Parties: Sleeping Beauties

What better FUN than a sleepover? All girls love a good giggle and a round of Truth or Dare––but combine luscious facials and glam nails, and you’ll have the sleepover party little girls’ DREAMS are made of.

.................... 
THE INVITATION

You don’t want to freak out mum and dad with an entire classroom of invitees, so keep your numbers low enough to fit your friends on a cake (confused? see The Cake, below). For the invitation, trace a sleeping mask onto cardboard and cut out with decorative scissors. Cut two 10cm pieces of ribbon and glue to the edges of your cardboard mask, then cut a smaller mask shape from pretty paper and glue on top. On the blank side of the invitation, handwrite or glue on your party details.

.......................
THE DECORATIONS
Organza is an inexpensive and beautiful way to decorate any party. Drape long lengths of fabric from the ceiling (secure with thumb tacks) to create a 'room' for your sleepover shenanigans. Tie balloons into bunches and arrange sofas and chairs, draping them with pretty throw rugs and plump pillows.

Display beauty paraphernalia––nail polish, emery boards, nail stickers, face masks and creams––on little tables alongside bowls of candy, flowers and kids’ magazines––just like a real salon. Later, sleeping bags can be rolled out onto the sofas, and mattresses plopped on the floor.

............. 
THE FOOD

Such grown-up girls need grown-up food. Serve apple juice “tea” and hot chocolate “coffee” in pretty cups and saucers, or lemonade bubbles in plastic flutes with strawberries perched on the edge. Pinwheels sandwiches and platters of vegetable crudités with dip are a sophisticated offering, as are fondue skewers.

Heat 600g of plain chocolate with half a cup of pouring cream until melted, and serve in individual bowls with a chic platter of fruit skewers (serves 6). For personalized water bottles, hand-draw or print off your own decorative labels to cover regular water bottle labels. Secure with double-sided tape.

............
THE CAKE

This adorable cake is incredibly easy and the girls will just love it. Bake a rectangular slab cake––the length will depend on how many guests you invite. You’ll need to fit one sponge finger biscuit per guest on the cake, leaving a small gap between each one. Smother the entire bed with two cans of ready-made frosting.

For the girls’ heads, lay a round cookie at the end of each sponge finger, propped up with a marshmallow pillow and secured with a dab of frosting. Pipe eyes onto the cookies or use currants. Pipe on icing hair to symbolize each guest, or use candy or dried fruit. Dot the entire creation with candy to create a cute sheet set.

.................
THE FAVOURS

Stash little cellophane bags with face masks, nail stickers, head bands, hair clips, combs, sleeping masks, even slippers. And don’t forget the candy!

....................
THE PAMPERING

Girls just wanna have fun, but they also love pampering. Ask mum or some girls from your local nail salon to provide mini manicures. Salon guests can flip through magazines, sip from their water bottles, nibble something, and recline on sofas with a rejuvenating face mask. Provide each girl a hand towel and head band to keep pajamas and hair lotion-free.

Once the beautification is done, get the popcorn popping and settle in for your favorite movie. Turn out the lights, snuggle into sleeping bags and be sure to do lots of whispering. When the movie ends, check the house stats––parents and little brother in bed? Good. Now the real fun can begin.

..............
THE GAMES

Clothespin Pinch is a hoot. Peg seven clothespins on the back of each girl, then stand in a circle facing each other. On “go”, run around trying to grab each other’s clothespins. No grabbing and holding onto anyone otherwise you’re out.

Light As a Feather needs six people. One girl lays on the floor and must keep as stiff as a board. Everyone else slides their first two fingers underneath her at these points––midway down each calf, midway down her back (on both sides) and under each shoulder (at her head). Everyone closes their eyes and chants over and over "light as a feather" and slowly begins to lift. It usually works… unless you giggle too much!

For Piggly-Wiggly, one girl (“It”) leaves the room. Everyone else hides inside a random sleeping bag and when It comes back in, she sits on a sleeping bag and says "piggly-wiggly". The person inside must say "oink oink" and It has to guess who’s inside. If she’s wrong, there will be no response. If she’s right, the Piggly-Wiggly must just jump out and be It.

Chinese Whispers can really get the giggles flowing. Sit in a circle and have one girl whisper a complicated phrase to the next girl, who must then pass it on until the last girl receives it and says it out loud (warning: this is sometimes embarrassing).

Truth or Dare––no instructions needed for this one!

For Giggle Tummies, girls must lay down on their backs with their heads on the tummy of the next girl, until all are linked in a chain-like circle. The aim of the game is to try not to laugh (this is hard to do!). When you can no longer hold in the giggles, jump up, grab your pillows and try to knock each other down. Anyone who laughs is a target to be whacked. Do this until you can laugh no more, then collapse and fall asleep. Sweet dreams!

First published, in part, in beijingkids magazine and on the beijingkids website. Photographs by Tania McCartney.

Kids Parties A-Z