My boys love anything with wheels. I was thankful when my son chose a race car theme for his third birthday party. A DIY race car party is easy to pull off without breaking the bank! (Plus his second choice was a knight theme, which looks like it involves a much higher level of artistic skill…)

I kept it pretty simple for this party (his birthday is right before Thanksgiving and I was feeling the holiday pressure…). But I think over the years I’ve honed in on my party planning style, and have figured out that if you hit a few of the major categories (ie., the cake, a few impactful decorations, an activity for the kids, etc.), it’s easy to bring together the feel of a theme, without being overwhelmed by details.

Here are the main elements I included in our DIY race car party:

1. A race-car themed cake.
2. A cardboard race car the kids could sit in.
3. Wooden race cars for the kids to color and take home with them.
4. Checkered flag accents.

Race Car Cake

I basically made an exact replica of this cake from Kara’s Party Ideas; the only thing I changed was the name on the cake. 😉 I got the general idea of how to make the “3” shape from this website. But since I didn’t have a suitable tube pan, I baked the cakes in regular round cake pans (I used 9″). I iced between the layers and stacked them (making two separate, two-layer cakes), and then cut out a circle in the middle of each. I then cut out sections of the circles and put them together to form the “3”.

I tried some new gel food colorings for the icing. They were bright Halloween colors, but had the black and green that I needed. Or so I thought. Things got dicey when I was mixing the green; it seemed a bit too neon, so I added a touch of black to it…which turned it a nice putrid color. Yikes. Thankfully I was able to rescue it, and it looked fine once on the cake. Phew.

If you don’t want to do a number shape, you could easily do a sheet cake with the race track drawn across the top of it, grass on the sides, and, of course, the car toppers!

It had its challenges, but overall I am really happy with how this cake turned out!

Cardboard Race Car

I was totally winging it with this, and once I had constructed it was certain it would be destroyed within the first five minutes of the party. And I was ok with that.

But lo and behold, the car held strong for a couple months, and still exists, albeit with fewer wheels and some windshield damage.

It was a hit at the party, and my boys continued to play with it frequently afterward! What kid wouldn’t want a my-size car they can hang out in?

Tips for making a cardboard car:

• Cut the windows and windshield large enough for the kids to see out, but leave enough cardboard around them for a sturdy structure.
• This is also why I cut the door well below the window; even though it’s not how a real car is, I think it helped it to last a lot longer.
• Install a steering wheel. This was an afterthought, and, again, I thought it would be ripped out immediately. But it was not, and the kids love sitting in there driving the car!
• Make the car number the age your child is turning!

Wooden Car Craft

This activity was a win-win-win: cheap, super easy, and so fun for the kids!

I found these wooden cars in the craft section at Walmart for a buck each. (Walmart has some hidden gems in their craft section!) Before the party, I removed all the stickers. So during the party, all I had to do was let each child choose their car, set out a basket of markers, and let them have at it!

Checkered Flag Decorations

Checkered flags are an obvious must for a race car party. My wonderful mother-in-law found these banners, along with some checkered flag balloons, at Hobby Lobby. You could very easily make your own with scrapbook paper.

There are lots of other easy decor possibilities for a DIY race car party, such as other colored flags used in races, stop lights, a black table cloth with white road stripes down the middle, etc. It’s a great theme that is very customizable!

One final touch: a “Fuel Up” sign by the party food!

Looking for more party inspiration? Check out my Very Hungry Caterpillar Themed Party!