Celebrate this Irish Holiday by having an adult St. Patrick’s Day party for your friends. Let this collection of simple ideas help make your party fun and have your guests going “green.”
Decorations
St. Patrick’s Day color is green, but don’t forget that you can add in orange and white–colors of the Irish flag. Symbols for St. Pat’s Day are well-known–leprechauns, rainbows, shamrocks, and pots of gold. You can find most of what you need at a dollar or party store.
- Print out St Pat-themed pictures and put them inside your current frames, or buy cheap new frames at a dollar store. Over the Big Moon and Pizzazzerie have designs you can print out.
- Wine bottle decorations are trendy. Buy an Irish-themed ribbon and a St. Patrick’s Day wooden ornament. Apply both to the bottle using hot glue. Or you can place a short string of twinkle lights in a green bottle. Make a bouquet using various picks and decorate the bottle with stickers.
- You can’t go wrong with pots of clover. Put them in a boot; leprechaun hat turned upside down, or St. Patrick’s Day theme vases, or wrap them in bright green foil.
- Make cute construction paper shamrocks following instructions at Sugar Bee Crafts.
- Another quick and easy idea is to put a pillar candle in a tall hurricane candle holder, then pour split peas into it until about an inch or so of the candle is covered.
- Buy small birdhouses and spray paint them green, using glitter is optional, to create a mini leprechaun village.
- Paint small terracotta pots green. Decorate with shamrocks and other St. Pat motifs, or make it look like a hat with a band and buckle.
Games for your adult St. Patrick’s Day party
Play Irish music in the background.
- Thrifty Jinxy has a print-out for the PIN THE SHAMROCK ON THE LEPRECHAUN game and instructions for the HOT POTATO DRINKING GAME.
- Hot Potato Toss. Play this game outside. Divide guests into two teams. Place two hoops 10 feet from each other. Each team stands behind one of the hoops. The first player tosses the potato to the other team’s hoop. A point is scored whenever a potato lands inside the hoop. The opposing team player picks up the potato and tosses it back, trying to get it into the other hoop. The teams continued taking turns tossing at each other’s hoops until all players had a turn.
The potato will get squished with each toss making it more difficult. You will need extra potatoes to replace any that explode on impact-the reason to play outdoors. - While you have Irish music playing, have a contest for the guest who dances the best jig or the one who can dance the longest before stumbling.
- Don’t say. Make a list of St. Patrick’s Day sayings. Display the list in various places throughout the room. As guests come, have each take a clothespin or a button and attach to their clothes. If another guest hears someone saying a forbidden word, they can steal their button or clothespin. The winner is the person with the most clothespins when the host calls an end to the game.
- Print out photo booth props and set up an area to take pictures.
Drinks
Make green beer by adding a drop of food coloring to a light color beer. A search of Pinterest or the internet will give you many alcoholic beverage ideas. Here are three to get you started
- Emerald Lady is a coconut, fruit, and rum combination
- Fuzzy Leprechaun cocktail is fruit juice, peach schnapps, and vodka
- Grasshopper Jello Shot uses gelatin, Creme de cacao, and Mint Liqueur
Non-alcohol drinks
There are many options for non-alcohol drinks- Best Non-Alcoholic Drink Ideas for St. Patrick’s Day
Food
You can have a sit-down dinner with traditional Irish food or serve finger foods with an Irish theme or green.
Finger foods
- Ireland is famous for its potatoes. Irish potato bites are simple to make and so delicious.
- Cheesy Reuben Appetizer
- Corned beef and cabbage rolls
- Create a vegetable tray with all green vegetables–snow peas, pepper strips, cucumber slices, etc. Or make Ireland’s flag with stripes of green vegetables, cauliflower, and carrots.
- Avocado devil eggs
- Or ask your guests to bring their favorite grazing food.
Irish Meal
Corn Beef is the traditional choice to serve in the US. For side dishes, you could serve Irish Soda Bread or muffins and Irish Colcannon (a potato dish).
Shopping Guide
For more information, please see:
St. Patrick’s Day Party Ideas for Adults Who Love Shenanigans
30 St. Patrick’s Day Ideas for Adults
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More St.Patrick’s Day Ideas:
St. Patrick’s Day Fun Stuff Crafts
St. Patrick’s Day Symbols and Blessings
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