Kids like dressing up, they like using their imagination, and they like taking part in craft projects with mums and dads. Making a fancy dress costume or creating their own party allows them to do all three in one go; it also builds teamwork and confidence, and allows them to express their own creativity.
Even the smallest tot can add their own personal touch to a little princess or monster outfit, while the slightly older child will love nothing more than making their own outfit or choosing one of the many scary Halloween costumes by MorphCostumes to terrorise their friends and family. But part of the fun of any party is the planning, and your child can certainly get involved with this.
The most important starting point is to pick a theme for your party. Clearly at Halloween or Christmas the choice is made for you, but on other occasions you will have to come up with some ideas yourself. You may wish to ask your child’s opinion on this; give them a few options to eliminate really silly ideas. You may have a number of venues in mind for a special occasion, and paying them a visit beforehand is a wise plan – take your youngster with you.
From there you’ll have a good idea of guest numbers. Once a guest list is put together you could entrust your youngster to design invitations. There are a number of online invitation creators – here are five ideas from Freemake.com – or alternatively, get them to draw an invitation which you can then scan and duplicate. Ask your child if there are any friends whom they would like to invite.
The preparation list for any good fancy dress party should include themed food, music and props. So if you’ve chosen a jungle theme you’ll need trees, leaves, maybe even a jungle hideout; the Wild West will need saloon bar doors and ‘cacti’; and a Halloween party demands painted skulls, graveyards and elaborately carved pumpkins.
With a few cardboard boxes, a little paint, some scissors and some expert guidance, this could be a great project for children in the build-up to the big night. These props don’t need to be brilliant; in fact, homemade creations are often more endearing. If they cannot make the items themselves, try shopping at craft stores or car boot sales.
Food will need to be purchased or made closer to the time, and most of it will be made by mum or dad or caterers, or bought from the supermarket. However a few themed cakes or biscuits are a neat little touch – here are some brilliant and beautiful ideas from Martha Stewart which older children could try and recreate. For the music, your younger ones will probably have a much greater awareness of what’s hot and what’s not, and even if they cannot think of any songs relevant to the party theme they’ll know what will fill a dance floor.
The guests will choose their own costumes, and you should choose yours, although guidance from a little one or a loved one might be fun. Similarly, your child should be allowed to choose their own costume and make any appropriate props. Fancy dress parties are great fun for everyone, and you can involve your child as much or as little as you wish – and that includes tidying up afterwards!