Mardi Gras, as you probably know, is the Carnival period leading up to Fat Tuesday. You’ve got king cake to go along with lot of purple, green, and gold. Up here in Illinois, we don’t have parades coming by tossing out moon pies and beads everyday, but that doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate. Here are some Mardi Gras party ideas for the whole family.
Decorations
Like we said, purple, green, and gold are what you want to go with – purple represents justice, green represents faith and gold represents power. Here are some fun ideas:
- Place purple, green and gold balloons around
- Use a metallic backdrop as a photo station.
- Install purple and green smart lightbulbs.
- Hang a Mardi Gras piñata.
- Create a Mardi Gras DIY centerpiece for your table.
Food To Serve
The most important dish you need at any Mardi Gras party is King Cake. You can buy one at the store or find a recipe online. Remember, whoever ends up with the baby will enjoy luck and prosperity. Other foods you may want to consider are jambalaya, red beans and rice, shrimp and grits, Southern fried okra, low country boil, crawfish etouffee, gumbo, cornbread stuffing – there are countless recipes online that would be perfect. Of course, it’s also called Shrove Tuesday and many people eat pancakes on this day.
Games
There are many fun activities you can do at a Mardi Gras party such as a scavenger hunt, selfie game, and Pin the Mask on The Jester. As you might expect, this game is very similar to Pin the Tail on the Donkey. You simply cut out an image of a jester and guests try to pin a traditional Mardi Gras mask on it while blindfolded.
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Original Mardi Gras
Did you know that the original Mardi Gras is in Mobile, Alabama? That’s right. The celebration in the Port City of Alabama began at least 15 to 20 years before New Orleans was even incorporated as a city. The Mardi Gras festivities and traditions there continue to this day, making it the oldest Carnival celebration in the United States.
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