We saw these guys a week ago, but y'all had questions about their “Shenanigans Box” mention, and Liv dished the details…
Once our reception got into full swing, we whipped out what we call “The Shenanigans Box.” The shenanigans box is a staple among our big family of friends. Whenever we throw parties or go out to karaoke bars, etc., we bring a giant box of silly adornments — blow-up toys, silly hats, funny glasses, and glow sticks. It makes ALL of our photos look ridiculous in the best way. I wanted this to be part of our wedding party as well.
I employed a few strategies for a successful shenanigans box:
- The items are super-easy to put on and take off.
- IMPORTANT: Ask a core group of people who you KNOW will wear the stuff to open the box when the dancing starts, and then to gently encourage more reluctant party-goers that it's ok to let loose and enjoy.
- When considering how much to bring, my rule of thumb was two silly items per guest. A lot of the guests won't want to wear silly things, but some will want to go crazy. This number worked well.
- They can serve as keep-sakes for guests, but have a designated Shenanigans Master to collect any stuff left over afterwards to keep for future celebrations if you like.
For the wedding, I put together the following items, staying within a loose “fancy” theme, and wedding color palette. This is great for idea-stealing because whatever your own party-style is, you can usually match a the main theme with silly-version costume items when its time to party. Vintage, beach, cowboy, horror, renfaire, etc…
Here's what I used for mine:
- Fancy hats: crowns, jester hats, top hats, fedoras, tiaras
- Silly glasses: Giant glasses, shutter shades
- Glow-stuff: Connectable glow strands in the wedding colors, mouth-piece LEDs
- Blow-up toys: guitars, boombox (these wound up being really popular, particularly with kids)
- Bling: Strands of mardi gras beads in the wedding colors, giant fake gem rings
- Bubbles
- Rainbow suspenders
To get ideas for a shenanigan's box, stop at your local party store. But buying there can get expensive, especially if you plan to have a lot of guests. I used it mostly for inspiration. Then I went to Oriental Trading and bought TONS of stuff for way cheaper.
This is awesome! Because my fiance is Venezuelan (and also because: awesome), we’re doing a “La Hora Loca.” For anyone not familiar, it’s a Venezuelan (and general South American, I think) tradition where there’s a point in the reception that the tone very suddenly shifts to a crazy dance party, thanks to things like shenanigan boxes – or belly dancers, fire breathers, anything wild and unexpected! I have been searching like crazy to find practical tips on how to start to put it together, so this is fantastic.
I think it is a South American thing. My Brazilian friend always loved to have (and put me in charge of) a “party bowl” at her parties. When things start to stagnate a little, she would have a bowl on hand full of adhesive mustaches, silly glasses, noise makers, party hats and mardi gras beads. Like clockwork, the party would all of a sudden be in full swing again. Magic!
I love this idea! Totally stealing, if I can get the Ogre on board. 🙂
For anyone who digs the extra wedding porn, here are some Shenanigan Box-specific photos from the wedding: http://www.flickr.com/photos/serendipity373737/sets/72157641313265404/
I read this post months ago and the idea just stuck with me throughout the wedding planning process. I finally was able to convince the grumpy male creature that this was a good idea about a week before the wedding. It turned out amazing! Some quick dollar store shopping and one big packing box later and our boz was ready. Our wonderful dj perfectly timed the boxes grand reveal for the “traditional” fire department wedding dance (my now husband is a fireman) which involves the local firemen skipping around the dance floor to the safety dance. Since it was our wedding my husband led the dance. .. while wearing a rainbow boa and a plastic fire helmet. The rest of the reception was pure shenanigans and everybody loved it. 🙂 thank you so much for the amazing idea!