Pinterest or social media in the last few years you may have noticed that candy buffets are quite the trend.  While big elaborate buffets are quite beautiful, they are also pretty expensive.  I am going to share my tips to putting one together on a budget (and with limited space) 

I am a brand ambassador for Oriental Trading  It is a great place to buy party supplies that are inexpensive, and in several different party themes.  They did send some party supplies for me to share in this post, but all opinions of the products are 100% mine.  I have been a fan of theirs for many years, long before I became an ambassador. 

I do not have a lot of space to put a candy buffet where I live.  I had originally wanted to put it near a wall with my rectangle card table.  Unfortunately, that table seems to be MIA at the moment, so I had to change my plans.  We have another area with a makeshift room divider that my daughter likes to use when she is in the the living/dining room. I decided to use that as a backdrop for the buffet.  I decorated it with fringed crepe paper.  What is nice about this technique is you can easily customize it to your theme and color.  I used the colors I had on hand. This location would actually be even better for guests to reach the candy. I love this gold foil tablecloth.  There were some fold marks, but that did not bother me.  You will actually see it again very soon! 

I love these divided trays from Oriental Trading.  They hold a lot of stuff, and I can see using them for all of my parties.  

You can use all sorts of different bowls, jars, and trays for your candy buffet depending on what you are serving.  These glass ice cream bowls that I already had on hand were the perfect size to hold the ice cream flavored jelly beans.  I have found interesting party dishes at the dollar store, on clearance and thrift stores.  Oriental Trading has a nice affordable selection of serving containers as well.   I once found a very large apothecary jar for $10 at the Salvation Army. It was too big to use for this party, but I am sure I will use it for something.  

In this tray, I served Unicorn Horn Pretzels, (recipe posted shortly) Unicorn Horn Suckers from Oriental Trading, and heart suckers from the dollar store. 

The fruit flavored Tootsie Rolls, rainbow pixie sticks and more unicorn horn suckers were all from Oriental Trading. 

I made this glass stemmed jar using items from the dollar store.  I glued a vase to a candlestick using heavy duty glue.  They are quite sturdy and I have used them for many parties.  This one is holding 2 lbs of purple Sixlets from Oriental Trading.   The chocolates were the most expensive candy on the buffet, and they were still under $10. You can choose from many different colors. I chose purple because it is my favorite color,  and one I usually think of when I think of unicorns.   I love the gold scoops that came in packs for three for only a couple of dollars.  The unicorn pick on the side of the jar was going to be used in sprinkled marshmallows, but when I went to make them, it seems the marshmallows had been eaten.  

A couple of years ago, I found several cake stands on clearance at Target for only a couple of dollars each  They have a bit of a bowl shape, so I used my red one to hold the Unicorn Party Mix that I made.  

I am not sure where I got this plastic jar, but it has been quite useful.  When I am not using it to hold rainbow gumballs , it holds my cupcake liners.  

Here is a close up of the Unicorn Horn Pretzels.  You can use whatever chewy candy you want to give the swirl affect to the pretzel.  I used the fruity Tootsie Rolls.  While I used rainbow sprinkles and some pink sparkle sugar, you can decorate them in all sorts of colors and make them as fancy as you like.  They actually taste really good, I may have already eaten a couple of them  

Here is a close up on the Unicorn Horn Suckers.  I love the colorful unicorn card. These would be perfect for Valentines Day.  

I think these Unicorn Horn Bracelets are really cute.  

The other dollar store jar held these large swirl suckers.. 

While writing this post, I saw pictures of these Valentine Unicorn Bags from Oriental Trading that we made last year.  They would be a great addition to an Unicorn Candy Buffet to hold all the loose candy.   (the purple flower are actually not part of the kit, but added in editing to hide names of the girls who made them) 

I hope I gave you some ideas on how to have an affordable candy buffet on a budget. 

Some additional Unicorn party products you might enjoy. Just click on the photo to find more information.  

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How to DIY Unicorn Rainbow Eye Make Up

My daughter loves make up.  She will most likely go to cosmetology school, and become a make up artist someday.  It does have some benefits for me, because she often likes to do my make up for me when I am going somewhere.  Recently, she was experimenting with

her eye shadows and decided to try Unicorn Rainbow Eyes. I posted it on my personal facebookpage, and she immediately got a lot of great comments.  I love the look, and may have her help next Halloween if I decide to be a Unicorn. 

This is her first time doing a tutorial video for the blog. I may be able to get her to do some more..  

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Purple Unicorn Party

My daughter's and I have loved unicorns for a long time, way before they became the current sensation.  Thirteen years ago, my oldest daughter had an unicorn themed birthday party and invited all of the girls in her class.  It was her first birthday party in her new school, and she was quite excited to celebrate with her new friends.  My youngest was only two at the time, and was very excited about the party too. (though she may not look like it in this picture LOL!)  She was thrilled to hand out the unicorn horn headbands to the guests. Because this party was held way before I became a blogger, I don't have a lot of detail pictures, but I do have some that would be relevant to a present day Unicorn Party.  Purple was her absolute favorite color at this age, so she chose it as her main color for the party.  (her entire room was purple down to the walls and the carpet) 

Disclosure:  The links to the items I used at this party are affiliate links.

At the time I had trouble finding an unicorn cake pan, so I had to be creative in how I put together the cake.  If my memory serves me right, I used a dome cake pan kind of like this one here for the head, and a large circle cookie cutter to cut out the nose.  The unicorn's horn is an ice cream cone covered in frosting.  In the picture it looked like I used Wilton Ready to Decorate Icings with tips instead of making my own.  I can not tell what the eye was made from in the picture, but it looks like a circle piece of candy or a flattened gum drop. 

In this picture you can see a better view of the unicorn horn headband.  I bought pastel colored headbands from the dollar store.  The horn and ears were made from felt, and the mane of color coordinated yarn. I think we might still have their unicorn headbands around her somewhere. I should see if I can find them. 

I know this picture is kind of blurry, but it is the only one I have of the craft  We made unicorn picture frames out of craft foam. When the girls arrived I took a picture of them in front of the fireplace wearing their unicorn horns.  I then printed off all of the pictures before it was time to craft.  This may have been a craft kit, but it kind of looks like just improvised. Even though the unicorns kind of look like Grimace, the girls loved them at the time. 

I do remember giving the girls a small goody bag of candy and trinkets, but what they loved the most were the stuffed unicorns.  We found several unicorns on clearance and then made sure we had enough for each of the guests and each of my kids. Looking back at this picture, I just have to smile. Every single one of these little ones are now between the ages of 17 and 20!   Time really flies!   How we handed out the unicorns was by playing a game. Each unicorn was wrapped in pretty paper.  The kids sat in a large circle, and then we played a version of hot potato.  If you were holding the wrapped gift when the music stopped, you left the circle and opened your unicorn.  The kids felt like they were receiving presents too, and they had something they could keep as a memento from the party.  I found a few unicorns online very similar to the ones we handed out.  You and see them here, here, and here.

The party was a success and to this day, it is still one of my daughter's favorites. 

We have several new unicorn posts in the works so watch for them very soon!!  

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