Lots of color sets a festive mood for a home retirement party.
The decision to end a working career is a milestone. One phase of your life is closing and another beginning. Such a point in life deserves honoring with a celebration. If your spouse is retiring, you may want to host the party in your home. As host, it is up to you to decorate for the celebration.
Instructions
1. Consider the personality of the retiree when planning the retirement party. For example, you can decorate with a whimsical air if your guest of honor is fun loving and laid back, but you should opt for more formal d cor if he or she is the more serious type.
2. Create a guest book at the door and invite co-workers and other guests to write their well wishes to the guest of honor. You can decorate the book with photographs of the retiree.
3. Choose a theme the retiree will enjoy. While it is a retirement party, you can branch beyond the "for he's a jolly good fellow" routine and plan for an event that celebrates the honoree's former career. For example, if he was a fisherman you might decorate with nautical items.
4. Hang banners which say "congratulations" or "happy retirement" in your home. Position the banners so that this is what the guests see when they first enter your home.
5. Set up a slide show that will run on a loop during the party. These pictures should cover the career of the retiree from the early days to the present. Place the screen in an area where guests can congregate easily to catch the show at any point.
6. Set up a festive gift table. Decorate it with time cards, calendars and other items that denote the workplace. Add items that are particularly meaningful for the retiree. For example, if the person worked as a police officer, you could decorate with fake badges, a police baton and other law enforcement paraphernalia.
7. Let the cake and other food be part of your d cor. The cake can be decorated according to the theme you have chosen. The other food should be representative of the theme as well. For example, if you choose a luau theme because the retiree is taking a vacation to Hawaii, you can serve foods such as ham and pineapple kabobs, a tropical fruit salad, crab and other seafood items.
8. Scatter party favors throughout your home. Retire American Style suggests ordering personalized candies with the retiree's name with beginning and ending work dates embossed on them. You can also visit a party supply store for streamers, party horns and other items which carry the "happy retirement" sentiment.
Tags: your home, retirement party, decorate with, guest honor, happy retirement