Napoleon Dynamite Birthday Party

Davis showing off his Flippin’ Sweet Napoleon Dance Moves

Davis’ 9th birthday party theme request of “Napoleon Dynamite” was quite unique. There wasn’t much party inspiration out there on the web or Pinterest, so we had to watch the movie over and over and get our creative juices flowing. In the end, it’s my all-time favorite party we have thrown! The kids that attended the party loved it too. It was fun on top of fun!

Party Elements

Retro Napoleon Dynamite portrait

I love paying attention to the smallest detail. Accordingly, I included a classic 80’s style photo of the birthday boy “Napoleon” himself like the one hanging on the wall in his grandma’s home. This photo was perhaps my favorite part of the whole set up. It still cracks me up! I was able to create this look by using a blending photo app on my phone. I no longer have the app, but in the years since the party, several amazing blending photo apps have come out that will easily do the trick. We had to take a trip to the thrift store to find a sweet frame. Luckily for us, our local 2nd hand shop had tons of tacky retro frames to choose from. All we needed from there was a kiddo up for some acting, a white button up shirt, clip on tie and, of course, the classic Napoleon Dynamite wig and glasses. Voila, a funny picture you will cherish forever.

For the party day costume, our Napoleon wore a “Vote for Pedro” shirt, blue jeans, and moon boots. Thankfully, these are easy to find on Amazon.

Next, what would a Napoleon Dynamite party be without the awkward setting of a cheesy decorated high school gym? To achieve this look we strung star banners across the ceiling, hung our disco ball (which has paid for itself in entertainment over the years), threw some confetti on the floor, and slapped up “Vote For Pedro/Summer” campaign ads on the walls. This school gym was the perfect setting for a sweet dance party!

For this party we had two different tablescapes - a lunchroom bar and dessert table.

For dinner, it was a no-brainer that we should resemble a classic school cafeteria with “lunch” served on divided food trays. For my own amusement, we had the kids line up to get their grub. I employed the help of a proper “lunch lady” to serve the kids (thanks, Grandma Pat). We served tots (of course!), corn dogs, apples, cartons of chocolate milk, and juice pouches.

On the dessert table we served toasted coconut rolled marshmallows or “dessert tots” and cupcakes with Napoleon Dynamite face/quote toppers. To add to the scene, I added in some small rubber footballs to “throw over them mountains” and a printable of Uncle Rico’s van. Other elements included “Happy Birthday” balloons, a homemade “Pedro loves Summer” cake, and we topped it all off with a Summer Wheatly pinata.

The Summer pinata took some crafting. I spent days looking for some sort of look-a-like pinata. Don’t waste your time, it doesn’t exist. What does exist is a “hula girl” pinata, some yellow crepe paper (for her hair), colored tissue paper (for her dress), and about an hour of your time. Strip down the hula girl and dress her up in the crepe/tissue paper and some glue. The finished Summer pinata wasn’t terribly close to the one in the movie, but I think it looked great! It’s the funny thought that counts after all.

Milk taste testing station

Besides hosting an epic dance party in the “school gym,” we had a couple of activities set up for the kids, which included breaking the Summer Wheatly pinata, “Glamour Shots by Deb,” and a “Future Farmers of America” (FFA) milk tasting table.

FFA Milk Tasting Station

The FFA milk tasting was absolutely hilarious. We took regular milk, doctored it up a bit, and had the kids guess the flavor. The tasty flavors included, onion powder, vanilla extract, peppermint extract, almond, and coconut extract. The kid who could identify the most flavors took home the first place medal.

Glamour Shots By Deb

The biggest hit of the night was definitely the “Glamour Shots By Deb” photo booth. Davis invited his entire 3rd grade class and everyone attended. Every single child took some time to dress up and get their “glamour shot.” We had a photo printer on hand and printed off the photo treasures for the kids to take home to remember the night. For the dress up, we had a classic old caboodle like Deb’s filled with jewelry, fake mustaches, makeup, and hair accessories. For the pink backdrop that matched Deb’s in the movie, I bought a couple of yards of fabric from JoAnn’s and added iron-on vinyl stars that I cut out with my Brother Scan and Cut machine. If you don’t have a machine, no problem! You can hand cut stars and iron-on the vinyl. For the black and gold backdrops, you can easily find similar fabric at JoAnns. I suggest a couple of yards each.

While I was at the thrift store shopping for a retro frame for Napoleon’s portrait, I spent some time snagging some sweet 80’s looking tops in the kids section for the glamour shot looks. Once we were done with them, back to the thrift store as a donation they went.

We added little extra touches to the decor, such as Napoleon Dynamite pillow covers and printable pictures. We still have some printable’s displayed in our home and the pillows kick around Davis’ room three years later.

Each partygoer was sent home with a goodie bag full of Napoleon Dynamite treats including: a delicious (chocolate) bass, boondoggle to make your own keychain (gimping), Napoleon Dynamite button, uncle Rico’s mini footballs, chapstick, and candy from the pinata.

Custom made party invite

Helpful Links:

Napoleon Dynamite decor

Sweet activities

Deb’s Glamour Shots

Goodie bags

In the Spring of 2019 Davis performed the Napoleon Dynamite Dance at his 5th grade talent show. He nailed it! Check out his sweet moves!

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