Planning a Successful Costume Party!
(by successful we mean fun!)
Start with plenty of notice when you send your invitations out – your guests will be more likely to get into the swing of things if they have enough time to plan their costume or character.
If you choose a theme and assign characters, be sure you provide enough details to allow your guests to create their costumes with some authenticity-CLOTHES DO MAKE THE MAN. The better your guests feel about the way they look, the more fun they will have.
Now that you have sent out the invitations, you’ll need props and decorations. Nothing puts a person in costume into his or her character like walking into the time period or setting they are dressed for. The set or decorations can include special lighting, fog, and of course, proper background music. After all, it does “sooth the savage beast” – what can it do for your party?
There are literally thousands of foods that fit different themes or periods, such as roast turkey of beef with hearty vegetables, crusty bread and wine, served up in metal cups and plates for medieval times (no forks or spoons). Eating with your fingers can be a lot of fun! Lots of settings can use simple bales of hay for seating, as well as supply the smells of an old castle, or barn, country or western setting. An old air pump from an aquarium makes a great boiling cauldron at Halloween; gummy worms in the dirt dessert add a stickey twist. There are jello molds for just about anything you could imagine, and some special recipes for their contents. A latex glove frozen full of water makes a nifty cooler for your punch bowl.
This quick introduction to theme and costume parties is only the beginning to what a little imagination and research can do, so…… RELAX AND HAVE FUN!!!!
–Rick and Lynn of “The Magic Mirror”