Party Talk

The Celebrations keep MARCHing on!

Ah, March. Lots of great stuff to celebrate, and lots of great stuff to plan.

• March 9^th is Barbie’s birthday
• March 15^th, it’s Buzzard Day when the Buzzards return to Hinckley
• March 17th is, oh yes, St. Patrick’s Day--the best day to party and not entertain (see my blog about that)
• March 19^th, the Swallows return to Capistrano
• March 23^rd is Easter
• March 28^th is “Something on a Stick” Day.

I see we are all going to be very very busy. Especially on March 28^th.

Yet, we must make time for what’s important. Spending our tax refunds on Graduation! Oh yeah! Don’t kid yourself, it’s right around the corner. And to have the perfect graduation celebration, you must get started with your

Graduation Planning!

Let’s make a list:

Who’s invited?

Based on the number of guests, where will you host the BIG event?

Should your celebrate just your graduation or invite others to participate with you for more fun and less cost?

Should you have a theme? School colors? Sports? The movie Grease? Dr. Seuss’ book “Oh, the Places You’ll Go?” --shall I go on?

Should it be an Open House or at a specific time? Casual or dressy?

Oh my, oh my, oh my! And you thought school was tough. Planning a party is no easy feat. So, feel free to quiz me on anything and everything. That’s what we’re here for…and, for those of you and yours that are graduating during the Crazy 8’s, hats off (another great theme by the way)!  if you want to  chat about  your own experience with graduation parties check out Graduation Party Planning Chat.  Need help planning a graduation party?  See the Graduation Party Planning Guide for themes, decorations, personalized products, checklists, and more!

 

The Party Girl (whose birthday is in March!)

Decorate Yourself for the St Pat's Pub Crawl

So most of you will be going out to the bars for St Patrick's Day, and you're all thinking "How can I stand out from the green imbibing masses?", and if you are not thinking that, you should be!  Here are my top 2 picks for wearables for a Mná (women in Gaelic) and the Fir (men):

For the Mná  

Green & White Silk Leis are an update on the "traditional' feather boa. They are different, fluffy, and most importantly, GREEN!  Want a total look?  Go with this sexy Good Luck Charm Irish outfit. You will definitely turn heads.
 

For the Fir

 

This Shamrock Show Daddy Hat will get you noticed
when you are hopping from bar to bar. Pair it with these Beer Goggle Sunglasses for an unforgettable look.

For Gach Duine (Everyone!)

You can’t go wrong with Green Glow Necklaces, and Blinking Shamrock Beads. They are attention grabbing, and are inexpensive enough to order extra to hand out to fellow Irish revelers you meet on your Pub Crawl. 

Want to see more?  Check out these other St Patrick's Day Pub Crawl wearables.

Restaurant and Bar Owners' St. Patrick's Day Guide!

It doesn't take much to get Saint Patrick's Day revelers in the mood—and the more they are in the "mood," the more they will eat and drink. There are a few areas where it is crucial that you put in some effort; promoting your St Pat’s Day event, decorating, and decorating your guests.

You might think it's expensive to promote, decorate your establishment, and decorate your guests, but it really isn't.

Promoting the Event

 You can hand out fliers with all of the details, or if you want something different (since everyone will be handing out fliers) hand out green tickets.  Put them in mailers, menus and have them out on the bar.   You can choose your own wording and let your patrons know they can expect an amazing time at your celebration.  St. Patrick’s Day candy bar wrappers are also a great promotional tool. Think about giving these out to your best customers before the big day.  Or if you make a habit of giving deserts to guests having a birthday, think about using these to lower costs and promote your St. Patrick’s Day party.

Party Supplies and Decorations

At the door, I would have a Lucky Leprechaun with a speech bubble welcoming all.  Of course, we can customize him so that he's wearing a t-shirt with your restaurant/bar name on the front (reuse him every year…why not?).  Or, have an employee dress in a Leprechaun costume and hand out green leis or shamrock beads.

For big empty walls, or a great photo op for your revelers, scene setter kits are a fabulous, (and inexpensive).  There’s a St. Pat’s scene setter, a Leprechaun scene, and a clover scene setter.

See a complete selection of St Patrick’s Day Decorations.

Decorate Your Guests (The Important Part!)

If I've said it once, I've said it 1,000 times…decorating your guests (in your case, "patrons") is as important as decorating the room!

If you want your restaurant/bar to be the only stop for St. Patrick's Day next year, then do it up right this year. Besides the green leis at the door, make sure you make plenty of fun stuff available for anyone and everyone to become the leprechaun they always dreamed they'd be.

• Green carnations for the ladies
• Personalized St. Patrick's Day cameras
• Shamrock Beads
• Blinking Shamrock Beads
• Green Glow Jewelry

And don’t forget to decorate your waiters, waitresses, bartenders and other staff.  Shamrock vests are inexpensive as are green derbies and beer glasses.

Just remember…when marketing your business, you need to spend money to make money. Do some or all of the above, and I promise you a big return on your investment.

If you want to see more great ideas for St. Patrick’s Day, check out the Restaurant/Bar Owners Planning Guide.

“Oh the Places You'll Go” a Dr. Seuss Graduation Party

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You're on your own.
And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy
who'll decide where to go.

- Oh, the Places You'll Go!
© 1997 by Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P. All rights reserved.

 

 

If you've ever read any of the Dr. Seuss books, you know that this witty and thoughtful voice gives way to very good advice, whether you are 5, 50 or 100 years old. We love the Dr. Seuss book Oh the Places You'll Go for the way it eloquently, but simply says what life is all about… taking on that sense of adventure and finding life's balance. We recommend that you buy this book or get it from your local library, read it and absorb it before using this theme. You'll appreciate the process for your grad and have more fun.

 

A few ideas for decorating an “Oh the Places You'll Go” graduation party:

 

Make an easel sign that says "Congratulations (Grad's name)! Tonight is your night. You're off to great places, so get ready - you're about to take flight!" Guests can leave special messages for the grad on it.  In the background is a directional sign showing all the places your grad has been or wants to go.

For the seating card table make a sign that says "You have brains in your head, and feet in your shoes. Make sure the table you pick is the right one to choose!"

Use a large, 4'x12' lit backdrop over the DJ, band or buffet that appears to be held up at either end by hot air balloon. It can read, "Oh, the places we're going with [your grad's name] on his/her Graduation!"

 

Serve Green Eggs and Ham in full Seuss tradition. Seussville offers recipes to try. Another fun idea is to make all of your food different colors. Basically, anything white can have food coloring added for some Seuss-like fun - vanilla ice cream, macaroni, bread, white chocolate, sugar cookies, popcorn, noodles, rice, white pizza, potatoes, whipped cream, marshmallows, meringue, hummus, pita bread, pork tenderloin, cauliflower, bananas, parsnips-the list goes on. Scale your local grocery for more ideas!

 

See the “Oh the Places You'll Go” graduation party theme if you want more ideas.

Candyland! A candy theme party

We love Candyland as a twist to a candy theme party.  For this Bat Mitzvah we started with a custom caricature of the Bat Mitzvah girl as a Candyland character on the board game surrounded by other characters from the game.

We used the characters from the board game throughout the party. King Kandy welcomed guests at the ballroom entrance and Mr. Mint stood next to the sign in board that had her caricature attached.

A balloon gumdrop path led to the ballroom (but not for people to walk on!) and we used adorable candy balloon sculptures on the windows!  A directional sign pointed to different places on the board.

Seating cards were candy cane bubble blowers and directed people to different places on the board which their tables were named for.  Great fun!

At each table, candy necklaces, licorice and lollipops served as napkin rings.  Candyland board games were kids centerpieces and were then donated to charity after the event.  The adult centerpiece was a 3-sided centerpiece base with our custom "Callieland" caricature. The 3-sided base held balloons in the board game colors.  Gingerbread man confetti was scattered on the table.

We hung a Candyland theme sign over the DJ and stood giant balloon candy canes on either side of the DJ!

Everyone had a SWEET time!

Party411 can plan your next Candyland theme party!  Let us know if you would like more information on any of the products seen in the photos or if you have Candyland theme party questions!

See more of Our Parties

March is…

National Frozen Food Month - something I celebrate 365 days a year. Why not have a girl’s night in and break out the frozen pizza and ice cream (ice cream is a food!)

March 9^th is Barbie’s Birthday - yes, on this day in 1959, Barbie made her debut. You can throw your own Barbie birthday party with these Barbie themed paper goods.

March 15^th is Buzzard’s Day – Move over groundhog, when the buzzards return to Hinckley Ohio, spring is on its way!

March 17^th is St. Patrick’s Day – luck ‘o the Irish to you. Check out our guide for party planning ideas, invitations, party supplies, decorations, activities, costumes, games, history and food for your St. Patrick’s Day party!

March 23^rd is Easter– Spend time with family, make a fabulous dinner, and have an Easter egg hunt. Check out our Easter and Spring Party Planning Guide for lots of great ideas!

March 28^th is “Something on a Stick” Day - Celebrate this fun day by serving food that comes on a stick, corndogs, fudgecicles, or Chicken on a Stick…the possibilities are endless!

See more Stuff to Celebrate for March, or take a sneak peek at April!

Graduation Party Planning Party Chat

Celebrating your child's graduation is important and exciting, and it can be expensive. There will be many decisions to be made; What kind of theme? Should we cater? Where will we have it? What kind of decorations should we have? Should we hire entertainment?

We want to hear from you! What questions do you have? What problems have you encountered (and hopefully overcome!) when planning a graduation? Or share a great idea or story others can benefit from!

Leave a comment to join the ongoing discussion at Graduation Party Planning Party Chat...