Many people of different ages at some point come up with the idea of celebrating a birthday in the style of a favorite movie, the traditions of a distant country or a historical era.
It’s nice and easy to get together with friends, but in the era of social networks, a series of photos from a themed holiday attracts much more likes and comments, and this is not only pleasant, but sometimes necessary for the development of a personal account for commercial purposes.
How can you reflect the chosen theme of the holiday:
Below I will remind you of about 150 themes for parties . To begin with, let’s clarify by what means they usually emphasize a themed holiday:
• Decoration of a room, restaurant hall, gazebo, open area
This is the most obvious. The most spectacular. Something that absolutely everyone who comes up with the idea of celebrating a birthday in some style does on a different scale. Of course, it is best to invite a decorator who has been studying design styles for many years, knows where and what to buy, make to order, etc. He will deliver it, hang it up, and dismantle it after the holiday. The services of such specialists are quite expensive, so most people use ready-made solutions based on images from Pinterest. This is an incredibly large collection of ideas, and many of the projects are fairly easy to replicate as supplies are sold at online party supply stores.
Some elements (stands for attaching banners, arches, fabrics, life-size flowers, huge letters and numbers, polygonal figures, etc.) can be rented in almost every city in Russia. Everything else is ordered on Chinese websites (this is if you have a lot of time before the holiday and a small budget).
For example, a black and white or chess party can be decorated with several black and white balls, and for some this is enough to create the mood. For others, a themed holiday in this style will be presented with a pompous photo zone with huge chess pieces, with “living statues” in the form of a queen and a horse, checkered tablecloths on each table, dishes with a chess pattern, a candy bar with figured sweets in black and white, and etc.
• Costumes and accessories for guests
There are two options. In birthday or anniversary invitations, you indicate the desired dress code for your party, i.e. Each guest puts together his own, for example, pirate image. In this case, the guests look impressive, since each of them will think through the main elements of the costume, accessories, hairstyle and makeup in advance.
If the theme of the holiday is a surprise for the guests, the organizer of the holiday needs to launch costumes and accessories. In this case, not all guests decide to dress up, since cowboy hats or a pioneer tie do not go well with a gold maxi dress with a deep neckline.
• Musical compositions
An experienced DJ has music selections in different styles. If your themed event is new to him, he will quickly select high-quality recordings and create a cool playlist to accompany all stages of the event.
If you organize your own party, use the recommendations in professional groups of DJs (VKontakte has many ready-made free collections, for example).
For a party based on a musical style (“Disco 80s”, “Dashing 90s”, “Hipsters”, “Jazz”, “Back in the USSR”, chanson, cabaret, etc.) there are excellent selections in Yandex .Music, on YouTube, in collections of music tracks.
All you have to do is note which compositions are more suitable for background sound during free communication and toasts, and which ones you can also dance to.
• Entertainment
I have already written an article about the formats and themes of events, everything is more detailed there. The point is that you can attach a theme to almost any holiday format.
For example, a Back to the Future party. This could be a quest with a cascade of puzzles and the goal of returning to your year, a creative or sports team game, culinary team building with recipes from the past and future, a brain ring with questions from different historical eras, master classes with souvenirs from 2050, a show program with numbers from the 50s of the last century and retro competitions.
Even if you have a very small holiday, organized on your own, you can choose entertainment for a fun themed program and not be limited only by decoration.
• Main menu
There are holidays where the menu is the main “decoration”. In this case, the emphasis is on thematic dishes, and everything else is secondary. For example, the now popular healthy lifestyle. In addition to the sports component, bodybuilding shows, bike races, marathons and other activities, guests can be offered a menu that is useful in all respects. Birthdays are rarely celebrated in this style, but I have seen them a couple of times)).
In nature, you can have a primitive party with meat over a fire. Themed cafes will offer French cuisine for the theme “See Paris”, and the Japanese restaurant can host “Intellectual Sumo” and taste traditional dishes. A pirate party goes well in establishments where seafood is offered on the menu.
Organize a home holiday with pancakes and pies “In the Russian style”, prepare small spectacular snacks for a Hollywood party, set a Soviet table for your own “Irony of Fate”.
• Sweet table (candy bar)
Some organizers consider a candy bar to be a decoration, while most consider it a treat. At small celebrations, a sweet table beautifully decorated with bright decorative elements is often the only thematic accent.
Let me remind you. The theme can be supported by the sweets themselves (cupcakes with bats and a cake in the shape of a pumpkin with eyes for Halloween) plus themed decorative elements in the style of this holiday made of paper (flags, pom-poms, origami, polygonal figures), wood (photo frames, figurines, letters, hashtags) ), metal (candlesticks, figurines, stands for sweets, tablets), glass and porcelain (candy bowls, dishes), compositions from living plants or natural materials.
On Pinterest you will find thousands of examples on any topic using the “candy bar” tag.
Cakes in different styles are the most obvious support for the chosen party theme. The creativity of the masters amazes the imagination, the cost per kilogram of happiness is different in each city.
• Win-win lotteries, prizes for participation in competitions
Everyone loves gifts, and it has nothing to do with age. You can choose pleasant or useful souvenirs for almost any theme and arrange a gambling raffle. For example, at a denim party I received a denim cosmetic bag.
Themed cafe (restaurant)
To celebrate a themed birthday, most celebrants choose an establishment in which the interior, menu, music and appearance of the waiters immediately correspond to the chosen theme. Every city has something “French”, “from a Russian fairy tale”, “Caucasian”, “Japanese”, etc. And also all sorts of hunting lodges, grottoes, caves, halls “in the clouds” on the 59th floor, etc.
Sometimes the venue inspires you to host a themed party; all you have to do is dress up a little and think about entertainment for the guests.
Preface.
My daughter Evgenia is already 21 years old. In her childhood, I also came up with various entertainment for the holidays, both at home and at school. Only then it was much more difficult to do this, since there was almost no relevant literature; a lot had to be, as they say, sucked out of thin air. The last time we celebrated our daughter's birthday with her friends was when she turned 16 years old. And on the eve of celebrating her 17th birthday, one of the girls quipped: “What, is your mother going to hold competitions again? Ha-ha-ha!” And that’s all... The daughter flatly refused to combine close people with friends. I can’t express in words how offended I was, I tried so hard... But, probably, nothing can be done, children are growing up, and they are so eager to feel the taste of apparent freedom. Zhenya celebrated that birthday in a cafe. And then off we go: nightclubs, restaurants, bars... In general, the girl has matured.
At first, Zhenya enjoyed life with some kind of wild delight, feeling very grown up. And after a while I began to notice that she was less happy about going to clubs, she was tired, poor thing, from such a hectic life. And when asked how one of my friends’ birthdays went, I increasingly began to answer in monosyllables something like: “Yes, as always,” without any special joyful notes in the voice.
And now my daughter’s twentieth birthday was approaching. Here we have already taken a tough position: “This is an anniversary, not another birthday, so first sit at the festive table with your family, and then go wherever you like, further.”
I called this holiday “Kinder Party”, which initially confused my daughter - again my mother was playing in kindergarten. The idea was inspired by Zhenya’s collection of Kinder toys, carefully preserved lion cubs, penguins, hippos, etc.
Number of guests.
Adults: 6 people (parents, two grandmothers, uncle and wife). Youth: 11 people aged 20 to 24 years.
Preliminary preparation, registration.
On the entrance doors there is a poster “Welcome to the Kinder Party!” On the nightstand there is a large ficus flower, decorated with Kinder toys and small gifts. On the flower pot there is the inscription “Kinder tree (“Like our kinder tree grows at our gates...”), at the bottom there is an announcement: “Ladies and gentlemen, put gifts here” (by analogy with the New Year tree). On one wall at the top in large letters: "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!", just below there is half an egg cut out of cardboard, from which a photo of the birthday girl with a folk doll in her hand looks out. Just below is a fence, next to which there are also two rag dolls.
On another wall are several collages from different years. The sofa, located between two closets, had to be moved away from the wall to make it more convenient to accommodate guests. The resulting gap was filled with boxes of different heights, covered with cloth, and the daughter’s favorite soft toys were placed there. It turned out to be a kind of play corner.
A chair for the hero of the day in the form of an egg throne (they took cardboard from a box from under a large refrigerator, covered it with yellowish paper, attached a thin Christmas tree rain to the edge to hide the slight roughness), at the top there is a large number 20, and a little lower the inscription: “Knder- surprise" (when the birthday girl was sitting, it was above her head). In a small room they set up something like a dressing room: they laid out elements of the costumes of different heroes.
Invitations were also planned, in which Zhenya hatches from a kinder egg, but the daughter did not want to invite guests in this form. Today’s youth find it easier to do this via the Internet, telephone, or send SMS.
Technical equipment: TV, DVD karaoke, microphone, video recorder, old video cassettes.
Video: “The voice of childhood is memorable and audible to me.” 45 minutes, assorted from different years. Compilations of the most interesting moments of Zhenya’s childhood.
Fairy-tale character: old woman Shapoklyak (one of the grandmothers).
Festive table: menu of favorite dishes from childhood, compiled by Zhenya.
Master class from dad: signature salad in a few minutes. I came up with a combination of ingredients myself, similar to the “frigate” salad, we call it “Lazy frigate”. On a large platter, the following are laid out in even piles: Korean carrots, Korean beets, Korean cabbage, thinly sliced sausage or meat, crumbled chips; mayonnaise sprinkled with herbs is poured into the middle. All this is mixed in front of guests, just before putting it on plates (very masculine).
Scheduled games:
1) “Assemble the puzzle” (various photographs of my daughter; in the past I often came across such tasks in Kinders as now, I don’t know). 2) “Magic Bag” (a game familiar to everyone from childhood). The blindfolded player takes out a kinder toy from the bag, but since it is difficult to guess right away, you can ask questions: “Is this an animal?” - Yes. - Predatory? - No. - Lives in Africa? - Yes. And so on until he guesses correctly.
3) “Who can assemble a collection of Kinder toys faster blindfolded” (gnomes, hippos, penguins, lion cubs, ghosts).
4) Who can run faster with an egg in a spoon from one wall of the room to the opposite without dropping it?
Prizes for competitions.
And now this long-awaited day has come...
The daughter was noticeably nervous about how her older friends would perceive this form of holding a birthday party. Most of all, of course, she was interested in her boyfriend's opinion. As it turned out later, when he came to visit us, he also couldn’t find a place for himself (“What kind of Kinder party?” “What is this and what do they eat it with?”). He had never been to this kind of family celebration before, so he didn't know how to behave in such a situation.
According to my idea, the guests were to be greeted at the doorstep by one of my wife’s girlfriends, dressed in the form of a chicken (my daughter refused this role), and invited to the costume room so that the arrival could choose an element of some costume to his taste (fortunately, there are no characters was in Kinder Surprises). But the girl let me down, arriving very last, though in all bright yellow).
My daughter’s nervousness and the slight wariness of the guests began to confuse me, maybe I’m really doing something wrong, do I look like a clown?
So, all the guests are already at the table, waiting to see what will happen... The host (me) takes the floor.
HOST: Dear guests, you look at me now and think, yes, we are such adults, and we go to clubs, and we already have the right to smoke and drink alcoholic beverages, and here is Zhenya’s mother with her Kinder party, kindergarten, and that’s all ! But firstly, for us, for parents, you will remain children for a long time. Our birthday girl still carefully preserves her collection of Kinder toys and wants to pass it on to her children. You can imagine how many Kinder eggs she had to eat as a child to collect so many toys! And secondly, Zhenechka never ceases to surprise us, parents, with various surprises, both pleasant and not so pleasant, not a daughter, but a real kinder surprise! We would really like for you to temporarily forget about your adulthood today and plunge into the carefree world of childhood. To make it easier for you to do this, we have a play corner made up of the birthday girl’s favorite toys.
HOST: Friends! We are pleased to welcome you to Kinderiada, the anniversary of our daughter dedicated, named Evgenia exactly 20 years ago! Let a lot of words speak, Let the holiday begin, At twenty years old it seems to all of us - Everything is changing for the better. May life turn out wonderfully, May you not get lost in problems, May everything be desired and possible, May your dreams come true! (1st toast)
HOST: Believe it or not, someone finds their children in cabbage, a stork brings them to someone, and we found our daughter, where do you think? You think correctly, in a kinder surprise, but not in a simple one, but in a golden one. And it was like this...
Then my husband, with inimitable humor, told how it was (how, instead of Kiev, I fled to Reshetilovka - one of the centers of folk crafts in Ukraine, how one day, while walking around the area, under a fence we accidentally discovered a golden egg, how delighted we were, how from it after 9 months our favorite kinder surprise appeared, surprise for all surprises).
Dad's congratulations (2nd toast).
Then came congratulations from the grandmothers, where they briefly told what a pleasant surprise the birth of their long-awaited granddaughter was for them - then one grandmother was 50, the other was already 60 (3rd and 4th toasts).
Congratulations from relatives from other cities were read out. Then - congratulations from uncle (4th toast).
There's a knock on the door. The old woman Shapoklyak came to visit with the symbol of the outgoing year, the rat Larisa, which the postman Pechkin asked her to hand over. But she can’t just give it to us, we need to answer her questions.
The 1st question (What do Shapoklyak and the postman Pechkin have in common?) failed, the adults were very surprised that no one except the birthday girl knew that these characters were invented by Eduard Uspensky, it seemed to us that it was as easy as shelling pears (the character was not chosen by chance, he from my daughter's favorite children's books).
Then things got more fun; the guests chose to draw a card with questions and answer options.
1. Grandmother, wanting to please her granddaughter, gave her an old-fashioned sweater. What will Zhenya say? a) “Grandma, I’ve dreamed about this all my life! Where did you manage to buy it?” b) He will thank you sparingly and throw it in the farthest corner of the closet. c) “Grandma, where did you get such horror? I will never wear this!” d) Your answer option.
2. The male standard for Zhenya at seven years old was: a) neighbor Uncle Kolya, b) dad, c) Leonid Yakubovich, d) Leonardo DiCaprio.
3. What would Zhenya prefer to receive for her birthday? a) a thick wad of bills, b) a trip to another country, c) waking up in the morning to find a million red roses from your loved one around, d) your option.
Other questions were drawn up along the same lines. I often use this technique at feasts. It goes with a bang, the main thing is that the questions are not boring.
Old woman Shapoklyak finally gives in, gives the birthday girl a pink rat (her daughter is still partial to soft toys) and gives away a package with a video film.
The film “The Voice of Childhood I Remember and Hear” was especially interesting to watch for those guests who grew up together with their daughter from frame to frame.
After watching the movie, I take care of the guests. I collect folk toys (Ukrainian rag dolls) and do not miss a single opportunity to tell others about them.
HOST: Once upon a time, there were no Barbie dolls or Kinder surprises. Now it’s even hard to imagine. What do you think children played with in those days? Toys for children were often made by adult family members or bought at a fair from craftsmen. Here in front of you are Ukrainian folk dolls; in addition to their playful function, they also served as amulets for their mistress, protecting her from evil forces.
HOST: What do you think it is? (showing a ceramic rattle egg (egg-beater, Ukrainian)) These are the kinder surprises our ancestors had! We will have it as a moving red banner from one congratulatory person to another. You just need to not just say kind words to the birthday girl, but tell her what a pleasant surprise her friendship is for you. Maybe remember an interesting or funny story.
We adults had a lot to listen to and learned a lot about our daughter.
Then it was time for karaoke. Over time, even those who were embarrassed to do so in a karaoke bar started singing for the birthday girl. Everyone was on fire. We started trying on costumes, the kids liked the pirate attributes, and the girls enjoyed trying on masks.
The holiday began to spin like a merry-go-round of youthful enthusiasm. There were a lot of pleasant memories, and a lot of laughter and jokes. There was a master class on how to make a salad by dad, and a ceremonial presentation of grandma’s famous cake with candles and homemade fireworks. I noticed how the guys communicate with their husband with interest; he must be such a serious person, but he behaves on an equal footing.
In addition to the main gifts, the birthday girl was presented with a two-volume book by the author of ironic detective stories Daria Dontsova (one of her daughter’s favorites) “The Lazy Woman’s Cookbook. Delicious trip." The next morning, Zhenya left for Crimea to meet her boyfriend’s relatives, and this gift caused an explosion of fun, since everyone knew what a “notable cook” she was.
But the games, to my chagrin, somehow didn’t go well, or rather, everyone was having so much fun that I didn’t know where to squeeze them in, running between the fun guests and the kitchen.
In general, the holiday was held under the motto “We sit well!” and left a lot of pleasant impressions. After two in the morning the guests reluctantly began to leave little by little; the next day was Monday.
I swam in a sea of compliments. The one for whom all this was started honestly admitted that it was the best birthday in recent years. One already married 23-year-old guy said that it was his first time at such a birthday party and that he didn’t even imagine that being at home with his parents could be so much fun. Another guy sadly said: “You know, my mother never gave me such holidays” (although his mother has been working in Spain for many years for his well-being). I thought about how we, parents, express love for our children in different ways.
Zhenya’s boyfriend was a man of few words; he simply collected all the dishes and washed them as a sign of gratitude. And the girlfriends chatted for a long time about their own things, finally telling Zhenya how lucky she was with her family.
The next day, our beloved daughter left us for the first time for such a long time to another family, still unknown to her, taking with her warm, unforgettable memories...
After this story, the daughter did not stop going to clubs, meeting friends in cafes, and, in general, as they say, hanging out. And we, parents, don’t sit at home; we sometimes indulge ourselves by going to restaurants, discovering new interesting places. The main thing is that the daughter realized that in a home holiday there is an incomparable magic of the family hearth.
PS In the chaos of the holiday, I didn’t follow the process of photographing; young people took more pictures of themselves and their loved ones. PPS I am also interested in the topic of celebrating the birthday of adult children who have not yet flown away from their parents’ nest. I look forward to your comments.
Script author and photo: Nadezhda Chernevskaya, especially for the children's portal “Solnyshko” Published on October 18, 2010.
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