Fun Loving Hat Exchange Party

by Kathy Prahl
(St. Charles, MO)

In this Fun Loving Hat Exchange Party, everyone is requested to bring a GIFT WRAPPED hat. It can be a hat you buy, make, or borrow. Hats that are unique and silly will add a lot of extra fun. In order to find out what wonderful hat will be yours, we did the gift exchange idea. We have 2 baskets. One basket consisted of numbers for the amount of people who are there. The 2nd basket is a duplicate of the first. Let's say a person draws #1, they automatically think they will go first. Not necessarily so, as it will depend what number is drawn out of the other basket at random to see in what order each person will be called. This makes it more fun as no one knows who will be called next.

When you open your hat, you have to put it on. And the clincher is, you have to wear that hat ALL night, even during dinner. Some examples of hats: cowboy hats, dog hats, lampshades made into a hat, balloon hats, chicken hats, Santa hats, and bonnets with flowers.

For each table centerpiece, we borrowed wig heads from a wig store. A silly hat was put on each one to carry the theme.

Surprisingly, the men enjoyed the fun just as much as the women. To see everyone eating dinner at the table, or seeing people milling around talking to each other wearing a crazy hat....now THOSE are memories!

TPQ Comment: I thought about hosting a hat party but haven't gotten around to doing it yet. I thought what I would do is require that it be a homemade hat. That way I think you'd get really zany hats, crazy ones like you see at Kentucky Derby.

But I think your way might be better appreciated by guests because it's not as much of a hassle. Plus each guest has no control over the hat they have to wear. Even better. Thanks for contributing this Fun Loving Hat Exchange Party Kathy.