Theme Parties are the Best!

Party occasions come in all shapes and sizes but party theme ideas will always out number them. Themes can bring fun, whimsy and an opportunity to embrace a different time or place or can bring a fantasy world to life.

They can also be less dramatic but still there -- bringing cohesion to party organization, decorations and even the food (if you choose to go that far)!

During my years in the event industry, I was constantly asked if a theme was "necessary" for parties and events from birthdays and showers to reunions and weddings. The short answer is -- no, they are not necessary. The longer answer is -- a theme can actually help a host/hostess when planning a party.

What the heck do I mean by that? Let me explain...

Do I have to have a Theme for my Party/Event?

Certainly not. However, a theme can actually help with the planning and pulling off of a party. Parties are usually planned in advance and include some or all of the following elements:

• Invitations
• Set up and Decorations
• Food or Meal
• Cake or Desserts
• Favors or Guest Gifts

The occasion of your event or party can give you some help or direction when planning but a theme can really bring it all together.

With a central theme, it narrows the vast choices out there for the above mentioned elements. It gives you a starting point and a finish line. And, it can help rein-in ideas and keep you focused on the big picture you are trying to create.

What is a Theme?

Kids birthday parties are definitely theme occasions but adult parties and events can benefit from a theme as well. A theme can be whole hog or subtle, your choice. But, most parties have some sort of a theme.

Even when you simply choose a color scheme and coordinate the above elements with that scheme -- that's a theme too. It's a subtle theme, but a theme nonetheless.

Theme Ideas Abound

Luckily for us and everyone searching for party/event ideas, here are some articles that share a plethora of information that can help. Do you like Tea Parties?  Christine shared her ideas for a child's birthday with a tea party theme in her lens, "Planning an Alice in Wonderland Tea Party".

Got someone that loves guitars and music? PartyBuzz helped plan and execute that theme for her grandson's birthday.  "Teen Party Ideas: Guitars and Music Notes".

How about a Las Vegas theme? That one can be loads of fun, especially for adult events like birthdays, reunions, fundraisers and more!

Have you hosted a great theme party? I invite you to write about it. Use lots of photos too! As the Party Planning Contributor, I would love to help you promote your lens when it's finished.

What are you waiting for? Start writing!

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Romantic Picnics

My husband and I frequently share a romantic picnic, often in our own backyard simply because it is convenient, peaceful and our own personal temporary hideaway haven. 

I am blessed with a friend and partner in this life that doesn't mind slapping together sandwiches, grabbing a bag of chips, glasses of lemonade and heading outside. 

We spend hours laughing, talking about our co-workers, sharing our thoughts, hopes, wishes, dreams and ideas. We have had so many fun picnics in our backyard over the last few months, that he feels he personally knows all of the Contributors on Review This Reviews! 

You see, it is very easy for me to break from my computer work and head out for a picnic in the backyard with my sweetheart at lunchtime and then return to work. Therefore, my co-workers are often fresh on my mind. 

I won't share their personal life experiences publicly, but I will tell all of my readers that my husband hears about every success, every trial, every new home, every flat tire, every death and every life of my fellow writers. He laughs, gets appropriately angry when my friends don't get the needed help, and grieves right alongside me when tears are shed. 

This may not sound exactly romantic to some, but the bond created between my husband and myself as we share about our days, our friends, our experiences, is a bond that romantic writers only wish they would capture with words.   Having someone to share those everyday moments and feel what you feel is the true meaning of "romantic" and is what every forever hopeless romantic seeks in their own life.  

Now, lets plan your picnic!

Romantic Picnic Ideas

If you are interested in a good old fashioned picnic, complete with a picnic basket and blanket for sitting, you are going to love Mcgilwriter's suggestions and Romantic Picnic Ideas.  

Just reading the list brings back fond memories of planning for a lakeside picnic or park picnic ahead of time.

 

 
The list above is a screenshot of a portion of Mcgilwriter's original published article.  Unfortunately, the full article is no longer available since the writing platform has shutdown.  

I love his suggestion for a starry nights picnic!  Yes, I do see that in our future.

Picnic Backpacks – Get Your Hike On and Take A Gourmet Lunch With You 

My husband and I love to hike!  We usually take our furbabies with us, but on my photo shoots or really long trails, we leave the pups home.  Those hikes would be the perfect time for a Picnic Backpacks!

Yes, I need one of these!  I have added it to my birthday wish list.  I bet I know one thing I will be getting for my next birthday now. 

How to Pack a Beach Picnic 

A picnic on the beach sounds divine!  I love the beach, the ocean, watching the sea life and even building sand castles.

Cynthia Davis not only tells us How to Pack a Beach Picnic, but she also shares excellent tips for a beach picnic and recommended beach picnic food.  

• Picnic Basket with Finger Foods (sandwiches, cut up vegetables & fruit, etc)
  
• Cooler with Drinks
• Sunscreen & Sunvisors/Sunglasses
• Plastic Utensils
• Wet Wipes
• Picnic Blanket or Beach Chairs
  

So, while we are building our sand castles, we will also be building a stronger bond with each other and lasting memories.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Creative Flower Photography

Flowers are everywhere and I have seen many pages online  where people include photos of flowers.  It may be a page about gardening, a product for flowers, or perhaps a vacation where you  enjoyed beautiful flowers.  Whatever the occasion you will want to make sure you have some great photos of flowers to include on your page.

Taking photos of flowers is easy and with a bit of creativity you can capture some great images.

This week as I was browsing through some of my own flower images I wrote this page on photographing flowers.

Here are some pages where writers online use flower photos 

• On this page Sylvestermouse shows us the beauty of her own garden Gardens and Trees
• Dawn Rae writes about travel in the mid atlantic states.  On this page she shares her flower photos on a trip to Longwood Gardens

I am looking forward to seeing even more great flower photos online.  Happy Shooting !
photographs on this page are my own-mbgphoto

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Gardening is Therapeutic

Gardening is a wonderful way to spend time in nature without anyone or anything there to undo your sense of calm and contentedness.   Gardening is Therapeutic in so many ways!  Not only is it therapeutic,  but you get to create and enjoy the labors of your work.  Now that could be sitting by the garden and admiring all the beautiful flowers or it could mean having a nice fresh salad with vegetables that you helped to grow!

I can't think of a better way to have beauty and bounty all in one place at the same time.  Oh how wonderful it is to garden.

In order to get that garden to that state though requires some work, and work requires tools.  Oh of course we have our two hands,  but there are tools that Gardeners just must have and to that end I would like to make some suggestions, gently pointing you to some of the tools that we just can't live without!

Review these tools and if there is something that you really need, read on and put them on your "Gardening Bucket List"  who knows, there just might be a new tool to make your gardening chores easier and more rewarding than it already is......


No home should be without at least one of these. I have a couple, one for me and one for my other half, that way we aren't fighting for the same tool at the same time.......he has his and I have mine and we will battle the weeds together....The Best Chemical Free Method Of Ridding Your Yard Of Weeds


Having a Garden also means that sometimes you will need to dig. Nothing makes that job easier than a good Garden Fork. See for yourself how this tool will make some job easier.....A garden fork does many jobs

Those tools are for some of the harder work,  but there are tools that will help you to enjoy the beauty in the garden too.  Just see what a good pair of garden nippers can do:
Ratchet Secateurs

Then there are the tools that are used in other parts of the world, that have found a home here too!  One of my personal favorites is a Japanese Sickle.  I love this tool!
Nejiri Kama Japanese Sickle

This is a short list of tools that will make gardening a real pleasure.  If you have a favorite tool that you would like to see featured, then write about it and let me know so that after all is said and done, we will have a great list of wonderful tools for every garden everywhere.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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A Few Favorite Things

Review This! is a group blog, written by a double handful of women who are passionate about writing.  Our personalities and topics vary greatly but we are all passionate about a common thing. We all are excited about sharing information about the things we love.

As the someone who loves to wander around the mid-Atlantic region I usually share the places I love to visit during my travels.  Today I’d like to share a few of my favorite things instead of places. Interestingly enough, many of these things have something to do with my adventures in this region.

I love simple and functional things like my Bubba Tumbler. As I write this, I am sipping an iced mixture of Cranberry-Pomegranate and water drink with a sprig of mint that was grown in my vertical garden on the balcony. I am not the most gifted gardener, add this to the logistics of my living in a teeny third floor apartment, and gardening is not always a success in my world.  But I’m not alone in gardening passion in the world of blogs.  There are many gardeners who write and I never grow tired of reading their helpful and creative ideas.  I probably would not have tried to grow mint on my balcony until I read about it from fellow writers. Now, I not only grow it successfully, but I use it daily.

When I’m not writing, I am often reading.  I read everything from children’s books about the places I see, like the magical ‘wild pony Island’ (our family nickname for Assateague Island) and the Scientists who care for the pony population to adult romances, dramas, and memoirs that are situated in the mid-Atlantic region.  My three favorite authors live and write this region.  The very talented story tellers gift me with plenty to do on the days I want to kick back and relax with a good book.

I think today is one of those days. 

Image Credit: ©Dawn Rae – All Rights Reserved 

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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