All Aboard the Train Party Express! {GIVEAWAYS}

I've been working on a post about train parties for a while now but when I saw the amazing Modern Train-themed bash Melissa from Project Nursery threw for her son, Austin's third birthday, I had to share it right away. 

Adorable, huh?  And you don't have to spend a fortune to do something similar.  See this amazing cake?

It's from Costco!  That's right, Melissa just spruced it up with a fondant topper.  So simple!  And how fun is this trackless train the party goers got to enjoy?

For more photos and details on Austin's third birthday, including a vlog of the day's festivities, visit Project Nursery.

I first took notice of terrific ideas for train parties when I saw that Drew, of the fabulous site Momtog, threw a choo choo celebration for her son Brayden.  They had a trackless train, too, and even the rain couldn't ruin the fun.

The invitations from So Divine Designs set the vintage tone for the party from the start.

The decor was very simple but reflected the retro feel perfectly, using the teal and red from the invites to tie everything together.  I love the "Choo Choo, Brayden is Two" saying on the banner!

The room was extra festive with a ceiling full of balloons.  Now that's an inexpensive way to make a big impact!

The vintage wooden Coke case was filled with M&M's to hold up multicolor suckers.

Drew made the 2 banner using her Cricut machine.

And just because you throw a train party doesn't mean you have to have a train shaped cake.  I love how Brayden's sat inside a toy train set instead.

Check out more gorgeous photos of Brayden's bash over at Momtog.

Party Perfect featured another great vintage train party their reader Dana created for her son, Henri's, third birthday.  And this celebration was actually in an old railway car!

The interior was decorated with festive banners and striped table clothes.

There was even a build-a-train craft station at one end.

Cupcakes were decorated with railroad-inspired fondant.

And each passenger got a bandana for the road!

So if your little conductor wants to hop aboard the train party express, here are some more fun ideas.

Sugarcoat Paperie creates these gorgeous retro inspired train ticket invitations:

You can also get a coordinating banner:

And stickers that can be used as cupcake toppers or favor tags.

Cupcakes 'n Confetti has a funkier twist on the train theme.  I love the poppy color combo of this invitation and the great return address label.

And there are plenty of fun accessories to go along with the invitation.  From a crown fit for a prince:

And a welcome sign for all of the passengers:

To super cute choo choo cupcake toppers:

And fabulous favor tags.

You can even get coordinating confetti!

Now that's a party any wannabe engineer will appreciate!  The ladies behind Cupcakes 'n Confetti make every little detail by hand so you can customize a party any way you'd like.  Be sure to check out the great giveaway they've offered to AFOMFT readers!

We've covered invitations and decorations but there are lots of other fun elements can you integrate into a train-themed bash.  Every conductor needs a hat, right?  You can order a dozen of these from Oriental Trading for just $13:

But if you want to go all out, get the birthday boy (and maybe his friends too!) a personalized version from Sew Plain Jane:

The hats make terrific favors.  You can even pair them with some bandanas, like Henri's mom did for $8 per dozen from Oriental Trading.

And over at Candy & Cake, they gave out train whistles as favors for Jadon's third birthday with customized tags. 

You can find something similar for just $10 per dozen, again at Oriental Trading.

And if you want to decorate your cupcakes with some fun fondant, Cakes and Kids has some adorable trains to do just that.

Don't forget to enter their giveaway and this one for a personalized conductor's cap from Sew Plain Jane too!

So that's it for this party train.  Stay tuned for a great party post with a theme that can work for a boy or a girl tomorrow!

Images: Project Nursery, Momtog, Party Perfect, Sugarcoat Paperie, Cupcakes 'n Confetti, Sew Plain Jane, Oriental Trading, Candy & Cake & Cakes & Kids