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ideas

birthday ideas, actually useful.

guides for the birthdays that need a little more: what to write, best friends, partners, milestones, long distance, the whole group chat. real ideas first, our island only where it fits.

the guides

  • on the island: Jordan's message types out in a taped paper dialogue box beside their blob

    a birthday website for your best friend

    how to make a birthday website for your best friend that they'll actually remember: what to put on it, who to invite, what to write, and how to spring it on them.

  • the front page's countdown: six friends on the board so far, 78 days until sam's birthday on desk-calendar pages

    a long-distance birthday surprise

    long-distance birthday surprise ideas for a friend or partner far away: timing across time zones, what to send, how to gather everyone, and a midnight surprise.

  • a card opened on the board: Lucía's note and a photo of her cat, with prev and next buttons

    a birthday website for your girlfriend

    how to make a birthday website for your girlfriend that's romantic, not cringe: what to include, bringing in her friends and family, and how to reveal it on the day.

  • the festival page: a strip of taped photos of sam under the title, kind filters and the first booths as taped paper cards

    virtual birthday party games

    virtual birthday party games for adults over video: low-effort icebreakers, games that need no downloads, and mini-games where the birthday person is the star.

  • drawing on the card maker: a marker heart on a paper canvas with colour swatches

    what to write in a birthday card

    what to write in a birthday card for a friend: a three-line formula, openers, funny and heartfelt lines, and what to say when they're far away or turning thirty.

  • the board on a phone: cards stacked in one column

    birthday video messages from friends

    how to collect birthday video messages from friends: one link, what to ask people to film, how long a clip should be, deadlines, and how to show them all on the day.

  • further down the board: more taped cards with photos, doodles and handwritten notes

    a digital birthday scrapbook

    how to make a digital birthday scrapbook: what to collect, organising it by era, getting every friend to add a page of their own, and keeping it after the day.

the one idea every guide ends up at: get the whole group to make something together.

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