Happy New Year! (Hat Game Idea)
Praying that 2010 brings a wonderful year of health, joy and opportunities to serve God in your walk of life.
Here’s one of my favorite ideas for a party. It’s great for adults, teens, seniors, singles, and it can be varied for almost any time of year. It involves a wild variety of hats, and I’ve given the instructions below. Use it for a long mixer as you begin your party, or make it a whole evening of fun, just doing the hat thing along with whatever else you’ve planned.
Try it with your Sunday School class, small group, church group or other friends. It’s perfect for a small or large group of people. Use it as a mixer, or let it last through the whole evening. You’ll be amazed at the “ownership” folks take as they sport their interesting headgear, and it can liven up the calmest group.
Our family has an interesting assortment of hats we’ve gathered over the years…an indian headdress, a cheese head, tierra, top hats, antlers, cowboy hats, unting hat, fancy ladies’ bonnets and hats, dunce hat, fireman hat, a penguin cap, crazy feather hats, cowboy hats, helmets…dozens of hilarious one-of-a-kind hats. Over the years, we’ve used those to enhance many parties, with the instructions below. We never announce that the event is a “hat” party–it’s just a surprise when they arrive.
Alternative ideas: You can use New Year’s hats for a New Year’s Eve party. For a Christmas party, you can ask everyone to bring a funny Christmas hat as a gift exchange, play the game all night, then let everyone take the first hat they wore home as a prize. A summer outdoor party could use summertime head gear. Be sure you have plenty of guys hats as well as girls, and avoid too many regular baseball caps, unless it’s a cap party. Just use your imagination!
1. As guests arrive, ask each one to select a hat from the assortment near the door and wear it.
2. Watch people come alive as they converse with one another in their interesting headgear.
3. Every half hour or so, ring a bell and make an announcement about the hats. For example:
- Everyone has thirty seconds to exchange hats with the person nearest you! (You’ll be amazed at how traumatic this is. Many won’t want to give up their hat.)
- Everyone look inside their hat right now. The person with a safety pin inside their hat wins this fabulous prize! (Use a great prize; that will keep people wearing their hats.) Everyone doesn’t need a prize, but you could continue to whistle every half hour, and award another prize. Some prizes can be nice; others can just be silly. If you’re doing lots of prizes, write specific hats on paper an dput them in a basket to draw out the prize winner as the party progresses, such as the person wearing the elf hat. Do prizes quickly so it’s a welcome interruption.
- Everyone must select a new hat. Choose your favorite one from someone’s head or take one from the extras at the door.
- When I count to three, everyone throws their hat in the air, and catches a new one to wear.
- Ring the bell and tell everyone to give their hat to someone who they think could wear it well! You have thirty seconds…go!
Interestingly, we’ve not found an age group that doesn’t enjoy this activity. We’ve used it as a mixer or during an entire party.
Here’s a bonus: every party photo is a treasure! Enjoy!
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