Why Themes Make For The Best 40th Birthday Party Ideas
When you’re young your mum and dad might have put together some daft party games, and perhaps base them all around some idea or other. But of course, when you get older everyone seems to give up on giving you special birthdays, they seem to think that just having everyone round is enough.
But I am here to say that themes are just as good for adults as they are for kids when you are coming up with 40th birthday party ideas. Here’s why.
1) Themes give you something to focus on
When you just throw together ideas of people to come to, it can be hard to decide how to decorate the place. What music to choose. Even what food should be served! But imagine having a pirate theme for adults! Suddenly there is a whole wealth of ideas. Just copy the kids parties and up-scale! If you aren’t sure, sit down and watch ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ with a note pad and pen and see what inspiration you can come up with.
2) Themes help other people to feel more comfortable playing a role
Often people feel uncomfortable, and the phrase ‘oh just be yourself’ can strike dread into the heart of many people. On the other hand, pretending to be someone else – a spy for example – would suit many people. From fake voices and accents to pretend names. Excuses to wear clothes that you normally wouldn’t choose without feeling silly. When everyone is doing it, all sorts of people like to role-play. Just make sure that the theme is really simple and folks can get the resources for it.
3) Themes help the party to be more memorable
I have spoken to many people who have said that they have had a party for their 40th birthday. When I asked what it was like they just said it was good, and they had friends. But if you have a themed party suddenly all sorts of memories come flooding back. The crazy party costumes. The people who wore them. The conversation you had with the person dressed as such and such. Even the conversations themselves will be remembered as a strange result of how the mind holds on to unusual experiences. If you want the party to be memorable, make it an unusual theme.
4) Themes help us to have fun
They really help us to remember what it was like to be children. Whilst these aren’t always happy memories, the ideas of dressing up and pretending stay with us long into our adulthood. By having a theme focussed party we are giving permission to let the inner child out to play.
The author of this post is Andrew Gee, and what has prompted it is his wife’s fast approaching next milestone, for which he has been trying to come up with some 40th birthday ideas for her. What do you think? Is a themed party the right thing to do?