Harry Potter themed party: let's create magic with our own hands!

The Lord of the Rings or the Little Hobbit's Birthday

Birthday boy

Boy

Number of guests

not limited

Age

8-12 years

Duration of the holiday

3 hours

Location

house and yard

Holiday colors black, brown, green, orange

Treats: “Black Spider” cookies, cheese magic wands, “Book of Spells” cake, “Dumbledore’s Hat” filled straws, butterbeer, juice cocktail

Decor "Express to Hogwarts" sign, brick door, plastic snakes, spiders, cockroaches, green and yellow balloons

Themed entertainment games: “Blind choice of a hat”, “Preparing a magic potion”, “Search for the Golden Snitch”, “Search for magical creatures”, Snitch game

Decor

How to get into the world imagined by JK Rowling? By going through a real brick wall, of course, like at King's Cross Station! A piece of wallpaper or fabric with a pattern will act as a brick wall - curtain the entrance by making a cut along. At the entrance, hang signs with the name of the station and the words “Platform 9¾”. They are not difficult to make with your own hands, just like other paraphernalia recognizable from films and books.

To organize a Harry Potter themed party you will need a lot of thick cardboard, paint, posters and printed scenes from films to decorate the walls. You can probably buy something in the children's toys and holiday decor department.

Interior design : faculty living rooms (four color zones if there are many guests) or the Great Hall of Hogwarts. You can take only a table and a wonderful ceiling from the hall, and decorate the perimeter with the emblems of faculties and decor in the corresponding color scheme:

yellow and black Hufflepuff
yellow and red Gryffindor
orange and blue Ravenclaw
gray and green Slytherin

The ceiling in the Great Hall reflects the weather outside. It’s easy to make with your own hands - garlands of autumn leaves, clouds and suns made of paper, snowflakes or delicate flowers, depending on what time of year you decide to throw a Harry Potter-themed party. Of course, decorating the entire ceiling will be too labor-intensive - a small area in the center of the room or above the table will be enough.

Draw several ghosts on thin paper or assemble several ghosts from balloons and fabric and hang them around the room. Paper tubes with “light” + transparent fishing line, and floating candles are ready! And place real candles in fake massive candlesticks (first in a protective glass, for safety) or in dusty and chipped bottles.

DIY magical attribute : a bottle, a large candle (which obviously won’t fit through the neck), a metal jar lid, paint in the color of the bottle, plasticine, a glass cutter:

cut off the bottom of the bottle;
paint the lid in the color of the bottle;
Place a plasticine sausage along the inner edge of the lid.

All that remains is to melt the base of the candle, glue it to the lid, and place the bottle on top (by pressing it into the plasticine). To prevent the lid from being visible, hide the bottom part behind books, wands, or other recognizable Harry Potter-style paraphernalia.

Do not forget about the symbols of the four faculties - badger, lion, eagle, snake (“stuffed animals”, images or figurines). Hang cobwebs in the corners, place “antique” books and scrolls, let paper owls and bats hover under the ceiling. Flying brooms in the corner, jars with creepy potions, toothy paper letters and books, dragons, centaurs and huge spiders - we cut, glue, print, draw... It takes a long time, but how impressive!

If you are planning a holiday for children, do not overdo it with horror films! Let everything monstrous be rather funny and drawn-unnatural.

To ensure that a Harry Potter themed party remains in the memory of guests for a long time, build an “advertising” banner. For repeated inscriptions, the spells Herbivicus, Descendo, Lapifors, etc. are ideal. Instead of a banner, you can make a tantamaresque of a poster or a movie scene.

PROGRESS OF THE HOLIDAY ON THE THEME OF HARRY POTER

We welcome Harry Potter's guests

The guys (we invited 16 people to our party) were very surprised by the “stone wall” at the entrance. Their facial expressions are simply impossible to put into words!

And then - we gave them magic wands and the game began!

Games and entertainment for students of the school of magic

When all our guests successfully passed through the brick wall and sat on the sofas of our main hall of the “school of magic,” their eyes sparkled with delight. I, in the image of Minerva, began to initiate them into students.

Game 1. Blind hat selection

Remember, with the help of a magic hat, Hogwarts students were assigned to study in 4 different houses - Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff? The essence of our game was the same!

And then – there was our first magic lesson. Professor Dumbledore (aka dad, only with a beard and in a red wizard's robe) taught our guests how to prepare various “potions.”

Game 2. Preparing a magic potion

The children were allowed to mix the ingredients of the potions in random order and submit them for evaluation by the professor. Everyone had to not only prepare a potion, but also come up with a name for it and say what they could do with it! Everyone really enjoyed this fun! I had to repeat the game several times!

Some of our guests believed so much in the power of their magic that they even risked trying a homemade product! Fortunately, at least the components of the “potions” were edible!

After all the children's experiments with products, it was urgent to clean the house, and at the same time ventilate it before the feast! Therefore, we decided that dad would continue to play with the guys in the yard, and I would clean up and set the festive table.

Game 3. Hunting for magical creatures (outdoors)

Throughout the yard we placed small plastic figurines of creatures popular in the wizarding world. These were owls, dragons, dragon eggs, snakes, rats and frogs, etc. The one who finds the most described items wins.

It is important to inspire children to use magic objects such as brooms and wands when searching. It will be much more interesting this way!

Game 4. Search for the Golden Snitch

This game is a little more difficult than the previous ones. The essence of the game: children must look for a real Snitch (and, by the way, you can buy it in a toy store, there are many battery-powered options). But this needs to be done in teams (remember, we divided them into houses?). To play, you first need to hang yellow paper and rubber balls around the clearing (or around the house), which would look like a magic snitch. You also need to prepare a list of questions in advance (best of all, about knowing the plot of your favorite movie). Progress of the game: all the guys sit down in teams, you read the question. The team that gave the correct answer goes in search of the Snitch. They have 5 minutes. If the “seekers” return with nothing during this time, or with an imitation of a real snitch, the game continues..

Game 5. Throw the Snitch

When you have a magical thing in your hands, why not try its power? For example, check how it flies? And even if you haven’t found a battery-powered Snitch toy, you can play this game with an ordinary rubber ball. The essence of the game is to throw the ball into the hoop and not miss.

My mages were so busy flying on brooms and throwing the Snitch that they didn’t even hear me call them to the table!

Treat for little wizards

Our table also turned out to be in the spirit of Hogwarts . Cockroaches, flies, and dragon heads were in abundance! Of course it's a joke! Did you believe it? In any case, the festive table simply needs to be given some sinister shade.

Cookies "Black Spider" . We cook simply. Dip regular biscuit cookies or “zoological” pretzels into dark chocolate and put them in the refrigerator to harden. And then we add “spiders” to the standard marmalade and cream treat.

Cheese magic sticks . Place whipped cottage cheese with fruit on a wooden stick, pour melted chocolate over it and let it harden.

Dumbledore's Hat tubes . We buy regular waffle cones. We fill them with custard, condensed milk, curd mass, fruit - as you like. Drizzle melted chocolate on top and sprinkle with colorful caramel. Decorate the base of the cone with aerosol cream.

Butterbeer . Beer made from mandrake root, remember? Under the “beer” brand, you can serve several types of lemonades and invite children to mix them at their discretion.

Cake "Book of Spells"

And to go with the cake - a fancy juice cocktail.

The end of the Harry Potter holiday

To be honest, we didn't have enough time! The children finished the cake as they went, because their parents were already waiting for them in the hall! But I also planned to leave them half an hour after the treat for “free” play. So that they can communicate, share their impressions, and come up with their own addition to the Harry Potter holiday . Unfortunately, we didn't succeed! So if you also want to use our ideas in the process of organizing your child’s birthday, add another half an hour to the three hours!

Our magicians went home with such cute sweet souvenirs!

Goodbye Gary Potter ! Goodbye Hogwarts ! See you next school year!

Invitations

ticket for the Hogwarts Express (print a template from the Internet or make it yourself);

letter of admission to the first year (similar to the previous version);

mini-poster or flyer (make in FS and print);

toothy message (a postcard with two “flaps”, top and bottom, the “flaps” are cut out with teeth);

talking letter (buy a postcard with the ability to record audio, design it in the Harry Potter style).

Suits

A simple option is a white top and a colored bottom (check, stripe, plain) in accordance with one of the faculties. Even simpler - black bottoms (skirts and trousers). And all the paraphernalia will be waiting for guests at the entrance under the sign “Diagon Alley” - hats, student robes, wands, ties, scarves, faculty emblems. All this can be made from pieces of fabric, paper and other available materials.

It will take more than one day to create a recognizable costume for a Harry Potter-themed party, so guests need to be warned in advance. The choice is colossal: Alastor Moody, Sirius Blake, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Voldemort, Bellatrix Lestrange, the Weasley twins, etc. This is in addition to the magnificent three - Harry, Ron and Hermione. Potteriana is generally a treasure trove of bright, recognizable images!

Script, games, competitions

The following games and competitions can be included in the scenario:

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Passing quests;

Who can pack the wizard's suitcase faster? For this task you will need a couple of old suitcases with latches. The more worn they are, the better. You can put books, a magic wand and clothes there. Whoever completes the task faster receives a magic candy as a reward.

We brew the potion. The ingredients for the potion can be anything. The more exotic they are, the better. A cast iron cauldron can act as a magic cauldron.

We talk to snakes. Give your kids the opportunity to hiss their hearts out by imagining themselves as parsel mouths.

Making a raincoat (prepare canvas and lots of paint, glitter, stars, glue and other decorations that the children will apply to the raincoat).

Blind hat selection game. Children sit on a chair, and the magic hat sorts them into houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin. You can divide the children into two faculties and arrange competitions.

Game "looking for the golden snitch". Let the children jump around the room on broomsticks and try to find the Golden Snitch. Whoever finds it first receives a gift.
The game “defeating magical creatures”, etc. Here, kids can fight a large mountain troll by enchanting its club with the Wingardium Leviosa spell.

You can also organize a parade of tricks and experiments that will pass for magic and sorcery. The main thing is that the children find it interesting.

We have already mentioned the fake floating candles and the wonderful ceiling. Add to this a colorful checkered or striped tablecloth, a lot of stickers and labels (faculty emblems, spells, funny names of dishes), unusual dishes (pots and kettles, jars instead of decanters, flasks and beakers). It is better to choose “antique” glasses, plates and cutlery. Ready!

Cocktails of strange colors, molecular gastronomy, unexpected combinations of products, shocking tastes (salted chocolate, for example) are ideal for a table with a sign “Professor Slughorn's Experiments”.

To throw an unforgettable party, you don’t have to develop a special Harry Potter-themed menu. The main thing is the design. In films and books, characters eat quite ordinary food, sitting at huge tables in the Great Hall. Of course, if it's a children's party or a holiday for teenagers, there should be a lot of sweets in the form of spiders, frogs, worms and other “nasties”. Everything is bright or in gold foil, in chests and huge slides.

Menu, and that same butter beer

Everything should be unusual and fit the theme. For example, you can make panicles from long tubes and cheese. Order the cake in the form of a book of spells. You can make a candy bar and prepare different drinks.

Butterbeer is made from milk, ice cream and caramel sauce. And rest assured, fantasy fans will have a lot of fun with this party. A themed party is always more interesting than just a party with balloons and cake.

Entertainment

Any traditional competitions can be easily converted into themed games - use your imagination! But it’s better to start the scenario for a Harry Potter-themed party by distributing friends by faculty (“talking” hat on your head, announcing the result). If friends came in suits, then instead of distribution, let the hat “read thoughts.” Play a clip of funny phrases from songs or make an audio recording in the spirit of “I wonder if the tipsy Slytherins won’t turn me into a pig?”, “Is there anything to eat here?!” and so on.

Arrange a photo shoot in front of the banner while all the costumes are still intact. Let the presenter wave the wand, commanding “Immobulus!”, i.e. “Freeze!”

As a basis for the scenario, take an exam, graduation at a school of magic, enrollment in a course. If it’s a birthday, then let it be – Harry’s (Hermione’s, Ron’s – what costume is the birthday boy wearing?).

We offer several ideas for Harry Potter-themed games and competitions:

Destroy the basilisk. Foam snake with a printed or drawn image on top. You need to hit the monster's eye by throwing a dart;

Rein in the broom. An obstacle course, brooms for all guests - and a race to the finish line. Nimbuses, whirlwinds and other legendary brooms are easy to assemble from branches and a gold-painted stick;

Catch the dragon. A silhouette made of plywood or cardboard, several lasso (or one, and throw one at a time);

Full Leviosa - magic wands, balloons. The whole crowd, standing on one leg (evil spell) and waving a wand, with one hand (in the second there is a wand) do not let the balloon fall to the floor. The most dexterous, real wizard will win!

Drunk Quidditch. Of course, only if you're having a Harry Potter-themed party for adults (although you can fill the glasses with lemonade or juice instead of alcohol). And the game is classic beer pong, where you have to hit the ball into a glass of beer at the other end of the table. We just throw the Snitch, and even through the rings fixed in the center of the table.

Arrange a quiz on your knowledge of the topic - answers to questions or a game “Is it true that?” Chop the piñata in the shape of Voldemort. Prepare magic potions from alcoholic (or not?) ingredients. Play alchemists or physicists using children's magic experiment kits. Dance the waltz - balls at Hogwarts are held several times a year. And, of course, don’t forget to give all guests prizes for their efforts - unusual sweets and themed souvenirs.

“In the footsteps of Harry Potter”: a literary quest

One Sunday in January, my eldest niece Sophia celebrated her birthday.
Since Sonya is a big fan of books, especially about Harry Potter, we organized a party... in a real library. Our guests took part in the most exciting quest “In the Footsteps of Harry Potter.” And today we want to talk about this unusual game.

To be honest, we decided not to tell so much as to show photographs and simply comment on them. Why? So that you too can plunge into the atmosphere of our holiday.

Please note that our guests were dressed as literary characters. Hermione Granger, Tiger Lily, Galadriel, the Prince, Baba Yaga, Daenerys Targaryen and Mary Poppins - such a meeting of such different literary characters is only possible in the library!

It all started with a letter from Hogwarts . We were asked to help Harry Potter save the world from the surviving supporters of the Dark Lord.

Click on the photos and they will increase in size

Sonya solemnly read the letter out loud.

The first step was to find the magic box.

Lisa became the honorary Guardian of the Time Turner. And Sonya was given a real metronome, which counted down the turns of time for the movement of our entire team.

The box contained a book, a notepad, a pen, a magic wand, a candle, a box of matches, an unknown alphabet and a letter that could be opened at the very end of the game. The box had to be carried with you at all times, so it was solemnly presented to Sasha, the only man on our team. And we hit the road!

However, leaving the room was not so easy. To open the door, they had to solve riddles and use the answers they received to create a secret code.

Then we dialed this code on the “smart phone”. As you can see, in the game we needed both unusual female logic and purely male strength.

Leaving the room, we found ourselves at a small table. On it were two bowls, a rolling pin, a book, a mysterious bag and recipes.

We read the task: how many brothers did Harry's best friend have?

Next came the recipe ingredients. It was necessary to find out what was superfluous here and would not be needed at all to prepare the polyjuice potion. And this is where the work begins!

This whole hellish mixture was boiling on the “fire”, boiling, hissing, whistling, bursting and crackling...

We ended up brewing a potion. Well, how can you not try it?

We refreshed ourselves and moved on to the next book. To find the cache, we were asked to find a spell.

The answer was in the numbers on the last line. Yes, yes, Anton Pavlovich!

Then we solved a crossword puzzle together.

But the next envelope could be opened under one condition:

We sang with the whole group!

And here, quite unexpectedly, Sherlock Holmes appeared.

As in the famous works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, we developed letters using flame. This is where a candle and a box of matches come in handy!

The next clue was in a box of tea - the British are tea lovers, aren't they?

We raked out a bunch of tea bags from the box. Just in case, we counted them for the revolutions of the metronome. However, the number we needed was on one of the bags.

Wherever we found numbers that indicated the number of beats of the metronome - even inside a cube!

Then we looked for a box with a green bow. Yes, yes, exactly with green. As luck would have it, boxes with bows of other colors caught my eye.

Finally, the box was found. It was necessary to solve the code. And this is where the Dancing Men came to the rescue. We took a clue out of our magic box and began deciphering. Serious passions have broken out!

The tracks led to a huge monkey sitting on the windowsill.

The monkey kept a bottle of Tarragon with the inscription: “Drink me!”

To move to the next level, we were asked to transfigure. Guess what the person lying on the floor represents?

Harry Potter's best friends were kidnapped and hidden in the tallest tower of Hogwarts - the Astronomy Tower. I even had to look through the encyclopedia to guess the constellation.

The next number of revolutions of the Time Turner was hidden in one of the magic eggs.

And then we played real bowling! To find the next clue, we threw balls and destroyed towers of cubes.

From these same cubes we assembled a magic spell.

And then we moved to another room. However, the path was blocked by the woman from the painting. She asked for a password.

And finally - a congratulatory song for the birthday girl!

Then we had a snack.

And we enjoyed playing the board game “Find the Treasures.”

And this is our common photo as a keepsake.

We sincerely thank the director of the Bogolyubov village library Olga Aleksandrovna Andon and the librarian Marina Vasilyevna Pavlinova for such a wonderful quest! We didn't even notice how an hour and a half of the game flew by. Thank you very much for the sincere atmosphere, for the warm welcome, for your professionalism and responsiveness.

A secret: we have already started waiting for the next birthday so that we can come to your quest again!

What else can you read about quests:

Ufa: city quest for TFR-2017 participants
"Night of Museums 2018". Quest at the Spoon Museum