Planning a sweet 16 party for that special birthday girl does not have to be stressful. A luau theme is an easy party to plan with lots of easy decorating and food ideas that will keep the birthday girl happy. By choosing a luau you can easily find premade decorations at party supply stores or you can make your own. Does this Spark an idea?
Invitations
Choosing an invitation for your luau party can help set the theme before the party begins. Using cardstock, you can easily create a beach ball shape and write the party details on it. Or you can use a real beach ball and write the information in permanent marker on the ball. If you have access to tropical themed postcards, use those as invitations. Another idea is to cut out a shirt shape from construction paper and decorate it to look like a Hawaiian shirt. To help set the mood of the party, include raffia armbands for the guys and silk flower combs for the girls to wear. You can find these at party supply stores.
Decorations
Unless you are lucky enough to live in a tropical paradise, you will need use decorations to make it feel like you do. Place inflatable palm trees around the party area or make your own by cutting them out of poster board. Use a CD player to play hula music to help set the mood. Look for grass skirts and hang them from the edges of porch railings and table or hang strips of green streamers to create your own grass skirt look. Many party supply stores sell Christmas tree lights with plastic decorations on them, such as Hawaiian shirts, fish or palm trees. These are a great addition to the room's décor. Also look for silk leis to give the guests when they arrive.
Food
Depending on your budget, there are a number of menu ideas you can choose from. For the larger budget, consider roasting a whole pig. Although you most likely have a way to cook it in the sand like a traditional luau, you can cook one on a large, rented roaster. Other great themed dishes include sweet potatoes, sweet and sour meatballs, beef teriyaki and pineapple sauces. A luau classic is poi, which is the mashed root of the taro plant, and makes an authentic addition to any luau menu. For a smaller budget, chips and pineapple salsa and tropical fruit platters are an easy solution. Or order in Hawaiian pizza from a local pizza place.
Cake
There are several ways you can go with a birthday cake. Chocolate lava cakes are one option. These are small, individual chocolate cakes filled with chocolate that oozes out like lava when you cut into them. A pineapple upside down cake is another choice. If you prefer to make a theme decorated cake, make a sheet cake and then use frosting to make a beach and ocean scene. Or create a round cake, frost it in a tropical theme and then place a plastic hula girl on top.
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