11 Fun 4th of July Party Ideas

When you think of a 4th of July party, you probably think of an all-American backyard barbeque decorated with plenty of American flags. While this traditional picture is a great way to celebrate the holiday, there are many other options available. Throw a fantastic 4th of July party that will knock the socks off all your guests!

1. Consider a bonfire. Gather some chairs around the fire and provide the makings for s’mores. Equip your guests with sparklers (safer than fireworks) they can light from the bonfire. As the main attraction, you really don’t need a lot of other décor, but you can always make simple bows from red, white, and blue ribbons to attach the back of each chair.

2. The kids will enjoy red white and blue glow-in the dark necklaces and bracelets by the fire.

3. Instead of relying on the usual American flags to adorn your paper products, look for star-shaped plates & bowls for your snacks at your local party store.

4. Check out your local balloon professional or florist for some fun red, white and/or blue centerpieces. Or you could simply place blueberries, strawberries, and white chocolate bark in a pretty glass dish in the middle of the table so your guests can munch while they’re admiring your creativity.

5. Get creative with some red, white and blue deserts, too – just use food coloring if need-be. You can plate those as centerpieces as well. Edible centerpieces are always a hit!

6. Use some red and blue light bulbs, twinkle lights or candles for a subtle accent.

7. Add some fun with Uncle Sam hats – a great conversation-starter. Make guests who didn’t wear red, white and blue wear them ;).

8. You can send some great patriotic invitations right from the EasyEventPlanning.com website. However, if you prefer to send paper invitations, you can achieve a patriotic theme just with your envelope color alone. Use red ink on white invitations inside a blue envelope (or some other variation). Look online for American history quotes, patriotic icons or songs for inspiration.

9. Looking for a patriotic spin on some classic picnic games? Try a balloon toss (with red, white and blue balloons of course), an egg toss (just dip the eggs in food coloring but don’t boil them) or a relay race with a flag instead of a baton.

10. If you want to stump the older kids (and some adults), make a poster of the US map (or pick one up) and cover up the states. See who can name each state the quickest.

11. Don’t forget the music! Download a fun and patriotic mix to your mp3 player.