Car Crazy Sweet Sixteen

In most states, 16 is the legal driving age. If she's like most teens, Miss Sweet 16 wants to get her drivers' license and get on the road as soon as possible. Help her prepare for her learner's permit and when she passes her driving test with flying colors, make that a reason to celebrate. Buy her a car for her sixteenth birthday…or at least give her a "gold" key to yours. Be a big sport and throw in a gasoline credit card to really maker her day!

car crazy Sweet 16 Invitations
Since your Sweet 16 missy has been driving you crazy about getting her learner's permit, it makes perfect sense to make her invitation look exactly like her driver's license, complete with her own photo on it! We have personalized driver's license invitations available for all 50 states and DC! You can also get matching keychains as a favor to the guest of honor, and give one to mom, dad and all the grandparents too!

If you want an invitation that will also be a treasured memory, consider having a caricature invitation made. It is one of a kind and a great way to commemorate this milestone. You can even use the art for favors, centerpieces, and even thank you notes!

Want more invitations options? Check out our Sweet 16 invitations page.

car crazy Sweet 16 party supplies and Decorations

Start off by hanging a Sweet 16 photo banner outside to let everyone know what a special day it is! We love hanging car lot style flags along the entry into the party. Here's a sample of a display we used for a car theme party.

A life-sized cutout of the birthday girl can welcome guests as they enter the party. You'll want plenty of car theme decorations for the party. Here are some of our favorite ideas:

Place balloon bouquets at the entrance and all around the room. Then weigh the balloons down with toy cars.
Make street signs from construction paper or poster board that highlight the birthday girl; "Heather's Way", "West Brittney Dr.", or "Sweet 16 Circle".
Use yellow and white electrical tape on the floors to make lane lines.

Place a few red police lights around the room to accent your lighting (hopefully she won't be seeing any of the real thing!)

Car Crazy Sweet 16 Table
Sweet 16 paper goods are the way to go here. Create silverware bundles with checkered flag beads wrapped around them as napkin rings. The beads make great favors because they can be hung from the rearview mirror of a car!

For your centerpieces:

Purchase several orange plastic cones from your local superstore. Place the cones over balloon weights and have balloons coming out of the center of the cones.
Toy cars in assorted styles should be placed all around the bottom of centerpieces.
Stop by your local hardware store and buy inexpensive keys. These can be scattered around the tables as confetti.

You should definitely surprise her with a special cake. You can bake or special-order a car-theme cake or decorate any cake with a car motif, a large "16" with a car hitting it, or even make it look like her driver's license. We love this car key theme cake from The Icing On The Cake for a Sweet 16.

car crazy sweet 16 activities and games

Dinner and dancing are always great activities for a Sweet 16 celebration. How about a fun car themed game or two to play while you're celebrating? It would be fun to have a driver's license test at each seat with personalized pencils for each guest to use on their test. You can look up obscure driving rules and see how well your guests know the laws of the road.

Or it would be great to set up a pretend driving course on the dancefloor. (This would be a great activity for your DJ to run.) Use small tricycles and set up obstacles around the floor for people to navigate.

A candle lighting is great for a Sweet 16 celebration. Here's a photo of a car theme candle lighting we did for a party. Checkout out the Sweet 16 Candle Lighting Ceremony Guide if you need instructions.

Car Crazy Sweet 16 Party Favors
Send your guests home with a fun favor to remember the day by. We love personalized mint tins; there are great Sweet 16 designs, you personalize the message, and you choose the candy!

You can also make a goodie bag for the guests to take home. Throw in a few of these great favors:

Personalized Candy Bars
Pine Scented Air Freshener
Multicolor LED Glasses

Have fun! And remember, don't get too crazy when you're behind the wheel (or you're grounded for life)…