I love the change of seasons and all of the different activities that are specific to each time of year. When the weather is warm, everyone loves to throw parties, cookouts and have social gathers so why not kickoff the summer in with a festive Luau style party. Adding a Hawaiian theme creates instant fun to any event. I had a great time creating inexpensive luau decorations using household items and things I found at a local craft store.

Water Bottle Tiki Torches

I created these fun and safe tiki torches out of water bottles and wooden sticks. These are great to put on the table as a decoration and safe for kids. The instructions on  how to make these can be found here.

Tissue Box Tiki Faces

The tiki faces shown were created from my reused stash of tissue boxes, coffee sleeves and acrylic paint. Click here for instructions on how to make these tiki faces.

Shoebox Lid Surf Shop

I love themed platters. This one is so cute and very easy to create with a shoebox lid, cardboard, acrylic paint and decorative scrapbooking paper.

Cardboard and Scrapbooking Paper Sun

This is just a fun decoration that adds a little sunshine to your party.

Mexican Straw Hat Serving Platter

I like using unexpected items to serve food. I bought this Mexican straw hat from the craft store. I decorated it with flowers and placed cupcake cups filled with fruit inside the rim to give my table a more festive look.

Pineapple Island

The top of a pineapple already looks like a palm tree so why not turn it into a pineapple island. Find a pineapple with a nice palm tree type top and cut the bottom flat so it will sit on a plate. Peel the pineapple and cut the fruit from the core. I like to hang grapes form the top so it looks like coconuts on a tree.

Drink Garnishes

I love fun and decorative drinks — it makes me feel like I am on a tropical island. Glue twisty ties to the back of exotic flowers and attach to a straw. Make citrus curls as a garnish to make the glasses look more tropical.

Have fun and have a great start to your summer!