Hogwarts Express

All you Harry Potter fans out there…Do I have the party for you! I have been wanting to do this party theme ever since Harry received his letter to Hogwarts but my girls just aren’t old enough yet to truly appreciate the movies. So I have been patiently waiting…for years and years! Until one day, I was talking with my friend Julie and she let it slip that her boys were turning 10 and they loved all things Harry P. This is when I generally pounce on my friends and beg them to let me be a part of it. She was happy to team up and together we created some Hogwarts worthy magic. It’s so good you’re going to want to pin this for later!!

***Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links to some of my favorite Harry Potter products used to bring this theme to life. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.

I whipped up this sign litereally the morning of the party. As I was loading my car I thought we need some kind of Hogwarts sign at the front. So I gave a quick coat of black paint onto an old sign post I already had and minutes before the party I attached the gold vinyl cutout.
Only to arrive and see that Julie already beat me to it with her Hogwarts banner 🙂 Great minds think alike!
To make the entrance into the party grand we used this shower curtain and I made a balloon garland to cover the top bar.
Once you entered you were able to drop off your brooms.
These brooms are actually from my Halloween decor but I made them using random tree branches I’ve found over the years. At the bottom is some kind of dried twig things I found at the craft store and then I just wrapped with twine and stapled them.
Oh how I love these floating candles!! Made out of toilet paper rolls, hot glue and painted white. Inside is a ring of hot glue to hold the tealights in place.
This cart tho…

I used my Cricut to cut all the vinyl decals and downloaded the free fonts from DaFont.com
Balloons….balloons….balloons! Don’t you love it when you can find themed candies to fit your theme?
Julie made these. She’s rad.
When I saw her dining room on the initial walk thru I knew it would be perfect to set up as “The Great Hall” where all the kids gather to eat in the movie.  These battery opereated candelsticks were perfect without having to deal with real candles dripping everywhere.
Hogwarts Banner 
Golden Snitch candies are such a cute touch. These are simply hazelnut candies and I cut some wings using my Cricut and attached with toothpicks. If you don’t have a way to cut the wings you could give these a try.
Dessert Plates & Napkins 
More Snitches because this display is amazing! Using the same vinyl decal I used on the sign out front.
Julie made these cookies too. Maybe she doesn’t know that I snuck a few home in my camera bag. 🙂
This AMAZING cake is from Cobblestone Bakery.
Cuteset little cauldron cupcakes & toppers
More candlesticks….they were so great!
The Common Room is where the kids joined when they arrived. It featured the photo booth using these fun photo props and this frame. This is also where the kids went to use the sorting hat to find out which house they were assigned to.
Another shower curtain to help keep the theme alive but block off any rooms we didn’t want the kids going into.
Simple black favor bags that I adorned with some gold vinyl cutouts.
Class notes & pencils were given out as the kids entered to learn more about what was in store.
Boxes wrapped in kraft paper and stamped added the perfect touch to our fireplace of flying letters.
For Harry’s owl Hedwig we used a stuffed animal but this animated owl would be really fun to incorporate.
Can’t have a Potter party without wands….
There she is….wizard mama Julie.

Food!! Julie made all the cute labels for everything.
Check out this sorting hat cheeseball!!
Outside where the kids would eat was all about the 4 houses they were assigned to during the sorting hat game. Each table had their house color tablecloth and banners hung above.
Coordinating plates & napkins with the 4 houses on them.
I love these cups. Just simple plastic cups but with the right decal they are perfect for the party.
All the centerpieces were different using whatever leftover props we had and some books wrapped in printable book covers. This one featuring a Quidditch Set was my favorite because the boys got to keep it after.
The fireplace was decorated to look like the Forbidden Forest.
The birthday boys!
Julie set it up for some Hogwarts Students to come and give the kids lessons on all things Hogwarts.
Let the sorting begin!
After the sorting there was a wand lesson.
After wand lessons it was potions class.
Cake time.
He’s excited!
So was he….
And so was I…
Wasn’t that amazing!! Super long post I know but it was all too good not to share. Thanks for sticking around!