Gifts

75th Birthday on a Farm: Budget-Friendly Party Hacks

Last Updated on August 17, 2023 by Kimberly Crawford

Planning your loved one’s 75th birthday party on a farm? Celebrate this big milestone by throwing the ultimate birthday party using these hacks.

Every birthday milestone should be celebrated, whether it is your daughter’s 16th or your grandfather’s 75th birthday. After all, reaching your diamond jubilee birthday is truly a feat and something worth celebrating. Since every birthday after a sixtieth is something to be grateful for, making a 75th birthday special is a given.

If your loved one lives near or on a farm, consider using it as your venue. You will be surprised by how wonderful a birthday bash you can create. If you can’t have the birthday event on a farm, you can always throw a farm-themed party.

These budget-friendly farm party hacks will help you create a sensational birthday experience for your elderly loved one.

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A Checklist

For your budget-friendly 75th birthday bash, you need to consider some party necessities. Let this checklist guide your party planning:

Decorate and organize your venue. It can be an outdoor or an indoor setting. It could also be a mixture of both. Remember to buy and/or create festive decors and lights.
Try to follow a specific theme. Even if you are going for a farm theme, consider having another theme if the party is taking place on an actual farm. For example, if your loved one is a veteran, you can set a 40’s themed party. Or you could opt for a hippie-era-themed party so that they can remember their youth. Other themes you can consider are bohemian, seasonal, old Hollywood, preppy/swing era, disco era, etc. Whatever the theme is, remember that it should have meaning and significance to the loved one you are celebrating.
Create and send out invites.
Create a finger food station.
If the party is mostly for adults, consider creating a bar area and hiring a mixologist.
Create a dinner table arrangement. It does not have to be formal, but having a table setting helps keep things neat and organized.
Select a guest-friendly menu that goes well with your theme.
Arrange for age-appropriate entertainment. Your guests’ ages might range from children to elderly, so consider a few options that will keep various age groups entertained.
Ensure your guests are comfortable. Have enough seats for everyone – especially if there will be a lot of elderly attending. Make sure whatever venue you select has enough lavatories too.

These reasonable 75th birthday ideas can even be relatively inexpensive if you use your imagination and rely on items you already own, as well as a few simple crafty DIY projects to tie everything together. Read on to know more.

Preparing the Venue

If you wish to have a farm-themed party but don’t live on a farm, consider throwing it at a park. A perk of having your party at a farm is that you won’t have any lack of space.

If that isn’t possible but you have a big enough backyard, you can transform your backyard in line with the theme. Following are some tips for each setting.

Outdoor Farm Party

If the weather is nice and warm enough to have a party outside, consider making a farm meadow your venue. Transforming a meadow into a birthday venue is easy as you already have the beautiful outdoors as your base. You will only need a handful of things such as lights and balloons to decorate the venue.

Consider renting a canopy tent, so that you can have a shaded zone as well. Canopy tents make beautiful base areas for the party while also sheltering you from the sun if needed. If your outdoor birthday bash will continue beyond the sunset, consider hanging string lights from poles to both decorate and illuminate your venue.

Indoor Farm Party

During fall and winter, outdoor parties can be difficult due to the cold. You cannot entertain more than forty people inside most farmhouses. If you have a guest list that exceeds forty-five, you should consider other options.

Opt for the barn as your indoor venue. An average barn should have enough space for 50-75 people. Larger barns can house even more people and will also go well with the farm theme.

Keep in mind to choose a barn that is used for storing hay and not for housing cattle. You can never really get the smell of manure out of a cattle barn. Clean out the barn well before setting up your venue. Decorate it with fairy lights along the walls and try other decorative lighting options to illuminate the barn as well.

Farm-Themed Party in a Backyard or Park

For a party with a smaller guest list, consider a backyard party. It is budget-friendly and preparing your backyard will be easier since it is where you live. You will spend very little time and effort moving things around and you won’t have to struggle to find a power source or water supply. You can also freely use your kitchen and store your party food in your fridge.

If you need a larger space, you can also hold your farm-themed party at a park, petting zoo, or other outdoor recreation venues. You can consider renting a petting zoo as it is a lot cheaper than renting a farm to visit. The kids will stay entertained and you can go all out with your farm theme.

Preparing Food & Beverages

Finger Food & Drinks

If you are making all the finger food on your own, try going for simple items. For example, one item you can go for is a cheese and fruit platter. One large platter can serve a lot of people, and you only need to cut the fruits and arrange them. You can also opt for classics such as pigs in a blanket, mini corn dogs, corn skewers, wings, and other simple and easy DIY party food.

Having a bar and a mixologist for your party can be expensive, but a necessity if your crowd is expecting to drink. If you are looking for a cheaper option, don’t hesitate to serve beer. You can also serve just a few pitchers of cocktails or punch, which would be lighter on your wallet.

Mains & Desserts

As mentioned before, try to match your food with the theme of the birthday bash. You can find plenty of information online about what kind of food fits different themes to create your menu. For example, if the birthday is in autumn, you can opt for food like pumpkin pie, chicken and green beans casserole, or other harvest-oriented meals.

You don’t have to prepare a formal dinner or cook fancy food; a simple spread is the best way to go. Remember that many of the guests might be people who are above the age of 50, so keep your menu as healthy as possible.

Catering

Hiring catering is a great idea if your guest list is long. You can find much farm-to-table catering that will bring you fresh, healthy, and tasty food to your social events. You can also consider renting a restaurant as your birthday party venue, where you will find a lot of amenities including food, music, etc.

DIY Invites, Decor, & Lighting

A hack that is budget-friendly and easy enough to do is to make your invites, decor, and lighting. You can find numerous resources online that can help you make DIY party items. You can easily create unique objects without making a dent in your wallet.

3D Printable Invites

A way to save time and get some beautiful invites is finding free 3D printable invites online. Some websites even let you edit the invites so that you can add words and photos to personalize them. You can also hand write into the cards after printing them or customize them with stickers.

Some companies sell invites online, where you can mass order them. You browse through a catalog and choose a format, and then they will customize your invites according to your requirements.

Easy DIY Birthday Decor

One way to cut your costs is by making homemade birthday decor. The internet is bursting with ideas for simple DIY party decors such as balloon decorations, flower arrangements, seasonal craft decors, etc.

The larger the venue, the more decoration you will need, so get as many helping hands as you can. Encourage your children and grandchildren to help you out. Give them clear directions and possibly print instructions that they can follow. Children will enjoy crafting and the work will get done fast as well.

Decorate With Photos

Print out photos of your loved one from different decades of his/her life and add these to your decorations. You can make holes in the corners of the photos and slide them onto a thin ribbon and make string decorations with them. You can also stick photos to a wall, pairing them with cut-out decorations & balloons to make a photo wall.

DIY Lights

For outdoor social events where you can’t get electricity outlets in every corner, making DIY lights is an excellent idea. Buy cheap, battery-run fairy lights and create lamps out of empty mason jars, bottles, or any see-through glass containers. Not only are they easy to make, but you can repurpose old glass utensils.

You can also illuminate using candles and DIY ones are a great option. For example, DIY autumnal candle decors can both illuminate and beautify your venue.

Outdoor social events, whether on a farm, or your backyard means you will always attract unwanted insects to your party. To keep them away, decorate with citronella tiki torches that work as both lighting and insect repellent.

Party Entertainment

Themed Games

Any party would be boring without party games. Yet, whatever games you plan should match the theme of the party. You can also choose to play fun outdoor games like a treasure hunt or capture the flag. Try to find games that most people can enjoy and participate in. Divide into teams so that people can work together and socialize.

Movies

Ending the evening with a movie is a great idea. Simply rent a projector and a screen then set it up with plenty of seating available. Choose your birthday loved one’s favorite movie, but try to stick to a family-friendly choice. Opt for classics, so that the younger generations can watch something new, and relate to the era of the birthday boy/girl.

You can make sitting arrangements with chairs, benches, or use picnic blankets and throw pillows. Also, provide shrugs and shawls to your guests in case it gets chilly at night. Provide popcorn, candies, sodas, and other cinema-inspired snacks to enjoy the movie.

Dancing

If you choose to throw a dance party, you will need to either hire a band or a DJ. People love dance parties, so spending that extra buck will be worth it.

You can also rent large speakers and hook them up to your phone or laptop. Make a playlist of songs and encourage people to dance. However, you might have to provide appropriate lighting and create a separate area to serve as a dance floor.

Farm Petting Zoo

If you rent a petting zoo as a venue you won’t have to worry about this but if you are throwing your party at a farm, you can create your little petting zoo to keep the children entertained.

Select gentle and friendly farm animals you can find and put them in a paddock. If you have ponies or horses that won’t throw people off, ask a stable boy to help give the children a ride. Encourage kids to pet and interact with animals, so that they can enjoy the farm experience.

Celebrating a Life

Ensure that a large aspect of the event focuses on your loved one. Creating memories and celebrating their life is the main focus of this party. Try some of the following things to make it memorable for them:

Make a slideshow or video in honor of them.
Hire a photographer for the event. If that is not possible, provide photo booths or polaroids so that people can take photos to remember the event.
Showcase special performances from loved ones.
Dedicate a time to give speeches or make a toast.

Final Thoughts

Celebrating a loved one’s 75th birthday is a special opportunity to honor them. Use these hacks and make their birthday truly special, whether it’s outside on a farm, or at your place in your backyard.