I’m very vocal about things that I don’t like—chocolate, rap music, books with love triangles, Chappell Roan—but at the top of that list is probably holidays that make me feel anything but happy. The unhappiest of all being Valentine’s Day.
It feels like a completely unnecessary holiday that celebrates not only a man, but shoves it into single people’s faces that they are, in fact, single (trust me, I know from experience).
Despite my aversion to everything this holiday represents, there is one good thing that comes out of it: Galentine’s Day. While I may not have a significant other to enjoy the day with, I do have a great group of friends, and we have made it our mission to throw a Galentine’s Day party.
Despite our determination to throw a great party, none of us ever had before, so we went to our trusty friends for answers: TikTok and Pinterest. We found many, many ideas, but there are a few that we are definitely implementing at our Galentine’s Party.
Bring a Board
This has been a TikTok trend for a while now, however, it is easy to put a cute Valentine’s spin on it. Bring a Board is essentially where each person in your group brings a different charcuterie-style board. Someone might bring a Chick-fil-A board, or a dessert board, for example. To turn this idea into a Valentine’s theme, you can bring a dessert board of solely heart-shaped desserts. Or, you can bring a heart-shaped pizza board. The options are endless, and even a touch of pink or red could turn these boards into the best Galentine’s idea.
Favorite Things Party
Yet another trend on TikTok, a favorite things party is when each person attending buys their favorite thing for each other person attending. For example, if my favorite thing is Lipgloss, I will buy lipgloss for each person attending the party. Many people set a spending limit for gifts or even bring more than one of their favorite things if there is a smaller number of people attending. Not only does this idea let you get to know your friends even more, but you also get to go home with some little goodies. To turn this trend into a Galentine’s theme you can agree to get your favorite things in only Valentine’s colors, or you can bring them in Valentine’s-themed wrapping.
Lip gloss Keychains
Continuing on with our theme of TikTok trends, many people on my For You Page have been making lip gloss keychains, and as someone who is obsessed with lip gloss, I think this is one of the best ideas. Essentially, everyone brings a lip gloss or two, and using a needle you punch a hole through the tube, and using charms you can make a cute keychain for the lip gloss. These can be clipped onto purses, keys, bags, etc. For people like me who love lip gloss, this idea is not only fun but also practical. The best place to get supplies, in my opinion, is Michaels. You can get beads and charms there, as well as the jump rings and keychain hooks. Or, if you’re an amateur keychain maker, you can buy a kit on Amazon specifically for making lip gloss keychains. For the lipgloss, Summer Fridays is a really popular brand; however it is expensive, and the Elf Squeeze Me lip balms, which are more cost-effective, are just as great. This is a fun activity to do during your Galentines party, and it is something you can continue to use.
Candle Painting
As someone who has a dream of living in an aesthetic, cottage-core apartment one day, candle sticks are something that I love. However, boring, white candle sticks are not, which is where this activity comes into place. Despite the name of the activity, you are not using actual paint on these candles, you are using colored candle wax. You can buy packs of colorful tea candles on Amazon for around 12 dollars. Then, you light the candles, and as the wax melts you can use it to paint on your white candles. Though, do be careful where you are putting your paintbrush because you don’t want to start a fire. This activity is an easy way to be creative while spending time with friends.
Cake Decorating
The last activity that you could do at your Galentines party is cake decorating. This can either be a group activity or something to do individually. You can get one larger cake for each person in your group to help decorate, or you can get smaller, individual cakes for each person in your group. A fun way to put a spin on this activity is to set a time limit or to switch cakes every few minutes. That way everybody’s cake has a little touch of everybody else. This idea also provides a built-in dessert for your party, which is one less thing to figure out beforehand.
No matter what your Galentines party looks like, the most important thing is that you are spending time with people you love. These ideas are a few of many ways to have a fun party, and trust me, five minutes on TikTok will leave you with lots of ideas.