How to plan a party for someone special

Do you have a friend, partner or family with a milestone birthday coming up? I’d love to give you some ideas on how to plan a party for someone special in your life.

A dear friend of mine is turning 50 … her husband and I planned a birthday gathering at my house this past weekend for 11 couples.

The planning came together a bit last minute because of the birthday girl adamantly stating she did not want a party. Her husband finally decided to ignore her and plan one anyway!

Some of her girlfriends got on board to add special touches to communicate how much the guests love her. So in 6 days and with a group effort, we were able to plan a night filled with fun and love. Here are some party planning tips for you!

Birthday Party Ideas for Adults

Signature hats with photos of the birthday guest

Print pictures of the birthday girl and paste them onto party hats for each guest to wear. For our hats, my girlfriend printed an assortment of fun pictures from over the years. The guests arrived a few minutes before the birthday girl so we could put on our hats. When she entered the party, she was greeted by a sea of hats with her pictures on them!

how to plan a party make special hats with pictures

how to plan a party

Create a Video Montage

how to plan a party create a video montage

Use iphoto or a similar program to play a slide show of the birthday girl’s favorite memories over the years. Ask each guest to send a few photos of them with the birthday girl to use in the montage. Set it to music. Hook up to a large screen to play for the group before serving cake and singing happy birthday.

how to plan a party create a video montage

Make a game with prize

Create a “How well do you know the birthday girl?” game with a list of questions. Read the questions aloud to the guests and have them each write down the answer. 

how to plan a party create a game

Then after all the questions are answered, ask the birthday guest to answer the questions for the group. The person with the most correct questions wins a prize! Make the questions easy enough so people can enjoy the game!

Our questions were as follows:

1. When is Janiece’s birthday 2. How old is she turning 3. Where was she born 4. What is her middle name 5. What is her favorite flower? 6. What is her favorite color? 7. The last vacation she took 8. What is her favorite drink? 9. Dog person or cat person? 10. Eye color? 11.  What is her Instagram name?

Hire up and coming student musicians to play live music

We found a couple of talented musicians from our local high-school who could play jazz and cover songs with keyboard and guitar. They set up in the back corner of the room and were a perfect addition to create the ambiance we were looking for. Affordable, too!

how to plan a party hire student musicians

Make a drink menu of favorites

Two specialty cocktails were offered including the birthday girl’s favorite. Vodka Pear Martini!

how to plan a party make specialty cocktails

Plan a group gift

Instead of a bunch of small gifts, the group pitched in to get the birthday girl a special timeless piece of jewelry she could wear every day. We knew she had her eye on a piece from my jewelry collection, so it was easy to pick out her gift! Subscribe to the blog to unlock your 10% off coupon!

how to plan a party group gift

Sliced diamond surrounded by white diamonds on 14k rose gold chain.

Create a welcoming environment

  • Welcome lanterns at the entrance
  • Flowers
  • Votive candles
  • Good food

how to plan a party paper lanterns for entry way

how to plan a party tree decor with succulents

how to plan a party delicious food

how to plan a party Charcuterie board

As I stress often, our time is precious. It’s important to create moments with the ones we love. Celebrate life. Celebrate love! I hope this post gave you some inspiration on how to plan a house party!

For more party planning ideas, you may like my blog post on hosting a YOLO Dance Party and Jewelry Making Theme Party.

“Flavor your life with an Ounce of Salt.” A lifestyle blog by Jen Oliak.

How to plan a party for someone special