For Families: Creating a list of themes

More like FUN-due. By Flickr user whoaitsaimz.

The best part of a theme party tradition is creating a list of potential themes. And also, dessert. For the first best thing, it’s important to create an inclusive atmosphere. You know what I’m talking about. In a brainstorm all ideas are good ideas. Repeats are okay. Quantity over quality. Repeats are okay. (Bah duh bum.)

In my family, we have a running list of themes and we let fate decide which one will be next. And by fate, I mean chance. Whether you do it this way, or if you debate the relative merits of different possible themes each time, here are some ideas to get you started:

The Classics:

• Mardi Gras
• Wild Wild West Backyard BBQ
• Casino Night
• Masquerade Ball
• Hawaiian Luau
• Murder Mystery Party
• Fancypants Wine Tasting Party
• The Roaring Twenties
• Alice in Wonderland Tea Party

The Neo-Classics:

• Eco-Friendly Shindig
• Tapas Party (Or if you’re in Spain, “Appetizers Party.”)
• Rubik’s Cube Party (See an explanation.)
• The Melting Pot: A Fondue Party
• Science Fair (Thanks to Obama, science is in again!)
• Dozens of Cousins Party (I actually have no idea what this is, but someone searched for this term yesterday and found my blog.)

The Hybrids:

• Mafia Night: An Evening of the Dons (Where else do you get Marlon Brando impressions AND Don Knotts impressions at the same party?)
• Moroccan Roll (A lot of the best ideas are based on puns.)
• Moulin Rouge (The food is French. And it’s red.)

Theme Parties You Should Not Do:

• White Trash Party (Guess what? It’s tacky to make fun of poor people. Even if Especially if you are Heidi Klum and Seal.)
• Anything based on reality television.

Click on “Theme Ideas” in the list on the right (or in this sentence) to see entries I’ve written that include theme party ideas.

See more entries in the For Families series.