With so many great party themes out there, it's hard to find something different. With that in mind I decided to rack my brain and think of as many unique and fun ideas as I could, and let me tell you, it was not easy! Below are a few themes you may not have thought of, and if you have, kudos to you for thinking outside the party box!
Enchanted Forest Party
Think lots of nature, soft lights, touches of fairies and butterflies! This is such a beautiful theme, especially for those who love being outdoors. One of the things I really love about this one is that it works for both adult and kid parties, just tweak it slightly depending on your audience. Check out my Pinterest Board for even more ideas for this theme!
I'm obsessed with lights, I think they add a magical touch to any party. Use battery operated tiny lights and wrap them around anything you want! I found these cute fairy lights on lightsforalloccasions.com. For your tables, use lots of bark and leaves/grass. Check out this live edge wood cake stand on Etsy from Chug Water Studios - $22. This adorable dessert table is from Kara's Party Ideas. You can use real tree branches, poke holes and stick in skewers of fruit and cake pops!
The Roaring Twenties
The 1920's: In short, beautiful flappers, tough gangsters and a ban on alcohol! Insist that your guests come dressed up to really get into the spirit! This post on ehow.com has great ideas on how to throw a 1920's party. One of my favorites is to set up a bar and serve virgin drinks, then let guests spike their own in honor of the secret drinking during prohibition.
An easy and effective invite is this DIY using fun wording and font! This amazing centerpiece is made up of white ostrich feathers in tall cylinders. You can buy these in bulk from eBay - 50 for $38. I love this simple table idea with silver tinsel as the backdrop! For more ideas on throwing a 1920's party, check out my Pinterest Board!
Disney's UP Birthday Party
Talk about color explosion! You could do so much with an UP theme, and best of all, you can use TONS of balloons! Balloons are an inexpensive decor idea, especially if you buy them in bulk, like these from Oriental Trading - 144 balloons for only $8.50!
Balloon cupcakes! This adorable idea is from Bakerella. She took small doughnut holes, smeared them with frosting and dipped them in sprinkles. To make the balloon strings, she used Japanese Somen Noodles. She did note that they break easily so it may be better to use toothpicks or a stronger noodle like spaghetti.
This finger painting canvas is from Kara's Party Ideas. Draw a house on a canvas and have little ones use their fingers to make the balloons! You could also cut out clouds and hang them from the ceiling with fishing wire, like this one from my Planes, Trains and Automobiles party. Most importantly, tie up tons and tons of colorful balloons! For more ideas for an UP party, check out my Pinterest board!
Back to the Future Party
Who doesn't love the Back to the Future series! Years visited were 1885, 1955, 1985 and 2015. Insist that your guests come dressed up from one of the time periods. I had so much fun thinking of ideas for this one that I decided to plan it for next year! I'm just hoping they come out with the hover board by then cause that'd be a great entrance, right!? For more Back to the Future ideas check out my Pinterest Board.
Ideas for 1885: Set up a "Watering Hole" for your drinks. If you have a musician in your family (like I do!) you can include a corner of your party for dancing to re-create the ho-down scene. Add a few hay barrels and some cowboy boots and you've got yourself a party!
Ideas for 1955: Diner food is always a hit! This burger and fries idea is from Hostess with the Mostess. You can buy these cute red baskets from Amazon - 12 for $8. Set up a corner to look like the enchantment under the sea photo booth, with a backdrop of blue netting and iridescent colors.
Ideas for 1985: Two great posters: Re-Elect Mayor Goldie Wilson poster from AllPosters.com and the Save the Clock Tower flier from Etsy. I Love this Jailbird Cake! No doubt this will be a guest favorite!
Ideas for 2015: Lots of bright neon colors! You could have another food table set up with the same menu but with a futuristic spin on it. Serve pepsi bottles and change the name to "Pepsi Perfect", add a sign that each bottle costs $50. Futurepedia is full of interesting facts about the movies and you can find specifics on the 80's Café. A fun game to play would be "What did Back to the Future get right?" See the 11 Points website for 11 correct predictions as well as 11 wrong ones and put together a true/false game!
Art Party
I love the idea of an art party! I'm a fan of keeping little ones busy, so this is perfect. Once I started digging, I realized the ideas are endless, and there's tons of DIY. For more inspiration, check out my Art Party Pinterest Board!
This Create Art table is from Kara's Party Ideas, easily recreated with colorful letters, a chalkboard and a DIY paper chain, see her Girly Art Party for tons of ideas! Easy centerpieces would be crayon filled glass jars on white tablecloths or butcher paper. What a cute idea to have your guests take a photo behind different sized frames and send it to them as your thank you note! This photo was found on A little of this, A little of that blog.
I just adore the decorate your own cupcake idea by using an art pallet! Surprise your guests by paying attention to the smallest of details. Add labels to a pack of hand wipes like these from Catch my Party, put a small packet of utensils together and label them Artists Tools, see these by Petite Party Studio on Etsy. Set up a few different areas for Play-doh, painting, coloring, etc. For invitations, there are many available to purchase, like these from Forever your Prints on Etsy, or you could create a cute DIY! Cut out cardstock in the shape of color pallets, add a few paint circles and write the party details on the back! These "paint brushes" from Kara's Party Ideas are so yummy! Just rice krispie treats dipped in frosting! There are so many great ideas that I couldn't list them all so check out my Pinterest board for more!
Ice Cream Party
A great way to save money is to skip the food and just serve dessert! Make sure you start your party in the afternoon so your guests don't expect to be fed. An ice cream party would be a huge hit for kids!
How adorable are these "ice cream" centerpieces! Put fake flowers in bowls and add a straw or paper cherry to the top. I love the idea of using mason jars for toppings and writing the name of it on wooden spoons like these from Ella Jane Crafts on Etsy - 20 for $4. Don't forget the root beer floats! Fill mason jars with pre-scooped, re-frozen vanilla ice cream balls, cute straws like these from BirthdayDirect.com (24 for $4) and put them in a cute drink barrel with ice. I love this idea from byStephanieLynn.com! Just like the root beer float ice cream, these ice cream jars by Catch my Party were also pre-scooped and re-frozen for easy picking! There are many adorable invitations for purchase like these from Day Signs by Day on Etsy, or you could try your hand at a DIY version. Cut out ice cream shapes and a cone and hand write or print your party details. Check out this adorable tutorial by Purdue Avenue! For those yummy (and sticky!) syrups, a great idea to keep them from getting too messy is to pour them into clear squeeze bottles, like these from Amazon - 6 bottles for $10. For more great ice cream party ideas check out my Pinterest Board.
A Color/Pattern Party
Do you love a certain color combination? Are you obsessed with chevron like me? This could be the party idea for you! Pick your favorite and go nuts! For many more color ideas, check out my Pinterest Board.
Once you have your colors and/or patterns in mind, use it for your table settings, foods, desserts and décor. The pink and white chevron party was found on Pizzazzerie. I love the idea of white frames as décor! The polka dot party is so colorful! Check out this garland from 1 Pixie Place on Etsy $3 for one 6 foot strand. The yellow and blue You are my sunshine party is from Kara's Party Ideas. This one just makes me smile. Another adorable party from Kara's Party Ideas is the color combo of aqua and red. I'm obsessed with polka dots (you should see my girls playroom!) and this bucket is just amazing. A classic theme is the black & white, I love this centerpiece of oreo's and simple white flowers.
I hope these gave you some inspiration for your next party! Happy Planning!
I hope these gave you some inspiration for your next party! Happy Planning!