Re: Mad Men Party UPDATE

The party came out AMAZING!!  Love all the pictures you took!!  I wouldn't have been able to get the full effect without them!  Your friend did a fabulous job.

So, Hubby has been reading our blog, which is borderline invasion of privacy since these are basically our e-mails, but he thinks in costume you looked like...

Great job getting into character.

Subject: Mad Men Party UPDATE

Hi-eee! So it was about a million years ago when I last told you about my friend's Mad Men party and wanted to give you the deets on the actual night. First: it was awesome! My friend did such a great job planning and there was the perfect amount of people. Everyone dressed up - most of the men were in suit & ties - which made the whole affair seem extra special and almost made it feel like we were at a wedding reception. She had lots of heavy hors'dourves which were delicious and a fully-stocked bar (picture below - it was the only picture of the bar I could find...sorry for the cheesey folks on the side!). She had printed up little cards with "recipes" for making drinks from the show, like a Manhattan, an Old-Fashioned and a Gimlet, which became my personal favorite. It's the drink Betty ordered in the bar at the end of season 2, right after she found out she was pregnant (so much for prenatal care) and right before she Did the Deed with a random guy at the bar in some back room at the bar (classy).

The weather was cool but not cold and the guys spent most of the night outside by a bonfire, smoking cigars and enjoying their Scotch or Bourbon while the ladies stayed inside and played an enthusiastic game of Pictionary/Charades with 1960s-themed clues. (Examples: Rosa Parks, Zorro, the Bunny Hop...all very hard to draw/act out.) It was especially fun because you could choose to draw or act it out - it was your choice - but you were going head-to-head against a player from the other team. It was fun. Trust me. Don't we all look especially Stepford-esque here???

All in all - dressing up for a party is the way to go. Everything just feels more exciting and fun. And I stuck with my goal of only wearing clothes from my actual closet. The same went for my husband. I did purchase false eyelashes and a friend-of-a-friend gave me an awesome "poof" and flipped up my hair on the ends. And she did it without a Bump It because she said they are "cheating." Awesome.

Anyway - it was a successful night and very fun. I think I will re-watch Season 4 soon...the party made me miss the show!

Have a great weekend!!
Kara

Re: Subject: Calling All Maddicts!

Hey Kara - 

What an awesome idea for a party!!  Is it your friend's birthday or did she just want to do something fun for a group of friends??

So, I remembered (I think last year) Oprah did a show on Mad Men.  I found this which may be helpful.  It includes some drink and food ideas that were shared on her show.  I think you are on the right track with many of the ideas.  Little Sally Draper pouring drinks seems like it qualifies under something you do not want child protective services to hear about, but then again maybe the kid will end up with some good tips!

I think for the drinks I like the idea of doing the pitchers with the drinks named after the characters.  I can see them with little signs next to each pitchers, maybe in mini frames??  For the game, maybe you could set it up like a game show from the 1960's.  Have you ever watched The Match Game??  There are two players and then I think six panelists.  The host asks a phrase, usually funny, like, "Don Draper is always lucky when it comes to the ladies.  It must be his really big ____________."  The the panel would write something on a card and the contestant who's question it is would write something on their card.  Your goal is to get the most matches possible.   So, there isn't really a right or wrong answer, it would just be good for those who really knew the characters because they have a better chance of matching.  Plus, it would be hysterical to see how people answer that one!!  Playing old episodes of the show in the background is key, and music from that decade is also important.  

It seems like you hit on everything.  Not sure if she is planning on doing invitations, but I think finding vintage ads and somehow incorporating them in the invite would be cool.  Otherwise, they could also work for party decor and framing them would be fun.  They could go on the drink and food tables.  I bet some of the thrift stores in town have old copies of magazines and she could pull them from there or find them online.

I can't wait to see how everything turns out!!  You definitely have to share pictures.  Oh, remember Hubby and I based our engagement pictures on Mad Men.  Everything I wore was from my closet, except the hat.  Don't you have that cowl neck JCrew dress??  I think that will totally work.  And if you want to borrow my hat, let me know.  I actually found it at Target! 

Have a great weekend!

Mel

Photography:  W. Scott Chester

Subject: Calling All Maddicts!

Mel -

So a friend of mine is hosting a Mad Men party and has solicited my input for coming up with party ideas. Her basic premise is that we all wear Mad Men-inspired clothes and have cocktails and hors'dourves, but she wanted to think of a few other things so it's not just a night of eating and drinking (which would still be awesome, let's be honest!).

My initial thoughts:

• If possible, have a small child mixing cocktails and serving drinks, a la Sally Draper.
• Have the same small child dress up in a ballet costume and perform a small recital
• Maybe have modern drinks, but give them old-fashioned names, like "Gimlet." (That's the only one that comes to mind.) And obviously she would need to have Heineken.
• OR she could make pitchers of already-mixed drinks (so many magazine articles say this is easiest on the hostess) and then call them things from the show: Betty's Crazy Juice, Sterling's Gold, etc.
• We could do some sort of Mad Men trivia, which would be way fun and separate the Maddicts from the casual viewer. Interspersing some trivia about that time period might also be nice if there are any non-watchers in attendance.
• One time in Real Simple they suggested playing old Christmas movies for a holiday party (like Miracle on 34th Street or It's a Wonderful Life) but have them on mute so they're just in the background. So maybe she could play one of the seasons on DVD...
• Setting up a photo area where couples can get their pictures taken in their Man Men outfits. Maybe have a winged-back chair where the lady can sit (with crossed ankles, natch) and the man can stand behind. Also, there could be some Mad Men props on hand, like a fedora or an old copy of Life magazine.
• It will be a non-smoking group, so maybe candy cigarettes and ashtrays everywhere.
• Of course lots of music from that time period.

Honestly, my mind is going blank a little bit. All I can think about is Season 4 because it was so intense and so many things changed. Any thoughts???

<3,
K

P.S. I am also planning my outfit. My goal will be to only pull things from my closet and not buy anything. I think I have a surpising number of Mad Men-esque pieces. I feel so classy and Jackie O.!