American style party, invitations, menus, competitions.
The USA is a country where the most crazy and incendiary parties come true! If your choice of theme fell on the American Party, then you definitely won’t go wrong and will get a lot of pleasure not only from the event itself, but also from the various preparations. As we know from numerous American films devoted to the themes of youth parties, the most fun and interesting ones are held during the wonderful years of studying at colleges or universities. For one evening you can feel like US university students and plunge headlong into unbridled fun in your apartment, in the “while your parents are not home” style. For the best insight into the atmosphere of the American Party , we recommend that you first watch such film masterpieces as “King of the Parties,” “The Hangover” and, of course, “American Pie.” From them you can get a variety of competitions, treats, and invitations.
Or maybe organize a party in Italian style?
Room
Of course, the ideal place for an American party is a luxurious mansion with a swimming pool in the countryside. This can be rented for one day, but it will cost a pretty decent amount. However. if the company is of an impressive size, then the rental costs can be divided among everyone and then it will be cheaper. And the more people, the merrier! Someone's dacha . Of course, there may not be a pool, but the cost of renting a house for a party will be significantly reduced.
To give your dacha a more “American” look, you can use various decorations and fully demonstrate your creativity and sleight of hand. Use American symbols in large quantities and be sure to use the American flag . You can decorate the central wall with it so that it is always visible to guests. Scatter printed banknotes of various American dollar denominations across the floor. At the height of the party, you can use them as an additional search competition or “sell” something with them.
The Statue of Liberty is associated with America. Therefore, do not forget to place a photo or toy sculpture of this national symbol in a prominent place. You can decorate the walls of your dacha with beautiful views of the Brooklyn Bridge, Los Angeles or the Hollywood Hills. By the way, about the world famous Hollywood hills and the “ Hollywood ” sign. You can make it yourself from thick cardboard or foam. You can insert a Christmas tree garland inside. Then your inscription will glow in the dark and delight the eyes of your guests. The highlight will be the various caricatures of US presidents.
Use as many balloons as possible in the colors of the national flag of America, namely red, white and blue. If you have a pool and the weather is warm, you can decorate it with life preservers with an American flag print.
Party in Japanese style - plunge into the atmosphere of this wonderful country.
How the entertainment of American students of the last century changed
20s
In the 1920s, many colleges were still divided into women's and men's colleges.
Yes, many universities were already created for joint education. However, some colleges opposed having boys and girls study together until the 60s and 70s—including Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and Dartmouth. At first, boys and girls interacted only through closed student associations of boys and girls - they are still called fraternity and sorority, respectively. Each of them had a name consisting of two or three Greek letters, and their common university life was called "greek life". The fact is that initially the philosophy of association in brotherhoods and sisterhoods was based on common interests, ideals and goals, according to the Greek system of “Athenian ideals of friendship.” The entire social structure on campus was determined by official "parties."
Any such “party” took place with a burden of all sorts of formalities in the form of official speeches and other rituals. Since this was not much fun, and alcohol was strictly prohibited at any such events, students drank away from campus: at concerts, in jazz clubs, and at parties.
30s
The 1930s saw the heyday of female education in America. Of course, this was great progress, although, first of all, girls continued to be taught to be good wives, and it was still unusual to see a girl in a general college.
The social life of students continued to revolve around official events along with all their formalities. They only became more numerous as colleges tried to regulate students' free time. Such a system practically did not fail and lasted for many years.
Early 40s
Since the United States entered World War II in 1941, the government has had to actively recruit quite a lot of students and faculty into the service, which has affected many colleges. Some campuses were turned over to the military for training, and publication of university newspapers ceased.
Colleges untouched by the mobilization also found themselves in difficult conditions: students were subject to strict rules of conduct, and all the parties that had become a hallmark of student life in the 20s and 30s disappeared.
Late 40's
After the war, mobilized students and teachers were voluntarily and forcibly sent back to college: this was done to avoid gaps in education and distract everyone from the past war. And the students were distracted.
The young men, who had been in the war, were not ready to strictly follow the rules of campus life. They drank, cursed, and had sex more often than students did before the war.
50s
In the middle of the 20th century, universities turned into institutions where people, first of all, search for a partner or life partner. The girls continued to listen to recommendations on how to save their families and make their husbands happy.
Ultimately, this resulted in formal activities aimed at helping students socialize outside the classroom becoming irrelevant. Students rallied on their own, outside of official events, and the system cracked.
Despite progress, it was still not easy for women in society: not all colleges had women among their professors, and guides were issued for female students that explained when a girl could go on dates.
60s
This decade brought a real sexual revolution: students went on strike against curfews and chaperones. In the end, they achieved their goal: students of the opposite sex were finally able to visit each other in the dormitories. For the first time, boys and girls could do what they liked without facing serious disciplinary action.
70s
Students continue to develop their active work in different directions. Activist organizations are beginning to emerge, and the typical college student is more likely to go to an anti-war rally or rock concert than to accept a free movie ticket. However, students continued to support formal university evenings, so the fraternity and sorority system continued to exist.
80s
The race for higher education began, with universities competing for the status and prestige of their campus in order to attract as many students as possible. Everything from classes to books became cheaper, and young people flocked to study in droves. And in order to somehow avoid chaos, a law was passed in 1984 banning the consumption of alcohol for citizens under 21 years of age. But of course, that didn't stop students from throwing house parties and drinking off campus.
Soon the female part of the student body finally evened the score and increased to 50 percent. In this regard, dormitories began to be united: boys and girls could live in the same building, and even on the same floor. Now it is possible to hold parties right on campus, if, of course, you can get alcohol.
American style party invitations
Making invitations depends on how much time you are willing to spend on them and what funds you have at your disposal. You can order beautiful and expensive invitations from special studios that design cards. You can also make them yourself, at home. A win-win option for invitations is a postcard with a picture of the well-known Uncle Sam and the inscription “I WANT YOU”. The invitations must indicate the date and location of the party.
For those who don’t like to sweat for a long time and spend time making cards, you can do the following. Namely, to use a purely American way of conveying information about the upcoming party to your “friends”. SMS messaging and popular social networks on the Internet will help you with this.
American style party invitations
American style party invitations
American style party invitations
What about responsibility?
In cities with a small population, there is a high probability that your neighbors will want to teach you a lesson and call the cops for a really noisy party. In this case, you can get off with a serious fine “for unreasonable noise in the late hours” - from ten in the evening to seven in the morning, which will be approximately $400 for the first “remark” and $500 for subsequent ones. If the organization of the party is not carried out by an “amateur circle”, but by an official association of “party students,” then university and college campuses often ignore the crazy American parties of their students, interfering in what is happening in extremely rare cases. This attitude definitely plays into the hands of lovers of noisy parties!
Suits
The choice of clothes for an American-style party depends on the occasion for which it is being held. If this is a birthday or New Year's celebration, then you can set a dress code so that girls dress up in beautiful cocktail dresses, and men in elegant and formal suits. If possible, you can wear a tuxedo. If the party does not involve a strict and formal style, then offer your guests a free style of clothing. After all, everyone has the most “ American ” clothes in their wardrobe, namely jeans and a T-shirt. You can add accessories in national colors, namely blue, red, white.
Baby shower and bridal shower
One of the popular American traditions is a party for a girl on the eve of a wedding or the birth of a child. Our compatriots often wonder what to do if you are invited to a baby shower
or
bridal shower
. In fact, these events have a lot in common. Let's figure it out.
Bridal shower
So, the girl is getting married. A few weeks before, she invites all her friends to visit. This is called a bridal shower (bride - bride, shower - shower). It is believed that the bride will be drowned in gifts.
This American party doesn't have to happen at home. It could be a friend's house, a park, a restaurant, a spa - anything. And in fact, such an evening is not organized by the bride herself ( bride
), and her witness is the bridesmaid (
maid of honor
).
All that is required from the bride is to provide a list of guests and make a wishlist
(wishlist, list of desired gifts).
Most often, a wishlist can be made on the Internet. Friends choose an item, buy it and bring it with them. You can even simply send a gift to
the hero of the occasion. Girls can be invited to this event (and only the fair sex is invited) via the Internet, by sending a postcard, or simply in person.
At such a party everything is usually pretty decent. All sorts of riddles are asked about the future wife ( wife-to-be
), gifts are given, small competitions are held.
What about those cheeky bachelorette parties they make movies about? Don't worry, there's that too! But it’s called a little differently, and we’ll talk about it a little later. After the bachelorette party, a couple of weeks later, the girl should write postcards, Thank you cards, to everyone who sent her a gift. Even if this person was not at the holiday itself.
Baby shower
A baby shower is essentially an event that focuses on a mother and her unborn child (baby - child, shower). It is customary to hold this event in the third trimester ( trimester
) pregnancy (
pregnancy
).
It is also usually not satisfied with the expectant mother ( Mother-to-be
), but with her close friend or the female half of the family.
It is also customary to bring gifts here. The wish list can contain everything: from baby vests and socks to strollers and cribs. Sometimes several friends chip in and buy something expensive.
Such a party is not complete without competitions. Get ready to try baby food
), quickly put diapers
on
a toy and guess the mother from children's photographs.
According to tradition, only girls are invited here again. But if the expectant mother does not want to leave her husband alone, then you can spend a common evening. Then it will be called a co-ed baby shower
.
By the way, such a “baby party” is usually held only for the first-born, or if the second child is of a different gender. It would also be a good idea to invite guests if your children have a big age difference. But if you give birth to a child every two years, then there is an unspoken rule that it is better to refrain from a baby shower and not ruin your guests on gifts, especially if everything is left over from previous babies. But, if your soul still requires a holiday, then a diaper shower/diaper baby shower
(diaper - diaper). In this case, as a gift you will receive not the items from your wishlist, but packages of diapers.
Menu
If you are throwing an American-style party, then there will definitely be no problems with food for guests. Go to the nearest fast food and buy various hamburgers, hot dogs, and French fries.
Your guests will definitely be satisfied, and you won’t stand at the stove all day trying to master your cooking skills. You can decorate fast food dishes with small paper American flags. Also add pizza, which you can order at home or make yourself.
Popcorn or chips make good snacks for light alcoholic drinks.
Not a single alcoholic American Party is complete without whiskey. It all depends on your personal preferences and budget. And, of course, beer! There must be a lot, a lot of beer It can be poured into tin barrels and poured from there into tall glasses during the party. Sweet sparkling water will also fit perfectly into the theme of the evening.
For dessert, don’t be lazy and prepare the famous “American Pie”. The recipe can be found in one of the parts of the film. It will certainly create a sensation and will remain in the memory of your guests for a long time.
It will be very interesting and fun to organize a party in hippie style.
Food and drink
When it comes to food, the American party also means simplicity. A noisy feast would be out of place. Prepare snacks: chips, crackers, popcorn, corn sticks, etc. Be sure to prepare sauce: cheese, sweet and sour, salsa, etc. It is appropriate to order fast food: pizza, burgers, hot dogs.
If you are hosting a buffet, there should be simple appetizers that are quickly prepared and eaten just as quickly. Rolls, canapés, sandwiches. They can be made on skewers or placed in small glasses.
For birthdays in the USA, they follow this format: the birthday person prepares a cake, a barbecue, and the rest of the dishes are brought by the guests. You can entrust the choice to the invitee or agree in advance who will bring what.
Drinks are milkshakes, juices, Coca-Cola, soda. Alcohol is only light, no stronger than wine or liqueur. However, this is precisely the US tradition; you can build on the preferences of the guests.
Competitions
There have never been any restrictions in competitions at parties, and even more so in the American one. The main thing is that the competitions are fun, exciting, and interesting for the majority of guests present.
A particularly popular form of entertainment among American youth is the “ I’ve Never... ” drinking competition. Participants sit in a circle and take turns saying what they have never done. If someone has already done this action, then you need to drink a glass. If no one did this, then the open guest himself drinks a glass.
The well-known game “Spinning the Bottle” can be very fun and playful. But for this there must be an equal number of girls and boys and they must be at least in neutral relationships, so that there is no refusal of a kiss, which can seriously spoil the overall atmosphere of your party.
Bachelor party Vs bachelorette party
As we know from American films, before the wedding it is customary to hold a bachelor party
). It is during such parties that all the madness that is shown to us in the movies happens. Americans go to watch fights without rules, striptease, and dance in nightclubs. And, of course, they drink. After all, it is believed that all this will be covered with a copper basin after marriage.
The girls are not far behind either. They take their girlfriends with them and say goodbye to freedom no less recklessly. It's called a bachelorette party
. The main thing is that such bachelor and bachelorette parties do not accidentally take place in the same place. Then someone may not live to see the wedding itself.
Sometimes these two events are combined, then everything goes quite well. But most often they start together, and then “boys go to the right and girls to the left.”
American style party photo
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In the best traditions
Drinking, dancing and food are not the only entertainment at such parties. American parties gave the world the famous red cups as a symbol of amazing youth parties. In general, it is worth saying that red plastic cups are a very popular product in America. You can find this bright disposable tableware in any supermarket. The reason for the popularity of colored cups is their practicality from the point of view of any teenager. Transparent dishes can easily “tell” anyone what the young man is drinking and what strength his drink is. With colored cups everything is a little more complicated, and they create a completely festive mood!
Famous and very dangerous
Antivirus software developer McAfee presented an annual ranking of celebrities whose search queries most often led Internet users to malicious sites. At the same time, the most dangerous way to run into attackers was to alternate the name of a celebrity and the following words in a request: “torrent”, “watch for free”, “sex video”, “photos”. The rating of celebrities who should not be searched for online was topped by actress and model Ruby Rose, who starred in the TV series Orange is the New Black, the film The Meg: Monster of the Deep, and Batwoman. The search for which celebrities could end up infecting a computer - in the Kommersant material.
After party
The private American party is famous for its scale. Organizers order gallons of alcohol and hundreds of boxes of pizza and snacks to ensure guests feel at home and fully indulge in the fun. But who does the cleaning after such noisy meetings? Is it really the owner himself?! In reality, it is very rare that hosts are left without the help of their guests. If the owner of the house wakes up in the morning covered in bottles and pizza boxes, and there are no traces of guests, then he is a bad owner. Very often, guests chip in a couple of bucks to order the services of a cleaning company, which will eliminate the consequences of an explosive party in a couple of hours. Those guests who stay overnight in the house, as a rule, help clear away the garbage in the morning and bring everything “into human form.” Even if the owner is left alone, yesterday’s guests call him in the morning and offer their help, otherwise everyone risks losing a stunning venue for another party.
