HARRY POTTER INVITATIONS

Making the Magic - Creating the mood for your Harry Potter Party

With a few decorating props, you can create an enchanted space 
to engage a child's imagination. Combine aspects from the different books/movies.
Spider Webs - Quilt batting
plastic spiders
Twinkling party lights
plastic frogs
jars of potion - colored water
Diagon Alley Shop signs - poster board
Painted blue or green butcher paper - Underwater World
Paper snowflakes and white streamers - Yule Ball
Enlist talented teens to help with the decorations.

THE MAGIC BEGINS
Turn your Harry Potter party into a Hogwarts gala!
As each guest arrives,  give him/her a purchased or home-made cape and wand. We made our wands using dry willow twig pieces. Brush a light coating of craft glue to the tip and sprinkle with fine polyester glitter
(craft store). Yours can be made of with any material you choose, but should be made before the party. 

Your guests' imaginations will take them into their own magical
game as they cast spells and turn each other into toads, lizards,
rabbits, etc. This is a great way to entertain the children until all
your guests arrive! 

The Sorting Hat Or Tri - Wizard Teams
Before the party make several house badges.
We've already made some for you to print...click here to print.

Use a hole punch and yarn for children to wear the badges
around their necks. Make your own Sorting Hat from construction
paper, paper bag or felt and a stapler, before the party begins. 
Ours was made with an inverted brown paper bag and the kids loved it!

It's o.k. if it looks a little tattered and torn - after all, it's been around for thousands of years! Place the hat upon each guest's head as they enter the party room. (Prerecord a deep voice repeating the houses - Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, Slytherin - one by one, in any order you choose.) After each guest has worn the hat for a short while, play the recording to let them know which house they've been chosen to join. After the Sorting Hat has "spoken", give each child a badge with the name of their house.
Order a Sorting Hat and house emblems from our party partner, Buy Costumes

Tri-Wizard Teams
Divide the kids into teams for the Tri-wizard challenges ahead. 
Place all of the children's names into a pretend goblet.
Use the Internet and your computer to make the three school badges.
Draw the names from the goblet to create the teams.
Hogwarts - Beauxbaton - Durmstrang

HARRY POTTER PARTY GAMES, ACTIVITIES and CRAFTS

Golden Snitch Pin or Magnet


You'll Need:
White craft foam
Gold or yellow colored "pom - pom"
Hot glue gun or craft glue
Gold glitter, glitter glue or sequins
Pin backs or self sticking magnetic strip
Scissors (several pairs)

Trace the shape of the wings on the craft foam before the party.
The children will cut them out on their own. The wings can be left white or decorated with glitter, sequins or glitter glue. Use craft glue or a hot glue gun to attach the pom-pom's and pin backs. I recommend a hot glue gun (adults only) for faster drying time.

Create a Dragon
Collect miscellaneous craft materials that the children can use to 
make their own dragon. Place all of the items on a covered table 
and provide glue, tape paint, and scissors. The children will do the rest.
Items to keep in mind are: egg carton tubes, pipe cleaners, 
google eyes, craft foam, fabric scraps, construction paper, 
tissue paper, dried beans and rice.

Sorcerer's Stone Treasure Hunt
The object of this game is to find the REAL Sorcerer's Stone.
Before the party paint a large rock with gold spray paint.
Hide the rock and treasure hunt clues that lead to the rock. 
Send the children out as a group to find the Stone. If you have
a large group you may need to divide into houses (teams) and set
up two treasure hunts. You can use the same clues just duplicate
them and change the order for each team. Don't forget to use
characters, props etc, from Harry Potter...Hand the children their
first clue written on a scroll (rolled up paper).
EXAMPLE:
"Ron's lost Scabbers where can he be,
Is he by the maple Tree?" -- hide a toy rat with another clue.

Wizard Piñata

Fill this magical wizard hat pinata with treats and prizes that will delight your guests...
Kit's tip: This piñata also make a a great party table centerpiece!


Harry Potter Scene It
ages 8 & up
Divide the kids into teams to play this Harry Potter Scene It Game.
Using real movie clips, images and trivia questions that challenge their Harry Potter knowledge.
We recommend this game, because there is no preparation required and it can be played again and again as a family game! Click here to order >>

Dragon Eggs 
Collect large plastic Easter eggs, or the egg-shaped containers in which nylons are sometimes packaged. Paint each one with fleck-stone paint to create an enchanting, mysterious look. While the paint dries, follow the recipe below to make “flubber.” This gooey substance will represent the fluid inside the egg that oozes out when the dragon hatches. 

To make flubber, follow the instructions below: 
1. Mix 2 cups of white Elmer's Glue™ in a large container with
    1-1/2 cups of warm water.
    Add drops of food coloring for added fun (optional). 
2. In a second container, mix 1-1/3 cups warm water with
    3 teaspoons of Borax™. 
3. Combine the two mixtures into one bowl and stir.
   The resulting mixture will become gelatinous. 
4. Mix well, pouring off any excess water. Keep in an
   airtight container until you’re ready to put the dragon eggs together. 

After the paint has dried, put a dragon figurine inside 
each egg container, and fill the egg with flubber. 
Give the children their dragon eggs when they arrive, 
and instruct them to keep them warm until they’re ready to hatch.
When the children can’t wait any longer, 
let them hatch open their dragon eggs to see what’s inside! 

"Hoo's" Hedwig?
Play this game much like Marco Polo, without the pool of course.
Be sure to play in a safe environment as "Harry" will be blindfolded.
Select a child to be Harry. Use a blindfold or mask to cover his eyes.
Have the children stand or sit in a circle with "Harry" in the center.
Select one child to be Hedwig, (without telling Harry). Now the fun begins. All of the children will begin making animal noises - squeaking, squawking, tweeting etc. The Hedwig player however, will be hooting
like an owl. Harry needs to find that player and tap him/her.
Then that player is the next "Harry". Continue playing until all
of the children have had their turn being blindfolded.

Making Potions 
Before your guests arrive, mix several bottles of colored fruit drink (kool-aid). Place the bottles on a table with a vinyl table cloth. Provide plastic cups or jars. Allow the children to make their own potion to drink or give to someone else! To make it more authentic label the jars of liquid before hand. See the list of potion names, and their actual 
Muggle names, below for ideas. 

Sleeping Potion - blue "kool-aid"
Extract of Pituitary - lemonade
Dragon tears - red punch
Excitability Formula - orange kool-aid
Hippogriff Gizzard - Jell-O "jigglers"
Bloodworms - gummy worms
Mandrake Root - dried papaya
Tip: Lead the group in making a potion, and then let the kids make their own. Be creative and have fun! 

Harry Potter Party Favors

Say thank you for coming to my party with party favors to match your theme; magic tricks, toy wands, glow sticks, miniature dragons and Harry potter candy to name a few...Harry Potter Favors >>

Fashion your own unique wizard hat favor holders with black card stock paper, a stapler and gold star stickers. Cut a circle and then cut a triangle out of the circle. Roll the paper into a cone shape. Secure the edges with staples and decorate with stickers.
Kit's Tip: once you've cut the shape for the first hat, use it to make the pattern on the remaining sheets of paper.

HARRY POTTER PARTY RECIPES

Magic Wand Pretzels
Follow the melting instructions on chocolate melting candies
We recommend Wilton's brand. Dip Large pretzel sticks 
into the chocolate and then place on waxed paper. 
Add colored sprinkles - optional.

Honeydukes Treats
You don't need to travel to Hogsmead to create this fantasy candy store! Fill bowls and glass/plastic jars with Jelly beans, gummi worms, 
spiders and rats. You can find these items in most sweet shops 
candy stores (mall).

Underwater World Treat
Mix up a cup from the underwater world...
Prepare lime flavored green gelatin dessert using the ice-cube 
method on the box. Place some candy rocks or speckled jelly beans,
in the bottom of clear cups and pour enough gelatin to cover the rocks. Refrigerate for a few minutes. Then pour the reaming of gelatin into the cup and insert fruit leather pieces for seaweed.

Harry Potter Cupcakes
Chocolate covered ice cream cones, make an edible wizard hat
to top cupcakes or a sheet cake. instructions >>


Need the party supplies ?
Party supplies from Birthday In a Box >>
Harry Potter Supplies from Buy Costumes >>
 

Related Links:
Harry Potter Goblet of Fire Party
Harry Potter Prisoner of Azkaban Party
Harry Potter Chamber of Secrets Party
Harry Potter Costumes and Accessories Kids Birthday Party Themes
Party Games
Party Supplies
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