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The Secret to Taking the Toga Party from Sheets to Chic

Ever since Animal House made “Toga! Toga! Toga!” famous, the toga party has become a rite of passage for party lovers around the world. With its popularity on college campuses, it's no wonder it has acquired a questionable reputation.  Don’t let this ruin such a fun party theme! Wedding and Party Network knows just how to create a classy mixer from this classic party theme, promising to give your club or Greek organization an Olympic image.

Amp Up the Theme and Transform the Toga Party

Greek Party Decor
Why party like the average Greek when you could party like the gods? Tell your guests this toga party is for Olympians only with a Mount Olympus theme. With this simple change, you have made a sloppy cliché into a soiree promising lavish food and decorations worthy of Zeus himself. The transformation will take only a few minor changes.

The Invitations

To take your toga party to the next level, start with an elegant invitation. Use rich colors, specially gold, and a font which looks like calligraphy. Choose your wording to match the Olympic theme with something like, “Athena (or whichever Greek god or goddess you choose) requests your presence on Mount Olympus for a night of food, drink, and music.” Bonus points if you have them printed on scrolls and hand-delivered!

The Costumes

The best thing about a toga party is the costume. Togas are easy, affordable, and fun costumes that all of your guests can easily put together. There will be those who are reluctant to surrender themselves to the toga, so help them out. Offer to help guests with their toga 20 to 30 minutes before the party starts so no one has to worry about making their own.

Encourage guests to make their most inventive Greek god or goddess costume for an elegant twist to these classic costumes. To reward guests for their efforts, have several thrones set up throughout the venue and have those with the best costumes claim their right to the throne. These thrones would also make great photo backdrops.

The Decorations

For the Mount Olympus party theme, the decorations are very manageable. Start collecting sheets and pillows in deep reds, blues, creams, or white.  Ask friends if  you can raid their linen closets and search your local department store. Drape the sheets over seating and hang it from the walls. Cover the floor with the pillows for a simple, lush detail. If you have any stone statues or pillars, these will be perfect accents to the decor.

You can also check your local party store for the perfect Greek pieces. To add the Mount Olympus touch, think paradise. Collect potted plants and trees and fill the area with greenery. String lights can add a magical touch. It’s as simple as that!

The Food

Depending on how formal you want the event to be, you can really make your toga party with the food. Of course grapes, cheeses, and olives are all perfect matches for the theme; but to really step up your game, don’t hold back. Wherever you serve your food, make sure to give it the appearance of abundance. An overflowing buffet will give your toga party an unforgettably extravagant touch.

Fill golden bowls past the rim with apples, pear and oranges. Have grape bunches of different colors hanging over the edges of the table and platters.

It doesn’t take a huge budget to achieve this look. If you are lacking enough food for the “overflowing” style, find smaller containers and tables. Remember, it's about achieving a lavish image without breaking the bank!

Why stop with the food? Build a chalice tower of sparkling cider for a party without alcohol, or your favorite wine for those wanting some harder drink. Just remember, keep it classy!  The chalices will give the powerful tone of the gods and the overflowing cups will delight guests.  If you really want to impress, hire a catering service to meet all of your guests culinary needs.

Speak with your local caterers and see who specializes in Greek food and if they could provide some waiters to serve your demigod guests – maybe even in their own togas!

The Party Favors

When they come to your Mount Olympus party, your guests are going to want to feel like gods and goddesses. So give them what they want! Party favors can make your guests feel like royalty and leave with a reminder of how great your event was. A laurel wreath is the perfect addition to any toga costume, but not all of your guests will know how to make one. Hand them out as party favors and guests will be ecstatic. Don’t forget these are gods and goddesses, so paint your laurels gold with spray paint for a luxurious touch.

Around the room you can also have fun, themed props.  Cut out and paint some lightning bolts for the Zeus-lovers and place roses around the room for your Aphrodites. Golden bows, spears, hammers, and other weapons will be perfect for warrior gods. Whatever you use, just make sure it's fun and sticks with your Mount Olympus theme.

The Entertainment

Laurel Wreath
If you want to entertain your Olympic guests, think extravagant. For music and an added class bonus, find or hire someone to play the harp while guests mingle. Even if you don't stick with the Greek theme for your music – let's face it, it's not easy to find authentic greek musicians – hire music entertainment worthy of the gods.

For games,  why not look on the local sports channel? The Greeks claimed the root of the ancient Olympic games were their gods. While many stories circulate about the Olympics’ origin, the purpose always remained to serve the gods and bring peace and harmony to the lands.

Organizing your own Olympic games would be a fun way to get everyone involved. Traditional games included foot races, long jump, discus throws, and other sports in today’s track and field competitions.

For a simpler take on this, think of fun, picnic relay races. Sack races, water balloon tosses, or a football throwing contest would be fun for everyone.

Everyone loves a good toga party, so it won’t be hard to delight guests with this classic party theme. When you transform it into this elegant Mount Olympus party, you open up your event to impress everyone in attendance. The Mount Olympus theme is perfect to introduce your sorority, club, or organization to the masses. While they’re having fun partying in a toga, they won’t forget that you made such an impressive party out of Animal House’s old party theme.

This post is brought to you by Miami Party Invitations
Not in Miami, FL? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find party invitations near you!

Greek party decor via Momentary Madness

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Day of the Dead Celebration

There are many holidays worth celebrating throughout the year. Why not this year choose a holiday that you've never celebrated before? There are many holidays that you may never have heard of before. Wedding and Party Network has a holiday that is a must to celebrate this year, the Day of the Dead.

Day of the Dead Cake
This Mexican holiday has been celebrated for over 3000 years. The ritual of honoring the dead began with the Aztecs and other ancient civilizations. It's a time to honor deceased relatives with a festive celebration that includes dancing, sugar skulls, masks and prayer. This is just a unique holiday and maybe something that you've never celebrated before. However, everyone will have a great time.

Party decorations – When decorating for this party, use bright colors, skulls, festive banners and flowers. If you need some ideas, visit your local party store for decorations and search online for ideas.

What to serve – Think about cooking up your favorite Mexican dishes. You can go with tacos, nachos, queso, mole, Mexican rice and Mexican hot chocolate. Try to keep it authentic. If you're unsure on how to create authentic Mexican food, talk with your local caterer.

Also, use sugar skulls. This is part of your party decorations, and some are made out of paper mache or craft material. However, they are really made out of real sugar. Try and create them yourself or you can always talk with your bakery as well. It will be something fun and authentic to include in your party. Don't forget about the tradition of breaking bread. It's a sweet bread with anise seed and orange that is used as an offering.

Include traditions – This holiday is all about ritual. So, include some if within your party. Raise your wine to the dead or even create crafts. You don't have to go full-out, but remember your loved ones during this time.

This party is something unique and is a great alternative for your Halloween party.

This post is brought to you by Miami Party Caterers. Not in Miami FL? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find party caterers near you!

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Flashback to High School

Are you looking for a fun party theme for a birthday party or even a class reunion? Of course, there are many out there. You can find various party themes, party colors or decorations. Wedding and Party Network has a great party theme that will take you back to high school.

Theme of this party – Really, the idea behind this party is to grab some of your friends together that you are close with or you may not have seen in awhile and center it around high school. It's a time when you and your friends can relive the good ole' days.

Megaphones
Invite your guests – For your party invitations, include elements of high school into it. Pom poms, glasses, books, footballs, basketballs, instruments or make it a chalkboard themed invitation. Tell them to dress up as some high school stereotypes or maybe what they were known as in high school. It may have been the jock, band student, honor roll student or cheerleader. It would be fun to relive that aspect in high school.

Party decorations – How do you decorate for a high school party? Break out the foam fingers, pom poms, signs like you used during pep rallies, textbooks or even maybe some cheesy prom decorations. Whatever you decide to use, make sure to incorporate something fun that everyone will remember. Hang signs on the wall, decorate the tables with foam fingers & pom poms and incorporate textbooks into the centerpieces.

High school food – What did you eat in high school? Does macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets, chips, jello, sandwiches, pudding, nacho bar, pizza, candy, chocolate milk in milk cartons, tator tots and brownies. Basically, everything junk food inspired. Don't forget to serve the food in the cafeteria lunch trays too. This makes for a fun addition to your party.

Party activities – Besides reminiscing on your found memories of high school, there are some games to incorporate into the party as well. Think about having a photobooth where you can take yearbook photos or have people vote on the most popular and who ended up being just what they planned in high school. It can be fun categories or really see how everyone's life has turned out so far and if it is what they expected.

This party is great for birthdays, class reunions or just because. Get all your friends together and remember the high school days like they were yesterday.

This post is brought to you by Miami Party Photo Booths
Not in Richardson, TX? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find Halloween Decorations near you!

Megaphone photo via Westside Shooter

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A Muddling Party

It's always great to come up with an unexpected party theme. Having something that is unexpected will definitely draw your guests in.There are many unique party themes, but you must find a theme that fits your style and personality. If you want something unexpected and out-of-the-box, Wedding and Party Network has just the theme for you.

A muddling party is such a fun get together for all your friends. This party is super simple to setup and you really need little supplies. Here are a few tips to make this party a success:

Beverages at an Event
  • Table – You need to a place to set up all your muddling supplies.
  • Table Cloth – Choose two colors that you want to focus on and incorporate those in your table cloth. The table is the main attraction so make sure you achieve that.
  • Cocktail Stirrers & Napkins – Once you've chosen the color theme, make sure to find cute cocktail napkins and stirrers for your party. This is a muddling party, so these items are a must.
  • Centerpiece – Of course, a centerpiece will definitely make the table the focal point of the night. Talk with your local florist and tell them what type of party you are hosting. They may have some great ideas on how to incorporate the theme of the party into your arrangement.
  • Mixing Glass & Muddler – You definitely need these items for your party. You may find some basic ones and decorate them up a bit with some paint or glitter to match the colors of your party.

Now that you've got the supplies. What will you serve at this party? What are the essentials you  need for a muddling party?

  • Fresh Herbs – Basil, Mint,
  • Fruit – Cherries, Raspberries, Blueberries, Blackberries, Lemons, Limes, Pineapple, Kiwi, Mango, Watermelon, Orange, Grapefruit
  • Spices – Cloves, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Ginger
  • Ginger Syrup
  • Soda Water
  • Sugar
  • Spirits

The point of this party is just to invite your friends over and do a little experimentation with drink recipes. It's fun to mix and match what you think will taste good together. You may be surprised. Some flavors may not mesh well, while other unexpected combinations may taste great. Gather up your friends and get to experimenting.

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A Roaring 20's Party

Are you looking for a great theme party to host? One that all of your friends will enjoy. A roaring 20's party is an absolute must! The costumes, decorations and styling of the party are all fantastic, which means a great party! Wedding and Party Network has a few tips on creating a fabulous roaring 20's party.

Roaring 20s Party
Roaring 20's Party Decorations – Take inspiration from this time period when planning your party. Right down to the party invitations, everything you give off that vibe. When you send your party invitations, find the typography, patterns and colors that were on trend during the 20's. This will let your guests know what type of party you are hosting and know that they will need to come in costume.

Next, create a 20's setup within your house or backyard. Drape your tables with black or red table cloths and have your florist create stunning event centerpieces that depicts the era. Make sure and set the mood with candles as well. Don't forget to decorate the tables with pearls and have the feather boa's ready. You can even go as far as setting up black cut outs of people in their flapper dresses and stylish hats and stick them to the wall.

What Party Food to Serve – Basically, serve what you like. If this is for a birthday party, serve the birthday girl/boy's favorite food. Or, you can focus on just serving appetizers. However, if you're wanting to stick to the theme, research what type of food they ate during the 20's.

Keep in mind that this era was during the prohibition and it actually did have impact of what they are and of course drank. Some examples are cream cheese sandwiches, nuts and date salad mayonnaise, olives salted nuts candied ginger, crabmeat croquettes, fruit cocktail, biscuit tortoni angel cake square bonbons and coffee.

Break Out Those Flapper Dresses – The best apart about this party is everyone gets to dress up! Who doesn't love a themed costume party? Girls, find those vintage flapper dresses or drop waist dresses paired with fish nets, garter and a cigarette holder. For the guys, they should be decked out in suits and definitely a hat. They can go with the mobster feel where they dress up in a suit, hat and make sure they have their toy gun holster. However, they can also go with a more preppster side of it by dressing in a summer suit and a flat cap.

The whole point of this party is to dress up. It's a great time for everyone to get into costume and have a great time!

This post is brought to you by Miami Party Decorations
Not in Miami, FL? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find party decorations near you!

Photo provided by Apres Fete

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A Masquerade Ball

Are you wanting to have an elegant and sophisticated Halloween party? There are many ideas out there. One party that does come to mind is a masquerade ball. This is great for all ages and especially the adults who aren't into going all out for Halloween. They can put on a fancy dress and a mask and be done. Wedding and Party Network has a few tips for your Halloween masquerade ball.

Party Setup

Masquerade Ball
If you're hosting a ball, it's best to rent out a larger event venue for this. The whole key to making your ball a success is portraying elegance. Drape the walls with black or white linens and hang lights underneath them. Next, set up the tables. They should be draped with black table cloths and accented with beautiful event centerpieces. Some amazing colors that will offset the black are jewelled tone colors and metallic. Silvers, deep purple, gold or even a great jade colors will all looks amazing on the table.

Sit down and talk with your florist. They will great ideas to create stunning centerpieces that will make your tables pop with exuberance. Create cascading event centerpieces that feature your colors with beautiful lighting underneath, have masks on each table, strands or pearls and glitter.

Also, don't forget about the place settings. This will add to the decor as well. Use unique tableware, napkins and creative place cards. You can use miniature masks as place settings and attach it to the napkins. Don't forget to add glitter and rhinestones to the masks. Don't forget the dance floor, amazing lighting and of course, your dj! Everyone will definitely want to get out on the dance floor and dance the night away.

What To Serve

Since you're going with elegance for this party, the food should state that as well. If you are wanting to cook your own dishes, make sure you have a menu for the appetizers, main course and dessert. For the appetizers, serve toasted brioche with crème fraîche, lobster salad on endive spears, phyllo cups filled with pesto & artichokes or sour cream filled sugar snap peas.

Martinated Shrimp in Martini Glasses
Next up, serve rack of lambs, duck with raspberries, beef Wellington or chicken tortellini. Of course, the main attraction is the dessert. Serve up yummy crème brûlée, chocolate parfait in a martini glass or a themed party cake. However, if you're truly unsure on what to serve, talk with your local caterer. They will have many ideas on what to serve at your masked ball. Don't forget, you can always go with whatever your favorite dishes are as well.

Get Into Costume

It's a masked ball, so start planning your costume. Get decked out in actual ball gown. You could always go a little less formal as well and go with any cute short formal dresses or even bridesmaid dresses that you have saved from past weddings.

This is an elegant take on a Halloween party. Honestly, this party can be throw year round. For New Year Eve, charity events or even birthday parties; it's a great themed party for any occasion.

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Not in Houston, TX? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find djs near you!

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Tailgating for Girls

It's tailgating time. However, not everyone enjoys tailgating. Some girls love football, however, others don't enjoy it as much but they are dragged to it because of their significant other. So, how can you make the experience more fun for girls? Wedding and Party Network has a guide for tailgating for girls.

Pizza Bar
What to eat. A lot of tailgating food can be a bit fattening and high in calorie. Are you trying to watch your weight, like most girls? You are at least trying to find something that is not soaked in grease. Well, get together with your girlfriends and plan out a skinny menu. The guys can bring their own food, while you bring something that is tasty, low cal, yet still in the gameday realm of food. What about a skinny pizza bar? You choose the toppings, which most of the toppings are low-calorie, but where the fat is at is the pizza dough. So, you can cut the calories by offering pitas. They are still delicious, gameday friendly and fewer calories.

Also during gameday, people tend to go with dips, which can also have calories. So, research on Pinterest, and find some low-calorie dip recipes like guacamole or fresh salsa and learn how to cut the calories by using Greek yogurt instead of mayo. There are great ideas. Also, don't forget about the drinks. These can have calories too or you may not be a fan of what the boys drink. So, come up with some unique punch recipes.

For dessert, come up with some fun cupcake ideas. Again, you can find healthy alternatives like using almond flour, no sugar and almond milk. However, this maybe where you want to splurge and even go with a Guinness cupcake with cute football cupcake toppers.

Gameday entertainment that is for girls. If you aren't that interested in the game, plan some gameday activities for you and your friends that will hold you over while the guys are wrapped up in the game. If you and your friends are into the new fashion trends, which is dressing up your nails, have a tutorial setup where everyone can paint their nails to look like footballs. However, you can also plan some games to play too.

When the girls are looking for something fun to do while the guys watch football, the girls should plan their own fun tailgate.

This post is brought to you by Houston Party Caterers
Not in Houston, TX? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find party caterers near you!

Pizza bar photo provided by Oh Party.

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Calling All Football Fans

It's that time of year again. It's football season. So, now is the time to start planning your gameday party. This is such a fun time for everyone, even if you're not a football fan. The party decor, party food and activities that go with gameday are always so much fun for everyone. So, Wedding and Party Network has some party tips and ideas for your next football party.

Football Cake

Party Decor – What's your favorite football team? Is there a team rivalry among your household? This is a great place to start for inspiration with your party decorations. Take a look at their colors, team mascot and other fun facts or style icons that make their team interesting. Find party decorations in your team's colors and decorate with streamers, pom poms, pennants, helmets, foam fingers, megaphones, footballs and balloons.

Another fun concept is to create football fields on your tables. If you have a few set up for guests to sit at or one set up for your food and desserts, turning them into a football field is a fantastic idea. You can take real turf or the outdoor rugs you find that resembles grass in a way and place them on top of the tables. Next, place the white lines and field numbers on the turf for the yardage. Don't forget the goal posts on the end and the football ready for kickoff.

Football Party Food – Finding the right party food for your football get together is simple. Take your favorite finger foods like chips & dip, salsa, guacamole, sliders, pigs in a blanket or nachos. There are various types of foods you can serve at this party. You can go with food bars, such as a pizza bar, Mexican bar, pasta bar, nacho bar or go with a finger food bar. There are so many options! Just have fun with it, and by fun, you can easily create your own football stadium with guacamole as the field, dips for the end fields, chips & crackers for the outside stadium and cheese for the players on the field.

However, get really creative with your desserts. You can create chocolate covered strawberries to look like footballs, football shaped cake, football cupcakes, football field cake or cookies. Talk with your local bakery and discuss some fun desserts that you can feature at your party.

Game Day Activities – What other game day activity would do other than play football? That's right, gather your friends and get together a great game of touch football. It will be fun for everyone.

This post is brought to you by Houston Party Caterers
Not in Houston, TX? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find party caterers near you!

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Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

September is the month for Hispanic Heritage. It's time to celebrate this important holiday if you have a Hispanic background, want to teach your children about the wonderful culture or just an excuse to have a party. You can definitely find inspiration from this month for your party. So, Wedding and Party Network has a few party tips and ideas for a Hispanic Heritage party.

First off, what is Hispanic Heritage Month? Why do we celebrate it? The date is actually September 15th to October 15th and the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central & South America. It was started in 1968 and was chosen to start on this day since it has significance; it is the anniversary of independence for five Latin American countries. It also celebrates the impact that they have had in North America.

Party Food & Decor
How to host a party:

Party Decorations – Look for inspiration from Hispanic cultures for your party decorations. First off, start with the colors. Red, green, white and yellow are what you think of when you think of Hispanic countries. So, incorporate these colors into all your party decorations. Feature beautiful cut out paper in the form of a banner, pinatas, lanterns, use cacti as party centerpieces and string party lights throughout your party. This will definitely help set the tone for your party.

What to Serve – The party food is extremely simple for this party. Make it be about bars. You can set up a taco/nacho/buritto bar where your guests can create their favorite Mexican inspired meals, feature a salsa bar or cheese dip bar. Just make sure you have all the right toppings, condiments and meats so your guests can create their favorite. For drinks, don't forget to have a margarita bar and bloody mary bar. Such delicious food to have at your party. If you want some real, authentic Latin American cuisine, talk with your local caterer.

Party Activities – For adults, you may even want to consider not making any food and having them bring their own authentic Latin American dish and you can discuss the culture and possibly even attempt speaking Spanish. For the children at your party, set out paper mache projects.

To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, host a party with all Latin America influences. Your guests will truly enjoy themselves and you can learn more about the culture.

This post is brought to you by Houston Party Caterers
Not in Houston, TX? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find party caterers near you!

Photo provided by Casos e Coisas da Bonfa

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Say Farewell to Summer with a Party

Summer is coming to a close, so why not host a party to say farewell summer? This is a great time to gather your closest friends and family together, especially for the ones who don't have any plans for Labor Day weekend, and a host a farewell summer party. So, Wedding and Party Network has a few party ideas and tips for creating a farewell summer party.

All things summer – With every season, there are items that are only found during that particular season and summer is no different. There are elements of summer that will definitely be missed throughout the fall, winter and spring seasons. So, celebrate that.

  • Rose Centerpiece
    Party Decorations –         Think about bright colors or even pick a theme for this party, like a Hawaiian luau or an all white party. Just think fun, festive and dedicate your party to summer. Use fun lighting, colorful paper lanterns, get blow up palm trees & flamingos and don't forget all things of summer to create a great setting for this party.
  • What to Serve – What do you serve at a farewell to summer party? Of course, all the delicious party food that only comes out during this season. You think of various melons, squash, zucchini, watermelon, berries or cherries. So, creating a fresh fruit and vegetable platter is a must. However, it's also the time for grilling burgers, hot dogs, brats and serving up potato salad and even BLT sandwiches. Don't forget about dessert. Include ice cream, snow cones and all things cool for your dessert since during the cooler months, you are looking to warm up. This will be such a fun party outdoors that everyone will enjoy!
  • Party Activities – There are various outdoor party activities to do during the warmer months. For example, have fun water slides, slip-n-sldes, sprinklers, horseshoes, bean bag toss, washers or create an outdoor party twister game. Just have fun with it. That's so important!

Celebrate the end of summer by hosting a farewell to summer for all your friends. This can be an all day get together or an elegant night out in the backyard. There are many twists you can put on this party, just make it your own and ensure everyone will have a fantastic time!

This post is brought to you by Miami Party Decorations.
Not in Miami, FL? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find party decorations near you!

7 Tips: Hosting for the Holidays

The holiday season is all about joy, togetherness, and celebration. But let’s be honest—it can also be a little stressful, especially if you’re the one hosting. Whether you’re planning an intimate dinner with family or a lively party with friends, these tips will make hosting for the holidays a breeze!

Hosting 101: Tips for a Seamless Event

Hosting an event can be a rewarding experience, but it requires detailed planning and execution. Whether you're organizing a party, shower, holiday dinner, or just a casual get-together, it's important to ensure everything goes according to plan so that your guests have a great time, and *bonus* you come across as a hosting pro! To make this easier, we've outlined some tips to help you host your next event with confidence.

Winter Wedding Tips

Breaking news… winter weddings are our latest love affair! The days are shorter and the nights are colder, but winter weddings are full of romance and have a uniquely magical essence.

2024 Bid Day Themes

In recent years, these trendy Bid Day themes have made waves on campuses nationwide, combining nostalgia, elegance, and fun into celebrations that are unforgettable and awe-inspiring! This year is no exception, and it's safe to say that we've got a few rush crushes of our own. We've compiled a list of some of our favorite 2024 Bid Day themes that you can take inspo from for your next event.