Once again it's the time of the year to drink green beer, hit the local Irish pub, and wear green or beware! For those truly in the spirit though throwing an Irish party is the only way to really get the blarney stone rolling. Here's some tips on throwing an Irish bash that will leave your friends begging for more.

Hang some decorative shamrocks and leprechaun cutouts which you can either make out of green construction paper, or you can always swing by a local retail store to pick up some professionally made ones. If you want to go all out you can pick up some green party bulbs and position them around the house, not too many as it'll be harmful on the eyes, but enough to give a nice green hue to the room. Some green confetti and streamers on the tables are a nice touch as well as some green balloons.

As you probably know, beer is the sprite of choice on St. Paddy's Day. Get down to your local convenience store and pick up ample supplies of your traditional Irish beers (Guinness, Harp Lager, etc.). For the Irish flare though you simply MUST make some green beer. Any light beer will do, however I suggest going with a golden Irish lager just to keep with the spirit. Pick up a few pitchers and fill them with beer, then just mix in some green food coloring. It doesn't altar the flavor of the beer at all, and makes for a neat conversation piece. For the kids you can use a clear juice and mix in green food coloring, or you can use ginger ale died green which looks a lot more like the green beer the adults will be drinking to keep them from feeling left out.

As for the food, make some green cookies in the shape of shamrocks or pots of gold. Pick up some guacamole flavored chips and guacamole dip. Then for dinner look up a good recipe for corned beef and cabbage, after all St. Paddy's Day isn't St. Paddy's Day until you've served up corned beef and cabbage.

The background music should be played to appease majority of the crowd. For an older crowd pick up a CD with traditional Celtic music or Irish pub songs, and for a younger (or more lively) crowd grab some Flogging Molly to keep them dancing and singing all night.

Some party games you can play are "Irish Name That Tune" where you play parts of songs from popular Irish bands and have people guess what they are. Or you can pick up a small black pot and have people try to throw chocolate wrapped gold coins into it from a distance.

As always be sure to drink responsibly, have a designated driver or plenty of couch space for those who drink a little too much.

Slinte!

Learn more about this author, Joseph Tavolacci.
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