Black and White Party Ideas

Black and white is a classic combination —chic and timeless. It's a great theme for women and men of any age. And the best part is that it's so versatile. You can dress it up with formal attire or dress it down à la beatnik hip (black jeans or tights, turtleneck, a beret).

Whichever direction you go, invite your guests to dress completely in black or white.

Decorations

Decorate with large black and white photo posters of the birthday guy or gal, their family and friends (which will probably include most of the guests at your party) from over the years. You can have your photos inexpensively converted to black and white and enlarged at Snapfish, Winkflash or other online photo services.

Display the posters by adhering them to the glass of all existing pictures/paintings
(if possible), bare walls and doors, and/or on easels. This setup does three things: it eliminates a lot of excess color, it creates a great party atmosphere and it encourages mingling about with lots of oohing and ahhing).

Carry the Black and White Theme to Your Table

For a chic and formal look, try a filigree, paisley, or pinstripe pattern.

For a more informal and hip look, go for bolder prints such as large flower silhouettes, polka dots, geometric shapes, or a zebra print. Zebra print party supplies have become very popular recently. We're seeing them on many party blogs and in stores.

Tie the backs of your chairs with a wide strip of fabric in a complimentary print. You can even add a third print as throws over your furniture. You'll block out even more color this way.

Black and White Party Ideas for Homemade Centerpieces

• twigs spray-painted white
• balls of fabric or ribbon (try completely wrapping small styrofoam balls with ribbon)
• large beads or marbles
• black licorice (in nugget shapes or the string variety)
• hard boiled eggs
• marshmallows
• black and white jellybeans
• black and white gumballs
• black and white circus peanuts
• chocolate non-pareils
• black and white mini jawbreakers

Adding large white pillar candles arranged in small groups will bring some extra warmth to the table.

A fun and truly unique centerpiece option —and one of our most favorite black and white party ideas, is to create your very own snowballs and display them in a bowl. These snowballs have faces —eyes, nose, mouth, hair and anything else you can think of.

Trust us, they'll be the talk of the table. They're also great conversation starters. People can't help put pick them up and smile.

You'll need styrofoam balls and Crayola's White Model Magic modeling clay. Black beads are optional for eyes.

• roll out the Model Magic so it's very thin
• mold it over each styrofoam ball, covering the ball completely
• add faces to each of the balls: eyelids, eyebrows, nose, mouth, ears, swirls for hair
• insert black beads into the eye sockets for eyeballs
• let them sit to harden

So Many Dessert Options...Why Have Just One?

If you're thinking about serving cupcakes, check out our ideas for black and white cupcakes.

Here's our somewhat lengthy list of black and white party ideas for desserts:

• dark chocolate cake with fluffy white frosting
• white cake (not yellow!) with dark chocolate frosting
• any kind of cake covered and decorated with white or black fondant
• cheesecake topped with a layer of dark chocolate
• chocolate chip cheesecake
• cheesecake with a layer of dark chocolate mousse
• cookies and cream cheesecake with a chocolate sandwich cookie crust
• a checkerboard cake made with white and chocolate cake batters (we think Wilton's checkerboard cake pan works best; you can find it on Amazon here)
• an arrangement of chocolate and vanilla cupcakes
• cupcakes in black and white damask wrappers

• black or white fondant cutouts in a pattern pulled from your table linens, or make flowers, paisley or bold geometric shapes
• a wide black or white ribbon around the base of the cake
• black or white M &Ms
• dark or white chocolate shavings (just make these with a grater)
• a stencil pattern (a doily works nicely) made with confectioner's sugar or cocoa

Need a little something else to add panache to your dessert table? Tuxedo strawberries make a beautiful presentation. And, what's even better, they're easy to make. Seriously. Here's how:

photo courtesy of equevedov

• ripe, perfectly shaped strawberries, washed and thoroughly dried
• white chocolate or white candy coating (candy coating is much easier to melt than white chocolate)
• dark chocolate
• a toothpick

Melt the dark chocolate. Holding the strawberries by the stem, dip three sides of each one into the chocolate.

You'll end up with a white triangle in the middle of the chocolate, the point of which is towards the narrow end of the strawberry. This is the tuxedo's white shirt.

Grab your handy toothpick and dip it in the chocolate and add three dots for buttons. Let the chocolate harden completely, and you're all done.

If you want to decorate with chocolate garnishes, white or dark, here's a fantastic resource to check out.

It's the best I've seen on the subject. This article clearly explains how to make many different kinds of chocolate garnishes —in detail and with photos.

Yes, There's More...

Do you have black and white party ideas you'd like to share with us? We'd love to hear them and we'll even share them with our readers!