Five Fun Hens Night Party Theme Ideas

or How To Reduce the Bridesmaid’s Stress Levels

A hen’s night party is quite an undertaking. Not quite like building the Sistine Chapel, but close; I’ve never heard of anyone who found it an easy job, and know of several women who would prefer dental surgery. There’s so much to consider, so many different people to please, heaps of possibilities to choose from and all that makes it totally overwhelming.

I’m the kind of person who leaps before she looks which means I will put up my hand for a job gleefully because I always think it will be a cinch. When my best friend asked me to organise her hen’s party my reply was obviously:  “Sure, too easy.” I really leapt into the unknown that time. It turned out far too hard.

There’s the other kind of person, the wiser kind. Yes, we all hate and envy them, with their calmness and their organisational skills. They look before they leap, or sometimes even build a large bridge before leaping. They are aware of the challenges that being a hen’s party organiser brings. They cringe in advance and may secretly, yet desperately, seek for a way to weasel out of the job. Yes, it’s a job. It starts as a part-time job and towards the end seems like a full-time job with lots of overtime. And you get paid with love…well that’s if you do a good job. Don’t worry, if you fail you can always find new best friends, or live on a deserted island; there’s absolutely no pressure.

I have now been a professional hen’s party planner for a few years and have a big bag filled with tricks and, in reserve, a stress reducing arsenal. Number 1 is to think through everything in advance. Pretend you are a top-level project manager: How will you cope with seven different diets, five choices of bridesmaids’ outfits, and worst of all with bridezilla before breakfast.

Later I’ll talk you through some more tricks, but first I want to share my favourite hen’s party theme ideas with you.

Hens Party Theme Idea #1

If you’ve taken a look through our Hens Party Ideas Adelaide website   you’ve probably noticed that we have an artistic bent. That’s because we work closely together with an Adelaide based business called Art Logic www.artlogic.com.au, so we all love art and are creative girls (and boys).

The first hens party theme idea is

 

STRIPES

You may say, well this is nothing new. But I say if Cara Delvigne can do pink and white stripes, so can we. Be sure not to go near any male Zebras though, they have less control that the boys after a few beers on a Saturday night:

 

There’s not only Cara to look for inspiration for:

We’ve watched how GigiHadid, Kendall Jenner, and Rihanna have also fronted the world in stripes.

Want to stand out from the crowd? Paint your face and legs and arms with dots and stripes.

If that’s too much, try it a little subtler:

But most of all have fun,  that’s what fashion at hens parties is about.

To expand the theme, decorate your party room in stripes.

If you’re feeling brave invite one of our nude male models and paint stripes on him

When all else fails do it through your nails:

Hens Party Theme Idea #2

Time for some pirate fever.

Dress up as island girls or pirate babes and invite a pirate over to teach you the art of cocktail making.

Or you could take the Cara Delevigne approach and dress up as mermaids (well minus the wings)

If you want to rev things up a notch create some hot pirate outfits. Evoke  the times of Captain Pugwash, pirate Blackbeard or Capt Jack Sparrow. Stock up on eye patches and captains’s hats. Imagine you are  (is now 70 years old)as 2^nd pirates in Pirates of the Caribbean. You can then contend with the likes of Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow 😉

Eating some pirates would be fun too, though try to avoid getting the parrot stuck in your throat, otherwise your best conversation will be “Polly want a cracker”.

 

Hens Party Theme Idea #3

Hurrah, it’s time for some Neon Joy. Let’s travel back to the 1980s for a retro theme.  Big hair, big colours, big take overs, big outfits, and shoulder pads you could land a light plane on.

You can dress up in bright neon colours and dance to the music of the 80s. Try teasing your hair out:

Take inspiration from Grease, though made in the 80’s, was set in the 50’s

Then add the right kind of make-up and be sure to let subtlety take a holiday.

You could also try some glow in the dark make up and some glow sticks as bracelets.

Then add some luminous material to decorate the body with, easy enough to make.

If you’re good with stilts and possess a sturdy pair of ankles try a pair of super high neon heels. Restraint and the 80’s were never introduced, too much of everything and you’ve got it about right.

Then you can add the neon glow party accessories.

Hens Party Theme Idea #4

What could be better than 1920’s Great Gatsby glitter? Does your hen want some glitz and glam? Then this is the perfect theme for her.

Glitter makes things nice and sparkly. You can go for glitter clothes, glitter make up and glitter accessories.

Go for a roaring 20’s party. They were pretty sparkly then. Why not invite a professional and have her teach you some of the moves (grooves, in the 20’s?) of those times.

 

Our Burlesque teacher can do that for you:

We’ve seen the likes of Kendall & Kylie Jenner all sparkled up.

You could also go for the Rihanna sparkle look.

Taylor Swift has a more reserved approach to sparkles:

Hens Party Theme Idea #5

Navy, red and white ahoy. You can start by sending out ‘hello sailor’ hens party invitations 😉

Keep it simple: navy paper with a red ribbon and a white anchor tied to it.

You could surprise the hen with sailor signs and banners and prepare some Mediterranean food.

When it comes to clothing, an easy option is to buy the same captain’s hat for everyone.

Add to that some sailor badges and it’s a brilliant start.

Of course the top has to be striped and then a red bow will stand out brilliantly. Then add some shorts and trousers and you’ll be looking pretty cute.

Good with a sewing machine? I hate you, I wish I was, but I digress.

Here’s some catwalk sailor gear to inspire you:

Kim and Khloe K definitely like the sexy sailor look:

If you’ve opted for a summer pool or beach hen’s party why not copy Gigi Hadid:

 

Rihanna’s pretty hot as a sailor too:

Don’t forget to sail with the nail:

To top it all off, invite one of our sailor boys for some life drawing and draw him in a variety of sailor poses… maybe even in the full Monty.

We think Tim Robards makes a pretty good sailor boy too.

But unfortunately he’s no longer a bachelor – he and Anna Heinrich are still an item.

Now at the start of this article I said I’d get back to the dry facts of optimal organisation.

Here are some questions should you should ask yourself or discuss with the other bridesmaids at the very outset when organising your hens party. Having everything worked out in advance will greatly reduce the need for an intravenous drip of valium.

1. What season will it be? Spring, summer, autumn or winter. Adapt the theme and clothing accordingly. Always avoid arctic survival gear parties in summer, and skimpy dresses while frolicking in the snow. Obvious you say… you’d be surprised.


2. What’s your budget? Are we talking hiring jumbo-jets for A-list celebrities, or renting a campervan? Does everyone have enough funds for the fancy dress theme? Or will you have to send the boys with brass knuckles around. Part of the fancy dress party could be creating the dresses. The organisers could gather materials and together you could make the outfits. Then dressing up becomes an activity in itself. That would be a brilliant icebreaker too.


3. What kind of style would appeal to your hen? She might hate what you love! If so, she has no taste, but it’s still her day. It’s all about her, so make sure to choose something that that doesn’t make her cringe with horror and stay in the bathroom.


4. Does she want a night in or a night out? If she wants a night out check with the pub/bar/club if they are okay with your fancy dress. You wouldn’t want to be refused at the door.


5. Memories: go creative and crafty with a memory wall filled with photos. Take photos during the event and afterwards put them all in a related scrapbook for your beloved best friend, aka, the hen.

At the outset I mentioned that you needed to think like a project planner. Not that you need steel girders for your hen’s outfit. All you need to do is think every little step of the way through and work out whether it’s feasible and how to make it happen. Does it sound like cinch? Well…it isn’t.

 

 

 

 

Five Fun Hens Night Party Theme Ideas

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Questions to Ask at a Hen's Night Party

Ever had the feeling that there are just some bits of her past your best friend is willingly hiding from you?

Hehehe, no longer! Her hen’s night party is the ideal time to get it all out of her.

So let’s think about the most devious way to do this. Of course you wouldn’t start the hens day, night or weekend with interrogation.

A brilliant way to kick off the day is with some fun activities. One advantage of such  activities is that they get everyone involved and are a great way to connect. Often at hens parties the girls don’t know each other and for the shy ones this can be a big ordeal.

At Hens Party Ideas Adelaide we have a whole array of suggestions: fun ideas to launch a hen’s party.

You could try:

Life Drawing

 

Bollywood Dancing

Cocktail Making Class

Burlesque – the Art of Tease

The Magician – learn some new tricks!

After some activities time to get devious:  everyone gets together in circle format.

 

The bridesmaids organise a box of questions. Each question gets written on a little note. The box of questions gets passed around. First you put some harmless questions in the box and start with those.

Like:

• Where did you go on your first date?


• What year did you meet?


• What date is your wedding (you’d be surprised how many get this wrong!!)

Add some questions about her beloved:

• What’s his favourite movie?


• How many times did he take his driving test?


• What shoe size is he?


• If he could be any animal which one would he choose and why?


• What is his favourite joke?


• What was the most embarrassing thing he did in front of your parents?

Then you could switch gears from small talk to medium talk:

• Who is more likely to deal with a spider invasion?


• If he was to have plastic surgery what would he have done?


• Which film stars does his best mate dote on?


• Which film stars does he dote on?


• If you let him, which of those would he sleep with?And then you can get naughtier:


• 

Hmmh like…which position would he choose? Or something even better – up to your imagination.

And then …you pop that question-the one you’ve always wanted to have answered.

and BINGO – you’ve got your answer hehehe!

 

Questions to Ask at a Hen"s Night Party

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Hot Dress Tips for a Super Classy Hens Night Party

Fortunately we’re all different. I mean how boring would it be if everyone wanted exactly the same thing. Some girls want classy hen’s night parties with just a touch of naughtiness. Other girls want it crude and rude. And of course there is the whole gamut of in between.

Depending on your taste both extremes can be tons of fun. But what we all probably have in common is that we want to look good in what we wear. That’s why we’ve compiled the following hot dress tips.

Dress Tip Number 1 for a Super Classy Hens Night Party

If your hen is into the aesthetic side of life, and has a clear idea of what she wants her wedding to look like, our first hens do dress idea is to incorporate that look into the hen’s day party. You could view the hen’s party as setting the scene for the wedding.

Is your hen free-flowing, relaxed and earthy type? Does she want the wedding to be casual and relaxed? Then choose a long, loose and relaxed dress.

Or does she belong to the other end of the spectrum? Does she want a super chic glamorous wedding? Then high heels and a sleek mini dress would be the perfect henday party outfit.

Or is she in between and wants a vintage wedding day?

Then start the day early, organise a high tea, pepper it with some life drawing and wear cute tea dresses or an old-fashioned jumpsuit.

You could let yourself be inspired by women of the 1950’s like this Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn or Marilyn Monroe. The designs of their dresses are stunning and the sultry glamorous and feminine look of their close can be mesmerising. If you want to look feminine, what better way to show off your curves than with a 1950’s circle skirt dress or a slim line wiggle dress.

Dress Idea Number 2 for a Super Classy Hens Event

Whoever says that White is only for weddings is wrong. A hens day party or a hens night with everyone dressed in white, including white accessories would definitely take you out of run-of-the-mill territory.

You could choose dress that wraps around your body snugly for a sexy confident look, or go with white lace for something more summery with a touch of feminine chic.

What to Wear – Idea number 3 for a Super Classy Hens Night Party

When in doubt, go with sparkle. Sequins signal celebration and can be pretty dazzling.

You could choose an all gold mini sequin dress.

Or keep it cool and understated by pairing a sequin miniskirt with a black silk top

The more extroverted could opt for bright red sequin dresses and those that verge to more romantic could go for a dark red sequin ensemble.

Hot ClothesTip Number 4 for a Classy Hens Night Party

Jumpsuits, overalls, rompers are so much fun and are guaranteed to take your style up a notch.

They’re ideal for hen parties, because they work well as comfy day wear for high tea and shopping, then at night, just add heels, earrings, rings and bangles , and you’ll be good to go.

Hot Wardrobe Tip Number 5 for a Classy Hens Night Party

It‘s fun to wear a super sexy, super short mini, or a backless, braless dress but there is also something exciting and super stylish about dressing discretely, and hiding what you’d normally flaunt.

Pick your best asset, it could be your legs, breasts, arms, back, or midriff, and show it off. Choose an outfit that’s suits who you really are inside, not who you think you should be, whether it’s classic and elegant, relaxed and fun, or chic and stunning.

Adorn your outfit with your favourite accessories, and then you’ll be all set for the most stylish send-off from singledom known to mankind.

Hot Dress Tips for a Super Classy Hens Night Party

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Life Drawing Hen's Night Party in Adelaide - The Prank

A Life Drawing Hen’s Night Party in Adelaide – The Prank

Women Do Things Differently to Men!

On a Bucks night the buck’s mates often do their blatant utmost to embarrass/shame the buck . Girls are more subtle, perhaps a little smarter and also a little more devious. This hen’s bridesmaids developed a surreptitious plan; a prank spiced with intrigue and secrecy.

This is how it all started – Nic emailed us: “I am one of the bridesmaids in Adelaide helping organise the upcoming  life drawing hen’s night. Would it be ok if we played a little prank on our hen with your help? She has a really good male friend and we thought it would be funny to introduce him as the model for the life drawing. He is up for it. Would this be Ok with you? Would you be able to help make it work for us?”

Hens Party ideas Adelaide replied: “We think your prank is a brilliant idea and would love to help you make it work. What is her male friend’s name? What does he look like? Is he well-built? The reason I ask is that if he is ‘model material’ we could pretend that he actually is one of our life drawing models and that we scheduled him for the event not knowing that he was one of her good friends. We could also have him come in wearing a mask, so that she doesn’t immediately recognise who he is. Let us know what you think, and any other ideas you have … we love playing pranks.”

Nic’s answer: “Glad you’re ok with the prank, we’ll also get her mum with this one, which will be great.

His name is Josh. He is the tall typical footy player type bloke. I’m not sure if he’ll be game to take his clothes off, even down to boxers. But he would love the idea of the mask. He suggested that he come into the room in a robe and then dramatically threw it down revealing that he was actually wearing some clothes-perhaps we could get him in a wife beater/shorts ensemble so he looks quite naked under the robe. I’m not sure if he has his own robe?”

Hens Party ideas Adelaide’s reply: “Brilliant, love the idea of tricking her mom too. She’ll be thinking: “OMG I didn’t know one of my daughter’s best friends was a stripper … AAAAAHHH- what don’t I know about the guy she’s marrying?

Yes, great if Josh could wear the wifebeater shorts gear under the robe. What we could then do is that Jacqueline (I will be your instructor/MC for the day ) tells Josh it’s time to get undressed and when he refuses, she makes a big scene, fire him and sends him away. Then we face a dilemma, how are we going to do the nude life drawing. We can hide our real model in a cupboard beforehand and tell your hen that I’ve put a bouquet of flowers in the cupboard as I’m going to a birthday party after yours, and that the girls  will just have to draw them. Then she goes to look for the flowers and gets a 2nd surprise when a gorgeous model pops out… Something along those lines.”

Nic: “Wa ha ha ha ha, I love it when a plan comes together…..”

We asked for some information about her hen so we could find  her the right life drawing model. Nic told us: “Our hen is an earthy girl, spiritual (but not in a crazy way), generous, can be quiet/shy, not the centre of attention kind of person, but is also up for a laugh with a great sense of humour. She loves food and she is a personal trainer.”

That was brilliant information. The life drawing model we chose for Nic’s hen was kindhearted, a little shy, and always up for a laugh. He’d been training daily the past few months for an upcoming national bodybuilding competition.

Check out this life drawing model’s abs

They rented an apartment for the night at one of Adelaide’s spectacular beaches

The view from the apartment where we staged the life drawing hens party 

and we all (the 2 life drawing models – the real one and the false one, the life drawing instructor and Nic) met in the hotel lobby half an hour before the party was to start. The boys were nervous and Nic and I were exhilarated. Josh, the false life drawing model, was worried that he might not be able to keep a straight face and would just burst out laughing.

Amazingly, the prank went to plan. I, the MC/life drawing instructor, told the girls in guise of introduction that many of our models were professionals, such as lawyers, accountants and photographers. (The hen’s friend, the fake life drawing model, was a photographer.) Often their circle of friends were in the dark about their life modelling activities. This is why they would not be allowed to take any photos, because these men did not want photos revealing the secret part of their life all over the Internet.

Then I asked the bridesmaid Nic to fetch the life drawing model, the false one, from the room in which we had been hiding both models. Josh strutted out proudly wearing a sensual silk gown we had bought especially for him. Gee, was he a good actor. The hen and her mother shrieked with horror and shock when they saw him; he however kept a straight face and pretended to cringe when he saw the hen, whispering to me (somewhat loudly, we wanted everyone to hear) “Shit, I know her, she’s my good friend, I went to primary school with her.”

The whole room was in uproar; the hen’s friends knew Josh too. Nic had kept ‘the Prank’ a secret, everybody thought that Josh was the real life model and  were shocked to discover his ‘sordid’ secret life. Animated discussions ensued, the hen claiming that she doubted she could deal with seeing her good friend Josh totally nude.

The general conclusion was: Josh is a professional, and in the Adelaide where everyone seems to know a friend of a friend such things can happen, so we’d just have 2 get on with the show. I instructed Josh do some short poses, still clad in his dressing gown, and the girls did a great job of drawing him.

This is a photo from later on in the party, the drawings are of the real life drawing model. It was all so exciting, that I didn’t get any photos of Josh posing.

Things had started to settle down when out of the blue (well so it seemed to everyone except Nic, myself and Josh) Josh wailed: “I can’t do it, I’m leaving.”

Josh and I pretended to have a fight. I announced an ultimatum: “You have to be the model and  strip down nude. They’ve paid. You’re a professional. You’ve been doing this for 3 years. If you leave you’re fired.”

“Well right now I couldn’t give a shit” bellowed Josh and walked out. utterly furious, I didn’t even let him get his clothes.

The hen’s mum was totally frantic: “You can’t do this. The poor boy, you can’t send him out of the hotel to just in a dressing gown. What’s he going to do? He doesn’t even have his car keys.”

I ignored her and just calmly continued with our plan… hurrah, this prank was going to plan. I told them all we’d just have to make do with drawing flowers, as we’d lost our life drawing model. I asked the hen to get the flowers I’d left in the cupboard. We heard a jubilant scream.

What was their reaction when they discovered it was all just a prank: utter disbelief, total relief and they laughed and laughed and laughed.

We let Josh come back in and he joined the life drawing.

Life Drawing Hen"s Night Party in Adelaide - The Prank

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LiFe Drawing or LiVe Art?

 

 

 

 

Life Drawing and Live Art, What is the Difference?

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between LIFE Drawing and LIVE

Art?

Life Drawing traditionally involves having a nude male or female model to study and draw (or paint) in order to learn about representing the human form.

 

Live Art on the other hand, is usually more politically oriented, though not always, and is generally created in a public space incorporating elements of performance to the work. Both can be a really enjoyable experience, either as a participant or a viewer.

At Hens Party Adelaide we have create events with life drawing and events with live art.

 

Life Drawing Events

Paint The Man, Draw The Man and Draw On The Man (three packages we offer) all involve life drawing.

Laughs and giggles are guaranteed as girls recover from the surprise of having a nude male in their midst while at the same time getting over possible doubts about their artistic skills! In addition all participants go away with a souvenir (or a gift for the party princess): their drawings.

 

Live Art Events

At our live art events a qualified, experienced visual artist creates art ‘live’ during your party. This can be a permanent/long-lasting artwork or it can be impermanent – an artwork that last for just a night.

If the artwork she creates is permanent – eg on paper or on canvas, then it could then be a gift for the party princess. Having an artist creating work at a gathering is fascinating for guests as they can wander past the artist at work and view the progression of the image. This is something not usually experienced because generally artworks are only seen once completed and on display. It could certainly stimulate discussion and add a point of difference to the conversation.

For fundraising, once complete, the artwork could be auctioned and sold to the highest bidder at the event.

 

If the artwork the artist creates is impermanent, it can be photographed or videoed – one way to make sure it’s remembered.

Can you imagine how much fun it could be to have for instance, a body paint artist at your party working on a model to create an amazing effect, character or symbol?

Or perhaps the artist takes the whole group at the celebration on a creative adventure by instructing them on the art of body painting!

We’re lucky at Hens Party ideas Adelaide because we have an extensive number of talented, reliable, charming artists and models at our fingertips, due to our connection with ART LOGIC.

We are always ready to take on a creative challenge – so don’t be afraid to ask for what you want to make your party unique, creative and fun!

LiFe Drawing or LiVe Art?

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