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I have been working hard at writing up all of the wonderful pirate party ideas from my brother’s Pirate Theme Birthday Party. This post is all about the pirate decorations and party supplies we used.

You can also check out the post I wrote on Making Pirate Party Invitations.

I had about a $200 budget for this party, and since we were ordering pizza and serving pop that left me with a decent decorating budget. I ended up making some of the decorations to save money, like the pirate flag and a cardboard treasure chest. (I will post instructions soon!)

With any theme party you will be decorating more than normal, and if you don’t have a large budget then you need to get the most bang for your buck. Here are the items that I purchased for this party…

Pirate Scene Kit

This was by far the decoration that had the most impact for the price. If you have never worked with scene setters, they are big plastic sheets that you stick up on your wall, and then you get these plastic “add ons” to decorate it further. If you get the kit you will have enough to decorate 30′ of wall. If you buy an extra set of sky/sea,  there are enough add-ons in the kit to decorate 60′ of wall without looking sparse. Here is a rundown of all the pieces in the kit, since you can by them individually, and they are not all created equal:

30′ Blue Sky & Ocean Beach Backdrop and 30′ Beach Wall Backdrop

This is the background material (one roll for the top and one for the bottom). I wish I would have bought another 30′ so we could have done the whole room. It is easy to put up with 2 people and some packing tape, but if you are worried about your wall I would suggest sticky tack. It took us about 30 minutes to hang 30′.

Most of these pictures were with the flash on, so they turned out a bit stark. The scene setters look much better in person without the flash bouncing off the plastic.

5′ Bonny Blade & Calico Jack Wall Add-Ons

I ended up decorating 2 doors with these guys, since they fit perfectly. I would get these again. (You can see Bonnie on the left side of the previous pic, on the door).

Dueling Pirates/Bandits and 5′ Pirate Hideaway Props Wall Add-Ons

The pirates and hideaway are pretty large. You cut them out from one large sheet, which didn’t take too long. I would buy these again as well.

Pirate Ship & Island Wall Add-Ons

These were the biggest pain in the butt… BUT… they looked really good. Like the dueling pirates they come in one big sheet and you cut them out. There are a lot of small pieces! I cut out most of them, and they looked great on the wall. So you will have to decide if it is worth it to you.

Pirate Treasure, Fatal Treasure, and Pirate Skeleton Peel ‘N Place Wall Decorations

These were the easiest to put up since they are just window clings! You can put them on your background or use them to decorate a window. These are smaller and relatively more expensive than the other add-ons, so if you are going to skip any of them I would say it should be these.

Blue Crepe Paper Streamers

We wanted to dress the ceiling up a little so we decided to do dark blue and light blue crepe paper in waves all across the room. It took about 45 minutes to do, and we used a lot of tape, but it looked fantastic, and we only spent about $5 on the streamers.

Gold Coins, Skull and Bones Confetti, and Multi Colored Beads

I did a mix of gold coins, mardi gras beads and skull and bone confetti around the room. I made piles of “treasure” everywhere and it really looked great. I bought 3 bags of gold coins and one bag of confetti offline, and I picked up the beads at a local craft store. They were in packs of 10 for $1, and I think I bought 10-12 packs. A lot of the kids augmented their costumes with the “jewels”. All in all it was about $25, and made a big impact.

Pirate Hat Snack Bowls

These were just some fun little hats I set around for snack bowls. They have a nice upturned brim that I filled with chips and pretzels. Volia! Pirate snack bowl!

I also had a few inflatables for a luau theme party we had a few years ago that we set up, and they were a huge hit. The sword is the only thing I purchased for this party.

• 44″ Inflatable Monkey
• 5′ Inflatable Palm Tree (We had 2)
• 3′ Inflatable Parrot
• Inflatable Sword (I bought this for my brother)

12′ Fish Netting

I wish I had bought more of this for around the room. We hung what we had over the favor table (you can see it in the top left corner of the picture). I think it would have been great as a table overlay on the blue plastic tablecloths. I would have liked to use it over the windows as well.

Now, if I had the extra money there were a few other things I had my eye on…

Pirate Ship Cooler

I would have loved to get this!

12″ Latex Pirate Balloons

We didn’t do balloons since it was too cold outside, but maybe you could use these cute skull and cross bone balloons.

6′ Jointed Pirate Skeleton and Pirate Cutouts

These are fun little signs and a skeleton. I decided not to buy them and try to make the signs instead. Which did not work out. So I probably should have just bought them. 

The last thing we did to decorate was to hang up some white twinkle lights around the edge of the room. this party was in a dark basement so it was in desperate need of some lighting! I took a picture with my flash off so you can see the glow of the finished effect:

J.J

Until my next Pirate Post (on making a pirate flag) I will leave you with this pirate song from one of my favorite plays:

“The Pirate King” - from The Pirates of Penzance

Oh, better far to live and die
Under the brave black flag I fly,
Than play a sanctimonious part,
With a pirate head and a pirate heart.

Away to the cheating world go you,
Where pirates all are well-to-do;
But I’ll be true to the song I sing,
And live and die a Pirate King.

For I am a Pirate King!
And it is, it is a glorious thing
To be a Pirate King!/For I am a Pirate King!…

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Create a great play list for your Christmas Party with my list of classic Christmas music. A great mix will add to the enjoyment of your guests at your holiday gathering.

42 Fantastic Songs to play at a Christmas Party:

1. A Holly Jolly Christmas - Burl Ives
2. White Christmas - Bing Crosby
3. The Christmas Song - Nat King Cole
4. Here Comes Santa Claus - Gene Autry
5. Greensleeves - Vince Guaraldi Trio
6. Carol Of The Bells - The Mormon Tabernacle Choir
7. Santa Baby - Eartha Kitt
8. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town - Burl Ives
9. Winter Wonderland - Louis Armstrong
10. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Judy Garland
11. Sleigh Ride - Boston Pops Orchestra (instrumental) or Johnny Mathis with Percy Faith & His Orchestra
12. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Burl Ives (or Gene Autry)
13. Cantique De Noel (O Holy Night) - Luciano Pavarotti
14. (There’s No Place Like) Home for the Holidays - Perry Como
15. I’ll Be Home for Christmas - Bing Crosby
16. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) - John Lennon and Yoko Ono
17. Silver Bells - Dean Martin
18. Mistletoe and Holly - Frank Sinatra
19. You’re a Mean One, Mr Grinch - Thurl Ravenscroft
20. Jingle Bell Rock - Bobby Helms
21. Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley
22. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow - Vaughn Monroe (1945 original) or Doris Day
23. Feliz Navidad - Jose Feliciano
24. Rockin Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee
25. ‘Zat You, Santa Claus? - Louis Armstrong
26. Frosty the Snowman - Jimmy Durante
27. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus - The Ronettes
28. Jingle Bells - Frank Sinatra
29. It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year - Andy Williams
30. It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas - Perry Como and The Fontaine Sisters
31. Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late) - Alvin and the Chipmunks
32. We Need A Little Christmas - The Muppets (my favorite!)
33. Merry Christmas Baby - B.B. King
34. Run Rudolph Run - Chuck Berry
35. O come, O come, Emmanuel - The Mormon Tabernacle Choir
36. Christmas Time Is Here - Vince Guaraldi Trio
37. Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee
38. Jingle Bell Rock - Bobby Helms
39. Adeste Fideles (O, Come All Ye Faithful) - Frank Sinatra
40. Christmas Canon - Trans-Siberian Orchestra
41. Baby, It’s Cold Outside - Dean Martin
42. Little Drummer Boy - Bing Crosby

If you would rather just pop in a few CDs instead, here are a few recommendations:

Dinner Music

• A Charlie Brown Christmas
• Christmas Songs - Diana Krall
• Rocky Mountain Christmas - John Denver

Party Music

• White Christmas - Bing Crosby
• Christmas with the Rat Pack
• The Best of Burl Ives - The Christmas Collection
• Time-Life Music: Treasury of Christmas
• Now That’s What I Call Christmas!

Have a wonderful Christmas Party!

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Many people are planning to invite friends over to watch the results of the election. If you are planning on having an Election Night Party, following songs are perfect to play as the results come in. I tried for a mix of patriotic, protest, and a few that are just fitting.

28 Fantastic Songs to play at an Election Night Party:

1. Fortunate Son – Credence Clearwater Revival
2. A Change is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke
3. What’s Goin’ On - Marvin Gaye
4. Imagine - John Lennon
5. We didn’t Start the Fire - Billy Joel
6. Sunday Bloody Sunday – U2
7. Redemption Song - Bob Marley
8. Sympathy for the Devil – Rolling Stones
9. The Times They Are A-Changing - Bob Dylan
10. All Along the Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix
11. Rockin’ in the Free World – Neil Young
12. (What’s so Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding - Nick Lowe
13. Taxman - The Beatles
14. Beds are Burning - Midnight Oil
15. Devil Inside - INXS
16. This Land is Your Land - Woody Guthrie
17. For What It’s Worth - Buffalo Springfield
18. Born in the U.S.A.- Bruce Springsteen
19. The Star-Spangled Banner - Jimi Hendrix
20. God Bless the USA - Lee Greenwood
21. Beautiful Day - U2
22. I Ain’t Marching Anymore - Phil Ochs
23. Where Have all the Flowers Gone - Pete Seeger
24. Country Roads - John Denver
25. Turn, Turn, Turn (To Everything There is a Season) - The Byrds
26. Freedom - The Isley Brothers
27. My Country ‘Tis Of Thee - Crosby & Nash
28. War (What Is It Good For) - War

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Ahoy there! I am in the middle of planing a pirate birthday party, and I wanted to share some of my ideas for making Pirate Theme Party Invitations. What you see above is the invitation I am using for the current party, but I am going to give you many more ideas such as wording for your pirate invitation, font suggestions, and different decorative options.

Wording for your Pirate Theme Party Invitation:

Wording for you pirate invitation should be … well … piratey. Usually an invitation starts out with a greeting, then follows with the party information, and then closes with the rsvp information or other instructions.

Here are a few ways to start your invitation:

• Avast ye landlubbers! Ye are invited to Jenny’s Birthday Party!
• Ahoy me mateys! You’re invited to a Pirate Theme Party
• Shiver me timbers, it’s Halloween! Ye be invited to celebrate with us on our pirate ship!
• All ye landlubbers shake with fear as all hallow’s eve draws near, because all the pirates gather here!
• Ye wenches an’ salty dogs, pillage an’ plunder await! Join us to celebrate John’s Graduation
• X marks the spot, so come find the treasure (and some fun) at Sally’s 5th Birthday
• Come celebrate Halloween like a pirate with lots of grub and rum in the galley
• Ahoy there me Hearties! Ye be invited fer some fun at a Pirate Theme Party!
• We have map to a treasure chest, so come wearing your pirate best. We’ll use the map to find the way, to treasure at Conner’s 7th Birthday!
• Join our crew while we plunder for treasure and treats at a birthday celebration for John!

Now You can follow with the party information (date, time, location):

• Chart yer course for 12345 Baker Street on May 17th at 6 o’clock
• Grub and grog will be served at 5 o’clock, on the Miller’s ship, 54321 Ocean Dr on October 31st
• Ship sets sail from post 5656 Landview Dr. Be there by Sunday, the 12 of March at three in the afternoon, or be left behind!

If you want guests to come dressed as pirates don’t forget to mention costumes!

• Come dressed in yer pirate best!
• Put on your eye patches and bring yer parrots for admittance to the party
• Anyone dressed as a landlubber will be keelhauled!
• Wear yer best pirate gear or walk the plank!
• Pirates and wenches in proper attire only!
• No peg leg, no puffy shirt, no party!

If you want guests to RSVP, state that at the bottom:

• RSVP by June 20th (or you will walk the plank!)
• Sign on to our crew roster by contacting First Mate Kelly at 555-234-5678
• Deserters only 555×216x8424
• Be a mate and RSVP before this date, May 26 (555) 891-2345
• Arrrrrrr…. you coming to the party? (555) 654-3219 by June 30th please

Fonts and Graphics for your Pirate Theme Party Invitation:

hoosing the right font and graphics for your pirate party invitation can have a huge effect on the overall appearance of the invite.

Gothic fonts are great for the introductory greeting on the invitation. Gothic fonts can be a bit elaborate and a little hard to read, so you may want to format the party information portion of the invitation in plainer font. Here are a few of my favorite Gothic fonts for a pirate invitation:

• 1492 Quadrata Lim
• Benegraphic
• Euclid Fraktur
• DeiGratia (I used this font for the invitation above)
  
• Rapscallion
• Ruritania

If you want your invitation to look as if it was hand written, try one of these fonts:

• Bradley Hand ITC
• Viner Hand ITC

The links are free fonts you can download from dafont.com. After you download a font you will have to install it on your computer before you can use it.

How to install a font you have downloaded (the quick version)

Unzip the files you have downloaded, then:

Windows Vista : Right-click on the font files > “Install”

Windows XP : Put the font files into C:\Windows\Fonts

Mac OS X : Double-click the font file > “Install font” button.

Need more detail? How to install fonts from dafont.com

If you are looking for pirate graphics for the invitation, here are a few sources:

• Public Domain Images from Karen Whimsey’s - huge collection of free images, look under People and Places>Pirates, and Water World>Pirate Ships.
• Free Pirate Clip Art from Lee Hansen -  selection of free clip art, includes a few borders
• IStockphoto - HUGE selection, these photos and images range from $1-10
• Webweavers Pirate Clipart - several pages of free pirate clip art (including a few different pirate flags)

Now add some style to your Pirate Theme Party Invitation:

At this point you have your wording, font, and graphics (if you choose to have one). You can print your invitation and stick it in an envelope and you have an easy-peasy invitation. If you want to get more creative, here are a few ideas to help you kick it up a notch.

• Message in a Bottle Invitations - these are little bottles you can mail by placing a label and postage directly on the bottle! They come with a lei (which you probably won’t use) and sand.  If you want to make it more pirate-y, add in some skeleton parts.
• Age your invitations - I did a post about aging paper in the oven. Do this to you invites after you print them for a great look.
• Send a pirate patch and earring with the invitation - this will get all of your guests excited to dress up for the party.
• Add pirate confetti to the envelope - this is an inexpensive way to dress up an invitation.
• Add a personal seal - Fold your invitation and close it with a wax seal. Don’t put wax on the outer envelope, it causes too many problems at the post office!
• Make a custom Treasure Map - create a map to you house, and print the party details on the back. Age the paper, roll it up, tie it with a red ribbon and mail it in a tube (maybe throw in a little sand too).
  

Now you have some ideas for your pirate party invitation.  Until my next Pirate Post (on pirate decorations) I will leave you with this pirate ditty:

Fifteen Men on a Dead Man’s Chest

Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum,
Drink and the devil had done for the rest
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.
The mate was fixed by the bosun’s pike
The bosun brained with a marlinspike
And cookey’s throat was marked belike
It had been gripped by fingers ten
And there they lay, all good dead men
Like break o’day in a boozing ken
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum…

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Avast Ye! It is a happy coincidence that today is the day I will begin to post about the Pirate Party I am planning. Today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19th), so it does seem fitting.

This year my baby brother is turning 16 (Shiver me Timbers!) so to celebrate he is getting a manly Pirate Themed Sweet 16 Party (don’t let him know I called it Sweet 16 or I’ll be keel hauled!) On the plus side, the party is in October, so we are reusing all of the fantastic decorations as our Halloween decorations! An sometime in the future I would like to have a Pirates Versus Ninjas Party.

I think a pirate theme party works in most any situation…

• Pirate Halloween Party
• Pirate Birthday Party
• Celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day
• Pirate Theme Company Picnic
• Pirate Bar/Bat Mitzvah
• Pirate Themed Graduation Party
• Pirate Pool Party
• Pirate Themed Wedding
• Random Pirate Theme Party (or Pirates vs Ninjas)

And the list can go on and on. If it’s a gathering, stick the word pirate in front of it, and NOW you have a party! So how do you go about planning you pirate party? As I work on my pirate party over the next few weeks I will be posting helpful pirate how to’s. Here is my list of things to do…

How to Plan a Pirate Theme Party:

1. The Pirate Party Invitation
2. Pirate Party Decorations
3. Making a Pirate Flag
4. Build a Pirate Treasure Chest
5. Your Pirate Costume
6. The Pirate Party Menu
7. Pirate Cupcakes
8. Pirate “Rum” Bottle Labels
9. Pirate Party Music

As I finish posting about each task I will link back here to this list. So check back for more pirat-y goodness!

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Halloween can be many things. It can be fun, lighthearted, scary and frightening. It can also be elegant. Elegant? Well, yes actually.

Picture this: You are dressed in a black ball gown (or tux, for you guys). You enter a setting akin to Dracula’s castle in Transylvania; deep red rose centerpieces on black tablecloths, spider web-laden chandeliers, low light with candles everywhere, and a glass of blood red wine in your hand. Nice, huh?

Now start playing Monster Mash in the background. Ruins the mood doesn’t it?

Don’t get me wrong, I love fun Halloween Party Music (Check out this list of my favorite Halloween Party Songs) but sometimes you are trying to set a scene, and Thriller and Purple People Eater just don’t cut it. So if your Halloween party is shooting for more “wine and cheese” versus “beer and pretzels”, try a few of these Scary Classical Music Selections that are perfect for Halloween:

16 Classical Music Selections for an Elegant Halloween Party

1. Bach - Toccata and Fugue in d minor, BWV 565
2. Brahms - Begräbnisgesang
3. Camille Saint-Saens - Danse Macabre, Op. 40
4. Gluck - Dance of the Furies
5. Grieg - In the Hall of the Mountain King
6. Liszt - Mephisto Waltz
7. Mendelssohn - First Walpurgis Night
8. Mozart - Requiem “Dies Irae”
9. Mussorgsky - A Night on Bald Mountain
10. Orff - Carmina Burana, O Fortuna
11. Paganini - Witches Dance
12. Grieg - Småtrold (Puck)
13. Rachmaninoff – The Bells, Lento Lugubre
14. Tartini - Sonata for violin & continuo in G minor, “The Devil’s Trill”
15. Webern - Variations Op. 27 - Ruhig fliessend
16. Williams - Devil’s Dance (composed by the same guy who did the music for Star Wars!)

If you would rather not hunt down the music, Devil’s Dance and Classics from the Crypt are fantastic CDs that will set the mood perfectly.

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I always start planning my Halloween party early. I have to say it can be hard to get into the late October mindset when it is still warm. So I dug out my Halloween Party Playlist and lit a pumpkin spice candle to get the fall ideas flowing.

The following songs are perfect for your next Halloween Party. It is a great mix of songs, everyone knows them (or they should) and they all fit the spooky, scary, evil, devil’s night theme of Halloween.

25 Fantastic Songs to play at a Halloween Party:

1. Thriller – Michael Jackson
2. Don’t Fear the Reaper – Blue Oyster Cult
3. Superstition – Stevie Wonder
4. Love Potion #9 – The Clovers
5. Witchy Woman – The Eagles
6. Bad Moon Rising – Creedence Clearwater Revival
7. The Time Warp - Rocky Horror Picture Show
8. I Put a Spell on You - Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
9. The Devil Went Down to Georgia - Charlie Daniels
10. Witchcraft - Frank Sinatra
11. Lil’ Red Riding Hood – Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
12. Hungry Like the Wolf – Duran Duran
13. Monster Mash - Bobby Boris Pickett
14. Purple People Eater – Sheb Wooley
15. Dead Man’s Party – Oingo Boingo
16. It’s the End of the World As We Know It – R.E.M
17. She Blinded Me With Science – Thomas Dolby
18. Abracadabra – Steve Miller Band
19. Sympathy for the Devil - Rolling Stones
20. Black Magic Woman – Santana
21. Highway to Hell - AC/DC
22. VooDoo Child - Jimi Hendrix
23. Devil with a Blue Dress On – Mitch Ryder
24. Bat Out Of Hell - Meat Loaf
25. Super Freak – Rick James

If you’re looking for a great spooky sounds CD for background music, I highly recommend the Martha Stewart Spooky Scary Sounds for Halloween … I play it in my front yard as we pass out candy. It is realistic and not at all cheesy, like other “Halloween Sounds” CD compellations I have heard.

Or, if you are looking for music that is more elegant (but still spooky) try this list of Scary Classical Music for Halloween.

Happy Halloween!