How You Can Make Your Next Costume Party One to Remember?

Here is how you can make your next costume party one to remember: Brainstorming a theme is a fun part of planning your party. You can get together with a couple of friends or your family to work out a theme that suits you and will be fun for them too. You could also build your theme around a particular costume which you want to wear for your event. Make sure that you test your theme to see how many costumes, decorations, types of food and entertainment you can match with it. If you don’t have a long list, it will make it harder to pull the party off, as you will have difficulty catering and decorating, and your guests will struggle with costumes- or all wear the same one! However, if you have many ideas for the theme, then it is sure to be successful. 

Here are two classic themes you are sure to have fun with:

1920’s Gatsby Theme

Costumes: Think fringed dresses, feathered headpieces, fishnet stockings and cigar holders. Gangsters and Flappers themes are always a classic, because the dress is so glamorous. You could watch the Cotton Club for ideas or read The Great Gatsby for true inspiration. 

Food: Easy cocktail finger food like nuts and olives can be served, as well as hot appetisers brough out using silver trays. Cocktails like martinis and cosmopolitans are always a hit, or even for a twist, try a chocolate martini, or a pomegranate Cosmo. 

Entertainment: You could hire a jazz piano player, or even a singer with her own piano player to serenade your party guests and take song requests. Or simply create a jazz and ragtime music playlist and play on your home speakers in the background. 

Hiring a bartender and a ‘cigarette girl’ hostess for ambience and convenience will mean you can concentrate on talking to your guests and having fun. 

Decorations: You can turn your living room into a cocktail lounge by turning the lights down low and putting some small lights or candles on each table. Move your furniture so that you can add as many tables as you can to this room. Cover them all with long white tablecloths that go to the floor. You can hire tablecloths or buy plain white sheets from the discount shop- just iron the 

creases out first! Also, even if you don’t allow smoking in your home or at your party, use silver or crystal ‘ash trays’ (does not have to be real!) at every table. You can offer your guests ‘candy’ cigarettes with long cigarette holders, and chocolate cigars. 

For a conversation starter, you can prepare a short info sheet and leave them on each table. You can include facts about the mafia, fashion and other political events of the era. You can section off an area for a dance floor, and then set up an area as a bar. You can also try some amazing hair wigs out!

Arabian Nights Theme

Costumes: Think Cleopatra, Lawrence of Arabia and Valentino. They all belong at this party. So do harem girls, Arabian guards, and even snake charmers. You can read Arabian Nights or watch Lawrence of Arabia for further inspo.

Decorations: Remove furniture from your lounge and lay down colourful rugs and pillows. Create a low-lying table and cover with a bright tablecloth and use pillows as seats. Put some rubber snakes in baskets and tie clear string around their heads to prop them up so it looks as though they are dancing for a snake charmer. Candles are great options for mood lighting, and you can spray cheap, interesting shaped (plastic) jugs with gold paint to use as vases for flowers, or even to serve drinks in. Sprinkling sand and gold glitter on the table will be a perfect finish touch. 

Food: Middle Eastern food is generally easy enough to organise as take-away from your local restaurant. You can order in advance via phone or email/internet. If you want advice in regard to what to order, and how much- give them a call or head to the store to have a chat face to face. This is usually yummier than using a caterer, because you can do taste-tests at a few restaurants beforehand! 

If you are going to make the food, keep it simple. You can make falafel and set it up with bowls of lettuce, diced tomatoes and onions, tahini and hummus. Big platters of pita and dips with Greek olives and feta cheese. 

Entertainment: Find belly dancers to hire by contacting your local dance teacher or dance school for resources. You could even do a Middle Eastern cooking demonstration with the local restaurant. Find Middle Eastern games by searching google or the library. You can create a Middle Eastern music playlist to have at your party. If you have space and resources, you could organise camel rides! 

Other Handy Tips:

• Surprise guests by ordering their costumes for them- so they change into them when they arrive at the party! 
• Choose invitations that match your theme, and decorations and allow enough time to send out and RSVP so guests have time order costumes, and for them to arrive in time.
• Make the food and drink simple and theme oriented, so you can keep the focus on the costumes. Avoid messy foods. 
• You could push back the start time of your party so guests can eat dinner before they get there. Then simply serve snacks and drinks. Or, you could have an early afternoon party and serve cocktails and drinks, then all go out to a restaurant for dinner in costume! 
• If you throw a costume party without a theme, choose mood lighting and other simple décor, so as not to upstage your guests in their costumes. Black and white is classic and adding candles gives a feeling of mystery. 
• Take loads of pictures. You could hire a professional photographer or photo booth, or even create your own ‘backdrop’ where people can take their own photos on their phones. 
• Hire a cleaner for the day after! Rest up and allow someone else to clean up after your hard work of setting up and partying hard!

Throwing a party to celebrate is always more fun in costume! At Big Party Oz we ship Australia wide and offer express post- if you have left your party or costume to the last minute! We hope this article has provided you with some inspiration and tips for when you host your next costume party.