Theme party #2: Black and White Party

Just a month after our Downton party in April, we had a Black and White party for Michaela's birthday in May.  It was a labor of love, born of 3 years of conversations.  Michaela once went to a Black and White party back in Scotland, and she’s always dreamed of doing one in our house.  We have an open area that’s mostly black and white already, and so we started discussing what it would take to pull off an all-B+W party.  It took some doing, including painting a green wall white.   (Neither the green nor the white was a great paint job, but it’s not a conspicuous wall.)  We borrowed a bunch of black sheets from school, which uses them near the stage during plays and concerts.  Along with a bunch of old white sheets, they served to cover several doors and chairs, a couch, and a few small tables for food.  

Each guest had to dress entirely in black, white, or gray.  We also asked each person to bring a black, white, or gray snack to share.  The guests got really into it!  We had everything from chocolate-covered marshmallows to coconut ice cream to dragonfruit, which is white with black seeds.   On the back left, you can even spot Michaela's homemade cupcake stand.  The drinks were my favorite part: she photocopied all the soda labels so that they were black and white.  It was so surreal looking at them – my brain wanted to add back the color!  We had old black-and-white commercials running on a projector, and then watched a classic black-and-white comedy: “You Can’t Take It With You.”  A big hit was some photo booth props we found online.

I don’t feel like a natural-born hostess, and I don’t usually crave large-group gatherings.  But I really had fun, not only at these events but also while planning them.  Hosting together been a great way to bond with my housemates, and I’m looking forward to future theme parties.  Any suggestions?