5 Friendsgiving Ideas That Will Blow Your Friends Away
Thanksgiving is just around the corner, which means Friendsgiving is even closer! I don’t know about you, but I prefer Friendsgiving over Thanksgiving for two main reasons:
1. you get to do it with people you choose to spend time with
2. there’s no pressure to have the traditional food and you can be as creative with the theme as you want! No pressure to cook a 20-pound turkey perfectly 😅
If you like the traditional Thanksgiving foods, that’s great too. I just like the freedom to have a little more fun with it. So, in hopes that I inspire you to break out of the turkey-and-mashed-potato mold, I put together a few fun Friendsgiving ideas that you can try out this year. These Friendsgiving themes are sure to be a big hit!
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Regional Theme
If you are an avid traveler (or want to be) this theme idea is perfect for you. This can be literally any region you want, but I’m going to use Italy as an example because let’s be honest, everyone loves Italian food and generally knows the *vibe* of Italy.
From invitations to table settings, you’ll want the Italy theme to be apparent in every aspect of the party, but you really don’t have to break the bank to make this work.
Invitations
Etsy has a great selection of invitations that you can customize for your party. This one is my favorite Italian-themed invitation. You can also get on Canva to make your own. Save money on printing and postage and just send out digital invites!
Food
You’ll want your guests to bring their favorite Italian dish (but make sure to have a signup list so you don’t have 6 people all bringing chicken alfredo…and tell your friends to DO BETTER). I love these little bite-sized caprese salad appetizers. Or if you’re leaning into the cozy vibes of fall, you can make this super easy but very impressive zuppa toscana.
Decorations
Again, you don’t have to break the bank for this Friendsgiving theme to work. And this is coming from someone who always goes overboard when hosting. Here are a few of my favorite decorating hacks to elevate any party.
Let’s start with the tablescape. Arguably the most important area to decorate when hosting a dinner party. These are my absolute favorite runners that truly work for any occasion. You can use them on your buffet table or wherever you are serving the food. You can place them on your dinner table and add a simple centerpiece. You can hang them on your mantle. The possibilities are endless and they come in approximately one million colors.
When I think of Italy, I think of candles. Couldn’t tell you why, but it’s true. Oddly enough, candles and candlestick holders are expensive. Even on Amazon. My secret is to go to thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales, etc. I can guarantee you will find some really cute ones. And they don’t have to be a matching set. I always say “A haphazard look keeps you from going crazy trying to make something perfect”.
Signature Cocktails
The easiest thing to take your Friendsgiving party from college dorm room level to the sophisticated I-am-totally-put-together-as-an-adult level is to create a signature cocktail. That could be as simple as throwing together a sangria or literally just putting a pre-mixed cocktail into a nice pitcher and serving it in cute coupe glasses with a fun garnish. Go as simple or as extravagant as you want.
If you’re like me and you love being ✨extra✨ you can even rent this champagne wall (if you’re in the Oklahoma City area).
This theme can work for any region that you love or have recently visited. Be sure to make it a region your guests are familiar with as well so they can join in on the fun!
Disco Theme
I’m sure I don’t really need to convince anyone to do a disco-themed Friendsgiving because it’s an amazing idea and disco things are really popular right now (I’ve seen disco ball ribbon lately, like how? and why? and where can I get it?) but since you’re already here, I’ll state my case.
You can do this a couple of ways – just straight disco ball/mirrored everything OR do more of the ’60s or ’70s-inspired theme. Dealer’s choice.
Decorations
You can find some really great vintage dishes at thrift or antique stores to play into the theme. And if you find enough of it, you won’t have to do a ton of extra decorating if you don’t want to. Throw up these super cute disco ball balloons and call it a day!
Activities
Another fun layer to a themed party is you can ask your guests to dress up. And because of how fashion works, it may not be too hard for your friends to find wide-leg jeans and crocheted tops. Encourage them to check the resale or thrift stores if they don’t plan to wear the clothes again.
If you do have your guests dress for the theme, host a costume contest and let the winner take home a leftover bottle of wine or maybe a small gift card.
Photo ops are a great way to enshrine your memories in picture form. Set up a fun backdrop and let your guests take selfies or group photos. What would be even more fun (is that possible?) is to get a Polaroid so everyone can take photos like in the olden days.
Amazon has a ton of great options for photo props and disco party decorations, so you can start there!
Christmas Pajama Jam
IDK about you, but my halls are fully decked with Christmas already (it’s the beginning of November as I’m writing this), so any excuse to throw on some cozy snowman PJs and I’m THERE.
Set up a hot cocoa bar with a variety of cocoa flavors, add-ins like candy canes, whipped cream, marshmallows, and a few adult beverage options like Bailey’s.
Do a gift exchange like White Elephant or Secret Santa to make the day extra festive. I absolutely love the trend lately of giving “favorite things”. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, this is where each guest puts together a box of their favorite things (you can set a price limit if you want) and that’s their gift for the gift exchange. It’s so fun to see how many things are unique and how many people have the same favorite things.
Have supplies for cookie decorating for a fun activity (and snack), put on a Christmas movie, and serve popcorn with different seasonings.
In Our Friendsgiving Era
We all know Taylor Swift has been the talk of the town for probably most of 2023, so of course I am going to suggest a Taylor-themed Friendsgiving party.
Now, for this theme, if you are a true swiftie, you might have the urge to go all out. And if that’s what you want to do, absolutely go for it. I’m going to lay out the full version of what this party can look like, and if it’s not in your budget (or party planning mental capacity), you can just choose the things you want to incorporate.
Food
Have your guests bring food that represents their favorite era. You can have them dress that way as well, but totally up to you and what you think your guests will feel comfortable doing. Taylor’s fans have stimulated the economy this year so maybe they want to keep that going. IDK.
For example, if your favorite era is Taylor Swift, you could bring Cowboy Caviar. If your fave is Lover, you could create a fun pastel purple cocktail with edible glitter.
Decorations
Pick your favorite era and go all out! Whether you want the vibe to be glitzy and glam or moody or whimsical, stick to that theme throughout your decorations. I personally love the idea of the earthy, snowy vibes of Evermore for a Friendsgiving so here are some ideas based on that theme:
But it’s your party and you can Evermore if you want to.
Activities/Games
Friendship bracelet-making activity, duh. Taylor Swift trivia, duh. T Swift SINGO, duh.
You could also do something fun with board games like Guess Who and switch out the people for eras and have the players guess by asking questions about the albums.
Find a quiz online that tells you what era you are and print it out.
Whatever you do, make sure you buy a life-size cut out of the woman of the hour and have your guests take pictures with her. I can’t imagine a T Swift party without that.
BYOB (Bring Your Own Board)
This is probably the simplest theme so if you’re busy (or lazy, which is totally fine), this may be the choice for you. It kind of evenly distributes the work to each guest so the host doesn’t have to go crazy.
Have each of your guests create a board filled with their favorite things. I have seen so many creative ideas on TikTok so you really can’t go wrong. Some of my faves were dessert boards, taco boards, hot wings, and fries from different restaurants.
You don’t have to do much with decorations with this one. Just make sure you have a large table where you can set all of the boards in one spot. Serve beer and wine and voila. You have a successful Friendsgiving!
