An ice cream sundae party is a time-honored tradition. The ice cream social is an early American phenomenon dating back to 1744. An ice cream birthday party may be the first thought that jumps to mind, but the very first social was a dinner party, hosted by Maryland governor Thomas Bladen, who served ice cream for dinner. President Thomas Jefferson would later go on to host one in the White House in 1802.

They’re perfect for block parties, church socials, fundraisers, birthday parties, housewarming parties, and even chic afternoon get-togethers. Here are some ideas to help you launch yours.

Ice Cream Party Food Ideas

The star of the show is, of course, the ice cream, but consider going the extra mile. Set up a sundae bar with multiple flavors and toppings, arranged and decorated in a way that promotes a festive atmosphere.

If you don’t know all your guests, consider adding at least one pint of dairy-free ice cream and at least one pint of sugar-free ice cream, to accommodate everyone’s needs.

If you want an ultra-healthy hack for those who can’t have much sugar, frozen bananas run through a food processor creates a totally healthy ice cream substitute that even has the right flavor and texture.

Want to try a sophisticated twist? Serve up a roast pear & sherry ice cream with a side of sherry.  Or try a few savory ice cream flavors.

Don’t want to send your guests to the moon with a major sugar high? If you’re going the dinner party route, add a few protein-heavy appetizers to help ground them a little. Meatballs on a stick, satay skewers with spicy peanut sauce, cheeseball lollipops and pineapple skewers can keep the theme a little light-hearted and fun while offering the same sophisticated twist.

Pro-tip: you can pre-scoop ice cream scoops and freeze them so you can get everyone served up quickly and easily, without having to fight with an over-frozen carton.

Ice Cream Party Games

Kids and grownups alike love games, and you have quite a few options with an ice cream social. A blind taste test to see who can identify the most ice cream flavors is one fun option, especially if you throw in some of the lesser-known flavors.

Rolling dice to see what toppings you can add to your sundae is another fun game, though this game works better when you have a room full of adventurous eaters!

For kids, you could do a fun race where you have them hold a maraschino cherry on a spoon, and then try to race from one end of the yard to the other without dropping their cherry. Or you can have a sundae relay, requiring each kid to stop at a station to top off a stunning sundae before running the finished product to the end of the line.

Ice Cream Party Favors

Use colored paper to make cone-shaped goodie bags and fill them with sweet treats. Pens, pencils, and erasers that are shaped like ice cream cones or decorated to look like them can also be fun for certain age groups.

For adult guests, try putting a ribbon around an ice cream scoop and pass them out to your guests. A fair number of them are probably still bending their spoons beyond recognition at home. They’ll appreciate a proper scoop!

Ice Cream Party Decorations

You’ve got so many options! Honeycomb paper ice cream cones are a fun option, but there are also ice cream cone cut-outs that you can buy and place on your wall. You could also create an old-fashioned ice cream parlor sign, or use color chalk to create a menu board. You can turn party hats into ice cream cones, or create decorations out of balloons where the balloon is the ice cream and the cone is made of paper.

There are several pre-made ice cream centerpieces as well, though if you are crafty you can easily make your own.

Think bright, cheerful colors and whimsical styling unless you’re going ultra-sophisticated, at which point you may want to do similar things in tones of white, gold, and silver.

Don’t overthink your ice cream social!

Right now everyone is looking for just about any reason to celebrate and have some fun. Put your own twist on your ice cream social and send out the invites! Anything cheerful is going to be a big hit right now, and you’ll be doing your friends, family members, or neighbors a huge favor.

Want to add cupcakes?

Want to DIY some favors or decorations? Need the perfect party favor? Come on down to Paper Plus to get prepared for your ice cream party! We’ve got plenty of supplies in stock and we’re excited to see you.

For many girls, the sweet 16 party is going to be one of the highlights of their childhood (or the quinceanera at 15). It’s a time to go all out to create the most amazing birthday bash you can possibly manage.

If you’re searching for unique sweet 16 party ideas then you’ve come to the right place.

Sweet 16 Themes

Playing with themes is a great way to help set your sweet sixteen party apart from the one that all the other girls will be having this year.

If your daughter’s birthday is in February then you could go with a Mardi Gras theme, complete with beads, masks, and hurricane mocktails.  Serve up some po-boys and, as they say in South Louisiana, “you be laughin’.”

If you have a winter child, then a winter wonderland sweet sixteen theme can be a wonderful choice.

You can also center the party theme around your daughter’s favorite colors, or you can go with hobbies. Sweet sixteen glow parties are also all the rage this year.

Sweet 16 Party Ideas at Home

Some parents compete to try to make their sweet sixteen parties more and more outlandish. They rent giant venues and treat it almost like a wedding.

Yet you don’t have to do that to make the day special. Collaborate with your daughter’s friends to set up a surprise party at home and the day can be just as meaningful. In fact, this may be your last chance to really set one up: after they turn sixteen it’s almost impossible to keep a party a secret.

Sweet 16 Birthday Ideas on a Budget

Save a lot of money by keeping the party in the home, but really punch up the theme to make it festive. Cook all of your own food.

Do those two things and you’ll honestly tackle the two biggest expenses associated with sweet sixteen parties.

If you’re crafty, consider making some of your own decorations as well. If you can’t, don’t worry. Decorations are rarely very expensive and you can do a lot of creative things with a very small budget.

Sweet 16 Party Decorations

Balloons, napkins, plates, and confetti that say 16 or have ones and sixes on them are easy to find. If your child’s friends would enjoy wearing them there are also headbands with the number 16 on the bopper. You can make your child queen for a day with a tiara or a sash.

Adding a balloon arch where teens can take photographs and selfies is always a big hit.

Put together a rocking playlist and clear some dance floor space, too! If you can, enlist your birthday girl’s BFF to get the playlist made and to come up with ideas for activities. They’ll have a better idea of what your daughter will want to do than you will, and can help you ensure that none of the festivities embarrass your child for being a little too young or a little too stodgy.

Don’t miss your chance to throw the party of a lifetime!

While putting together a sweet sixteen party can seem intimidating it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to really show your child you care. Don’t be afraid to brainstorm some ideas or to think outside the box a little bit. You might find the right ideas on Pinterest or after talking to your child’s friends.

Once you know what kind of sweet sixteen party you’re going to be putting together, don’t wait! Head on down to Paper Plus at 1629 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, CA to get all the supplies you’ll need to throw an amazing party. 

If you’ve set out to host an Olympics watch party this year then you’ve set a big goal for yourself! After all, the Olympics is a major event that only comes around once every two years.

As the winter Olympics is up next, we’ll talk about putting together a winter Olympics viewing party. Yet many of these principles would work just as well for a summer Olympics viewing party.

Choose Your Time

Scheduling is probably everyone’s biggest party hurdle. There are a couple of ways to do it.

The first way is just by targeting the opening ceremony and a handful of events on the first day of the 2.5 week Olympics competition. Choose this date if you want to get everyone pumped about the rest of the events. You might keep the excitement going throughout the event by setting up a temporary Discord server or Slack channel where you can chatter about other events after the party is over.

Another way is to focus on a specific event that everyone loves. Figure skating is a great one because those competitions are such fun visually, but you can choose any event that excites your partygoers.

Of course, it might be a matter of convenience. You can use the WhenIsGood tool at WhenIsGood.net to find a time that works for most of your guest list.

Decorate Like Crazy for Your Olympic Viewing Party

Decoration is the best way to get all your guests into the spirit of the Olympic events!

Here are a few ideas.

Flags

Olympic flags and national flags can really get people in the mood. You can get tiny hanging flags on a line or flags that you can group in vases for centerpieces. Toothpicks with flags on them are great to place in certain finger foods.

Sporty Decorations

If you’re theming your party around a specific event then you can often find decorations that celebrate that event. Hanging decorations, cut-outs that offer a stick figure of someone skiing or skating, or other decorations can create a specific atmosphere.

Pom Poms

Winter sports may not traditionally come along with cheerleaders, but if you’re cheering on the USA Hockey Team you might want to capture some of that spirit. Pom Poms are also festive and fun!

Olympic Torches

You can create torches out of vases and red, yellow, and orange tissue paper. You can also get torch cut-outs to put on the wall.

Make it Interactive

You can just have everyone settle in front of the television with a passel of snacks. That’s a perfectly valid way to host a winter Olympics watch party.

Yet if you want your party to be a bit more memorable, it’s always fun to add some interactive elements. Since the Olympics are the main event you don’t want to do anything that will distract, so incorporate some games into the watch party.

One way is by filling out some score cards. You can have your guests raise their cards and compare them to the judges’ scores. They get a point every time they make an accurate prediction. Give out gold, silver, and bronze medals to the winners.
If you know the event very well and don’t have any beliefs against gambling then you could also set up a friendly, small scale Olympics betting pool. There are a few printable examples online, or you can make up your own. Nobody minds winning a little lunch money!

Theme Up the Food

Make cookies in the shape of rings and then use colored sugar to turn them into the Olympic rings. Theme plates after the 5 colors of the Olympics. Create ‘torch’ displays with long glasses and pretzels.

Your creativity is the only limit. Many of the game day foods that people use at the Super Bowl or other watch parties are great for an Olympics watch party, too.

How do you celebrate the Olympics at home?

Once the party is over there will typically be a lot more Olympics to watch! Keep it fun by snacking on a few of those leftover party cupcakes every now and then, or make certain events into family fun nights. That Discord or Slack channel will sure come in handy too. Or host a virtual watch party for family members and friends who couldn’t be at your physical one. It’s a great way to get a gold medal in event planning!

Need supplies for your Olympics watch party? Head on down to Paper Plus at 1629 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, CA to get all the flags, decorations, and other supplies that you could possibly need.