Katie Cunningham 1/5/20 Katie Cunningham 1/5/20

2020 Party Trends By Top Party Planners

Looking for inspiration before you plan your next party? Check out this awesome list of the best party and event trends for 2020! Party planning tips and inspiration!

At LYFETYMES, you could say we love all things parties. And you'd be right. We love collaborating with the latest and greatest party planners and stylists on the hottest trends in 2020!

Cake and Confetti

Meredith Timms Staggers is the face behind Cake and Confetti predicts Unconventional Parties as major trends. A Star Wars Baby Shower? YEEEESSS!

Roz Schlumpf of Poptarts and Peonies predicts Charcuterie Boards and Dessert Boards will be a major trend in 2020.

Party Stylist and Decor Maveens Myri and Isabel of Fun and Confetti predict Fringe as a trendsetter in 2020!

Coterie Party is an amazing, innovative Party Supplier founded by Sara and Linden who are Expert Party Stylists. 2020 Party Trend Prediction From Celebrity Party Stylist & Co-Founder Sara Raffa, @coterieparty “Party favors have changed a lot over the years and I think we'll see this continue into 2020. In the past, kids used to get a bag filled with a bunch of candy and random toys that they'll play with once and then never touch again. We're seeing more and more parents buy one bigger and more practical item to give to the kids, like a fun personalized lunchbox or a favorite book. Similarly, for adult parties, hosts tend to prioritize practicality and sometimes even chose to skip the gift altogether. We see hosts choosing to donate to a charity in lieu of party favors, or just skip them altogether. At my wedding, for example, I skipped the favor that most people would've tossed when they had to travel home the next day, and instead put the money I saved to create really fun and delicious welcome bags that people could enjoy leading up to our wedding.

Glamfetti

Tiffany From Glamfetti predicts Balloon Garlands will continue to be huge but adding dimension to a garland will be all the rage and more acceptable in wedding adorned with Greenery .

Birds Party

Prediction from Celebration Expert & Party Stylist Bird @birdsparty
Grazing Tables and we agree and love it! It’s an innovative buffet with a new twist and wow factor.

Blissed Events

Metallics and pampas are on Blissed Events Event and Party Stylist Elizabeth’s radar for 2020!

Just Add Confetti

The party animal in all of us will continue from prehistoric, to farm to safari!

LYFETYMES

LYFETYMES predicts PERSONALIZED NEON signs will be huge in 2020, especially at the milestone events.

We also floral will continue to be a huge trend and be incorporated into backdrops, balloon garlands, and decor.

Go to LYFETYMES to plan your next big bash for free!

Kristiina Craven 4/28/19 Kristiina Craven 4/28/19

Gender Reveal Party Ideas

Planning a party to announce the gender of your baby? We've got an awesome list of gender reveal party ideas! Read it and start planning!

Gender reveal parties have been growing in popularity over the past few years, and we can see why! Letting the world (and yourselves!) know the gender of your baby is a fun way to spread more happiness during this joyful time. We never mind another excuse to plan a party!

There are so many smart ways you can learn the gender of your baby, and we've rounded up a huge list of ideas to help inspire you to create a magical gender reveal party!

Fun Ways to Reveal Your Baby's Gender:

Cake Gender Reveal

Have a friend or the host order a delivery on your behalf with the inside of the cake dyed pink or blue. When you cut into the cake, you'll instantly know whether you're having a baby girl or a baby boy!

The same idea can be used for cupcakes--this is a fun idea to have everyone bite into a cupcake at the same time to reveal pink or blue pudding and share in the fun.

Get the dog involved and make the gender reveal cake for the pup. He or she can eat the cake and announce to the world if you'll have a boy or a girl!

Pop an Opaque Balloon

This is another fun way to reveal your baby's gender: have an opaque balloon filled with pink or blue glitter, confetti, or powder for an exciting gender reveal moment at your party!

Boy or Girl Outfit Surprise

Have the parents-to-be open a neutral box with boy or girl clothes inside. They can be blue or pink, or a dress vs. vest and tie!

Confetti Cannon to Reveal Your Baby's Gender

Confetti cannons are gaining in popularity and they are the perfect way to discover your baby's gender at the party! Plus, it's one of the more masculine gender reveal ideas we've come across. What man doesn't like shooting off a canon?

Or, get the crowd involved and have them shoot confetti cannons off over the future parents like this image above! This makes for a really cool moment and photo.

Pinata

Pinatas are always fun at parties and with each strike, the excitement of the gender reveal builds! Mom and dad (and big brother or sister) can take turns hitting the pinata to reveal blue or pink colored candy, or confetti (we like the candy idea for obvious reasons!).

Balloon Release Gender Reveal

Decorate an extra large box with festive paper and bows and fill the box with pink or blue helium balloons. Get the camera ready because when the couple opens the box and the balloons pop out and up, it makes for a beautiful moment that they'll want to cherish forever.

The Thinking Closet shared their balloon release gender reveal at their family gender reveal party it was so such a great moment!

Gender Reveal Party Themes

Trucks or Tutus

Matchbox toy trucks and tutus are easy to find and use at the gender reveal party! Make or buy inexpensive tutus for guests to wear and use toy trucks as cupcake toppers.

Quarterback or Cheerleader

Decorations with a quarterback or cheerleader gender reveal theme can include mini footballs, pom poms, and pennants on the wall! Have mini footballs and pom poms for guests to toss or shake throughout the party.

Blue or Pink Party Decorations

Keep things simple at your gender reveal party: either have the party host decorate ahead of time in secrecy so that when you arrive, you are surprised by the color of the decorations. Or, use both blue and pink (or green and peach) at the party and keep up the suspense until the big reveal!

Pirate or Mermaid

Ahoy, Matey! We love the idea of an "Out on the High Seas" gender reveal party. You can use the ocean and pirate ships as the central theme and then pirates and mermaids to designate each gender!

There are so many cute options to use for decor--ships, blue tablecloths, mermaid tails or pirate hats for cupcake toppers, the possibilities are endless!

Bow ties or Bows?

This is a fun theme and easy to come up with decorations for a "bow ties or hair bows" gender reveal. Pass out bow ties and hair bows for guests to wear at the party and use that theme for the cupcake toppers, cookie decorations, or cake toppers!

Menu items can include bow tie pasta salad, hair bow cookies, bow ties and hair bows as cake toppers, and more.

Lashes or Mustaches?

This gender reveal party theme screams for a photo booth with props! Buy (or make!) mustaches and lashes on sticks and add in feather boas, big hats, and more props on sticks (like big pink lips, crazy glasses--the ideas are endless!)

He or She: What Will it Be?

Keep things simple with a basic theme of 'he or she: what will it be?' Use any of the gender reveal techniques from above to fit in this theme. We are partial to the hidden blue or pink frosting inside cupcakes!

Now that you have the gender reveal party themes and ideas on how to reveal your baby's gender at the party let's find out what people do at gender reveal parties! Aside from visiting, eating, and having fun guessing what the baby will be, you can offer games to keep it light and fun.

Gender Reveal Party Game Ideas

Suggest a Name

Name suggestion jars are a fun way for guests to drop a boy or girl name in a jar for after the baby's gender is revealed. Even if you've already picked out names, this could be fun to look through after everyone's left the party.

Cast Your Vote

Create a poll on a cute chalkboard or other decorated backdrop with a line down the middle designated boy on one side and girl on the other. Any of the above themes can easily be incorporated into this game!

Guess the Number!

Fill a Jar with pink and blue candy and have guests guess if there's more pink or blue candy in the jar! Have a party gift on hand for the winner to up the stakes. To make it extra challenging, ask them the number of pink and blue candy in the jar. The competitors in the crowd will really make this game fun!

What is a Gender Reveal Party?

Wondering what a gender reveal party is? It's somewhat of a recent phenomenon where a couple has the baby's gender sealed in an envelope only to be revealed at a party with friends and family.

Gifts are not expected--save those for the baby shower!

Should You Have a Gender Reveal Party?

Some people like to wait until the baby is born to be 'surprised' at the birth. But many people like to know ahead of time so that they can plan the nursery and their baby registry.

Doing a gender reveal party makes finding out what your baby will be extra fun and exciting and it's a moment that you can share with friends and family well before your baby is born.

It's a personal decision--some people do a small and intimate gender reveal party and other people plan a big party! Either way, we hope these ideas have inspired you to plan your gender reveal the way you want.

Want to save these ideas for later? Pin this image below!

Kristiina Craven 4/24/19 Kristiina Craven 4/24/19

Party Planning Blogs That Will Inspire You

Looking for inspiration before you plan your next party? Check out this awesome list of the best party planning blogs! Party planning tips and inspiration!

At LYFETYMES, you could say we love all things parties. And you'd be right. We love scouring the internet for the latest and greatest party planners and their blogs--they're on the front lines of planning parties and they help to keep our creative juices flowing!

Below we're sharing our favorite party planning blogs:

Party Planning Blogs We Love

Cake and Confetti

Meredith Timms Staggers is the face behind Cake and Confetti and she started out as a party planner back in 2013. She's evolved her business into a party planning blogger/content creator and photo stylist. She writes about all things parties, entertaining, and a bit of lifestyle blogging for good measure!

Her recent candy themed 1st birthday party for her daughter, Piper, was full of beautiful and fun ideas! You can follow along with her amazingly fun and happy Cake and Confetti Instagram feed.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Party

Andressa Hara is a local party planner turned party stylist and creator of her wildly popular Twinkle Twinkle Little Party blog and Twinkle Twinkle Little Party Magazine, a lifestyle and party planning publication.

One of our recent favorites was her sweet pink & gold ballerina/princess inspired party--it looks like every little girl's dream party!

Pink & gold ballerina/princess inspired party from Twinkle Twinkle Little Party. Image: Twinkle Twinkle Little Party.

She has an incredible knack for styling the most creative parties and capturing the theme and vibe perfectly which is why major brands have hired her to create beautiful campaigns for them.

If you're looking for party inspiration, check out her blog or the Twinkle Twinkle Little Party Instagram feed for her always inspiring styled party shoots!

Kara's Party Ideas

The creative force behind Kara's Party Ideas is Kara Allen and she's a party designer, content creator, dessert stylist, and author, among other things. Recently dubbed the "new" Martha Stewart of party planning, her work is in high demand and she's worked too many brands to list!

Vintage inspired lavender baby shower from Kara's Party Supplies is one example of Kara's party planning genius. Photo credit: Kara's Party Supplies

This stunning vintage inspired lavender baby shower left no detail undone.

Follow Kara on Instagram for daily inspiration!

The Bashery

Pamelyn Rocco brings.the.party. She's been creating parties for over 20 years and started a successful party rental and party styling company where she rents awesome and unique things to people planning a party and creates content and inspiration for her blog and Instagram. She creates beautiful content and yes, FUN PARTIES!

This stunning Mother's Day party included pretty photo backdrops, activities for the kids, and a mimosa bar for the moms! Follow along with The Bashery on Instagram for more inspiration!

Oh Happy Day

Jordan's site is just...well, HAPPY. From the photography, to the styling, to the themes--she makes us want to throw a party just because ;)

This incredible Minecraft themed birthday party was so creative! From the food to the decorations--she nailed it. Oh Happy Day also has a store where you can find almost anything you can think of to throw your party! She's built a powerhouse of a space for inspiration and decoration.

Follow Oh Happy Day on Instagram for a daily dose of color and party inspiration!

Feeling inspired, but not sure where to start? Check out Lyfetymes where we help you plan your perfect party with our easy tool FOR FREE!

Sugar and Cloth

On a break from college, Ashley Rose created Sugar and Cloth. That was eight years ago! She runs the site and studio full-time where she pumps out gorgeous party and lifestyle content that will be all up in your Pinterest boards!

This DIY Hot Chocolate Bar they whipped up for a charity event with State Farm is perfection. We love her because she shares so many DIY projects from decor, to recipes, to entertaining, so that you can incorporate some fun into your life, too!

The Sugar and Cloth Instagram feed is not to be missed--gorgeous studio shots, photo shoots, and behind the scenes family snaps that will keep you smiling!

Black and Twine

Where do we start with our love for Black and Twine? Their gorgeous site is organized and curated so beautifully and you'll surely find the inspiration for your next party. We love reading their blog where they do deep dives into parties that will get you inspired to start creating your next celebration!

This jungle themed baby shower was such a unique idea for a baby shower and the color scheme kept the vibe fun, yet classic.

Black and Twine collaborates with their 'stylist circle' from across the world which keeps the content fresh and exciting!

Black and Twine is also on Instagram!

Laura's Little Party

Full of themed party ideas for birthdays, holidays, movie nights, game nights, and more, Laura's got an idea for every party!

This adorable unicorn themed birthday party was a big hit and we can see why! The decorations, the treats, and that cake--this is one birthday party idea that will melt your little girl's heart.

Her Instagram account is popular for a reason-bright and beautiful party pics to inspire your every day!

Hostess with the Mostess

This site is so beautifully laid out and curated--it's a party for your eyes! They offer their own content and also feature other's creations. You could literally spend days sifting through all of their party topics.

This adorable Love Birds bridal shower was so clever and sophisticated. Plus, she includes links to these gorgeous printables for you to use at your own love birds bridal shower!

Follow Jenn at Hostess with the Mostess on Instagram for daily inspiration!

Little Miss Party

In addition to curating and creating stunning content on their blog, they offer personal party planning, branded event planning, and "party in a box" options to help you plan your next event!

We love the simple touches they added for this 'best friend's bridal shower' event. The feminine and festive backdrop elevates the brick wall and keeps things festive with a few basic elements (balloons and a gold banner--it's true what they say: less is more!).

Follow along with Seri over on the Little Miss Party Instagram as she shares their parties and a little behind the scenes action, too!

We'll be updating this list often, so check back soon to see which party planning blogs have been added!

Better yet, pin the following image so that you have it bookmarked on one of your Pinterest boards:

Remember to check back soon to see more party planning blog inspiration!