Kids and teens alike will love having a glow party–think glow sticks, lots of neon and black lights! Transform your living room or basement into a party space for an inexpensive and fun party theme, or let a glow-in-the-dark venue bring the fun. 

Table of Contents

Decor

Backdrop: Kids can help make a bright wall covering for the party, or a smaller backdrop to a photo area. Purchase large rolls of black craft paper (enough to cover walls or a photo area) and neon paint. Let the kids go wild in the backyard painting words, patterns or splatter painting with different colors. When dry, hang on the wall. Make sure tape is on the back side because it may react to black lights.

Balloons: Stick glow sticks inside of balloons for a colorful decoration. Try using neon-colored balloons so they shine in the black lights.

Lighting: Purchase lots of black lights for the party, this way everyone and everything will glow. These can be found at your local party store or ordered online. Some come on stands or can sit on a table, and others can replace normal light bulbs.

Party Supplies: Party City and Oriental Trading Company have caught on to the popularity of glow parties, and they both have lines of glow cups, favors, plates, cutlery and bowls. They all glow under black light. 

Venues

Glow Galaxy: Everything glows in the dark here! Including glow-in-the-dark inflatables, glow mini-golf, football, basketball, soccer, interactive game floor and more.

Lakepoint Station: The black light mini-golf and laser adventure are both full of glowing elements.

Lunar Mini Golf:  This glowing mini-golf course in Sugarloaf Mills is full of fun obstacles.

Monster Mini Golf: Greet giant, glowing monsters, pirates, skeletons and clowns and putt-putt around them.

Food

Cups: Take clear, plastic cups and put a circular glow stick in the bottom of one cup (the type you would wear as a bracelet), then layer another cup on top. Display these on the table as decoration before serving drinks. 

JELL-O: In this recipe, tonic water is mixed in to make the JELL-O glow under black light, which you can mix into other foods as well. Make sure to use green JELL-O for brighter color, and top with something sweet like whipped cream to cut the bitterness of the tonic water.

Cupcakes: This recipe calls for adding crushed Vitamin B2 and neon green food coloring to the frosting to make it glow under black light. Make the frosting from scratch, or mix into store-bought vanilla or light-colored frosting and blend.

Other Ideas: Think about using these foods when making snacks for the food table. Tonic water, as mentioned, can be added to punch, juice or lemonade to glow under black light. Adding crushed Vitamin B2 tablets makes most foods glow. White foods reflect black light, such as marshmallows, vanilla ice cream or tortilla chips.  

Games

Bowling: Fill empty water bottles with glow sticks, turn off the lights and bowl in the dark. You can do this with larger bottles as well, or make a few sets for fun competition.

Ring Toss: Use circular-shaped glow sticks and play ring toss around a post.

Bubbles: Pop open glow sticks and pour into bubble solution for glow-in-the-dark bubbles.

Hula Hoop: Attach glow sticks (the long ones used as necklaces) together in a large circle using connectors. Do a few layers on top of each other until more sturdy, and wrap strong tape or zip ties around the connectors to secure.

Glow Tag: Gather a group of players and give each person a glow-in-the-dark necklace. Give the person who is “it” a glow necklace in a different color. When a player has been tagged, he is out. Or, play freeze tag using glow sticks or necklaces; one player is “it,” and the rest run wild to avoid getting tagged or frozen. The only way to get un-frozen is to have another player tap you.

Favors

Glow Slime: Mix together psyllium husks (found in the health foods aisle), water and Vitamin B2 tablets. Once mixed, this will glow under a blacklight and feel like slime (without the sticky part). Hand these out at the beginning of the party for a fun game under the black lights, and send home as a favor in small plastic bags or small glass jars.

Glow Glasses: You can purchase glow-in-the-dark glasses from a local party store or online.These are typically neon as well, and make for a fun favor kids will enjoy long after the party.

Glow Sticks Galore: Buy large packs of glow sticks online and give a variety to each guest in goodie bags. Bracelets, necklaces, larger sticks and shapes.

–Teresa Farkas

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