Author: Maria Alfano
These 3 masquerade party ideas prove you are never too old to have fun and they truly are the way grown-ups celebrate Halloween. I don’t know about you, but I enjoyed dressing up as a child and I made many Halloween costumes for my children when they were young. I kinda miss the atmosphere of the season.
Different places around the world that don’t participate in Halloween, partake in various masquerade carnival events. Why not turn your Halloween or any party for that matter into a masquerade?
Whether it’s for Halloween or a special occasion, or you are having a backyard BBQ, a masquerade is a fun way to party. Webster’s dictionary defines a masquerade as a social gathering where people wear masks and opulent costumes. Halloween can definitely be considered a masquerade because people wear costumes that often accompanied by some form of face covering.
One of the first masquerades was established in Venice hundreds of years ago. The party required guests to wear masks to hide their true identities to have freedom of expression without consequence.
This post is all about different ways grown-ups (adults) can celebrate Halloween and other occasions with these decoration ideas, 3 masquerade party ideas, the history and meaning for each party idea, and the traditional foods served for each style of party.
3 Masquerade Party Ideas – The Way That Grown-Ups Celebrate Halloween
Three very different countries with three very different ways to masquerade. Each taking the tradition and making it their own. Everyone has their own flair and magnificence. All, have some things in common!
Masquerade Decor
Transform your home into a unique space with the masquerade essentials. Because opulence is the name of the game with this, consider covering your contemporary furniture with lush, dark, rich velvet fabrics. Include large feather plumes in vases around the room that sparkle from the glitter and twinkling lights. Since gold is the color of riches, use gold-colored disposable cutlery, cups, and dishes.
Set the mood for the party with hand-written invitations. Mail out invitation cards; anyone can send an email, but not many will go through the trouble of handwriting a card. Set the attire as required for all to wear a mask. Masquerades of long ago required formal attire like ball gowns and tuxedos, you can pare down the dress code by having everyone dress in the same color.
Masquerade Party Ideas
1 – Venice
The Carnival of Venice is the granddaddy of them all. Established in the early 16th century this masquerade was an elaborate party with magnificent ball gowns and gentlemen’s suits as well as face coverings that were meant to hide the identity of the guests to provide anonymity from the perceived promiscuity the event could provide. With fully covered faces, wigs, and hats, it was nearly impossible to know what story was hiding behind the mask.
With as much pomp as grandeur, the Venetians had a variety of masks to choose from each one more intriguing than the next. No matter how different, each mask, in the end, provided the same mystery. For your party, you can request your guests all don the same style of mask to coordinate with the single color attire.
Masquerade party ideas – The Masks
ARLECCHINO – better known as harlequin represents a colorful checkered or diamond-patterned mask covering just the eyes.
ZANNI – designed by a doctor to create enough distance, concealed most of the face, to avoid contact with the plague pr other diseases of the time.
BAUTA – ornate all-white face coverings typically worn with a black hat.
PIERROT – the comedian’s attire to bring laughter to the party-goers. Usually in white with black and often shown with a teardrop.
COLOMBINA – designed for a beautiful theatre actress who refused to cover up her beauty with a full face mask. Wear your own matching Colombina masks available on Amazon.
VOLTO – probably the most well-known of all the masks is the volto. This piece was usually white with ornate colorful designs and glitter painted on it. At some point in our lives, we all had at least one of these decorative ceramic masks adorning a wall somewhere in our 1980s home.
The Food
Italians are known for their many pasta dishes and the “Carnivale di Venezia” themed party could not go on without some of these famous Venetian dishes.
PASTA al Forno – cooked pasta as rigatoni or penne layered into a baking dish smothered in tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. This ooey-gooey dish is sure to delight all your guests.
FRITTO Misto – a platter of deep-fried mixed seafood including shrimp, calamari, and pieces of cod. These make perfect hors d’oeuvres to be eaten as your guests mingle. Avoid double-dipping by preparing individual cups of dip and seafood for folks to pick up without going back into the bowl…
CASTAGNOLE – deep-fried dough balls sprinkled with icing sugar make the perfect one-bite dessert.
MIGLIACCIO – Venetian-style cheesecake made from ricotta cheese and lemon. It is fluffier and lighter than the traditional American cheesecake.
2 – Trinidad & Tobago
There is no party like Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival. Every February, the entire country turns into one giant party. Young and old all set out to have a good time. Most Caribbean islands celebrate carnival but none do it quite the way Trinis do.
This masquerade was adapted from the historical Italian and French traditions and was started to commemorate the freedom from slavery in the 18th century. To “play mass” means flamboyance with music and dancing in the streets.
The costumes
Over the top, larger-than-life costumes are donned during the festival. Partiers are scantily clad but wear massive headdresses made of feathers. Faces are painted and lots of beads, glitter, and glued-on rhinestones adorn their faces.
A king and queen of the masquerade are crowned every year. The award goes to the person with the largest and most intriguing costume for the event.
This masquerade party idea is perfect for the summer BBQ or pool party
Create your own mini carnival with these great masquerade party ideas.
PLAYLIST – have a Spotify playlist of soca and calypso music
ALL that glitters – provide your guests with glitter wash-off tattoos or blingy sets like this one from Amazon for the ladies to use as a bathing suit coverup.
HEADgear – wearing a giant headdress of feathers and beads is not practical for a home or backyard party. Buy these scaled-down versions from Amazon and give your party the full Trini vibe.
Masquerade Party Ideas – Food
Trinidad and Tobago’s national dishes are severed at every lyme, fetes, or party. Pick these at every event around the country from the local restaurants or the street vendors.
DOUBLES – called doubles because of the 2 delicious fried flatbreads topped with curried channa (chickpeas). Eaten with your fingers, these are the ultimate in Trini finger foods.
ROTI – a large flatbread wrap typically baked on a flat iron round skillet, stuffed with curried meats, potato, and chickpeas. For those not faint of heart, you must try the pepper sauce – the spicier the better.
BAKE & shark – deep-fried flatbread topped with crispy pieces of shark, coleslaw, tomatoes, onions, and pineapple.
KHURMA – hard sweet bites of delectable goodness made from chickpea flour, ginger, spices and coated with a sugar glaze. Take this perfect one-bite snack with you on the go. They go great with a shandy.
SHANDY – drinking is inevitable at a Trini party, Enjoy this sweet nectar of beer and ginger ale as you nibble on khurma.
3 – New Orleans
One of the top party cities in North America, New Orleans knows how to throw a party. 47 days before Easter each year New Orleans is home to Mardi Gras. This is one of the best and easiest masquerade party ideas.
Throw your own Mardi Gras-themed party. Make it official with the purple, green, and gold colors made famous during this festival. They are simply colors. Green means faith. Purple means justice. And, gold means power. Partygoers often wear beads in these bright colors. Use the colors of Mardi Gras in costumes, decor, and even food.
Jazz music, feathers, and fun-loving guests top the list of must-haves for this party.
Mardi Gras Masks
You can make your own Mardi Gars masks from paper. There are templates available for free all over the internet. Make them colorful and tie them on with a ribbon. These are the most budget-friendly of all the masks of these masquerade party ideas. Pick up ready-made masks from your local party supply store.
Mardi Gras Food
KING cake – the most famous and sought-after food of Mardi Gras is the King Cake. Combine coffee cake/cinnamon roll recipes into one and this is a delicious ring filled with fruit spreads and decorated with icing sugar in the party colors. Tradition says there is a mini baby doll baked into the cake. Whoever gets the piece with the baby is responsible for bringing the King Cake to the next party.
Bake your own King Cake, if you dare. Here is a great recipe from Taste of Home.
PECAN pralines – serve them warm and gooey is a favorite snack for the Mardi Gras crowd. It’s the perfect companion for your beer.
DIRTY Rice – you gotta have grit to eat this dish. Cooked with chicken livers and chicken or beef broth to turn the rice dark. Hence the name dirty rice.
PANCAKES – not just breakfast food. Add a few drops of food coloring and make them festive. The ideal way to hold those pecan pralines.
This post was all about how adults like to have fun with masquerade party ideas, 3 awesome masquerade party examples, along with the history, and the food for each masquerade.