As the foliage begins to shift, so do the gatherings we throw. Spring soirées feel passé (literally). So it’s time to embrace poolside celebrations!
Your neighborhood Dollar Tree carries plenty of budget-friendly items to dress up summer and year-round parties. Best of all, each piece rings in at just $1.25.
Dollar Store Decor Picks for Summer Gatherings
Father’s Day
A white plastic tablecloth becomes a giant blank canvas for kids of all ages to pen a note, sketch a picture or compile a list of “Ten Great Dad Moments.” Little artists can use crayons or markers to embellish it prior to the celebration, and the handmade tablecloth will delight Dad when he sits down to eat.
String this rustic twine along windows, the countertop or a doorway. Use the colored clothespins included to display cherished snapshots of Dad with the kids over the years.
4th of July
Dollar stores stock plenty of red, white and blue items, but a few extras give your celebration an extra flair.
Drape an old-fashioned bunting across the front of your food table, the entryway, inside the boat’s bow or over kitchen windows to lend a vintage vibe.
A pack of 16 cardboard hot dog holders printed with flags or stars is perfect for a loaded dog — and they work well for chips, brownies, coleslaw, cornbread or other finger foods.
Create a glowing centerpiece by filling this clear wide-mouthed jar with red, white and blue glow stick necklaces. Invite guests to craft their own luminous jars, or poke holes in a couple of lids and let kids catch fireflies — a quintessential summer rite.
Pool Party
Dollar stores overflow with pool and beach toys that double as playthings and whimsical serving vessels.
Fill several brightly colored small buckets with snacks. The included shovels act as serving spoons — perfect for chip buckets with a shovel for scooping.
Guests will grin when they scoop salsa or guacamole from a tiny blue swimming pool that’s just Barbie-sized.
Pile the pool with noodles, beach balls, floats and even a “chair” fashioned from pool noodles on either side.
Dollar Store Decor Picks for Autumn Festivities
Football Fun
Whether you’re hosting a tailgate or a viewing party, these inexpensive football-inspired finds will earn a touchdown.
Greet guests with a field-goal made from four pool noodles taped together with clear plastic packaging tape. If your team’s colors include red, orange, royal blue or black, Dollar Tree carries foam footballs in those shades — great for tossing or scattering around the food table.
Find your preferred hue among the broad assortment of plastic table coverings.
Portion individual snacks in these plastic champagne coupes (six for $1.25) filled with pretzels or Chex mix and accented with candy in team colors such as M&Ms or Mike & Ikes.
Halloween
Construct a skull cage centerpiece. Spray-paint two laundry baskets, place several eerie skulls in one basket and tape the other atop it.
Circling the display, place a few stemless wine glasses with orange glow necklaces coiled inside. Affix a plastic spider to the rim of each glass for a creepy finish.
Thanksgiving
Make an autumn wreath by wrapping this foam wreath form with burlap ribbon. Then tuck vibrant sunflower stems around the wreath, or opt for fall-colored dahlia stems for a more polished appearance.
Dollar Store Decor Picks for Winter Celebrations
Christmas
Compose a wintry tablescape using elegant, budget-friendly finds. Line three 18-inch white tabletop trees down the center of a rectangular table or cluster them in the middle of a round one. Weave some of this wired green garland around the tree bases and accent with smaller sprigs and berry picks that appear to be lightly dusted with snow (six stems per pack for $1.25). Add a couple of these clear plastic reindeer wandering through your mini forest.
Set an 8-inch vintage bottle brush tree with a snowy finish at each place setting for a nostalgic touch.
Valentine’s Day
Craft a playful centerpiece by filling a glass globe vase with pink decorative crinkled paper or fluffed pink tissue. Add a 4-pack of 7-inch Valentine teddy bears with hearts on their ears, nose and toes placed inside the globe facing outward.
Scatter pink rose petals around the base of the centerpiece to finish the look.
Dollar Store Decor Picks for Spring Events
Easter
This Easter arrangement makes a sweet centerpiece or gift. Fill a globe vase with plastic grass and marshmallow Peeps bunnies positioned to face outward so their cute faces are visible. Add small chocolate eggs for a sweet surprise. Stick a few glittery foam eggs on skewers and arrange them like floral stems. Tie a colorful ribbon around the vase rim to complete the presentation.
Mother’s Day
Serve Mom breakfast in bed on a personalized tray that doubles as a keepsake. Choose one of these three wooden trays with handles, then let younger kids draw with Sharpies if they haven’t started writing yet. Older children can pen notes listing reasons they love Mom, memorable moments from the year, or favorite shared activities. These wooden trays are $5 each, but there’s also a sturdy clear plastic tray for $1.25.
Dollar Tree also offers simple gift options. Pick a 24-page photo album with space for 48 pictures. Use a local photo-printing app to print favorites from Mom’s Instagram — screenshot cherished images, upload them to the app and pick up prints in about an hour. Prices vary, but photos can be as low as 15 cents each.
Or customize one of these kid-sized aprons with handprints made using Dollar Tree fabric paint. An adult or older child can add names beside each handprint with fabric paint or a Sharpie. Try captions like: “Hands Down, Best Mom Ever.”
Graduation
Showcase the graduate’s journey by clipping photos to this rustic twine using the colorful clothespins included. Stretch the twine between two trees, across a doorway or along a window. A white plastic tablecloth doubles as decor, a party activity and a meaningful memento when guests use Sharpies in school colors to write messages to the grad.
Written by Lauren Rivers, a freelance editor and reporter.
