If you missed Part 1 of The Complete Guide: Fun Ideas for Planning a Woman’s 50th Birthday Party (Planning Worksheet Included) click here.
Pick a Theme
Choosing a 50th birthday party theme is one of the hardest tasks on the to-do list! The many different directions you can take are confusing! Do you want elegant or laid-back? Fun or fancy? What would the guest of honor like? What would they hate? There are so many questions to answer! Check out additional resources:
Top 10 Best 50th Birthday Party Themes for Adults
10 Fantastic Birthday Party Themes for Your Next Celebration
Make a budget
Use our party budget worksheet to itemize each and every expense, including space, food, drinks, flowers and incidentals like personalized paper napkins. Seeing how everything works together will help you avoid a common party planning mistake—spending too much on one area, like food or an open bar, and not having enough left over for other expenses. After you've totaled up everything, go ahead and add another 10 percent buffer for last-minute cost hikes and unforeseen expenses.
Guest List
While you’re planning a 50th birthday party, one of the most important aspects is the guest list. No matter how great the food is or how beautiful the venue is, a party won’t be successful unless you’ve filled it with the best people. Use our guest list worksheet to keep track of who you’re inviting at the milestone party.
Food and Drink / Grocery List
Foods and drinks are more than just an average party staple. Without them, guests are left hungry and disappointed, but the right choice brings a party to life. Make sure your food and drinks tie into your theme .
Write down a tentative menu, and include beverages. From the menu, use our grocery shopping list for the weeks to come. You can buy any non-perishables at this point.
RELATED: 12 Easy Adult Birthday Party Food Ideas
Decorations
Turning 50 is an occasion for decorating specifically for that special day and person. A whole mood can be established with balloons, banners, and confetti that boast this milestone birthday. Check out these additional resources below for birthday decor and DIY decor as well.
9 Best Adults Birthday Party Table Decoration Ideas That Wow
10 Easy DIY Adult Birthday Party Decoration Ideas That Minimize Mess
Centerpiece Ideas
Visually display how grand 50 can be by decorating with 50 of these items:
- SHOPHappy 50th Birthday Centerpiece banner. Perfect for her 50th-Birthdays, especially the milestones that are meant to be shared. She'll be tickled to be the center of attention and have you to thank.
- String a clothesline around the party venue and use it to hang 50 pictures of the guest of honor. You may need to ask guests to supply pictures to you before the party.
- Hang 50 words from the ceiling that best describe the wonderful things about the birthday honoree.
- Fill a table with 50 framed photos of important family moments in the life of the birthday boy.
Games and activities
To make sure that the games you have planned for your party go perfectly, there are few things to prepare. You should know the name of the game, what supplies you need, and have the instructions on hand. Talk to any friends beforehand that might need to help and have a thank you ready to go! Use this checklist to organize your party games and activities.
RELATED: 10 Funny Birthday Party Games for Adults
Music
You always want your party to be the one with the music everybody talks about afterward. It can be the difference between a good event and a legendary one. But it’s often hard to know exactly what to play.
Spotify has a whole section devoted to entertaining. The “Wine & Dine” playlist features old-school R&B, and “Dinner With Friends” is a good option for contemporary. Use our checklist to create the birthday recipient’s favorite songs too.
Party Favors
Party favors help preserve the amazing memories made at the party. Send your guests home with something that represents the honoree and the good times shared with the following ideas.
You can give guests small silk pouches filled with personalized M&M’s that have the number 50 printed on them. If chocolate is not your guest of honor’s favorite thing, give out personalized cookies with the number 50 on the cookie.
RELATED: 10 Easy DIY Adult Birthday Party Favors for Women
Gifts
What do women really want? That’s the question that many of us find ourselves asking as a friend approaches her 50th birthday. After all, 50 today is not what it was a generation or two ago. 50-year-old women today are vibrant, passionate and active. Most of them are still enjoying their careers, although they may have begun to dream about retirement.
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Use this handy checklist at the party for keeping track of the birthday recipient's gifts and when sending out thank you notes.
Summary
After all the party planning is said and done, you’ll have created a celebration to remember. Make sure to enjoy it and spend some time with your loved one at the event. Also, don’t forget to take plenty of photos. You’ll want to remember this milestone party in years to come. Planning the perfect 50th birthday party also includes capturing how special the birthday recipient is in your life. If you have a mother, grandmother, or sister turning 50, we hope these ideas will inspire you to make this an unforgettable celebration.
