The lion and sage balloon design
The cub is painted in soft watercolor: a caramel body, a round orange-brown mane drawn in thin stripes, a darker brown stripe down his forehead, pink cheeks and a little tufted tail. He walks upright with one paw raised, holding the string of a pale sage balloon that has a white 1 painted across it. The string loops in a thin gray line down to his paw, so the balloon seems to float just above his head.
The lettering sits to his right in charcoal gray. On the birthday boy's bodysuit or tee, a fine handwritten i'm the leads into WILD in tall, thin serif capitals and one in a loose script, so it reads i'm the WILD one. For everyone else the script becomes one's and their title is set underneath in heavy serif capitals: WILD one's MAMA, WILD one's DAD, WILD one's BROTHER. Every shirt is white, so the browns stay warm and the green stays gentle.
Many parents keep the birthday bodysuit afterward with the first candle and a few photos from the day, and the family's shirts often come back out for one-year portraits.
Matching lion Wild One shirts for every age
The same lion is printed on four kinds of shirt, so great grandparents and newborn cousins can stand in the same picture:
- Lion sage balloon Wild One adult shirts, unisex XS to 4X, for parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and godparents.
- Lion sage balloon Wild One kids shirts, youth S to XL, for the older brothers, sisters and cousins.
- Lion sage balloon Wild One toddler shirts, 2T to 5T, for toddler siblings or a birthday boy already wearing toddler sizes.
- The lion sage balloon Wild One baby bodysuit and matching baby tee, newborn to 24 months, for him and any baby cousins.
The Name menu holds 24 family titles, with Mommy, Dada, Nanny, Grandpa, Titi and Godfather among them, plus I'm The Wild One for the guest of honor. Anyone we don't list, like Great Grandma or Uncle Bubba, goes in Custom family name.
Planning a lion Wild One safari first birthday
A lion design points straight to a safari or king of the jungle party, and the shirts hand you a palette: sage green, cream, caramel and a little natural wood. A garland of sage and cream balloons with eucalyptus tucked in, a woven basket of animal crackers and a small lion cake topper make the dessert table feel finished without much effort. A sign that says Wild One or Little King ties the room back to the shirts.
Food can follow the theme in easy ways: a smash cake frosted in cream with a sage ribbon, cupcakes with paper palm leaves, lion-face cookies and green lemonade in glass jars. For an outdoor party, picnic blankets, a few stuffed safari animals and a bubble machine keep the little guests busy.
Choose one spot for pictures, usually the cake table, and keep greenery and balloons behind it. When the cake, the garland and everyone's shirts share one sage and caramel palette, each photo from that corner looks planned. Set the high chair there for the cake smash, too.
What the family wears to his party
Parents look best in a named shirt with jeans or khakis and white sneakers, which keeps the attention on the little guy. Big siblings wear their own titles, and grandparents tend to be thrilled to put Nana, Papa or Gigi across the front. Dress the birthday boy in the bodysuit while the cake gets smashed, and switch to the baby tee with overalls if he is already walking.
Guests don't need to match, but a note on the invitation asking for greens, creams or neutrals makes the group picture look calm next to the family.
Sizing for the whole family
You'll find a size chart in inches as the final photo of every shirt. Adult tees have a relaxed unisex fit, so women who like a closer fit often size down one and men who want extra room size up. For the birthday boy, lay a bodysuit he wears today beside the chart; most one-year-old boys land in 12 or 18 months. Rabbit Skins bodysuits, our usual brand, are cut a touch generous. Between two sizes, the larger one is the safer choice.
Ordering for a big family
Put every person's shirt in a single cart. Add a shirt, switch the name and size, and add another, until everyone has theirs. All apparel in your cart is counted together for the family savings, and they come off at checkout on their own.
Printing starts once you check out and takes 2 to 5 business days; standard ground shipping then adds about 3 to 5 business days, so ordering around two weeks ahead of the party is comfortable. Need them by a certain date? Send a request and we'll try to help.
You'll find the wildflower and other designs in our Wild One birthday shirts, with more party themes across all birthday family shirts.