It's the most wonderful time of the year! And these holiday party ideas and winter party ideas – including holiday party invitations, winter party activities, holiday favors, and more – will turn your home into a winter wonderland!

Holiday Party Planning

For peace of mind, begin planning your holiday bash six to eight weeks in advance. This will allow you time to gather all the supplies that you need, including holiday party decorations, gifts, and menu items. Planning ahead also gives your guests time to RSVP and make travel plans, if needed. Don't panic if you find yourself short on time; you can still plan a great party! Planning ahead simply reduces the risk of conflicts with guests' plans and may increase your holiday party’s attendance.

To simplify the rest of the party planning process, check out our Party Planning Timeline, and read the paragraphs below for information on selecting holiday party supplies, holiday party crafts, holiday favors, and more for your child's party.

Holiday Party Supplies and Favors

If you plan to use paper tableware and holiday party supplies, our Suggested Party Supply List may be quite helpful. Please note that you may not need everything on the list; it is intended only as a guide. White is always a good color for winter parties. For more of a Christmas feel, integrate red and green. For Hanukkah, think blue. No matter what your color scheme, simple balloons and pretty pastel streamers work perfectly.

Fill your goodie bags with holiday party favors, like stickers, ornaments, dreidels, candles, and hot cocoa mix. Place all of these items inside clear or printed cellophane bags, and tie the bags closed with colorful ribbons.

Holiday Party Invitations

For Christmas:

• Fold a piece of green construction paper in half, and cut out the shape of a basic Christmas tree. Decorate the front with stickers in the shapes of ornaments and candy canes. Draw thin lines of glue from one side of the tree to the other and sprinkle with glitter to resemble garland. Write the party details inside.
• Purchase solid colored ornaments and write the party details in a circle around the outside. Package these in a box with bubble wrap and mail to your guests.
• Attach a card-style invitation to a candy cane and mail in a padded envelope.
• Include in the invitations if you would like guests to dress “festively”, i.e. in red and green.

For Hanukkah:

• Create a card-style invitation out of white cardstock. Paste a die-cut menorah on the front, or draw one on with blue marker. Draw flames coming off each of the candle sticks, color them in with glue, and sprinkle them with gold glitter. Write “You’re Invited” on the front and all the party details inside.
• Write the words to the dreidel song on the front of a card-style invitation and decorate with stickers. Write all the party details inside.
• Attach a card-style invitation to a bag of gelt and hand-deliver them to your guests.

For General Winter:

• Fold white cardstock in half and cut out the shape of a snowman. On the front draw two eyes and a smile. In silver marker, write “You’re Invited to [child’s name]’s Winter Party!” on the front and include the party details inside.
• Make a cut-out snowflake by folding a piece of square white paper corner to corner three or four times to create a small triangle. Cut small shapes out of the folded sides and open it up to see your unique snowflake. Write all your party details on the snowflake, fold it back up, and send in an envelope. Your guests will have fun opening up the snowflake to see the invitation.
• Use stickers, markers, and die-cuts from a scrapbook store to create a winter scene on the front of a card-style invitation. Try an outdoor ice skating rink with penguins and polar bears. Then write the party details inside.

If you're short on time, not to worry. You can purchase personalized or pre-printed party invitations online. We recommend mailing your invitations three to four weeks prior to the party—any sooner and your guests may forget, any later and your guests may already have plans.