There are three ways to look at birthdays.
First, you can treat them as any other day, and just do whatever you always do.
Second, you can groan inwardly at the thought of being another year older, and hide away from the world until the dreaded day has passed.
And then there's the third way, which is our favorite: have a big ol' birthday party and celebrate another year of living life to the full.
If you're planning to celebrate your big day with a birthday party - or if you're organizing a birthday party for someone else - it's important to get the right supplies well in advance, to ensure everything goes smoothly.
Here are our top ten accessories to help you throw the perfect birthday party for birthday boys and girls of all ages.
1.
Birthday Boy/Girl Badge Let there be no doubt about who is the birthday boy or girl - wear a birthday badge and be proud! The birthday boy badge is blue, while the birthday girl badge is pink - they're made in the style of old school badges, and both come mounted on an 8cm square old school report card in a clear cellophane wrap.
2.
Big Birthday Candle The Big Birthday Candle is a great solution when tact says that a candle for each year would be a bit cheeky - and besides, at twelve inches high, it's really quite impressive stuck in a cake! 3.
Birthday Cake Mold At last - a birthday cake that says "happy birthday" without the need for cake-icing skills! This silicon cake mold can withstand high temperatures - simply pour your cake mix into the mold, bake it, and when you turn the cake out of the mold it will have "happy birthday" in raised letters, all around the edge.
And if you're in a hurry, you can use the Birthday Cake Mold to bake a delicious birthday cake in the microwave in just six minutes.
4.
Happy Birthday Candles Let's be honest - sometimes, one candle for every year of the birthday boy or girl's life will just take up too much space on the cake.
On occasions like these, you need Happy Birthday Candles, which spell out the words "happy birthday" in bright colors and very tactfully don't mention age at all.
5.
Birthday Candelabra Celebrate your birthday in style - have a birthday candelabra on your cake instead of candles.
The birthday candelabra comes in a tasteful ivory color, which won't clash with your birthday cake, table settings or room decor.
6.
Roman Candles If you want to be coy about your age, spell it out in Roman numerals! Roman Candles are tastefully trimmed in silver, and each pack of eight candles comes fully equipped with a crash course in Roman numerology, so you can be sure you'll get the age right every time.
7.
Light Bites All the best things in life serve more than one purpose, and Light Bites are no exception.
Are they plastic forks? Are they birthday candles? Actually, they're both.
Pop the prongs of the fork into the cake, and plug a birthday candle into the handle, and there you have it - a reusable plastic fork that doubles up as a birthday candle holder.
8.
Young at Heart Candles Who says birthday candles have to spell out your age? Keep your age to yourself with these colourful birthday candles which spell out "young at heart", and keep your secret safe! 9.
Finger Food Party Plates These nifty little plastic plates have a little ring attached at the back.
Slip the ring onto your finger and you can balance hors d'oeuvres on the Finger Food Party Plate while holding your glass of champagne, leaving your other hand free for waving across the room at guests, pouring another drink or opening birthday presents.
10.
Black Bars If you have a tendency to misbehave at parties, and worry that your behavior may have been caught on film, then you need Black Bars.
Working like a pair of spectacles, Black Bars are big plastic rectangles that sit across your eyes, keeping your identity completely hidden.
With Black Bars you can get up to all sorts, with no fear of being identified.
Go on, be naughty - it's your birthday!