If you're planning a birthday party for a baby boomer, who may be getting older in years, but certainly not in attitude, then it's time to celebrate his or her youthful spirit. This person is not a candidate for an over the hill theme. Here are eight tips to throw a great back-to-your youth celebration for his or her milestone bash.
1. Get your guests in the mood to travel back in time with fantastic party invites. You could choose photo birthday invitations that include pictures of the guest of honor in his or her youth. Another option is to select invites that feature fun facts from the year he or she was born. Finally, you could just pick up a few packs of kid's party invitations to make it clear that this event is for someone who is forever young.
2. Create a retro atmosphere. Make a list of some of the "cool" symbols from the era of the guest of honor's younger years. Things like peace signs, tie-dye, flower-power, hippies, Woodstock, VW bus, smiley faces and lava lamps are good representations of the 60's and early 70's. Disco balls and platform shoes can be used for the 70's, but only if the celebrant was a fan. Borrow items from friend's attics, search eBay or visit a party supply store to start acquiring your decorations.
3. Picture the past. Use photos from every stage of the guest of honor's life to add to the decor. You can hang poster-size prints or collages made from different pictures. Group framed old photographs for nostalgic centerpieces. You could even make individual placemats by laminating photos onto 11 x 17 inch poster board.
4. Bring back the taste of yesterday. Choose a menu with comfort foods from the birthday boy or girl's youth. What was their favorite dinner when they were growing up? Check for "foil TV dinner trays" on your favorite search engine, for a unique way of serving the meals. Another nice touch is to provide bowls on each table filled with retro candy, They are also available online from companies that specialize in nostalgic sweets.
5. Play those old familiar songs. Stir up old memories of good times with classic hits from the guest of honor's teens and twenties. You can find CDs with compilations of the top tunes from any given year. Your local library may even have them available to borrow.
6. Provide games for the young at heart. Play "name that tune" with songs from the era and watch your guests come alive. Answering trivia questions is always fun. You could challenge people with a list of quotes from the popular movies and tv shows of the day and see who can identify the most sources. If you dig up some old toys, like toss-across, twister and hungry-hungry hippo, you can have tournaments. And of course, give all the winners a prize like a tie-dyed t-shirt.
7. Favors are a nice, old-fashioned way to say, "thanks for sharing the fun". Keep with the retro theme when you give out these little tokens of appreciation to your guests These mementos can be anything from inexpensive peace-sign keyrings to smiley-face pencils. Or if you're looking for more of a keepsake, choose something personalized with the guest of honor's photo and message, like notebooks, bookmarks, magnets or candy bars. There's also a wide variety of favors available that are imprinted with statistics and events from the year of the celebrant's birth.
8. Thanks for the memories. Let the guest of honor know how special he or she is to everyone at the party. Pass out slips of paper and ask everyone to write a great memory they have of the birthday boy or girl. Collect the pieces of paper and stuff them into a memory jar to be presented to the celebrant.
So, celebrate that baby-boomer's milestone with a retro birthday party. Make it a blast from the past that brings back the good old days in style. Just follow these tips and it's guaranteed to be a fun and memorable occasion for all.
Linda Kling, as the owner of http://www.photo-party-favors.com, has offered ideas to people planning birthday parties and other celebrations since 1992. She recommends these Year You Were Born photo birthday favors, featuring your photo and fun facts from the year of your birth. Free printables, party recipes, birthday quotes, trivia, and more are available on her website.
