Paradise Party Planning

As summer winds down, it's the perfect time to throw a paradise party. Follow these simple steps to throw the perfect celebration:

Tropical themed invitations: These can be any design from palm trees to sunglasses to sea creatures. Various designs are available at stores such as Target, and Amazon.com offers awesome "message in a bottle" invitations (search on that term on their site). Tell guests to come in tropical apparel, complete with Hawaiian t-shirts and flowers in the women's hair. You may want to ask each guest to bring their favorite island dish to pass.
Tropical party decorations: You can spread beach towels and umbrellas throughout your yard, and place tiki torches around the perimeter to set the mood. If you'd like to hold a tropical luau party, consider shopping on sites such as partycheap.com. There you will find inflatable palm trees, grass table skirts, and pig centerpieces. You may wish to hand each guest a colorful lei when they first walk in the party. Pineapples are also delicious and double as a decoration. Consider having a hollowed pineapple filled with fruit on each table.
Exotic food: Whether you decide to have appetizers, a full meal, or just desserts, the food should align with your party's theme. Easy finger foods include pigs in a blanket, fruit kabobs, and mango shrimp. If you have dessert, you may consider sorbet in individual dishes with cocktail umbrellas. An island themed cake is also a great idea, and you can make one as simple or complex as you'd like. For a particularly difficult cake, consider printing out an image from Google and bringing it to your local grocer's bakery.
Tropical favors: To leave your guests with a lasting impression, send them home with memorable favors. Margarita favors or cookies are fun and colorful. Flip flop favors are also popular, and can come as coasters, keychains or place cards/photo holders. There are also a number of photo frames available. Guests may choose to put their favorite picture from the party in the frame.