Party Theme- Zombies!

I recently started watching Z Nation and it’s surprisingly good despite its Sy-Fy Network origins!  It also got me started on ideas for this party theme:  ZOMBIES!

I love zombie movies.  My favorite one has yet to be determined because I like a lot of genres.  World War Z, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Cockneys vs Zombies, and Shaun of the Dead are just a few that I’ve watched more than once.

Last year I threw a zombie birthday party and it was a huge success.  I selected a few ideas for this blog that I personally used and some that are brand new to me.

In the featured photo above you’ll see cardboard planks taped over windows with silhouette zombie hands poking through.  If you’d like to know how to re-create this look then take a look at this DIY link.  It’s a playful way to give your safe room, er, party a locked in atmosphere.

In addition to boarded up windows you should probably have rations available.  You can go a few routes with your food ideas like gross edibles including finger foods (literally shaped like fingers), eye ball soup made from hard boiled eggs, a fake corpse with BBQ ribs inside and a sign that says “John’s Rack O’ Ribs”

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You could also play with food ideas from the perspective of a survivor of the apocalypse by creating a rations table with supplies like MRE’s (real or fake).  Include water bottles and first aid kits with snacks and party gifts in them.

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These blood clot cupcakes are adorable.  I made these sans cherry in the middle because I didn’t have the time and I also don’t care much for the taste of cherries.

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These are simple to make and you can deck them out with realistic or wild colors.  I made neon green cupcakes with pink frosting!

The brain cupcakes may have attracted more zombies than I expected…

I also made chocolate cupcakes and covered them in chocolate frosting with finely crushed Oreo cookies on top to make it look like dirt.

Add these nifty themed cupcake picks and zombies will be reaching from the grave for a bite!

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If you’d like to get your guests shambling a little bit then these shots will get the job done.  Bloody brain shots are gross to look at but are fun and interactive with the theme.

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If you want to pick a franchise to base your party around Resident Evil is a good one.  Here are some shots that anyone who has seen the films will recognize.

 

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I like adding variety of the non-alcoholic kind to my parties.  Add a glow stick to your cooler, preferably clear or where the bottom is easily visible.  Red will give it an ominous effect, Green for a sickly effect, and blue for a cold laboratory feel!  This is a cheap and easy way to add lighting and mood to your party.

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I added bloody gift bags like this to my party and filled them with dollar store finds like stretchy goo zombies, candy, stickers, and they all had glow in the dark accessories.  You can find white paper bags at any party or grocery store.

I was fortunate enough to have my party in a location that pretty much looked like a zombie shelter.  Brick walls, locked industrial metal door, bare minimum windows, and it also happened to have a large kitchen in it!  To make your party location seem more secure you can post signs up that show where the safe room is and use chains, fences, and other items to beef up your décor.

Don’t forget to dress up.  My guests had a lot of fun picking out their costumes and whether they would be apocalypse survivors or one of the infected.  My fiancee and I decided to be a duo of infected doctors.

One of the group activities we got to do was practice shooting photo targets of zombies around the room with Nerf guns.  We even had a massive sniper Nerf gun which was fun to pass around and play with.  Civilian casualties were inevitable. 😉

My party was a lot of fun and I wish you the best of luck with yours too.  I hope you stop by to see what the next theme is!