Christmas in July?
Perhaps because July is about as far away from Christmas as you can get, a tradition has arisen in the United States (and some other countries) where real parties are thrown to celebrate this holiday during the hot months of summer. If you’ve never done it before, it’s a lot of fun!
Here’s a general guide on how to throw a Christmas party during the appropriate season, and definitely, you’ll want that as a point of reference. Flowers, decorations, gifts, and dining should “match” the traditional event through your tongue-in-cheek summer celebration. Here, we’ll explore a few ideas to factor in as you go about planning your mid-summer Christmas bash.
First and Foremost: Actually Exchange Gifts
Many parties that are designed to take the best from Christmastime and July forget one key thing: gifts. Actually exchange gifts. They don’t have to be serious gifts unless you want them to be. This is a perfect opportunity for “fun” or “jokey” gifts. Just actually wrap them, and make a point out of exchanging them during the festivities.
Go “Serious” or “Over-the-Top” for the Best Results
Another “take” is to run your “Christmas in July” party as though you’re having a real Christmas celebration. The oddness of that take is kind of fun, definitely interesting, and will be remembered; especially if you decorate everything like it’s snowy and have everybody wear ugly sweaters.
The thing about parties is that the best ones are themed—check out these themes to get an idea. So if you’re doing Christmas in July, the “theme” could be tongue-in-cheek, or humorous. Or, you could be absolutely serious just for the spectacle of it all; turning up the A/C so you can activate a fireplace, and drawing the shades to simulate earlier evening.
Consider Incorporating Tropical Themes Like the Beach
In Australia, Christmas tends to be more like the Fourth of July in the United States, in that Australia’s December is like America’s July in terms of climate. Accordingly, a lot of Australian companies produce décor that is tropical and “Christmas-ey” without any sense of irony. Well, take a page from their playbook if it’s July and you’re throwing a Christmas party.
Use shells as ornaments on the palm tree under the poinsettias arrayed like Hawaiian lays as garland about the room. Wear Hawaiian-style shirts which have Christmas ornaments, rather than tropical flowers, making up their multi-colored design.
Put on some “surf” white noise in the background as a foundation for Christmas carols from another sound system. Experiment, find what you like.
A Christmas Party in July That’s Remembered for Years to Come
Tropical themes, going serious or “over-the-top”, and actually exchanging gifts represent some of the best ways you can celebrate a “Christmas in July” party. Summer is gorgeous, hot, and fun. Christmas is the same, minus the heat (for most localities).
Combining the two only makes sense, even if it’s a backward kind of sense. So if you’ve never had any sort of summer Christmas party, you might want to just for the fun of it.
