40th Birthday Party Ideas
They say that “life begins at 40″, but it’s hard to believe that you have reached this age in your (or your partner’s) life.
Time to start planning for the big day and the big party to see the next phase of your life in with a swing.
Here are a few ideas…
Surprise Party
Obviously you can’t do this one on your own, but a surprise party is a great idea. To make it really effective you have to let your partner know that a party is planned - with just a few close friends, but you keep the number of people a secret.
This is your life
This is just like the TV show. You build a book with the life history included in it. This is a great one to do as a PowerPoint presentation. You then proceed to introduce people from their past. You could if you want present a bound book with the newspaper from the week they were born. There is a suitable book available from a company called Getting Personal www.gettingpersonal.co.uk
Hire a boat
A great party venue is to hire a boat. This could either be on a river or on the sea. (Watch out for the sea as some people may get sea sick).
Hire a castle
A castle is a great venue for a party. Many castles have a banqueting hall. Even better you could also combine it with a Medieval Banquet. This would make an unmissable event.
1969 Party
A great theme for the year you (or your partner) were born. You could wear Mini shirts and single breasted suits. (For more details on 1969 fashion there is a section on the BBC website) http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1969/fashion.shtml
Since 1966 was the year that England won the world cup you could get everyone to dress up in red England replica kits.
Book a magician
Just about any party tends to go better with a magician. For my wife’s 40th Birthday we booked a magician. He was able to split his act into two halves- the first half for the kids, the second half for the adults.
Go camping
This is best done in a farmer’s field, rather than on a camp site. You can arrange to have a camp fire and you could do your cooking on barbeques.
Beach party
A nice thing to do in hot weather is to have a party on the beach. You may need to pick a location where you are not likely to get told off. In the middle of winter you could plan an indoor beach party where you wear hawaian shirts and spread sand on the floor. Please also see our article on Beach Party Ideas.
Themed party
There are lots of other types of themed parties that you can try.
- Caribbean
- Pirates
- Vicars and Tarts
- Film Stars
- School Dinners
Hire a big villa
Hire a big villa for a week or two abroad. Share the cost with your close friends. (sent in by Salli)
1920s theme party
Dress up in spats and posh frocks. Play the Charlston. (Sent in by Melissa)
Murder Mystery
Spend it at a hotel with as many friends as you can allow (or afford). Plan a ‘Murder Mystery’ game (instructions available on-line). Everyone should plan to stay in one area of the hotel. The possibilities are endless. (From Joanna in Arizona).
Wild west night
Wild west nights are always a laugh. We had 1 for my partener when he turned 40. We hired a mechanical bull and had his favourite 40 songs playing all night at the local centre. It was great. (Sent in by Wotattitude)
Tribute Band
Wig out party
A good idea for a party is for everyone to show up with a wig and then swap wigs by the end of the night.
The host should have some extra wigs on hand for those people who arrive without a wig.(Sent in by Sam Witherspoon)
Charity Party
I wanted to do something huge for my husbands 40th but was pretty tight on cash. I wanted to book his favorite band, have showgirls, Karaoke, a petting zoo for the kids and other misc. games. The cost would have been in the thousands and I could not afford it.
So I decided that his party would also be a charity event supporting an Orphanage that my husband and I often donated to. All of the entertainers agreed to play for free and the venue was also provided for free. I asked the 150 guests to make a $40 donation to the Orphanage instead of buying gifts for my husband. In the end we were able to donate more than $6000, the only cost for me was the food, cake, decorations, disposable cameras and pinata treats. In total I spent maybe $500 out of my pocket. I cannot even begin to think about what I’m going to do for his 50th. (Sent in by Sheri).
Amazing Race Party
All gather and complete a task at the house to receive their first clue (we had a page of riddles to solve). Teams are set by you - we did 3-4 people per team, but you keep it to couples if needed. After that it’s like a car rally, stopping here and there to pick up the items in the clues. One task involved counting the fire hydrants on one street and reporting it at a coffee shop drive-thru speaker to receive the next clue and some treats to eat on the journey. We had a friend create a task for people to do at her place. In the end, we all met at a restaurant for dinner and discussion. Many laughs! (Sent in by Peggy Churey)
Any other ideas?
If you have any other ideas - why not drop us an email and we will see if we can add them.
Pub Crawl
For my husband’s 40th, I threw him a Pub Crawl in Reno, rented a Party bus and invited 20 of his closest guy friends. View my pictures at http://www.whyknotpartyplanning.com/bachelor/
Fun casino Party.
Great fun for guest of all ages. You can hire full size Roultette and Blackjack tables with fully trained croupiers. Everyone loves a gamble, especially when there is no real money to lose.
An adult pyjama party?
I’m looking into a wine country tour and would appreciate any suggestions!
THE SIMPLE ONE
For those of you who are having a BIG one that whole weekend with their friends, but have to plan another party for their family- why no go simple.
You can go all out very subtly. Why not just have a theme- like LUXURIOUS- and go all out with luxurious food, luxurious china, luxourious decorations, while still maintaining the relaxed friendly environment with your family.
You could have a fanastic ‘- GLITZ & GLAM-’ themed 40th party. All guested should be told to come to the party dressed to a very high standard or if that doesnt sound appropriate you can just use a theme colour but they should still spruce it up a little bit eg. have some shiny accessories !!!!!!!!! COOL! a chocolate fountain would be great ! Canapies and little bites would be perfect ! Hope u like this idea !:)
Roller skating
Hire the local Roller Skating Rink!
A funny and Family oriented Party I gave my husband for his 40th Birthday was at Chuck E Cheese’s…complete with the Buzlite Year party paper…it was a blast!
Take them to their venue in style by hiring a stretched limo or horse and carriage only telling them you have booked a taxi
Weekend in Vegas - rent a suite at a nice hotel. Why not? You only turn 40 once. Invite friends - there is something to do for everyone - shopping, shows, restaurants, and hitting the casinos! People watching is also fun! Eat at only the finest restaurants, and hit the spa while you are there.
A trip to the big easy for a wild weekend on Bourbon Street. New Orleans is known for its food, live entertainment, and bars! Book a room in the historic french quarter, invite a small group of close friends if you like….or keep it simple with a romantic weekend for two.
Scary Movie
My friend is 40 and wanting to see a scary movie “resident evil III” so we are having a “Nothing is scarier than 40 party!” We gouls are all dressing up as zombies etc., having drinks and appies at my house, then booking the theater so we will have a section reserved for us. Then out dancing. This will be Sept and will be fun! She will be surprised or plain scared!
house party
My husband is a huge Dallas Cowboys fan .. the kids and I are taking him to Dallas to see his favorite team play in their home venue
white water rafting in wales , then a bottle of champagne in the evening to celebrate surviving.
I myself am turning 40 and want to go to Vegas. Anyone and all that know me could join at their own expense of course.
We had a hollywood/bollywood party and the tables each had a postcard of a famous actor/actress the guests were dressed to the nines and we even had a guest appearance by micheal jackson (impersinator) A great time was had by all.
A bollywood party where everyone comes dressed as a bollywood star and you can serve all indian themed food! Have bollywood movies playing on the tv in the background too!
pimps and hos
Party at a Mexican Restaurant and have a “FIESTA”. Use the slogan “40 and Hot”. Decorate with red chili peppers. Wear sombreros and serve Margaritas!
Things your friend should experience before he turns 40!! Like whoopy cushion, banana split in bed naked (gift a banana), a robust stripper named Dolly (gift is a dollar store doll with her clothes a little messy), wearing female underwear (gift is a tacky bright coloured bra),making love outside in the woods (gift is a bottle of calmine lotion), etc,,, All these are in a gift bag with little notes on them to say what he should do before he turns 40. These are only a few of my warped idea that are really fun for a 40th or 50th party. Carolyn Mountenay
A co-worker was turning 40 and was having a hard time with it, so instead of saying it was her 40th birthday, we said it was the 19th anniversary of her 21st birthday, so we bought her all 21st birthday stuff and all day kept saying happy anniversary! She loved it, it made her feel young again! We decorated her office with 21st birthday stuff and bought her a gift cerfificate to her favorite resturant to go have drinks
A neat activity to include at a 40th party is “Remember When…” Guest, especially those who know the birthday boy/gal the longest, can tell their own funny story about the birthday boy/gal. Another is to answer questions about the birthday boy/gal and see who can answer the most correctly ( what is her favorite food?)
I HAVE BOOKED MY BOYFRIENDS DREAM HOLIDAY FOR HIS 40TH BIRTHDAY. I BOOKED SOUTH AFRICIA WITH A SAFARI INCLUDED. IT IS EXPENSIVE BUT ITS PROBABLY SOMETHING WE WILL ONLY DO ONCE AND IM MAKING ONE OF HIS DREAMS COME TRUE. I BOOKED IT LAST JUNE AND HAVE BEEN ABLE TO PAY OFF IT WEEKLY.
Candy theme-With chocolate fountains,pop corn makers,candy floss makers and MORE.(Mabey with fun Party Bags!)
music through the decades
Rubix Cube party - Everyone wears different items of clothing in of rubix cube colours and by the end of the night you all have to be one colour!!!
For my husbands 40th we did a party around the year he was born. 1966!! Everyone came in ’60s attire and we transformed the house with hanging flowers, beads, tye dyed helium balloons, different colored lights in all the sockets. Very physodelic!! We did music from the 1960’s thru to 2006!! All the big hits from the years. It was a blast and he was very surprised!
Give them a HUGE Gift Basket. It can include things such as a holiday voucher, magazine subscription, shopping spree, movie tickets, a wine/beer/chardonnay voucher or a restaraunt voucher for 2 people (romantic dinner).
my hubby is 40 in feb 2008, he loves abba`s girls thigh high boots, so we are having a abba night. personaly i think he is sad. hahaha
what a brilliant site! found it by accident. added to my favorites, will be on this site loads. thanks for info on 40th bithday.
Hot Air Balloon Ride
my mom is turning forty tomorrow!(december 2,2007). we have a very small family and we dont do much for occasions like this. but hey, 40 comes only once in a lifetime right?:) so i’ve decided to make a HUGE banner saying ‘HAPPY 40th BIRTHDAY LEIGH-ANNE!’. it is the whole length of the house inside ^_^ i am also making a wall poster of ‘Remember When…’. I am only 13 and doing this alll myself! woahh, thank goodness its the weekend;)
I am a golfer and intend having my 40th at a club house. At the entrance, each guest must hit a stroke before they are allowed to have cherry or juice
Go back to a favorite childhood place. For my wife’s 40th birthday next summer, we are going to the camp grounds that she went to each year with her family while she was growing up. She also had many birthdays there as child. We will invite friends and family and on that special day, have an evening planned of fun and games. The camping grounds now has a clubhouse so we may rent that out, have a picture/video slide show, and party with fun music and great food. Also, have some gag gifts, a trivia or Q & A to see how well people know my wife — or how well they know her past. We may have a mini skit as a reenactment of a funny scene from her life.
Attend a Wine festival, have a dinner at a nice restaurant and head to a casino
A private chartered yacht on Sydney Harbour with 50 friends. I BBQ on board as we cruise in the twighlight of the magnificent Sydney city scape.
were are having a “40 is the new 20″ party for my husband. Since he would have been 20 in the 80’s we are going to have a 80’s style house party with all 80’s music.
NIGHT AT THE DOG RACES
go to the dog racing, have a meal and get drunk it’s lots of fun.we went to the one in sheffield
for my husbands’ 40th, we had a ‘video’ party. there were about 20 of us and we counted off 1-5, divided into teams. we had enough video cameras for each team, and each team had 2 hours to complete the task. we all had a list (the same list) of things to video tape ourselves doing…i.e.: ride the penny horse at a local grocery store for a full minute and act like you are a real cowboy, go to an electronics department and turn up one of the stereos really loud and all of you must dance like crazy, go to a restaurant and sit down with complete strangers and sample off of their plates, make a commercial for a product in any store, ect…. after 2 hours were up, we came back home and watched everyone’s videos! it was HILARIOUS!!!
I’m going to a friend’s 40th that has a Playboy theme. Should be lots of fun and craziness!
Go to MEXICO AND CATCH A SAIL FISH
80s birthday party
home surprise party
for my husbands 40th, we had a wake. we said goodbye to his youth. we bought a coffin (halloween cardboard) and put momentos and pictures in it. we had a picture board of him. everyone wore black and had tissues. some guests stood up and talked about him as if he was not there. it was hilarious.
For my friends 40th we had a Spa day. Booked in at 10am two course lunch at 12 then treatments from 1.30. Back massage, facial, pedicure, body scrub & tan, need i go on. Bliss ….. swimming pool, jacuzzi, steam room & sauna all at our disposal. We sneaked in a bottle of champers and drank from paper cups.
we went sking with a four year old and an 8 month old baby, it was a lot of organisation and didnt do too musch sking but it was worth it. anon
I went to Disneyland Paris for my 40th - fun if you have children. Even if you don’t, it’s a good excuse to recapture your childhood, or stay in denial!
My Aunty had her 40th and it was a surprize party. Everybody hid and my uncle pretended it was a school reunion
Trip around the world.
the children have bought their dad a flying lesson and i am taking my husband to a health spa for the weekend.he didnt want to celebrate but hope he will enjoy these memorable events.
I went in a helicopter to Whitehaven Beach, on the Great Barrier Reef and had a picnic lunch and drank chilled champers with my husband and beautiful kids on that incredible white, white beach with blue, blue sea!. It was expensive as hell and never be able to be repeated but I loved every minute of it.
Took my husband to Marrakesh. A complete surprise for him. Stayed in a private Riad which was perfection. A great 4 days!
Rent the most awesome sports car you can for a weekend.
WE HAD A COCKTAIL SURPRISE PARTY AT A LOCAL/BAR LOUNGE. THE INVITAIONS WERE IN THE SHAPE OF A MARTINI GLASS . THE FAVORS WERE A MARTINI CANDLE. WE HAD JUST FINGER FOODS, HOT AND COLD. CANDLES ALL OVER THE BAR AND BALLOONS.
For my 40th I have invited all the guests to come dressed very smart preferably wearing a mask. Live music, barbacue, punch fountain and chocolate fountain also. Inivitations are in the shape of a mask. Hope to have a fantastic time!
A charity party! everyone donates money to their favourite charity.
How about have a spot of comedy at the party?- Comedy Security Guards and Comedy Waiters
The first thing your guests will see as they arrive is “The Security Guards”. With a strict policy of “No Weapons” and “Strictly No Guns” guests will have to pass though a metal detector.
Loud Ozzie Waiters - Dirty, unhygienic and loud, the waiters blend in with the real serving staff, and help (or may be not) with the serving..
Both my husband and I are turning 40 this year, so we are having an old school house party- complete with flyers for invitations, a DJ, a bouncer, kegs, chips, etc. Everyone is to dress up in something they would’ve worn to the club back in the day. Our DJ is going to play Top 40 club music. Our party favor/souvenir…40 ouncers with labels thanking them for coming to our party. M.Brevick
Austen tea-party - probably just for the girls? Come as your favourite Austen character ( dress up optional) and get a chance to spout your favourite lines. Prepare lots of tea and delicate sandwiches.
For my 40th, I am planning on a series of small events for people from different parts of my life rather than trying to cram them all into one party ( where often you don’t get around to spending time with everyone individually anyway).
1. Take a cooking class with a small group of friends - try cooking some cuisine you’ve never attempted before ( Portuguese? Moroccan? Native Aboriginal?)
2. Winery tour with lunch at the winery ( in Sydney, at the Hunter Valley, Wyndham Estate do these 4 times per year, once per season)
3. Star Trek Theme Party, cos I am a nerd and have other nerdy friends who also like ST.
4. Definitely the harbour cruise idea mentioned above ( esp as I live and work overseas now but will be back in Sydney for my 40th)
My husband just had a surprised party for my 40th.the theme was merdi gras.Beads&feathered masks were given to all guests, the center pieces were colored feathered vases filled with beads n coins & the caske was awesome & had giant feathered mask. The big surprise was that he hired 2 somba dances to complete the theme.It was a blast.
hire a hall and have a huge sleepover !!!!1
for my birthday i hired a hall and all my mates dressed up as docter who it was the best
Barbeque / Bowling night. An easy dinner with friends then off to the lanes for bowling. We had contests/prizes and trophies.
film stars
Have an ice cream bar delivered to your party. The perfect way to cool down after being on the dance floor. Because everyone loves ice cream
http://www.incredibleicecream.co.uk
its my 40th this year and are spending times with friends at an adult only 70s weekend at butlins there great fun
It’s my 40th at the end of the year and being single, I am having friends “Bring a Bachelor”. Will be giving away a weekend getaway as a prize for the friend who’s Bachelor is chosen at the end of the night. Should be a hoot!
I celebrated my 40th this past December 2007 in Las Vegas.
We went with 4 couples and stayed the weekend there…we had a blast! Great hotel, spas, shopping and an amazing dinner at Del Frescos Steak House. Afterwards, we went to the “Love Beatle’s” Cirque de Solei concert since I was born in 1967. What a great show!! I had gift bags in my friends hotel room…complete with gourmet chocolates, candles, DVD of 1967 happenings,and other goodies.
We all left Sunday morning with the best memories!
For my mom’s 40th birthday this year we are goin to have a surprise camping trip at the KOA camp ground! All of my mom’s family and friends will be invited and every family will pay for thier own cabin! We will celebrate all night long! We’ll do about every thing there as far as swiming, fishing, making smores at a camp fire, and havin those good old creepy ghost storys!
For my husbands 40th I took him to Sydney for the weekend and we climbed the Harbour Bridge, it was a memorable weekend and something different to do!
For my mums 40th we hired out a hall and had a massive food fight party which by the end wasnt a very pretty sight!
For my dads 40th his friends and neibours all came as characters from dvds and videos. WIGS AND ALL !
For my friend’s 40th birthday we have themed it a girls night out where we are all meeting for drinks and apps. then the limo is taking us to the Gypsy Rose Dance Studio to learn how to pole dance and strut our stuff, then we will be off to the local night clubs. She is the type that loves the spotlight and this is right up her alley!!!!! We are all looking forward to the laughs that this night will bring and hope that she enjoys it too!
My 40th was an underwater theme … as a scuba diver it was very appropriate. My husband dressed in a great white shark costume and I was a sea horse! We had games … relay teams putting on fins, masks etc. run to the other end and take it off before passing it to the next person. Got some great video! Of course there were a few king neptunes etc. but some people got creative and came as a surgeon (surgeon fish), rock lobster (complete with electric guitar), jelly fish, angler fish, sailors, octopus etc.
For my friends 30th we threw a surprise party, he is an actor so we used his headshot but any cool pic of the birthday person will do….i then photocopied a whole bunch of them, cut around the face, stuck a straw on the lower back of it and made masks of his head!! so when he walked in!!! we all were him!! we stuck the extra head up around the house and stuck em all up with silly quotes he wd say!! a total blast!
For my 40th I had a ‘Bling’ party, just an excuse really for us girls to get glammed up and sparkle for the night!
Some people did adopt the chav/hip hop look in connection with bling. We had a total blast and everyone said what a fab party it was.
I transformed a room in my house into a disco room with metallic curtains at the doorways, disco scenesetter on the walls, loads of helium balloons, disco lights and brilliant music. I also did a write up for all of my guests which included a photo of everyone and a write up - my memories of them, the good times we’d shared, a special message etc etc, everyone loved theirs and wanted a copy each. Also I did a slideshow which I showed through my tv of photos of all of my guests throughout the years and believe me there were some dodgy photos, this just played on a continuous loop all night.
It really was a wonderful night and the 300 photos taken my everyone reflect this!!
40 is the new 30!
By the time you are 40, you ought to have found your purpose in life and be well on the way to owning all the things that you have always dreamt about.
More importantly, for your big 40th birthday party, you should be able to take a deep breath and treat yourself to a real life-size, full throttle, champagne popping celebration, to start your new life.
If you are planning such an event in the spirit that I have suggested, then you will need some quality entertainment. A party without entertainment, is called a meeting.
Find out what type of entertainment my clients hire for the big day at http://www.bigsand-steelband.co.uk/parties.html
In warm weather…rent a tent and have a clam bake catered at your house.
Old fashion KEG party
Hire a DJ and party like it’s 1999
a simple but fun idea
why not hire a big room with a bar and invite the family and friends and have a disco….
Simply Fablous at 40!
My dad turned 40 two years ago and we rented out a ballroom. It was smaller so everyone, around 30 guests, had time to chat with one another. We had a throw back to his youth. When you first walked in the room there was a huge frame full of pictures from his past. Most embrassing, people had a good time remembering what was then. We also had drinks in glass bottles and RC things he enjoyed “way back when” everyone had a great time remembering when!
Taking husband to Aspen since he loves to ski and heading to Carribean’s white sandy beach as another surprise.
My husband and his best friend are both turning 40 this year. His wife and I bought tickets for a football game where their college teams were playing each other. We bought the game tickets and airline tickets 9 months in advance to make sure we were able to get good seats at the game. We are bringing both of our families and invited other college friends to come to the game and we will party afterwards.
we had a london bus party where everyone had to dress up as routemasters and people were only allowed in in threes !!! Summer Holiday rang out until the small hours, especially as my best mate came as Melvyn Hayes !!! Got some great video and some fabulous memories.
I really like that idea, about having a party around the year your partner was born, good job!
have a backyard bbq with friends and family
my mum is turning 40 in august and we’re just having friends and family over at our house on our back deck. we’re going to have drinks and a barbecue. also we’re going to decorate the whole house!!!!!
For my fortieth we had “La dulce vita”(the good life) theme. It was an italian lunch with waiters who started to sing opera after the main meal. We danced well into the evening
Both myself and my partner have 2 years and 7 months to plan our 40th’s. Thanks for all the ideas here, we can start saving now and hopefully have a lavish bash - lol
I’m hosting a friend’s 40th next weekend and the theme is ” Formal, not normal” so I’m expecting people to come dressed to the 9’s, but with a twist: Tuxedo with shorts, ballgown with sneakers etc!
ACCITO Venetian Masks and Masquerade Accessories for Parties - full of mystery and suprise
My sisters-in-law are I are planning a Do’s Party..Hair Do’s that is for my husband’s 40th. Hairs styles thru the years is the theme. We are going to make T-shirts with pictures of my husbands changing hair do’s thru the years. Picture on the front and to make it fun we will put the year of the hair do on the back of the shirt for people to try to guess. We can’t wait…
Got lots of great ideas from you site, but got a good one from the different ideas you have here. My wife is having her 40th and we are going to have a Scavenger hunt with a bit of a twist. Everyone having to bring back items on a list, and / or take picture documenting delegated activities. The big catch is every is required to Cross Dress. Men dress as women and women dress as men. After meet up for food and drinks and dancing.
‘A case of 40s for a case of the 40s’
40 ounce bottles come 12 in a case
Order or make custom 40oz koozies commemorating the big day:
Happy Birthday (name here)!
August 15, 1968 (except their bday here)
And some saying like:
Pushing 40 and still gangsta!
(even if they aren’t…or never have been…it’s just a silly theme…and fun thing to do for a 40 year old with some party left in them)or
40s aren’t so bad when their dressed well ; ) (referring to the 40 oz image, the koozie…and the well dressed 40 year old that you know.
It’s just a silly gag/theme for a 40 year old’s party when a few laughs and a few beers are on the agenda.
I gave my husband a Suprise Party, everyone had a blast.I didn’t want my house to get dirty so I rented a clubhouse and a D.J..and I gave the D.J. cd’s with my husbands pictures from the time he was born till recently and my D.J. played the pictures on his monitors.My husband LOVED it and the guest were entertained while they were waiting for us to arrive.
suprise them with tickets to their dream holiday
My dad recently turned 40, he’d already had a huge suprise birthday party for his 30th birthday, so we decided to do something special together on a smaller scale. We organised a weekend sailing lesson at our local watersports centre and a week’s holiday to Lake Garda to practise what he’d learnt. We also bought him some personalised ales from http://www.WineGifts4U.co.uk, which he took out to Italy with him!
i,m turning 40 on sat and we re having a pink party everyone has to wear something pink .thought it would be interesting
Have a good time its your day!!!
Im having a totally 80s themed 40th with all 80s music and 80s fancy dress.
I’m turning 40 on 25th Oct.My family have organised a hawiian/beach party. We have bought scene setters and boarders for the back yard. Have been able to purchase cheap decorations from the cheap shops ( crazy’s, warehouse, overflow etc) Using my husbands old surfboards that he swears he will get back up on ( one day ) as tables suspended from our trees. Looking forward to great weather, great company & a great night. Having a BBQ for tucker & a cocktail machine.
My husband is turning 40 this year,our kids and I are planning a surprise party. The theme is “Dodger Blue” because he is a huge Dodgers fan! We made invites that look like game tickets. We have prepared Dodgers trivia questions and will be giving out prizes for correct answers. We will serve Dodger dogs, beer and all the fun food you would find at Dodger stadium. We have also asked the guests to wear their Dodger gear…it will be a blast!
I am having my 40th birthday party at a snazzy restaurant called Salsa on the 6th of Dec. As my birthday falls on Xmas day it is early, but this will probably be a birthday party with lots of friends for the first time ever! I have a three course meal planned, close friends (120) A DJ who will play music on the hour every hour from the 60’s thru to 2008! I have organised a salsa dance after the main meal, funky cup cakes and loot bags to take home! My theme is ” elegantly wasted” a bit of both, interpret it as you wish, this soon-to-be 40yr old will ofcourse start off elegantly and rotate to being wasted!! (once my dad goes home to rest) with love from Sunny South Africa!
I rented a baseball field!
My 40th is coming in nine months and i’am having an All White Dress code.
IM 40 IN DEC 08! MY FAV FILM OF ALL TIME IS GREASE SO WHY NOT HAVE A PINK LADYS AND T” BIRDS
DO? OR ANOTHER ONE IS DIRTY DANCING!!! HAVE FUN! HOPE I DO!!! LOL!
I want to take my three best girls to a day at the spa, then stay in a suite at the Bonaventure hotel in Los Angeles.
For my 40 th im going to bali with my best mates
My husband is originally from New York, so I’m going to have everything New York-themed: all the New York sports teams with pennants and the like, New York food (pizza, egg creams, cheesecake, etc.) and, of course, play Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” throughout the night. Maybe we’ll even try to talk with New York accents!
I turned forty this year and had a hawaiian party organised by my wife, she did a great job everyone wore hawaiian shirts and grass skirts.
cocktails were had and limbo dancing competition as well as a fully decorated hall with palm tress the lot , babarcued food the lot , great fun especially the ladies not wearing very much ! tara
My best friend since I was 7 years old (33 years) is turning 40 in a few days. I have one complete workday to celebrate her birthday and have her back home to celebrate with her husband by dinner time. I plan to start off with a tiera and a pagent sash to officially crown her 40! Then, I plan to take her to the day spa at Dillard’s for a spa package and later to an elegant restaurant for a late lunch.
My sister turned 40 a couple of years ago. Since she lives 1000 miles away, I had emailed 40 family and friends and asked them to send a birthday card to her with a one dollar bill. As her day approached, she couldn’t understand why she recieve only $1 in each card until she added all the cards up. $40
How about “40 But Still Spicy!” for the spicy food enthusiast? My husband loves hot peppers and spicy food so we’re doing a pot-luck surprise party and having everyone bring a spicy or mildly spicy side dish while I provide the BBQ chicken and ribs along with margaritas and beer. For decorations, I’m using chili pepper plates and napkins along with orange and yellow plastic table cloths sprinkled with chili pepper confetti. For guests’ games, we’re doing a chili pepper quiz, a roast of the birthday boy, guess the # of hot candies in a jar, and a trivia game about the guest of honor. We’ll put out old yearbooks, report cards and a collage of his pictures from 40 years ago to the present while playing old home videos of him as a kid, with the volume turned off because we’ll have his favorite music playing.
about a love night in??!!with rose pettles
I celebrated for 40 days with 40 friends and it was fabulous. I thought why keep the 40th celebrations to one night only it is over too quickly. I also get frustrated at big parties because I never seem to have enough time to talk to everyone in any depth and I love to connect with friends.
I found different things to do with small numbers of people, or even just 1-1 with people, until I had celebrated with 40! It ranged from going to a music festival, having 2 friends cook me a surprise caviar omelette for my breakfast(!), to going out for drinks, going out for a meal, to having a sing-a-long … to almost anything.
Roll on my 100th I say - 100 friends over 100 days!
Happy birthday to you …
Rachel Green
http://www.rachelgreen.com/products_midlife.html
Ok I made the mistake of doing this for my husbands 38th birthday in which this year is his 40th and I have NO idea how to top it. We decided to do a surprise Roast (like you see on Comedy central) we had 4 people speak - it was hilarious. They had slide shows and bringing up things from the past. the best part was he was so scared when he found out it was a roast and a lot of his co-workers where present - if they did not know him before they do now.
A Wild West theme party is a great idea as no one minds putting on a pair of jeans and checked shirt. A Rodeo Bull ride is brilliant fun for adults and older kids and other popular items are Cork Gun Ranges, and Quick Draw Shooting games. A few Wild West theme props help with the themeing.
See http://www.rodeobulls.co.uk for some ideas.
I’m throwing a “Stock the Bar” party at my BF’s house. He never thought he’d live this long and now he’s out of liquor! His bar is his castle and so I suggested bar items and booze and beers n such. We are also having a poker tourney and blackjack.
A bottle of champagne</a> with your message on the full colour personalised label
my mum died about a year before my dad’s 40th and me being the oldest Child of 4 i had to take on the responability of helping more around the house i remember my mum had left all of us kids for our savings and with that money we hired out my mum’s favorite ball room (she went ball room dancing) and we trough my dad a party and all funds that were made went to our favorite charity In 2005 it was my mothers first anerversary so i also did a ball i miss my mum allot but i know she is looking down on me and is very proud
Take a private plane to your favorite and stay the weekend
For my 40th Birthday, I will be having my party at a friend’s house. I’m single and the Theme will be “Back in the Day”. You can dress anyway you would have ‘back in the day’.
Our parties always last all night, so it will end up being a sleep over for the closest friends. We will cook breakfast sometime that morning and have a ‘movie day’ the next day.
My friend took about 10 of her closest friends on a horse back ride.The trail ride took us all to a local pub for lunch then back to the ranch.
It was a great day.
Afternoon Tea with the girls!
It’s a modern classic!
Soft Bridge rolls, clotted cream scones with strawberry jam and sweet tarts washed down with a glass or two of bubbly (tea for them that’s pregers!)
BEST way to spend the day…
Throw a surprise 40th on their 39th birthday!
My brother in law is always playing practical jokes on others so we threw him a surprise 40th on his 39th! It was hilarious!
My husand and I both turned 40 in the same year so I figured 40 plus 40 is 80, so we had an 80’s party. Music, clothes, even food (remember the first nacho’s !) It was lots of fun.
Some very good ideas here. If you’ll be turning 40 and were born in 1969, have the name of your party sound like Prince’s song 1999. “We gonna party like its 1969.” (Or some variation around that) Happy Birthday to everyone born in 1969. WE’RE HERE! CAN U BELIEVE IT?
I’m 40 in about 4 weeks time and will be having a “Rock star” themed party. I’ll have 40 people coming over - everyone will dress as their favourite Rock star. Can’t decide… Madonna or Pink!!!
Give them a BIRTHDAY LAWN GREETING!!!!!! Hire a local lawn greeting company to sneak into the yard under the cover of darkness and FILL the whole lawn with PINK flamingos, cows, pigs, chickens, buzzards, tombstones, etc! Its a great gift that the WHOLE neighborhood will love!!
My wife and I turn 40 this year, so we rented a local movie theater for 1 hour and are having an film fest with short animated films. I put together a surprise slide show to end the festival on the big screen using music she likes, including family photos and photos of us as babies. Afterward we walked to a local restaurant for a catered lunch.
Am organizing my own 40th this year at a hoteland decided on a bit of glamour and a night the guest wouldn’t forget either. So, apart from a DJ, there will be a CARICATURIST & A SLIGHT-OF-HAND-MAGICIAN. Also I’m preparing some LEAFLETS to spread around listing things from 1969: Top 10 Hits, Films, Famous births/deaths, Things that happened in 1969, and a few quiz type of questions too. Hopefully this will get strangers talking. Old photos of me around a well should raise a laugh(hairstyles in particular)!
I’m thinking of taking a cooking class alongside some of my close friends. It’s certainly different from all of the cocktail and dinner parties I’ve been to in the past. I enjoy hosting friends at my home, cooking appetizers and sometimes full dinner so I’m not an amateur but I love picking up news skills in the kitchen.
I think a cooking class would be fun because it’s original and everyone can get something out of it and benefit from the lessons. I got the inspiration from here - http://celebrations.com/. There are more great ideas for invitations and such.
My husband is a bit of a thrill seeker,on the morning of his 40th he will be jumping out of a plane.He knows i have a plan for him just does not know what it is,the dvd should be good to watch.
Im turning 40 next month.Im having green as my theme.Green means life and life begins at 40.
For my BF 40th who lives hundreds of miles away, I sent her a Time Capsule trivia game. I came up with 41 trivia questions starting with 1968 to 2008. For the 41 days leading up to her birthday she had to open one a day starting with 1968. She had all day to figure out the answers but wasn’t allowed to get help anyone. If she got it right she got a gift. The gifts corresponded with the question. Ex: when was the DVD patented - and the gift was a DVD slide show of her & I through the years with all our crazy adventures. You can get good ideas for questions at Wikepedia by looking up cool facts from each year. At the end of the 41 days we had a huge surprise party for her. The 41 trivia & gifts game kept her busy while we were secretly planning her party
a supries party with friends!!!
We are going to have a surfin’ party. Once a surfer always a surfer. Beach theme. surfing movies ect..
I myself am turning 40 in May and we are going on an 8 day crusie to the carribean and having a “40 and Fabulous” cocktail party upon our return with live music. I will also decorate with pictures through my life and have them playing on the TV during the party.
I’ll be 40 in 6 months and I don’t have a theme yet. I really like the idea everyone wearing the same color and the decorations the same. I also like the music through the decades idea. When I make a decision, I’ll update everyone on what I have come up. Thanks for the ideas!
For my 40th we hired a bus and we are going on a Mystery Ghost Bus Tour! The bus takes a special route and you have off the bus stops at several pubs in between.
I think this is going to be blast!
Alphabet Party.
You give every guest a letter from the alphabet with their invitation. And they have to wear something begining with that letter, bring a drink begining with that letter and some food. Example, I went to a party like this and got an R. I took rum to drink, some rice crispy cakes to eat and wore a rope noose around my neck.
I am toying with a lot of different ideas for my husband’s 40th, but I think the theme is going to be a Star was Born in 1969. I will ask all the guest to wear black and white. The party will be black and white with accents of gold.
My hubby just turned 40 and we are having a party in a month (as we are too busy with work as are all our friends!!). We are having James Bond as the theme and asking all our friends to either dress as a 007 Character or in Casino Attire. Our colour theme is black & silver and we are having all the theme music from the Bond movies in the background. We are having all the drinks in martini glasses and finger food for nibbles.His cake is a mud cake with an edible James Bond logo on the top (that I am having made by “cakes around town” in Brisbane) with black & silver ribbon around the sides.It is easy to dress up for this party as most people have clothes in their wardrobe that are suitable.
Great ideas…
For my girlfriends 49th we will be having a cocktail party. Each person will bring a cocktail to enter in the contest. We will all get to try a bit of each cocktail. At the end each person will be given a ticket to vote. The drink with the most tickets by it wins a prize…
For my 40th - a week of houseboating and fireworks on the beach. A great time had by all…
My sister in law is turning 40. She has recently gone back to college. In fact many of our friends are going back to school to work on Masters, etc. We will be hosting a back to college TOGA party, complete with red plastic cups, keg bear, and pizza. For those who prefer not to wear a toga, we’re asking them to wear a their college jersey. The dj will play top 40s. We will keep the kids busy by letting them toilet paper front of the house.
Iam turning 40 this December. But instead of calling it my 40th, I am 20 again. Having my picture put on my cake,and the cake will say Happy 20 Again! Even posting an invitation on my high school website.
For my 40th I really wanted to go to Italy but having my youngest not quite 2 yet was going to to much to ask of him on a 24 hr plane trip..no thank-you not this year anyway! So I’m bringing Italy to me by celebrating with 40 of my closest friends for a big Italian feast at a local Piazza in Sydney. My invitations were going to be in the shape of Italy ‘The boot’ but I chose a more girly approach and its an beautiful Italian shoe & I also asked everyone to wear something Italiano.
rent out a pizza place for a few hours for fun with friends and drinks
for my wife’s 40th, we threw a huge surprise party. We invited over 50 guests, and had a very good band play. She never suspected anything. And although she didnt want a party, she ended up having a great time.
Have a birthday greeting on the label of the wine.
tea party
i did that for my best friend and she loved it
My husband will be 40 in September 2009, and he has a big family & lots of friends. My idea is, why wait for the evening when we could celebrate his bday through out the whole day. So, maybe the kids & I will do something with him for breakfast, organise lunch with his family and spend the evening with friends.
when i turned 40 we had just had our third baby and had little money to spare. so i had a big bbq in a site out in the woods at lunchtime. it was really inclusive as every one brought stuff to add to it, the kids (big and small)played volley ball and generally chilled most of the day.
My husband is renting 6 rooms in NY City for 12 of my closest friends and we will be going bar hopping all night long.
Launch 40 Lanterns and make it a birthday to remember!
I love the boat idea. I’m going to try and work that into my fathers birthday. Thanks for the ideas.
I’m turning 40 September 2009 - I’m having a Prohetic theme - (40 yrs in the desert, now entering the Promised Land) with love ones and friends !!
My thanks go to the Lord !!!!!
I am turning 40 in Sept.. I am thinking of something to do since u only turn 40 once my guy is suppose to be planning something will let you know wat it is ?
For my dads 40th, we are taking him to watch his football team and we are hiring a box to have a football party while watching the game !!
We may meet the players too !!
In March 2010 I will turn 40, my mom 60, and my daughter 18. All 3 of us are planning a trip to NY city for a couple days of shopping, Broadway, and great food!!!!!
my husband is turning 40 this Sept and since he is a big kid at heart we are having a surprise superhero party. All the guests are coming dressed as their favorite comic book character, should be a blast!
GOING TO INVERNESS AND CRUISING ON THE LOCH LOOKING FOR NESSIE ALL 13 OF US WEARING TARTAN! OCH AYE THE NOO!
Im having a rainbow themed Prom for mu 40th this year as we didnt have school proms when i left school & cant wait to dress up…. Also Im guarenteed to be Prom queen …
Writ a wonderful card and it will shuly chang there lefe and make them happy
I turned 40 Feb.09 and since I grew up in the 80’s … I had an 80’s party … we dressed in 80’s gear .. 80’s music …. 80’s trivial pursuit …. it was fun … aww the good ol days!!
Pirate looks at 40 party. Hawaiin Shirts, Jimmy Buffet music and related drinks and atmosphere. Lots of fun!! Plus many of our friends also turn 40!
I organised a 40th birthday bash for a friend a few weeks ago, the theme was “Forty and funky… A tribute to Micheal Jackson”. Most invitees were told before the d-day to prepare to be a part of a remake of the “Thriller” Video as the celebrant was a big MJ fan. Lots of bbq (meat, fish n chicken), 80’s music and dance from the “soul train” era… alchohol; wine, spirit n beer, sourvenirs and give aways all done in a club-house environment. You should’ve see us all do the “Thriller” thingy after a couple of alchoholic gulps… with urs sincerely playing the part of Micheal Jackson. Flashy disco lighted dancefloor with lots of helium balloons. The celebrant had to join in… Hilarously memorable.
My birthday is Hallow’s eve (devils night for some) so we are having a costume/birthday party. costumes are mandatory. DJ, fog maching and lots of “scary” food and drinks. looking forward to it. we also rented a hall and will decorate in a festive theme for halloween.
my dad’s gonna be 40 next month + we’re planning on having a surprise party 4 him + inviting people he hasn’t seen in years, as well as his newer friends. Family invited 2, and kids, of course!!!!!!
I’m turning 40 this month and did not want a big party. So my husband and I reserved a suite at a local hotel. We are going for an early dinner and then having friends back to our suite for a party and a night out at the bars.
I had a Heavy metal party for my husband. I can’t think of any other music that defines this generation better. It was a surprise party. All of our guest wore heavy metal band T-shirts, thoese who did not paid $2 to sit in our back yard(like back when we were in high school).