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Event Trends Based On Movies In 2017

Movies are definitely a trend setter for event themes. If you think we’re wrong, let us just say these two words “Great Gatsby”. Yep – so as you can see knowing the upcoming movie releases and staying on top of the most popular movies can definitely help you get ahead of the curve with your clients and their theme parties.

2016 was definitely a big year for highly anticipated movies and remakes. For example, this year’s Tarzan might not be the most popular of movies released, but you still can’t go wrong with a jungle theme. Waiters dressed as jungle guides sporting pith helmets will be sure to add that memorable touch to the jungle theme. 2017 also has some promising excitement for those who love movie series. So we looked to the biggest movie releases to determine hot event themes that you’ll likely begin planning now and sharing a fun element that you can add in.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

AYE! What’s better than a pirate-themed party? We love decorating for this type of party and even have the pirate statues to prove it! To add a unique element to this theme have netting hanging through the entry walkway for guests to walk under as they enter. Place “treasures”, fake sea creatures, and imitation seaweed in the net to look like a catch from the bottom of the sea. Don’t forget to hire a “Jack Sparrow” to greet guests!

Star Wars: Episode VIII

Everybody who was around in the 80s had a heyday when Star Wars: Episode VII came out – so you can only imagine that this movie will also gain some attention. Food is always a fun way to get creative with themed events. Find creative ways to make the oh so popular red and green light sabers – one way we’ve seen is with dipped pretzels. What would you use to create light sabers?

Wonder Woman

Everybody loves Event Heroes – I mean, super heroes 😉 This is one theme that will not die out no matter what the year. Super hero theme parties are great for hiring local models or actors to dress as the super heroes and welcome guests. This would be a great woman-empowering theme. For a fun touch, have wonder woman props for a fun photo shoot.

Resident Evil: The final chapter

Although you won’t find many zombie themed corporate events, zombies are the perfect setting for Halloween parties. Zombie themed everything has taken off the last couple of years from zombie food joints to zombie runs. For a scarier theme party, hire actors decked out as zombies to walk around the party aimlessly. If you’re looking for something low key, have zombified appetizers. We suggest a venue for this theme that is dark and bare with cement floors. Something fashioned to look post-apocalyptic would be perfect for this theme.

Avatar

When Avatar was first released, it blew audiences’ minds. Nobody had used that quality of CG yet. Not only was the cinematography amazing, but people loved dressing up as Avatar characters soon after. For a unique spin on this event theme use lighting to recreate the glowing grass, shrubs, and trees. You want guests to feel like they are visiting another world with this theme party.

While upcoming movies are a great way to determine event themes, some will stick around longer than others. Be sure to keep an eye out for the hype leading up to them and watch if they are trending on different social media platforms.

Need a full theme party with entertainment and decorations? Click on over to Event Heroes theme pages and pick a party with all the elements and suppliers you need to throw a party to be remembered for years to come.

What would be your favorite theme party to throw? Let us know and share what you would do to make it unique!

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5 Crazy Theme Foods For Events

Theming your event can help pull everything together from the décor to the music and the overall feel for the room. One item that gets overlooked when theming an event is the food. Whether you decide to theme the food or not, make sure you have something everyone will enjoy. Before you take it too far, make sure you maintain the quality of the food and don’t make it so far out that guests don’t even try it. For fun we put together a list, here are 5 crazy food displays for your next themed event!

1) Rainbow Grilled Cheese:

Stuck in a rut with your sandwiches? Not anymore with this insanely awesome rainbow grilled cheese! Have this for a candy land theme party or try it out with a princess event. The possibilities and colors are endless!

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2) Stadium platter:

Amaze your friends and family at your next tailgate or super bowl party with this ridiculous stadium platter! People will be talking about it all year long.

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3) Watermelon Shark:

Make healthy eating fun for any age! Enjoy this usually average fruit at an aquarium or nautical themed event. For extra fun throw in some candy fish!

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4) Vegas Baby!:

People love Vegas, but don’t let your attendees fly all the way there! Bring the party to them with a deck of cards desserts and jello dice! They will be so swept up they’ll think it was the real deal.

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5) Tea Party:

Think Alice in Wonderland with mini desserts at your next tea party! You will have your guests charmed at this magical theme!

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Don’t forget about food in your theme! Have a little fun with it and be creative. If you are stuck in a rut about theme ideas check out our page to give you a little inspiration!

AND for a little extra craziness think about a Bloody Mary bar for a brunch event! (Ok maybe this is a little overboard).

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Gender Reveal Party

When theming gets personal

As an event pro, it’s always hard to plan your own event, or it is for me. Knowing all of the possibilities for planning and with tons of great ideas racing through my mind, it is hard to choose just one idea to stick with.

Over the holidays, my family had the opportunity to plan my daughter’s gender reveal party. Of course we were all excited to learn the gender of this “coming soon” attraction, but I’m not sure anyone’s excitement level could match mine; this is my first grand baby after all!

We started with one of the items my daughter loves to collect – owls –  and the nursery theme she and her husband have chosen. The theme for this event happened to be enchanted forest.

Our event happened on Christmas Eve; a busy time of year, but the only time we could get all of her friends in the same place for any amount of time. Instead of making this a “party” we went with an afternoon event and offered a little beer and wine, fun finger foods, and amazing owl-shaped cookies in pink and blue!

 Owl-shaped cookies by You Bake Me Happy

When guests arrived, the first thing they did was choose either a pink or blue owl based on their best guess at the gender of the baby. They were also instructed to write a note for the parents or baby and hang it on the Christmas tree.

I created a display using cute little owls printed and cut out, then attached to a small limb from one of our trees outside. I hung the limb on the wall and placed the little pink and blue owls all along the limb. I added some small birds and LED battery operated star lights to add a bit of twinkle.

I’ve never been a traditionalist when it came to Christmas décor for trees and this year was no different. However, it was also our first year ever for an artificial tree and I went with white. It seemed fitting for a tree decorated with baby gear.  Pacifiers, socks, bibs and stuffed toys were used as ornaments and small woodland animals placed around the base of the tree and hanging throughout the tree made sure our theme was complete.

Our food selections included rolls folded as diapers, mini cocktail wieners with little diapers, cucumber sandwiches and other fun bite-sized treats. I was able to find both pink and blue sodas and added those for beverages. Pink and blue punch served out of baby bottles would have been cute as well.

 Bite-sized treats

DIY Elegant Holiday Wreath

Snow has started to fly and the cold weather has arrived, that means it’s time for holiday decorating and company parties or as I like to think of it “Party time!”

We get a little excited this time of year when we can combine our event planning skills with our artistic abilities. It’s always fun to bring on our hot glue and glitter skills and put together some great table decorations for this year’s crop of holiday parties.

This year our primary holiday themes are all silver and white. For the perfect accent piece, we are creating holiday wreaths using all silver holiday bulbs of various sizes and textures.

Gather the following items:

  • Styrofoam wreath – I prefer 11.8” but you can use whatever size you prefer
  • Holiday ornaments of different sizes and textures
    • 2.625” or 6.7 cm
    • 1.50” or 3.86 cm
    • 1.12” or 2.80cm
  • Cool glue gun and lots of glue sticks
  • Wire (I just use the glue but it might help if you have some wire)
  • Wire cutters
  • Beaded garland
  • Any other accent pieces (ribbon, snowflakes, etc.)

Getting Started:

Now find a comfortable work space, pour yourself your favorite warm drink, and if you’re feeling festive put on some holiday tunes.

Once I have all of my items gathered, I start by gluing the larger ornaments first. Place these around the outside, gluing them next to each other. Be sure to hold the ornament in place for approximately five seconds until the glue holds on its own. There will be some gaps, but don’t worry your next layer will fill them in.

8 Holiday Cocktail Party Ideas

A list of popular cocktail party themes for your holiday celebrations

The holidays are QUICKLY approaching and if you are prepping last minute – well shame on you! However, with the following list of creative and fun cocktail party ideas you can easily plan a memorable party that will WOW everyone in attendance.

1) Winter wonderland – Decorate your party with crystals and use blue lighting to create an icy effect. Add snowflakes for additional winter ambiance. Have a hot chocolate or hot tottie bar to warm guests up. Doing a company event? Surprise guests with snow from a snow machine or bubbles.

2) Naughty or nice – This theme can be created using food and drinks that are “naughty” vs. “nice.” You can also decorate one side of the room in red and black and the other side in white. If you want to be a little riskier, ask guests to dress in celebrity naughty or nice costumes.

3) James bond – This is a black tie affair. Have guests wear suits and formal dresses. Décor should parallel a royal casino or upscale dinner party with martinis being served shaken, not stirred. Tell guests to watch their favorite Bond movie prior to attending to get in character. You can even rent a red carpet for the entrance to set the stage for the evening.

4) Fire & Ice – Use red and blue décor to signify fire and ice. Guests wear red, blue, or a touch of both. A strong fire in the fire place and an ice sculpture in the center of the food display will really set the two areas apart. If you don’t have a fireplace, faux fires are safe and inexpensive and can add a warm touch to any party.

5) Ugly sweater – This is a more laid back and fun theme. Guests wear the ugliest Christmas sweater they can find and take lots of awkward photos while wearing them. Adding family pets is always a great touch.

6) Festivus – For those frustrated with commercialism and the pressure of other December holidays, Festivus is a secular holiday that occurs on December 23rd made popular by Seinfeld. Celebrations are of grievances, feats of strength, the aluminum pole, and Festivus miracles. “Festivus for the rest of us!” – Frank Costanza

7) Break your resolutions early – Before your new year’s resolutions take full effect, have a food smorgasbord with your friends. Have a pie bakeoff, bring your favorite sweets, or set up a chocolate fondue party and pair each chocolate with a wine! This is our favorite theme!

8) White Christmas – To get you in the holiday spirit with the lack of snow on the ground, have a party decorated in all white. Request your guests to wear all white too. It might be a good idea to stay away from red wines for the night. Use white leather furniture or white drape to really carry the theme through! Need help with the details? Buy this theme in our theme library.

Now that you have the theme of your cocktail party picked out, the rest of the planning elements will fall into place more easily. Make sure you choose foods, favors, entertainment, and décor that aligns with whichever theme suits your celebration best!

What is your favorite holiday cocktail party theme that you’ve created or attended before?

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