Simple Holiday Movie Night

Holiday movie nights are perfect for celebrating Christmas with family and friends. All you need is a good movie and a few simple movie-themed snacks and decorations. 

First, you'll need a good Christmas movie. This checklist contains 15 of my favourites. For older audiences, Die Hard, Love Actually, and The Holiday are wonderful choices.

Then, you'll need some great movie snacks. You can go with a red and green colour scheme or get inspiration from the movie. For Elf, I set up an "elf food group" candy bar. I had: candy, candy canes, candy corn, and syrup.

A cookie bar is another fun idea. You can fill it with homemade goodies, but store bought cookies are impressive too.

And don't forget to add a bit of movie-themed decor. I made a fun tiered tray for our Elf movie night using dollar store supplies. Cute, right?!?

You can see how I made it here...

Are you planning a holiday movie night this year? It's definitely an easy, inexpensive and fun way to celebrate with family and friends.

♥

Gina Bell

(Mom and Amateur Party Planner)

You might also be interested in the holiday celebration ideas here.

"Simple" Harry Potter Movie Night

Sometimes simple "at home" celebrations are the best. In my house, we have "family movie night" every Friday night. We usually keep it simple, but every once in a while we have a extra special celebration. Today, I'm sharing our latest "at home" Harry Potter movie night. You are going to love the simple (yet fun) DIY details.

In my house, food plays a big part in our celebrations (which is not surprising given the fact that I am the mother to three growing boys). For our Harry Potter movie night, I set up a simple Honeydukes Sweet Shop. I used a sign (crafted from dollar store foam core) that I made for a Harry Party birthday party I hosted a few years ago. Then, I made some popcorn and a few special treats.

I put jelly beans in small condiment containers and displayed them on a stack of Harry Potter books with a sign I designed that says, "Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans".

I also made some "Nimbus 2000 Broomsticks". I put pretzels in little bags, inserted paper straws, and tied the tops of the bags with black yarn. Pretty cute, aren't they? 

I also made some chocolate frogs using melted chocolate wafers and inexpensive chocolate molds. They were easy to make, and they turned out super-cute!

To download and print the tags I designed: right-click on the photo below, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 8 1/2 x 11 photo.

I also made a Harry Potter cake and cupcakes... because what's a party without a cake?!?

Then... because a little DIY party decor is always fantastic, I hung this brick wall tablecloth I made using a sponge and red paint. Walking through Platform 9 3/4 to get to our living room movie theatre added an extra bit of fun.

Finally, with our food and decor ready, we hung a bedsheet in our living room, we strung up some Christmas lights, and we used our projector to watch the movie in our "home theatre".

Putting a little extra effort into watching a movie at home can turn a simple activity into something really special. We love our family movie nights... especially when we have themed food and decor to go with them.

What do you think of our Harry Potter movie night?

♥

Gina Bell
(Mom and Amateur Party Planner)

Find more tips for planning easy and inexpensive movie nights here.

Simple "Grinch" Movie Night

There is no better way to celebrate the holidays than with a festive movie night with family and friends, and you can "up the fun factor" with some movie-themed treats, decor and party favors. Today, I'm sharing all the easy and inexpensive DIY details of my family's simple Grinch movie night.

First, you can set the stage with a little DIY decor. I turned a door of my house into a Grinch vignette. with some card stock, cotton batten, and a dollar store ornament. I cut out the pieces (see below), and attached them to the door with painters tape. Cute, right?

I also took a picture of my door, added some details using Picmonkey.com, and printed it out to display on my table of movie treats. 

You can download your own copy by: clicking on the picture below, right-clicking, saving it to your computer, and printing it like a regular 8x10 photo.

And what's a movie without festive treats? I set out some popcorn mixed with red and green M&Ms, a jar of green candies, and some cookies decorated with "grinchy" green icing and green sprinkles.

And what's a party without a party favor? This homemade Grinch ornament (using dollar store supplies) is simple to make. You can can find the instructions and the free printable tags here.

A Grinch movie night is the perfect way to spend an evening this holiday season. With some simple decor, food, and party favors, it can be a really special Christmas celebration.


♥

Gina Bell
(Mom and Amateur Party Planner)

How to Host a DIARY OF A WIMPY KID Movie Night

I love a movie night... and I especially love one that has food and decor to go with the theme of the film. My boys love the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, so the film versions are perfect for movie nights with their friends. Today, I'm sharing the fun (and simple) details of our DIY "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" movie night.

Note: This post contains a few affiliate links. If you purchase something using one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no cost to you.

Every party starts with an invitation, so I designed a simple one using Picmonkey.com. We decided to host an outdoor movie night, and we asked our guests to bring sleeping bags and pillows so that they would be comfy and warm.

The kids got cozy, and we projected the Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie onto a white sheet inside the gazebo on our deck.

And because young party guests are always looking for snacks, I decided to serve some simple "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" themed food. 

Of course, we had popcorn... a movie night "must have". 

Several years ago, we invested in a quality popcorn maker (by Bullseye), and we use it all the time. The popcorn is delicious!

We also served "cheesies" which we displayed with a "Be careful of the CHEESE TOUCH" sign. (It's in reference to a famous scene from Diary of a Wimpy Kid.)

To download the sign I designed: click on the picture below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 4x6 photo.

And, because kids love candy, we served some of our favourite candies in individual containers. The condiment containers make the candy easy to grab, look cute, and help with portion control. They are disposable, but I always reuse mine.

Having a game for kids to play when they arrive at a party is always fun. For our Diary of a Wimpy Kid party, we filled a jar with gum, and all the kids had a chance to play "Guess how many pieces of gum are in the jar". The child that had the closest guess took the jar home.

Note: Did you notice that we used Diary of a Wimpy Kid books as decor on our food table? Cute, eh?

We also had a little Diary of a Wimpy Kid photo booth. I drew a few of the characters onto white cardstock, I cut them out, and I attached them to popsicle sticks. The kids loved posing and taking selfies.

Finally, when the movie was over, we sent our guests home with a little Diary of a Wimpy Kid party favor. I attached, "Thanks for POPPING by!" tags to packages of microwave popcorn.

Our Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie night was simple, but all the DIY details made it super-special, and the kids all had a lot of fun.

Are you fans of book-themed movie nights? If you have kids, I highly recommend the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books and movies. They are a lot of fun, and they are great for kids and adults.

♥
Gina Bell 

(Mom and amateur party planner)

PS (You can find more of my favourite DIY party themes here.)

The Ultimate DIY Movie Night

Movie nights are fun for all ages. A movie night can be a weekly event for a family, or it can be a perfect theme for a party or fundraiser. I love the idea of making a movie night special by focusing on a few special DIY details. Today, I am sharing some of my best movie night DIYs, tips and tricks.

Set up a concession stand - Watching a movie is synonymous with snacking on special movie treats, so setting up a movie night concession stand is a "movie night" must. I love the idea of building a back drop from a tri-fold or piece of foam core. Just add stripes using red duct tape, and tape on the "concession stand" sign I designed. 

To download the concession stand sign: click on the picture below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 8X10 photo.

Make individual movie trays for the guests - Nothing makes people feel more special than something you have created "just for them". I love the idea of turning an old cereal box into an individual treat try. Just use duct tape for the sides and contact/shelf paper for the bottom. They are reusable too!

Display candy like a pro - To create a treat table that will wow your guests: use a variety of glasses and containers, use cake stands and other props to vary the heights of the goodies, play with colours, and use individual containers. Find more tips for displaying party treats here.

DIY snack boards are fun too!

Pick the right movie - When picking a movie for movie night, carefully consider the age and interests of the people who will be watching. Classics like "Star Wars", "Back to the Future", and "Harry Potter" are always wonderful choices for older kids and adults... and Disney movies are perfect for younger viewers.

Party favours - Handing out a party favour at the end of a movie night is always a simple way to leave your guests with a positive impression of the evening. Glow sticks, a trinket related to the movie, or edible goodies for the next day are fantastic choices.

I love movies, don't you? Movie nights really are a fun way to spend an afternoon or evening, and these simple tips are guaranteed to make you the perfect movie night host. I hope you enjoyed my ideas for the ultimate DIY movie night! Feel free to leave some of your best ideas in the comments below.

♥
Gina Bell
(Mom and Amateur Party Planner)

You might also like this "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" movie night.