When planning a party, you keep up with the latest trends. Even within events and parties, trends change. This includes party invitations. There are really some fun ways that you can invite guests to your party that is creative and truly out-of-the-box. Invitations are such an important part of your party since they immediately show off the theme of your event, therefore, they must be special. Wedding and Party Network has got some great party invitations that are definitely on trend.

Invitation & A Gift – What better way to get your guests more into your party than with a gift? It doesn't have to be big, just attach something small to the invitation. Small paperweights, bookmarks or even a cd with a few songs that conveys the theme of your party are all wonderful gifts to include with the party invitation.

Video Or CD – A creative way to invite guests is to send them a little DVD with a movie on it inviting them. This is really creative and such a fun thing for your guests to pop in their DVD player and watch. This will definitely grab their attention and get them extremely ready for the party. Find a videographer to help you create your own little video montage.

Make sure it goes with the theme. However, if you can't go with the video invitation, think about creating a CD. You can create a song montage with your speaking or even do a mash-up of songs to let them invite your guests over, that may be a little bit of work but so fun to listen to that your guests will listen to it a few times.

Food – If it's a smaller party, think about hand delivering your invitations, which makes it great when you are hand delivering cupcakes or cakes. Write out the details on the cake or spell it out with cupcakes. Your guests will find it truly delightful when you show up on their doorstep with some freshly baked goods and a party invitation. However, remind them to write the details before the eat it all up.

Flowers – Again, if this is a smaller party with not a lot of guests, consider delivering them flowers as part of their party invitation. Make sure the flowers match your party's color scheme and even the design. Having you show up on their door with fresh flowers will truly make their day. They'll definitely be attending your party!

However, pick the party invitation that best fits your party budget and style. Invitations make impressions on your guests and makes them excited for your event.

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We all think that Valentine's Day is all about showing the love, reds, pinks, purples and candied hearts, however, is that how everyone else celebrates? What do other people around the world do to celebrate Valentine's Day? Do they all plan romantic dates and give each other chocolates and flowers? It's interesting to see how everyone else does celebrate this holiday, since most people don't celebrate the holidays exactly the same. Wedding and Party Network is bringing you how every around the world celebrates Valentine's Day.

Brazil – They actually celebrate this holiday on June 12th and call it "Dias dos Namorados". Even though it's a different day, they still celebrate by exchanging flowers, presents and chocolates. It's actually celebrated on the 12th since the 13th is Saint Anthony's Day when single women perform "simpatias" or rituals in an effort to find a good boyfriend.

South Korea – On February 14th or White Day, the men give candy or gifts to the women. On April 14th, the women who didn't receive anything go to restaurants to eat black noodles to mourn the fact that they don't have a special love in their life. The 14th of just about every month represents love in some way, such as Kiss Day, Wine Day and Hug Day.

Slovenia – They celebrate this holiday on February 14th and focuses on the proverb, " St. Valentines bring the keys of roots". It is the day that they believe the flowers start growing, so farmers and vineyard workers work to plant seeds. It is also believed that they birds got married on this day. So, children traditionally make boats holding candles from wood and paper and send them downstream.

Japan – Instead of the guys showing love, it's the women who are expected to buy gifts. They buy chocolates for their closest friends, bosses and coworkers. However, that someone special in their life expects something more. On March 14th, the guys return the favor.

South Africa – They make Valentine's Day into a huge celebration. Week long parties, romantic dates and the observance of "Lupercalia" where you wear your lover's named pinned on your sleeve. What a great way to celebrate!

France – The people of France celebrate the same way that Americans do. However, they used to practice a custom called, "drawing for" Valentine's Day. Unmarried people would go into houses that faced each other and call out the window to pair off.

Everyone celebrates it in a slightly different way, however, it all revolves around love.

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The Super Bowl is coming up on February 5, 2012. Have you already made plans to host a Super Bowl party at your house? What are you doing, just the traditional food, drinks and watching the big game on television? Why not switch it up a bit and do something a bit different? It's also fun and exciting to change things up a bit, even if it's minor. Change up your Super Bowl party with the help of Wedding and Party Network. We've got some fabulous tips that will make your party a huge hit!

Plan Accordingly – Of course, with every party, you also need to plan accordingly. How many guests are you inviting, what type of food are you serving, are you having party decorations and do you plan on having activities for everyone? The best thing to do is to sit down and write everything out. Make a list of everything. This truly makes planning easy.

Party Decor – This party doesn't need a ton of party decorations at all. Just keep it within the team's colors. Divide it half and half to be fair to all your guests, unless all of you are rooting for the same team to win. Use the colors within the table cloths, centerpieces and scatter some footballs around. Use beer mugs or football koozies for the floral arrangements, except place simple flowers. Just keep it simple.

For The Food – Since it's the beginning of the new year, a lot of people made new year's resolutions to eat healthier. So, keep this in mind when planning your party menu. Instead of doing a variety of food that really doesn't go well together, think about planning out a food theme. Go with a chili bar and serve different types of chili, even a healthier version, like turkey chili. You can include all the toppings and even some hot dogs, burgers or nacho chips.

However, you can take a different approach and host a taco night, soup night or a burger bar. This way, you don't have way too much food to satisfy everyone's appetite and your menu isn't all over the place. Focus on one or two appetizers to satisfy everyone while everything else is cooking. Don't forget, you can always find a local caterer to create your meal so you're not in the kitchen all day. They always have great ideas and it frees you up from the kitchen.

Sweets – Of course, go with the theme and have a football shaped cake or football cupcakes and cookies. Just keep in mind football and the teams that are playing. You can even set up a cute dessert table that replicates a football field and have cupcakes in the team's colors and place them on the field. Don't forget to always keep in mind how you display your food. It makes everything that much better.

Don't Forget The Drinks – Drinks are just as important as the food. Have a signature drink for the evening or even have one for each team. You can do punch, have beer tasting for the guys or margaritas if you go with the taco theme. Make sure you have drinks that pairs well with the food and display them in a fun way.

Game Day Activities – Of course, you can have games like washers, horse shoes, bean bag toss or ping-pong set up to play before the big game starts. Don't forget to have everyone pick who they think will win too, which makes a great game day activity.

The Super Bowl is a great time to get friends together and hang out all day to enjoy each other's company. It's a great time to host a party and to get creative.

Valentine's Day is a day for love. It's about showing the people you love how much you do care for them. However, everyone thinks that this needs to be shown EVERYDAY, not just on this one day out of the entire year. For those who only get around to it a couple of times a year, this day included, you need to go all out. This doesn't just include your sweetheart, it includes your kids as well. Wedding and Party Network has got your Valentine's Day planned out for you.

Start The Day Off Right – Before you wake your child or children up for school, place tiny Valentine's Day gifts around the house. Place a flower on their bed stand, draw a heart on the bathroom mirror and have a card that plays music set out with their clothes. Also, don't forget to create their favorite food in the shape of hearts, like pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream or biscuits and gravy.

Off To School – Have something special planned for the kiddos on their way to school too. It will make their day that much more special and help school go by way fast, which they will enjoy. So, tell them how much you love them. Also, pack their lunch with special treats, make sure they have Valentine's for their friends at school and a box of chocolates for their teacher.

If You Have Time… – If you have time during the day, spend time whipping up a tasty Valentine's Day dinner and desserts. This can serve as an after school snack on their way home when you pick them up.

A Special Lunch – Take time to go to school and have lunch with your child. They'll absolutely love that and feel special. You can even bring them flowers, stuffed animal or candy to school for their present.

On Their Way Home – From school, give them their special after school snack. Play fun love songs and let them have a fun time on their way home. Be silly and enjoy one another's company, which can sometimes be taken for granted.

Dinnertime – For dinner, let your kids cook something they enjoy, like pizza. A heart-shaped pizza or macaroni and cheese will make excellent kid dinners. Don't forget about the special dessert.

Bedtime – Before bedtime, don't forget to tell them how much you love them and tuck them in for a good night's rest.

Make Valentine's Day a special day for your children. Also, you can take this same concept and apply it to your special sweetheart and significant other or even parents. Valentine's Day is a special day to show love, so do it!

Here at Wedding and Party Network we want to give you inspiration for your wedding details. The details are what sets your wedding apart from anyone else. The colors, theme, detailing and style all creates your wedding day style. So, today's Inspirational Friday will focus on party decorations! They are truly great and definitely show off your party theme. There are so many different ideas out there and ways to display your party theme through decorations. You just have to find a little inspiration and creativity.

Party decorations truly tell your party's story. They represent the color, theme, setting and everything else that you want your guests to know about your party. How you display them and what's included are both important. Displaying flowers in an elegant way lets your guests know that this party is elegant or having bright colors displayed throughout your party shows them that it's a fun and vibrant party. When planning a party, always think about your decorations and how they can tell your story.

Not a clue on what to do for Valentine's Day? It can be a stressful time trying to come up with the perfect gift for your sweetheart. However, it doesn't have to be so stressful. Wedding and Party Network has came up with the perfect combination for Valentine's Day. Pair a quote that describes your relationship's style with her favorite flowers. This is a sweet little treat that will truly be unexpected. Also, this gift doesn't have to be just for couples, it is suitable for dads to give to their daughters, moms to their sons or friend to friend. Whatever the relationship, this is always a wonderful gift.

Dads & Daughters – Sending flowers to a daughter at school, work or at home is always received with a warm welcome. As much as the girls may act like it's no big deal they got flowers from their dad or act like they didn't enjoy it, they really do. So, come up with the ideal quote that sums up your relationship with her favorite flowers.

First things first, come up with a quote or saying that describes your relationship. It can either be, A bushel and a peck, I love you, a saying you say to each other often or a simple I love you will do. Next, talk with your local florist. They have a ton of ideas that can be carried out through their floral designs and that will match the quotes.

Friendship – If you don't have anyone to send flowers to, why not send some to your best friend? Everyone would be lost without some type of friendship in their life.

So, why not celebrate that? Fill a vase full of oranges and attach the cute saying, Orange You Glad We're Friends. This is a fun little saying and your friend will be ecstatic that they received flowers and oranges from you. However, maybe you have an inside joke, attach that to your flowers. There are lots of ways to show that you're truly happy for their friendship.

For Your Mom – Lets not forget about our beloved moms. They are truly special to us and take care of us throughout everything. Therefore, Valentine's Day is as good as time as any to show them how much you care. Think of all the things that your mother likes.

Incorporate sewing into the floral arrangement and use the word Sew like So in your phrase. However, maybe your mom enjoys gardening. You can use the phrase, I dig you. Think of something fun and quirky and their hobbies. When you do that, you'll find a great floral arrangement they love.

The One You Love – Of course, we can't forget about the one you love. You may have sweet love quotes or even movie quotes that you share together, and if so, include that on your flower arrangement. It's all about the perfect pairing. The best thing to do is to search love quotes. Find one that best suits your relationship and attach it to your sweetheart's favorite flowers.

If you're sending flowers to your loved one on Valentine's Day, make sure it has the perfect quote that describes your relationship. Having the perfect combination of their favorite flowers and quotes makes for a wonderful Valentine's Day.

What major events do you have coming up this year? Anything special? Well, a first birthday does sound like a big milestone for anyone! However, what will you do to make your child's first birthday special? There are many, many ideas out there that can make it special. However, you have to find one that fits their personality and stands out from the rest. Well, Wedding and Party Network has our top picks for 1st birthday party themes.

For The Boys…

Monkey Around - Boys are all over the place, especially at the age of one. Therefore, a monkey themed birthday party is perfect! Think all things monkeys. Create trees, place monkeys around and use bananas. Refer to all things monkey. Also, for the food, fix banana pudding, monkey bread and banana cupcakes. However, not everyone enjoys bananas. Therefore, create whatever you enjoy and just use printables that feature monkeys and cute names like monkeying around or monkey crunch.

Hole In One -An adorable theme is a hole in one party, which focuses on golf. Create a blue and green theme and use this color scheme throughout everything. Plant grass in a square vase or just use paper grass and place donut holes on a stick and place them in the vase for a unique food display. Place golf balls out as party decorations, have golf cart rides, golf inspired cupcakes, "club" sandwiches and the party favors can be those plastic golf clubs.

Rock Star -A rocking birthday bash is a great theme for the little ones. You can definitely get creative with this one, using guitars and the color schemed red and black. You can have the little one rock a biker jacket for attire. How cute does that sound? Just place little guitars, drumsticks or music notes on everything. A great party favor is a plastic microphone filled with candy. This is definitely a great 1st birthday party for the little guy.

Barnyard Bash -Who doesn't enjoy animals? There are tons of ideas for this cute birthday party theme. Think of all the barnyard animals and what you can find in or around the barn. Create a fun barnyard cake complete with all the animals.

For The Girls…

Butterfly Ball - A party full of butterflies, fairies and a vintage feel, what little girl wouldn't love looking back on this party? Your main focus should be butterflies. You can find them in various colors, patterns and designs almost in any store, even home accent stores. Just plan this party ahead so you have plenty of time to look for unique butterflies. Hang butterflies from fishing line throughout the party, attach wings to the chairs, decorate the tables with tulle and place butterflies throughout the food table.

Little Miss Sunshine - You know, the ever popular girly shirts that feature, Little Miss Sunshine, Little Miss Rain or Little Miss Naughty. Well, base the party around Little Miss Sunshine (you can replace the word sunshine with the birthday girl's name). Think all things yellow for this party. Mix and match fun pastels with the yellow, but keep that the main color of your party. You can create whatever appetizers you may like, feature a fun yellow cake and a candy bar. This 1st birthday party is ideal for the bright and cheery little girl.

Pink Lemonade - A fun little pink lemonade birthday party is great! Think all things pink. Keep this party pretty simple and serve adorable lemonade in bottles or mason jars and keep the food light, like tea sandwiches, miniature cupcakes, vegetable platters and fruit trays. For the decorations, think pink streamers, balloons and even a pink lemonade stand. This party is simple yet perfect for a first birthday party.

1 Upon A Time - Make once upon a time and turn it into a 1 upon a time party. How cute is that? Of course, dress her up in a little tutu with a crown and make the party all things princess themed. You can choose whatever color you like or center it around a certain Disney princess. Take ideas for your favorite princess movies and incorporate that into the decorations, food and party games.

Pinwheels & Pearls -Pinwheels and pearls is a cute little theme that looks great on the invitation and so adorable within the party decorations. Serve up cute little pinwheel food, like sausage pinwheels, turkey pinwheels or jelly rolls. Anything that is related to pinwheels. Even pinwheel cookies and place them on a stick. Think pastels, pinwheels and pearls to place out for party decorations. This party is too cute!

Whenever planning a 1st birthday party, keep the child in mind and try to match the party theme to their adorable personality. What do they love most or what do they remind you of most? This is a very special occasion that needs to be remembered and truly celebrated in fashion.

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The holidays are over, so what's next? Time for a breather or you can go ahead and start planning a rockin' Valentine's Day party! Planning a Valentine's Day party is stressful. You may be unsure on what direction to take with your party, such as, you may want to get away from all the love and romance and just make it fun. Well, Wedding and Party Network has a party idea that is fun, out-of-the-box and everyone will enjoy it!

Party Theme – When you think about this holiday, you immediately think of love and romance. Some people aren't a fan of this holiday since they don't have a significant other in their life. However, it's fun for everyone! Invite your closest friends over and host a Rockin' Valentine's Day Party! This theme takes a different take on this holiday by throwing some rocker accents into the party.

Rockin' Party Decorations – Think guitars and rock and roll. However, keep it within the holiday colors, like red, pink, white and purple. Don't forget to add some black into it though to give it that rocker edge. Feature a sign with a big guitar, banner with edgy font & designs and incorporate it mainly everything you can. Also, instead of soft colors, choose bright hues.

Fun Party Food – Of course, you can stick with the appetizers you normally serve at your party. Vegetable platters, dips, meat and cheese tray, mini sandwiches or fruit trays are all great items to serve at your party. It's all in how you present the food. So, for this party, choose brightly colored platters and create little guitars with the name of the food printed on it.

Now dessert is where you get creative. Feature brightly colored cupcakes with guitar toppers instead of a party cake. Also, you know those candy hearts that come around during this time a year? Use that concept for sugar cookies and place cute sayings like, "love rocks" or "you rock." Don't forget to incorporate some guitar-shaped cookies in with it. Have cake pops and spell out words with them or even colorful drinks with fun heart straws. There are so many creative food ideas out there, just remember to incorporate Valentine's Day, a little rock and roll and display it in a fun way.

Say Thanks – Don't forget to say thanks to your guests. Find little mailboxes and decorate them with guitars and saying for your guests as a little Valentine's Day mailbox for all their cards. You can even suggest that your guests or the children bring cards for everyone to exchange.You can even have a candy bar and let your guests fill up their mailbox with lots of goodies.

Activities – For the children, let them decorate their own cards or mailboxes. Now for an activity that everyone can enjoy, set up Guitar Hero or Rock Band. The adults and children will love doing this activity together.

Instead of focusing on romance, host an event for everyone that is absolutely rockin'!

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It never hurts to plan ahead, especially if you want to make everything stress free and perfect! There are steps that you can take to make planning your parties easier. If you plan ahead, you can make sure you get everything you need for your perfect party. So many times people plan and you're running around last-minute and you may not get everything you would like. Wedding and Party Network has your party planning guide for the new year that will help you throw a successful party.

It's All About The Basics – Sit down, take out a calendar and start planning out what type of parties you would like to host. Figure out what type of party and plan out all the basics. You must figure this out first before you can do anything else. Plus, it helps everything else fall into place.

It's A Date – Once you know what type of parties, start setting dates. Figure out a weekend that is best for the event. This way, you don't have to work around everyone else's schedule since you will have had your event planned since the beginning of the year. It also helps figure out when you will send out the party invitations.

Who To Invite? – Figure out the size of your event. Some may be smaller, larger or it could be only for a set of certain people. Think about the space. You may be limited to the number of people you can invite. You also want to think about who gets along with who and so forth.

Location, Location, Location - Once you know what type of event and how many guests, consider location. If it's for a birthday party for someone special, maybe they enjoy a certain place or restaurant. Plan to have it there, which since you're planning in advance you are definitely more likely to actually get the spot you want, unlike waiting till the last-minute. There may be a great venue that fits the theme of your event as well. Planning ahead of time gives you way more options for a place instead of waiting till the last-minute when you risk the chance of them being booked.

Food Ideas – You've figured out what type of event, estimate of your guests and the location; now it's time to get an idea for the food. You can also think about your budget when you start thinking about food. Cocktail events tend to be a bit cheaper and give your guests variety. If it's a more formal event, think about having a sit down dinner.

Plus, if you're having a theme, you can start planning out the menu with the types of food that fits best and what's in season. Planning ahead will also help ensure a caterer, if you plan on using one. Don't forget to think about what goes with the type of food or dinner you choose, like table linens, glassware, serving pieces and etc.

Budget – Now that you know exactly what you want, it's time to sit down and think about the budget. Plan a starting budget for the entire year and decide which event you'd like to spend more on and which one you don't mind to cut back. Also, consider all of your party elements, including food, liquor, party decorations, entertainment and flowers. Think about what deserves to be the highlights at each event and what you can hold back on.

Entertainment – You also need to consider entertainment. Does your budget allow for it or does your event really need it? If it's more low-key, skip it. You can always opt for a cd player. However, if it's for a formal affair, it might be neat to have live music. Think about what type of event, what fits best and your budget when figuring out entertainment.

Now that you have these basic elements out-of-the-way, you can start pulling your event together closer to the date. This can be your guide for all your parties. Just remember, the main key here is to always plan and your event will be flawless.

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Are you planning a quiet evening in with the family for New Years? When you think of a quiet evening in, don't think about being stuck in front of the television all night waiting for the New Year's ball to drop. It doesn't even have to be like that. Yes, you want to not fight the crowds out on a night like this, yet you don't want to be stuck inside doing nothing. Don't make your night be boring in with these exciting activities from Wedding and Party Network.

Time Charades – Since New Year's Eve is all about counting down the time, why not make a game out of it. In fact, if you have games you enjoy, base those on time as well. Play games that are timed, like Boggle, Cranium or Speed. Also, make that the theme of your game like time inspired charades. Act out the television show Lost or Time is on My Side. These great games will have everyone enjoying their time in.

Resolution – Another great game is to guess everyone's New Year's resolution. This night will include close friends and family, so it's fun to see what they have planned for the new year. Plus, it may even help them stay on track to keep it. Have everyone fill out a piece of paper with their resolutions and then later in the evening have everyone pick which resolution belongs to the guests.

Kid's New Year's Resolutions – If you're in with the children, help them create their own. Sit down with them and explain exactly what a resolution means. Once they understand, ask them what they would like to achieve in the new year. Starting out young may help them keep their resolutions once they are older.

Time Capsule -This is great for friends, family or children to share in. Place items from the past year into a time capsule. On the following New Year's Eve, invite over the same people and take out the time capsule. How much fun will it be to reminisce on the previous year and share great memories with some good laughs.

Year In Review – Before the party, plan out a game that covers major events that happened. Quiz your guests on the past events, even split up into teams and make a friendly competition out of it.

There are many activities out there that make your New Year's Eve in absolutely fun! Being indoors doesn't have to be about sitting in front of the television waiting for midnight. Enjoy these activities and your night will be truly memorable.

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