Ideas for the Holidays - party themes!

Have you considered throwing a themed Midwinter, Christmas or New Year's Eve party?

Just in case, I've collected a few ideas for you:

- For aspiring writers (or accomplished authors - we're inclusive here): write your own paranormal, period or murder mystery scenario, get a few of your friends or family enlisted as actors, ask your guests to dress the part and host your very own Mystery Party.

- Tattoo chic. The tattoos can be real, but don't have to be. This party will however require heavy rock music for that little something extra! Can you think of ways to tattoo your food and drinks?

One of the gypsy caravans at our wedding
Picture (c) Dirk De Kegel

- Go Gypsy! Find some Django Reinhardt, Rosenberg Trio or Fapy Lapertin Quintet music, lots of candles, fringed shawls, colourful quilts, rugs and pillows, tarot cards and - why not - a gypsy caravan. Lots of inspiration in the links in this previous article or directly at Jeanne Bayol's website.

- Nerdy board games. Dress up like nerds and bring out the dice! Pick games that don't take too long to explain, and keep a few simple kids' games as backup for the wee hours' buffoonery...

- Pick your favourite book, film, computer game, fairytale or TV show and ask your guests to be one of the characters for the evening. More fun ensured if they act accordingly!
A few book suggestions: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Alice in Wonderland, Animal Farm, The Picture of Dorian Gray or anything by Terry Pratchett.
On screen: e.g. Ghostbusters, Will and Grace, Jurassic Park, Toy Story, X-Men or True Blood. Be aware that if you pick Pirates of the Caribbean you're likely to end up with a party full of Jack Sparrows.

- Polka Dot Party! It might be the perfect opportunity to wear that itsy bitsy teenie weenie yellow bikini!

- Choose a funky colour and get creative with your decoration, clothes, food and drinks. As an extra challenge: ban artificial food colourings!

- A missed opportunities party where everybody dresses up in the work outfit of who their child-selves wanted to be when they grew up. It's bound to spark interesting conversation and a lot of 'Well, that didn't work out, did it's!

- Or you could ignore winter altogether and have an indoor tropical party. Maybe you can rent a local pool, sauna or wellness center and with the right music and a well-stocked cocktail bar, you'll imagine yourself in the Caribbean in no time!

Here are a few more classics:

• Tacky Tourist party
• Tarts & Vicars (as featured in Bridget Jones)
• Arthur's Court of Camelot (or Round Table), possibly in the Monty Python version.
• Cyberpunk
• And of course: Pirates and Ninjas!

I'm still considering whether it would be a good idea to organise a musical party, where your guests would promise to sing at least a third of the conversation. It sounds like fun in theory, but the reality of it might be a boiled down version of hell.

Do you want to share some of your favourite party ideas with us?