I live in L.A. and babysit an 11 year old girl. We are struggling to come up with ideas. Last year we did a Willy Wonka theme and everything was candy...it was great! But, we have no idea what to do this year? Btw, no dietary restrictions, so that won't be a concern.

Kassandra

I love love love party planning!

Here's some ideas we've tried out that have been fun:
-artists' party (kids decorate their own cupcakes, paint on a real canvas they get to take home, work with real clay, etc ~ just decorate with bright colors and buy lots of cool art supplies)
-ballet party (held at my daughter's dance studio ~ her teacher gave the girls a fun hour long lesson, we had a cake that looked like ballet slippers, the favors were dance bags with dance accessories in them)
-makeover sleep-over party (lots of snacks and make up and let the kids have fun)
-fancy tea party (the girls all dressed up and went to a local tea shop where they were treated like "ladies" to a full traditional tea the favors were miniature little tea sets)

marsbrightideas.com is a good site to get inspired!

art parties were always fun, or bead parties where everyone can make jewlrey, make your own cupcakes (ice, toppings) is always fu like she suggested), or decorating sugar cookies too.

One of the coolest parties my friend had was a "mani/pedi Spa Retreat". They hired a local manicurist who did our nails while we lounged by their pool and ate "spa food". The favors were our flip flops, nail polish, and and hand creme. At the time this was the most awesome party ever, and looking back, it really wasn't that expensive for my friend's parents (I believe they said later that they did it for the 15 of us for under $150). That is far less than the rollerskating parties my parents got for me.

Kassandra,
Is she a girly girl?
Well 11 years old is kinda a hard year, not knowing if they r still young or if they think wow I'm older now
But I only have boys, but I have 2 nieces and when they were 11 we did a "make ur own T-shirts ( some let just their friends sign or made hand prints of all the kids at the pary) it turned out that the boys liked it as well as the girls, they had soo much fun trying to out style the other shirts lol
It is just a suggestion
But we used permant markers and clothing paint u can wash off them with just water (the paints I purchased at Wal-Mart called Craft Paint made by :PLAID and I just squirted the paints on paper plates and let em go I also used card board boxes given away free from local grocery to place inside t-shirts so they won't stick together while being painted and let them dry while u do other fun things ! just cut the cardboard to fit inside the shirts so they lay flat .
U could also do the cheap girt bags I made for the girls > slap bracltes I puchased them at Hobby Lobby (the guys liked them too)
and dif kinds of lip glosses they r cheap at Wal-Mart
If it is warm where u r at the time of the party for the fun part besides the t-shirt they had water gun fights and ballon bombs (this is wht the guys called them which they only threw at the girls lol)
I sure wish u best of planning and Have fun !
Belinda

Thanks for all the suggestions. She is not a total girly-girl. We live in L.A. so it is almost 100 degrees right now. They also have a pool in their backyard. I will have to talk to her and see what she says.

Kassandra

A karate or self-defense class w/ lunch afterward would be fun. I did this one and we had a blast learning something new and "attacking" each other. Most martial arts schools will do this for small groups relatively cheaply. It's always neat to try something new.

Do you want an "at home" party? or an event party at another location?

You could do Birthday Idol - and rent or borrow a karaoke machine for her friends to compete! If someone is quick with a computer, you could burn celiac disease's of all the songs they chose for a giftbag while they are opening presents or hanging out.......

My sister once had a Laser Tag party when she was around that age......

I'll keep thinking

We did the mani/pedi party two years ago. I took the girls out to lunch and to the salon. They loved it!

Last year she had a hip hop dance party at a local studio, but not the one she normally goes to. They just started doing parties. I think hers will be the first. This year it will be a jazz party. The kids love to dance!

I'm not serving cake because there will be three girls there with food issues. Two of them can't have wheat/gluten, eggs, dairy or other things. So we're doing Enjoy Life cookies, plain potato chips and baked Tings.

I really like the idea of a spa party! They have a pool, so that may be fun! She is a REALLY mature 11 year old, so most of the ideas I tell her she looks at me like...DUH! LOL! She is great, but coming up with a theme that she likes is almost impossible. Also, since we live in L.A. and a lot of her friends are kids of actors/producers, they all have totally extravagant parties and she feels like she can't compete. So, I'll talk to her about the spa theme! Again, thanks!

Kassandra

What about doing a party themed like a Hollywood after party? Fancy drinks with flashing ice cubes. Do neon wigs and cool sunglasses for the party favors. Have loud music and karaoke. You can serve faux sushi made with fruit leathers and marshmallows, popcorn (colored popcorn would be great), glutino pretzels, a cake iced like a directors board, an ice cream bar where kids can order ice cream w/ different toppings, etc... This would also be great as a pool party.

Pool party with a Tropic theme, you could get grass skirts and have "tropical" drinks in coconut cups with twisty straws. There are all kinds of neat decorations and games you could play...Limbo!!!