TAILGATING FROM HOME
All the ideas below can be set up in a way that shows two ways of doing something…many ideas…would be happy to set it up in my house and send you pictures of the majority of the items. I have highlighted the items that I have available to show examples. All the ideas are based on the fact that viewers will be having more than one tailgate party at their home during the season. Many of these ideas can be executed with things you may have around the house and the other things can be ordered on line inexpensively or bought at Dollar or Craft Stores.
One item you can have around your house is football tip sheets for your guests. Possibly put the Panther players’ names and numbers on the cheat sheet as well as common football terms.
INVITING
· If you are going to do a tailgate party only once or twice during the football season, you can use invitations and the best way to do this is to get FREE invitations through Vista Print. If you order these invitations from Vista Print and keep them generic football themed, you can use the same FREE invitation during the season. Otherwise evite and/or phone calls, emails will do.
· Invite your guests to wear their favorite team’s football jersey.
DÉCOR
· To welcome your guests you use a For Sale type of yard sign that says Tailgate Party this way. This can be ordered for FREE from Vista print and used all season. Another idea or in addition to, use a Mylar balloon with a sign you print and tape on the balloon that says Tailgate Party this way.
· As your guests arrive, instead of a red carpet, use a mock green carpet that looks like a football field. Easily purchased from a party site/store. In addition, Tailgate tape that looks like crime scene tape can be used and its fun.
· We suggest that you do a “bite size” type buffet instead of a sit down function. You want your guests to watch, mingle and eat. If you choose to grill just remember that you may miss some of the game.
· As the host you can greet your guests in a referee shirt and wearing a whistle. Then you can give each guest a whistle as well. (Maybe ear plugs too)
· On the trees in the back or front yard viewers can hang Panther color beads that are inexpensive. It will add fun to your party. Then use the left overs to give to your guests if they want to wear them. Because Oktoberfest is around the corner, I found beer mug bead necklaces in the Panther colors (which are the Oktoberfest colors this year)…who knew?
· There are a few ideas for main centerpiece; one is to use a cupcake display stand (it seems we all have bought one sometime or another) and get out some of your old Christmas ball ornaments. (I have blues and silver and white that I use and it looks great). Another idea is to take two or three foam disks and decorate with Mylar in the Panther colors, then put a smaller foam disk on top, decorate it and then use a regular size football or a smaller version and place in middle. It looks great too but is a little more work. (I have a sample of this as well).
· If you have kids who play football and/or you own a Panther helmet, that is a very easy buffet centerpiece but I suggest placing it higher up than everything else (easy to do…a box wrapped in appropriate color gift wrap or surround the helmet with black cloth bunched up.
· There are no night games but adults can turn in to kids with neon necklaces. They are always fun.
· Give all guests football maracas (or other noisemakers) so they can make noise when there is a good play. Also, don’t forget the foam number 1 hands….there are mini ones that fit on the fingers that are great!
· You can easily order black boas that really add fun to your table décor. I actually found some with blinking lights and that is fun to use around various food, centerpieces or other places in the house to add fun and accents. (Possibly on the way in to your home)
Page two
Tailgating at Home
Tailgating at Home
DÉCOR CONTINUED
· Decorate buffet, cocktail tables, bathrooms (Locker rooms), outdoor areas with plants and flowers hidden in koozies, and single flowers in bottles of beer. Popcorn containers can also be used. You can also take the top of a can of beer (use can opener) and use it to hold flowers. Use a double vase (large vase with smaller vase in the center) and in-between the two, put blue and silver M&M’s and then put flowers in the inner vase. It looks really cool. You can also get small plants and wrap the Panther themed cloth around them.
· Use a Mylar balloon with a printed sign taped on it saying Locker room and an arrow pointing to the bathroom.
PLACE SETTING
· Use Panther or football themed fabric from a fabric store (or another team if you so choose). This can be used as a table cloth and then you can accent it with black and/or silver cloth/napkins to surround food presentation.
· Use Football trading cards with guests name on them and/or use them to name your food on the buffet.
· Napkins can be football themed bandanas with a football themed slinky (party favors from party store) or use yellow bandanas and have your guests use them as “Penalty” flags throughout the game when they agree or disagree with the refs. (I have black and yellow) You could also iron on the Panther logo.
· Since people play Frisbee at Tailgate parties, you can use mini Frisbees as coasters and you can personalize them easily. They can also then be put in parting gift bags. Big Frisbees can be used as plates.
FOOD/PRESENTATION
(All food should have be tagged (you can get football mini stands inexpensive or use small miscellaneous frames you have around the house to put in front of all the food of trading cards)
(All food should have be tagged (you can get football mini stands inexpensive or use small miscellaneous frames you have around the house to put in front of all the food of trading cards)
· Because it’s a tailgate party, a buffet of food to be grazed on throughout the game would be the best way to go. It is also recommended that you get creative with the food and make it more bite size, cocktail type versions of the classics. This way your guests can use cocktail plates or just pick up and go. And suggestions for the plates would be plastic and skip on the Panther or football themed paper plates. It can still be a tailgate party but nice.
· If you really want to do regular portions of tailgate food, offer your guests trays and to make it fun, use colorful trays that look like the school lunch trays we grew up using (well some of us). They are great for sitting and eating from your lap.
· For the hot dogs, do corn dogs and display them by using a large plastic popcorn container, put a Styrofoam block that best fits the container, fill it and cover the block with popcorn (doesn’t have to be fresh popcorn) and display the cooked corndogs by sticking the corn dog stick in the container/foam. You can also get small corn dog pops that you can skewer and do the same. This can also be used with pigs in a blanket; skewer them and insert into centerpiece. (I’m not sure I explained that well) Possible name: “ First Down Dogs”
· We suggest not serving popcorn only because it can cause a cleanup night mare.
· Use smaller type burgers instead of big burgers and call them “Sideline Sliders”.
Page three
Tailgating at Home
Tailgating at Home
· Condiments can be in empty potato chip dip cans, bean dip cans, cheese dip cans.
· You can easily get mini beach chairs (Like the inexpensive yard chairs people use for tailgating) and put the cans of condiments on them. I use three; one in blue, one in black and one in silver.
· Have a nacho bar and let guests make their own plate of nachos. The chips can be in a themed top hat, glittering top hat or the hat I have, Panther color fedora. You can also get another one and put potato chips in it and put on coffee table. Possible name “50 yard line” nachos
· Pretzels are also a huge part of games. You can use actual soft pretzels or sourdough pretzels in the same shape. If you use soft pretzels, you can hang them from a stand you find around your house. If you use the hard sour dough pretzels, you can display these in a unique shaped glass bowl. Possible name “Penalty Pretzels”
· What is a tailgate party without chicken wings? Instead of actual wings, get the wings that are boneless (less clean up and easier to eat). The presentation can be a normal presentation or instead have fun with it and use an oversized type of glassware like a martini glass, fill it with blue cheese and surround the rim with celery sticks in the blue cheese. Place the glass on a large platter and surround it with the chicken wings (boneless or not). If they are the boneless ones, use football toothpicks to make pick-up easier for guests. Possible name “Time out Buffalo Chicken”
· You can certainly serve other types of food that will lend itself to fun. Pinwheel rounds are a great snack for tail gaters and serve them on your own football themed platter, or a unique shaped platter. Then use pinwheel tooth picks to decorate the sandwiches and platter. Next to this buffet item you can do a vase of pinwheels. Possible name “Running Play Pinwheels”
· And what would a football game be without Pizza. Use two or three pizza boxes stacked on angles on top of each other to give buffet height and the top one can be used as a serving tray for mini pizza bagels. If you don’t want to go this route just order pizza. Possible name “Time Out Pizza”
· A fun idea would be to have a mock First Aid station for people to use if the Panthers are losing or playing poorly. The area can have a bowl of power bars. You can have Tums (filled with sweet tarts), aspirin (filled with mints), and prescription bottles (filled with jelly beans). Just make a different label on the computer and cover all or some of the containers. In a small ice chest or ice container have bottles of Pepto Bismol with the medication removed and replaced with pink tinted pina coladas. Your guests can take a bottle with a straw or use the plastic medicine shot cup. Have pitchers of additional pina coladas for guests to refill. Put a sticker on the bottle as well with something like “Panther Peptic Relief”.
· Use football sweat bands for the beers instead of koozies. Also, personalized labels for bottles of beer are available for under $5 a dozen. If you’d prefer not to have cans or bottles, get a keg.
· For the Bar, make a sign that says “End Zone Bar” on it. Serve beer and wine (alcohol if you so choose or just stick with the Panther Peptic Relief). You could also easily have a keg and use an ice tin that ices the wine. Embellish it with Panther and Football stickers. There are large plastic cups you can buy that allow your guests to etch their name on the cup. These are available at any grocery store. Or buy funny saying stadium cups. It’s a tailgate party so wine can even be served in the cups.
· Although it may be too cutesy, you can have a Top Cats Cheering section that would be decorated with pom poms and guests can pick up some “Cheer”wine (diet and regular) and “Cheer”ios type Chex mix. (Recipe easy) To make it easier for your guests, have mini treat bags for people to put their own mix in a bag so they can return to their seat and nosh on it.
Page three
Tailgating at Home
Tailgating at Home
DESSERT
· Again you can use a cupcake stand and do/buy mini cupcakes. Another idea is to use blue frosting and frost mini brownies and embellish with a chocolate football. Rice Krispy treats dipped in chocolate and decorated with confetti sprinkles look great. These desserts can be displayed on a football themed tray or in a separate are with a sign that says Touch Down desserts.
· People love ice cream at games and you can do cake in ice cream cones and top with frosting.
*****All displays need to be at different levels. You can accommodate this by using risers and covering them or not, use pots or pans from your kitchen and simply cover with themed material and no one will be the wiser. I would demonstrate this for viewers.
ENTERTAINMENT
· In another room with a TV and DVD player have football themed movies like Any Given Sunday, Rudy, Blind Side, etc. and have them playing so guests who really don’t care about football (WHAT?) can be entertained too. Use a popcorn container with flowers to decorate this room.
· A great game to play during half time would be football movie themed trivia. (This type of trivia is better than just plain football trivia because it is more inclusive for all your guests.) In order to spruce up the room or outdoors, again you can use a cupcake holder and put Panther color balloon weights on each holder with a question tied around it. Guests pick a balloon weight, read the question (answer would be on bottom of the weight). You can do this with a Panther hat and put the questions in that.
POSSIBLE MOVIES (To be used in spare room and for trivia)
Necessary Roughness Rudy Friday Night Lights
Brian’s Song Jerry Maguire Blind Side
Longest Yard Any Given Sunday Leatherheads
Varsity Blues Water boy Wildcats
POSSIBLE MOVIES (To be used in spare room and for trivia)
Necessary Roughness Rudy Friday Night Lights
Brian’s Song Jerry Maguire Blind Side
Longest Yard Any Given Sunday Leatherheads
Varsity Blues Water boy Wildcats
· Of course throwing the football/Frisbee and just mingling is entertainment too.
· You can make a Dum Dum lollipop tree and put it on display for people to grab a pop when their team makes a dumb play. This can be on a coffee table or end table.
PARTING GIFTS
· Everyone can receive a Panther Parting gift with a 2011 schedule magnet (free from Vista) and Panther stickers (free from Vista). Football shaped chocolate can be added and your guests can add their bandanas, beads and whistles. You can also package in a decorative canister or bag with nice ribbon with some “Cheer”ios mix for your guest to take home.
· Chip clips are a great addition too. And of course use the extra personalized mini Frisbees for each bag.
· If you have enough prescription bottles, each bag can get a bottle saying “Winning Pills”, take two during pre-game, two during first half and two during second half.
· You can label them winners, losers. There would be the same stuff in each bag but it would be a great way to reward the guests who routed for either team.
