Birthday parties and engagement parties are pretty common, but have you ever heard of a self care party? If not, you’re in luck — we’re about to do a deep dive into all things self care parties!
Today I’m sharing with you this super fun way to get your loved ones interested in the idea of self care. Read on to find out what a self care party is, how to plan one effectively, and all of my favorite ideas to bring your self care party to life.
What is a self care party?
A self care party is any gathering where you get together with the main focus on celebrating and enjoying a self care moment. Think of it as being like a self care day or self care weekend, but for all your friends too. You can use the opportunity to get your best friends together to introduce them to the importance of self care and self love, or as a monthly or yearly celebration of your own self care journeys.
Hosting a self care party is a great way to encourage your friends and family members to take a break from their busy daily lives and enjoy a moment of fun and relaxation — without the need for a formal “occasion” (like a birthday) to do it. It’s a reminder to focus on yourself, not others, embrace acts of self care, and the joy that doing this can bring.
Your self care party can work any way you want it to. Host a decadent at-home spa day with luxury treatments, or plan a thrifty yet cozy picnic to the park with your closest friends to snap photos, make memories, and scrapbook together. Make it a yearly gathering, or an impromptu party plan for next week — whatever works for your schedules, lifestyle, and goals. Think about all the things that make you happy, and plan a day around them.
How to plan a self care party
Planning a self care party is a lot like planning any other party. You need to consider the basics like when and where, and what you want to do when you finally all get together. Here’s how to approach planning a self care party in a sweet and simple way.
1. Decide on a theme
While your self care party doesn’t need a theme (it can just be “self care”!), it can help you narrow down your activity, menu, and venue choices later on. I think a theme can help you and your party guests know what to expect too, so having one can help remove any confusion over what’s happening.
Choose a self care theme like mental health and wellbeing, self love, wellness, or work-life balance, or opt to tackle a challenging area — like insecurities or self-esteem. You could also choose a more traditional party theme and lean into that to inspire your decor and activities — like fairytales, the roaring 20s, spa day, floral, 90s throwback, and more.
2. Choose a venue
When you have some idea of your theme, you can start looking for a venue that’ll work with your dream self care party plans.
For most self care parties, hosting in your own home makes perfect sense — and adds to that cozy, close-knit atmosphere. Your home (or a friend’s, or family member’s) is likely to be a place that feels relaxing and welcoming anyway, giving you a great vibe to work from. It’s also super convenient for preparing food and doing things like mixing drinks, doing craft activities, and playing board games.
If you want to host your self care party somewhere else, lean into your theme. Booking your group into a luxury hotel spa is great if you want a really relaxing experience. If you want to do something active, book out a private dining or activity space near an outdoor activity center so you can do everything in one place.
3. Decide when you’ll host your self care party
We all have such busy schedules that it can be hard to pin people down for a party — especially if it’s not a “big” occasion like a wedding or baby shower. Once you’ve finalized your guest list, check in with your loved ones to find out when they’re likely to be free, and plan around this.
If your self care party needs lots of planning and prep time, start looking at dates a month or more out. It’ll be easier to slot into your friends’ schedules, and give you time to get everything ready. For a more impromptu movie night or board game night, ask your friends if they’re free next weekend and go from there.
4. Send out your self care party invites
Once you’ve sorted your party date and venue it’s time for one of my favorite parts — sending out your party invites. This is a fun moment because it’s where your party stops being an idea in your head and becomes a fully-fledged celebration.
My favorite way to send invitations out is to use Greenvelope*. Their digital party invites make inviting friends and loved ones so easy, as you can simply enter their email address or phone number to receive an email or SMS invite. The designs are super cute and easy to customize too, even if you don’t use design programs or don’t consider yourself arty or creative. I love that I can see and track RSPVs in my dashboard too, so I don’t need to keep a separate list elsewhere. It’s a simple way to help make life easier.
5. Plan your fun self care activities
Another super fun part of hosting a self care party is planning the activities and games you’ll enjoy together. Center your whole party around one activity, or plan a few short and sweet activities or games for a day filled with moments from your very own self care menu.
I’ve added a whole section below with my favorite self care party ideas, but you can also borrow from my list of the best self care ideas, unusual self care ideas, or five minute self care ideas. We’re not short of ideas on how to create self care moments here, so there’s plenty to choose from!
6. Choose your menu
Unless you’re hosting a dinner party, your menu doesn’t need too much planning. Still, you’ll want an idea of what you’ll offer your guests to eat and drink so you can be prepared.
For most self care parties, some simple drinks and snacks to nibble on are all that you need. Fresh fruit juices, lemonade, and mocktails are all great options. You could also create a DIY milkshake or coffee bar. Candy, fresh fruit, crackers, chips, and mini cakes are great food options — or you could order pizza or take-out in for a longer get-together.
7. Plan some fun party favors
With the theme of the party being all about self care, it’s lovely to send your guests home with a self care gift or self care box to enjoy. Luckily, there’s no shortage of self care party favors that are not only affordable but thoughtful too.
Great party favors include essential oils, bath bombs, bookmarks, coloring books, positive affirmation cards, self care routine cards, and craft kits. You could also write a heartfelt note to your party guest, or include a reminder about why they’re amazing.
14 fun self care party ideas and activities to inspire your planning
Not sure what to do at a self care party? Want ideas on the best self care activities to plan? Here’s a list of my most loved self care party ideas for you to borrow!
1. Host a throwback slumber party
Want to relive the good old days? Host a slumber party! This is a fun way of spending time together, and one that really feels like it nourishes the soul. Find your favorite movies, grab some snacks, and get cozy in the lounge together.
2. Have an at-home spa day
Heading to the spa can get expensive. Recreate the experience at home with a spa day. Plan a collection of self care activities and enjoy spa day goodies like face masks, lotions, and skin care treats. Pair this with some refreshing drinks and a light lunch together.
3. Play cozy video games
People often think of video games as a relaxing hobby, but they also make an excellent self care activity. Invite some friends over for a cozy video game marathon, or get everyone into an online multiplayer game that you can continue for weeks into the future.
4. Have a movie marathon
Invite your pals over for a movie marathon and relive some of your favorite movies. Schedule a watch of your favorite series, try a themed movie night, or watch a few of the newest Hollywood hits. Spend some time after talking through what you loved, learned, or totally disliked about the movies.
5. Host a craft party
If your friends are crafty or you want to laugh about how terrible you all are at making things, a craft party is the way to go. Gather tons of materials and figure things out, or follow a tutorial to make something beautiful. Brag about your creations on social media if you like, and take them home to lovingly display them.
6. Make a self care vision board
One of my favorite things to do is make a self care vision board. It’s a place to pin all your hopes, affirmations, goals, and motivating images, words, and mementos — including my printable affirmation cards. Not only is this fun to make alone, but it also makes for a fun DIY party idea.
7. Plan a mini staycation
Escape your daily routine and explore your hometown or city as a group, for a fun staycation and self care party idea. Book yourselves into a hotel suite, head out for brunch, and do all the things that you’ve talked about but never get around to.
8. Host a relaxed dinner party
Swap the takeout for something a little more sophisticated by hosting a cozy, casual dinner party. Ask everyone to bring their favorite dish along, share your food, and enjoy a glass of wine or a few mocktails while you talk, laugh, and reminisce.
9. Play board games
If you and your friends love a game night, invite them over for an evening of board games and your favorite takeout. Invite them to bring their favorite game, or play one of yours instead. You could even make this a regular feature in your monthly routines.
10. Journal together
For friends that love journaling, host a journaling session where you can all get together and write out your thoughts, feelings, dreams, and goals — or work on a gratitude list. Gather notebooks, pens, stickers, markers, and washi tape then get creative and start writing. If your party guests are new to journaling, share these journaling prompts for beginners so they can jump straight in. My positive journal prompts are also a wonderful place to start.
11. Host a book club
Connect over your shared passion for reading and self care by starting and running your own book club. Find a cozy venue, add some light refreshments, and get together to talk about how you’re enjoying the book. Not sure which book to start with? Ask for a recommendation from the group or try one of these book club book recommendations.
12. Visit a museum or landmark
Head to the city and check off a museum or landmark from your list. While this might sound like an unusual self care idea for a party, it’s a great way to unwind, relax, escape your usual routine, and appreciate culture and history.
13. Try a fun fitness class
If you’d love to do something active, try joining a fitness class for a fun way to take care of your body and mind at the same time. Invite your friends to join you for a yoga class, try a parkrun event, or go rock climbing at an indoor center.
14. Make a bucket list
Last but definitely not least, why not use some of your time together to create the ultimate want-to-do list? Give yourselves time to think about your goals and wishes, write a bucket list or manifestation list, then share it with the group. You can then make plans to help each other check off some of your all-time goals.
Host an incredible self care party for people you love
Self care parties should honestly get more love and attention than they do. They’re the perfect excuse to get together with friends and loved ones and celebrate the joy in life. Use this guide to help you plan and host an amazing self care party for the best people in your life.
No Comments