Oh What Fun! - Chill Holiday Party Ideas
By: Ann Nguyen ‘22
Now that finals are over, you should reward yourself for a great semester. It’s time for some fun and relaxation! If you and your friends are trying to plan the perfect get-together to celebrate the holidays but don’t want to go too crazy, here are some fun party ideas for you.
Tacky Sweater Party
There’s a sweater in the back of your closet that is a gloriously garish nightmare. It’s simultaneously the most horrendous and most beautiful thing in the world: your ugly Christmas sweater. Maybe there’s a terrible pun on it. Maybe there are bells and frills all over. Maybe it lights up when you press a button. Maybe it even plays music. Whatever makes your Christmas sweater spectacularly Christmassy and especially perfect, put it on and show all your friends. Because not-so-secretly, you rather love it. A tacky sweater party might just be the only time you get to wear it proudly. Possibly have a contest, rewarding the tackiest sweater. Give people more incentive to really go all-out.
Gingerbread House Decorating
Assembling gingerbread houses is the quintessential holiday baking activity. It’s always fun to see how creative you can get decorating them —whether you’ve baked the pieces yourself or if you bought a kit from your local grocery store. Plus, you get to eat the final product and snack along the way.You could even bake some gingerbread people to give your houses happy families… that are ready to be devoured. What’s not to love?
From hard candy windows to gumdrop walkways, there are endless possibilities. Maybe turn the party into a competition. Who can build the most aesthetic house? Which house is most stable? Which is tastiest?
Cookie Decorating
As with gingerbread houses, get ready to be creative and have your craving for sweets satisfied. Prepare different shapes with your dough — like sweaters, reindeer, snowmen, etc. Bake lots of sugar cookies with friends and break out the colored icing. Your sugary designs can be as complex or simple as you like. Regardless of what you decide, they are sure to be delicious!
Secret Santa
Gift-giving filled with mystery and suspense. The hunt for the perfect gift is especially thrilling when you know your recipient doesn’t know who you are. There’s an added sense of accomplishment at wowing your giftee, which makes it all the more fun. It’s also a great way to stick to your budget. As much as you may love giving thoughtful, over-the-top gifts to everyone, your wallet may not share that sentiment. Secret Santa is a great way for everyone to have really amazing gifts without everyone having to spend too much money. It’s definitely better to have a close-knit group for this game so everyone knows what kinds of things their gift recipient wants. If not everyone in your group knows each other well, don’t worry! Just make sure all participants have detailed wish lists. Elfster is a great site that can help you manage your gift exchange if you don’t want to go the old pen-and-paper method. At the big reveal, you could also have people guess who their Secret Santa was.
White Elephant
If you’re in a larger group and/or the members of your party don’t know each other as well, this game is just the one you need. It also entails less commitment and less stress than Secret Santa. You could stop by a store ten minutes before your party and still be able to participate. Although, some of the best White Elephant presents do require careful planning. Each participant must conceal their gift and place it in a central location. Draw numbers to determine gift-selection order. As you go down the line, a person can either select a mystery present from the central pile or steal someone else’s! It adds laughter and light-hearted betrayal to the intrigue and excitement of Secret Santa. If you’re having a hard time deciding what to bring, don’t. You can choose to contribute basically anything. You could get practical gifts like a mini skillet for baking cookies, mini waffle makers, water bottles, etc. Cute presents could include fluffy socks, plush animals, and funko pop toys. Wacky gifts could be a framed picture of Danny Devito, a Nicholas Cage cardboard cutout, three bags of apples, a Bob Ross chia pet, or a book filled with memes. Let your imagination go wild!
Christmas Song Karaoke
“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…” So sing about it at the top of your lungs with your besties. Belt out Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You (Extra Festive)” or perform a duet of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” You’re with friends, so feel free to be as off-key as you’d like.
Movie Marathon
Turn down the lights, and turn up the volume. It’s time to go through the holiday classics. The holidays might not feel quite the same as they did when you were a kid, but these movies can definitely help put you in the right mood. Put on your holiday jammies, grab your popcorn, squeeze yourselves under a giant warm blanket, and watch movies like Home Alone, Miracle on 34th Street, Polar Express, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Elf, Disney’s The Santa Clause, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, and so many more. Channels like Freeform have ongoing marathons if you have trouble curating your own watchlist.
Some final touches to take any holiday party up a notch include:
Hot Cocoa with Marshmallows
Candy Canes
S’mores
Eggnog
Christmas Lights
Warm Fire
Be sure to take lots of pictures to capture the great memories. Enjoy yourself this winter break. You really deserve it. Happy Holidays!
Want more from Trojans 360?
Visit Trojans 360 on Facebook & Twitter to stay up to date with more student content! You can also Ask A Trojan an anonymous question, and we’ll try to answer it in a future post. And don’t forget to follow us on Instagram!
Trojans 360 is USC’s official student-run blog. Content created by students, for students.
