When I was a kid there was this VHS I would watch all the time. It had a sticker of an orange muppet-looking creature on it and that’s how I was able to distinguish it from the other black video cassette tapes. It was a home video of my first birthday in the Philippines. I would watch that video fascinated by all the details and going-ons of the party, trying to see if I recognized any of my cousins and this life that I once lived to find any similarities in my current American life. One detail from this birthday party that always stuck with me was at the end of the party kids were jumping up and down, grabbing at this trellis-like thing that had tassels. It looked fun but I wasn’t sure why. There was also the thought of how unfair it was that I wasn’t jumping around with the other kids! Years later, when I was pregnant with my second, I would be searching for Children’s Books about the Philippines and would find Filipino Celebrations: A Treasury of Feast and Festivals. That’s when I finally learned the name of this game and that it wasn’t just decorated with tassels, but tied to it were treats and toys!

The pabitin directly translates to “rack of goodies” and is a game played on birthdays. It is essentially a Filipino piñata, made of bamboo and tassels or flags. The objective of the game is for the kids to grab as many treats and toys as possible while it was being lowered and snatched up. The colorful banderitas made of crêpe paper, not only made the pabitin decorative, but it acts as an obstacle to kids being able to attain a prize.

I had planned on doing a pabitin for Eliza’s first birthday within the first few months of her life and I couldn’t wait to surprise my parents with the traditional Filipino birthday party we were throwing.

But alas, COVID interrupted those plans, so we had a traditional Filipino birthday party indoors via zoom. My Tatay said he didn’t know anything about my first birthday. This was the first time I would learn that my dad was in the States for most of my first year. He had sent money over to Inay and momma went all out on baby girl’s first birthday! Them USDs going a long way in the Philippines! I guess Inay had my party recorded but never showed my dad?! Well, I’m even more determined to find that VHS of my birthday and sit down with my pops to show that poor man what his money went to! Bust most importantly, to know what his baby girl’s first birthday was all about! Thirty. Years. Later.

Anyway, below is how to make your very own pabitin!

SUPPLIES I USED TO MAKE A PABITIN:

• Bamboo Sticks to make the rack - I bought these 6 feet sticks on Amazon and cut them in half to make a 3 x 3 ft grid. They’re bamboo sticks for gardens so I’m sure you can get some at nurseries or gardening section at your store.

• Baker’s Twine to tie the bamboo sticks together. I used the lashing knot to tie put the pabitin together and referred to this video.

• Crêpe Paper and/or Tissue Paper to make into tassels and ribbons - I bought mine from the Oh Happy Day Party Shop because they have the best quality and colors of crepe and tissue paper.

• Washi Tape to easily add blocks of color - bought mine from Oh Happy Day Party Shop because, well, reread the above statement.

• Mini Honeycomb Balls 2 inch - from Oh Happy Day Party Shop.

• Command Hooks to hang the pabitin.

• Cellophane Sleeves to put treats and/or toys in.

• Small Toys and Treats - we had small bags of candy and small treats and toys like an all-natural rubber duck and silicon straws both from Scandiborn, sheets of stickers, bathtub crayons, and small stuffed animals.

NOTES ON MAKING TASSELS AND BOWS FROM CRÊPE PAPER:

• If you like a stiffer tassel, cut the strip ALONG the grain of the crêpe paper.

• If you like a flexible, more tassel-like tassel, cut AGAINST the grain.

As you see here, I struggled to remember which cut was which. I wanted a flexible kind of tassel. Anyway, I just combined a stiff and flexible tassel because “waste not, want not.” I then overlapped the ends, stapled it together along with a piece of baker’s twine that was long enough to bow tie it onto the bamboo. Make as many as you want! I made two for each intersecting bamboo sticks. Remember, the banderitas are meant to make it difficult for kids to grab the treats and toys.

Now for the ribbons. I simply cut strips of crêpe paper, but this time, completely disregard the rules for making tassels.

• For pretty bows that hold its shape, cut the strip ALONG the grain of the crêpe paper.

• For ugly, floppy bows that look as if your kid already grabbed them and crumpled them up as if life has no meaning, cut AGAINST the grain.

I tested this all out my friends, with much frustration so please just take my word for it. Pretty bows, good. Ugly floppy bows will ruin your party and no amount of candy hanging on that pabitin will tempt those craft-snob kids to play this game you worked tirelessly on. But you could also just look below at the photos and decide for yourself with bows you like better. Oh and one last tip! Gently pull at the sides of the ends of your bows to make the fanned-out bow look, because well if you haven’t gotten the message already. Pretty bows, good. Ugly bows, bad.

HOW TO TIE UP AND HANG THE PABITIN:

I won’t thoroughly embarrass my husband who spent too much time and thought on trying to tie the pabitin up, but for the sake of the DIY, I will embarrass him a bit.

• You need four long pieces of baker’s twine. Consider where you’ll be hanging and anchoring your pabitin to determine the length of rope.

• Tie each piece of twine onto a corner of the pabitin.

• Bring the four pieces of twine together in the center and at about two feet above the pabitin, tie all four pieces of twine together in one large knot.

Easy peasy right? I’m not sure what Jordan did, but after making squares and crosses with the twine he gave up admits a tangled mess.

I used Command Hooks to hang up the pabitin in the archway of our living room. One hook to hold the pabitin and another hook on a wall about 5-6 feet away to distribute the weight of the pabitin as it’s lowered and snatched out of reach, much like how God handles blessings. Once it’s hung up, then you can attached the goodies. Don’t do what I did and excitedly hang the treats even before the pabitin was strung up with twine.

PREPARING THE TREATS AND TOYS FOR THE PABITIN:

The toys and treats that didn’t have an easy way to be hung from the pabitin, I put in a cellphone bag and tied it up. The cellophane bags were 8.5 x 11 inch. So the toys and bags of candy were small enough that when tied up, there was enough of the bag left over to loop over the bamboo stick and then held together with a clothespin. We found that this was the easiest way for kids to pull the treats off of the pabitin. The simple one-loop-tie had us pausing the game to help the kids remove their prize.

Well, that’s the pabitin! I hope you enjoy! We’ve had ours hanging up for weeks because it’s just so pretty! And please, if you make your own pabitin, do share!