Who doesn’t like surprises? Parties held in honour of a special someone can bring happiness, but the spontaneity of a surprise party can make your loved one extremely moved and tickled pink with excitement even more. If you want to make the day extra wonderful for them, here are several tips on planning a fun surprise event.
Go digital with the invitations
It’s better to forgo printed invitations and opt for digital ones, such as e-cards or e-mail blasts. This allows you to prevent leaving a paper trail because the last thing you would want is your celebrant randomly finding an invitation at a friend’s house.
It’s also vital to stay away from social media. Yes, you can send invitations using messaging apps, such as Messenger and Viber, but don’t create a Facebook page or group because digital information travels fast. You wouldn’t like it if someone accidentally tags or invites the surprise celebrant, would you?
Lastly, it’s integral to stress in the invitation that the guests should arrive at least half an hour before the event.
Invite the right people
What can be worse than turning on the lights when the celebrant arrives and only a handful of people yell “Surprise!” during that moment? To prevent having a less than enthusiastic crowd, it’s important to invite people who truly know and care about the celebrant.
This doesn’t mean that you can’t allow the bringing of plus-ones or friends of friends, but do make sure that a majority of the attendees are acquainted with the celebrant. This will also enable you to ensure active and willing participation from the crowd.
Select high-quality supplies and merchandise
A party is never complete without the right decorative materials and giveaways. Have small loot bags or food like mini-cupcakes that guests can bring home. Depending on how lavish and big you want the gathering to be, prepare appropriate decorations and set up party supplies such as balloons, centrepieces, flower arrangements, and banners.
Going big on the banner is a great idea. For a professional-quality large banner, select printing services that offer high resolution, enhanced colour vibrance, glossy finish, and durable materials. It will be awkward to have people squinting at the banner to find out what is being celebrated, so for the size, it’s best not to go smaller than four feet.
Get some accomplices
As much as you may want this to be a one-man implementation, you cannot hold a successful surprise party alone. You have to share your plan with several important people. In addition, you have to make sure that the celebrant has some activities in the morning (or afternoon) so they’ll be preoccupied while you do the necessary preparations.
For instance, if you’re surprising your girlfriend, ask her sister or bestie to bring her to a nail spa or hair salon, and then accompany her to the venue. This will enable you to receive real-time updates so you can avoid sabotaging the party.
Like every social gathering, a surprise party requires tedious planning. You also have to be stealthier and secretive to ensure that the celebrant will indeed be surprised. However, you must remember not to be too much of a perfectionist. Even regular parties can have a few slips, so get over some details with a few laughs and don’t forget that the main purpose of this celebration is to have fun.
