Get inspiration for sweet and simple winter birthday parties – whether you’re celebrating kids or adults! These charming winter birthday party ideas are sure to please- from a snowflake cake to a marshmallow tree, there’s something for everyone.

It doesn’t have to be complicated – a few special touches can make a winter birthday party feel cozy, calm and collected. Learn how we accomplished these fun ideas, celebrating three January birthdays in our house!

This post was originally shared January 14, 2014 and updated with fresh content and organization November 19, 2021.

For us, January is just as busy as December. It’s the month of birthdays! Aniston and Adalyn share this birthday month, and well, we’re not going to talk about mine.

Since it sneaks up so quickly after the holidays, I keep it simple. Just a few beautiful details and adaptations of our current winter decor. There are perks to having a winter birthday party!

This year, I incorporated a few pieces of our natural Christmas decor as well as our recently transitioned January decor to create a slightly winter wonderland themed birthday party.

Winter Birthday Party Ideas

I say slightly because I don’t like to do anything overly themed… just a few touches to make it special. I was reminded of this when I was at Target last week and overheard a mom in the laundry aisle on her cell phone talking about how she was so overwhelmed preparing for her daughter’s birthday party and how it will never live up to Pinterest.

It doesn’t have to be overwhelming, and it certainly doesn’t have to be a Pinterest party. Aside from searching for the cute winter-themed bird we found at Target, I spent an hour preparing for Adalyn and Aniston’s party, and, from the look on their faces, they enjoyed every moment of it, and so did I!

Winter Birthday Party Treat

Adalyn had a few requests – brownie cake, marshmallow cream, chocolate ice cream and cotton candy milk. Apparently the age of four is when you become opinionated. She’s a party planner at heart, and I loved her excitement and anticipation.

I took advantage of after Christmas sales and purchased a snowflake pan to make our own brownie cake this year and it happened to make perfect portions!

You haven’t seen a chocolate snowflake before? I dusted it with powdered sugar to give it a little snow effect and we served it with homemade marshmallow cream and chocolate ice cream. Yes, it was amazing. The girl has great taste!

Use my favorite brownie recipes here on the blog to make this yourself: Skip the Mix Brownies, Flourless Brownies, or even these Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownies. Find a snowflake pan like this one here.

Winter Birthday Party Drinks

Homemade hot chocolate with snowflake stirrers {also an after Christmas clearance find} and flavored local milk were served along with soft drinks. That’s worth having a birthday alone!

Here’s a few more of my favorite winter drink ideas… some are for adults and some are kid friendly! You choose! In fact, see this round up of amazing Christmas cocktails for more winter inspiration.

• Mulled Wine
• Non-alcoholic Mulled Wine
• Pear Cider
• Apple Cider
• Pink Hot Chocolate
• Frosé Recipe Aka Frozen Rosé

Decorating for Winter Birthday Parties: A Marshmallow Tree

As I previously mentioned, I kept decor to a minimum. I scoured the yard for fallen branches to create marshmallow trees – one for the entryway and another for the side board.

I love it so much in my birch vase that I’m not sure I can replace the marshmallow covered branches with the red berries again.

Marshmallows are perfect for winter birthday parties because they are inexpensive, add so much charm, and they work beautifully with all the hot chocolate you can serve! Find the full (incredibly easy) tutorial for this little project at the end of this post.

Marshmallows grow on trees in my dreams! Using a mix of large and small {fresh} marshmallows, I pushed them onto the end of stems, snipping some stems down to where they were sturdier to create a “blooming” tree.

I had planned to make marshmallow garland too, but I was out of time and out of fishing line before Isla woke up. I made my peace with it and the girls didn’t mind at all.

More Easy Winter Birthday Ideas

And then there’s this cute little bird I just HAD to have for this party. I confess, I went to six Targets, and sent my sister and a friend on a bird hunt. Maybe I gravitated to the lil guy because he has the same hat as Adalyn and Ani?

I don’t know, but thankfully a friend on Facebook had mercy on me {my friends and family} and loaned him to me.

If you aren’t comfortable at arranging flowers, a single stem in a bud vase always makes a statement. Just snip it a half in or so above the top of the vase for yet another quick and easy beautiful detail.

I love Paperwhite bulbs in the winter – and while they were already a part of our winter decorating, they make a lovely addition for your winter birthday parties, too!

These sweet little photo snow globes make the most charming winter decor. They work beautifully as party favors, too!

I asked fellow blogger and calligrapher Madi Reid Sanders to create a Happy Birthday sign that I could frame in my kitchen vignette. You can find similar ideas over here, where artists will customize party signs for you!

It only takes one or two standout details to really make a party come alive.

More Birthday Party Tips

To allow Chris and I to relax and enjoy every moment of the party, I enlisted our neighbor and babysitter to take coats, offer drinks, serve lunch, and dessert. I wanted to visit with our family that traveled to celebrate with us and just soak in every moment with the girls.

I will never again host their birthday parties without a sitter/helper in the house. Honestly, I’m not sure why I didn’t think of it before! It may seem frivolous, but it was the best money I have spent in a long time.

For more winter birthday party inspiration, consider the following ideas:

• Make Hot Chocolate Bombs – they are great for a party activity or a favor.
• Pretty Fall to Winter Decorations
• Birch Vase
• Fairy Light Trees

I’d love to hear from you! Do you have winter birthdays to celebrate in your home? I hope you can incorporate a few of these ideas to make it simple but special!

More Easy Entertaining Ideas

• DIY Monogram Initials
• Build Your Own Burger Bar
• Gold Bar Cart
• 40th Birthday Party
• How to Host Friendsgiving