Our Story

It all started with a terrible case of gastro 😂

In February 2023, during the final preparations for my son Olli's first birthday party, he began vomiting and feeling very ill. We had taken him to childcare for just one hour of induction the day before, and he caught a virus. We stopped rolling the homemade chocolate truffles and rushed to the doctor, thinking he had eaten something bad. They examined him, told us to keep him hydrated, and assured us he would be fine. And he was. He got better quickly. But the next day, his dad and I were the ones hugging the toilet. Despite this, we were determined to make the party happen. After all, we had a huge cake in the fridge and all the personalised decorations I had made with so much love. The birthday boy was full of energy, and we also knew nothing about common childhood illnesses and viruses; after all, he had never been sick before. So “everything was going to be alright!”, we thought.

I remember that Sunday as one of the hardest days of my life. The gastro was gentle with our son, but it left his parents completely wiped out. All the decorations I had spent so many days making with so much love ended up looking a bit sloppy and not exactly as I envisioned. I wasn’t even the one who set them up, as I didn’t have the strength to do it that day. Fortunately, we had friends who helped make everything happen. I spent the entire party trying to talk to everyone, but I hadn’t even put on makeup. It was a total mess. I ended up in hospital receiving IV fluids after the party because I hadn’t eaten anything and breastfeeding had drained all the remaining energy and nutrients from me. But the worst was yet to come… Gradually, we talked to our friends and found out that half of the party had also caught gastro. Imagine how we felt? It was a disaster!

After that day, I decided that every other birthday party for our family deserved to be better than that one. I dedicated myself even more to decorating Olli’s second birthday party, determined to make it a truly special occasion. Word spread among my mum friends, and they started asking for help with their own family celebrations. What began as a personal mission soon turned into a passion for creating beautiful, memorable events for others. Each decoration, each detail, became a way of turning special moments into cherished memories. And that’s how Hip Paper was born! From my family to yours, because here at home, everyone pitches in a little. Our goal is to bring joy and magic to your celebrations, just as we do with our own. 💛

Renata Chelli
Creator of Hip Paper