Twenty-one is a milestone birthday. At the University of Florida, the girls on campus typically celebrate this momentous occasion with a sign night. A sign night is a celebration when the birthday girl wears an artistic sign around their neck with 21 funny tasks written on the back to complete while going out to all of the Gainesville bars. This bar-hop of the century is an exciting way to celebrate someone’s first time drinking legally. It is special to ring in a new year full of new freedoms surrounded by one’s best friends.
Here are some of my tips for organizing and hosting the perfect UF-style 21st sign night:
1. Facebook Event Set-Up
To set up the event, people create a Facebook event. This is an easy way to invite as many people as you’d like while being able to provide an event description and add funny photos of the girl everyone is eager to celebrate. Friends will collaborate with the birthday girl to come up with an invite list and to decide upon the basic elements of the night.
To start, you have to add a cover photo. Typically, people use an app such as Canva to create a photo encompassing the birthday girl’s favorite things.
The event’s title is arguably one of the most important components of a sign night. Usually, people come up with an adjective that starts with the same letter as the person’s first name. For instance, “Caroline’s Crazy 21st” and “Sydney’s Show Stopping 21st” are a couple slogans that came to mind. This title relates to the birthday girl and gives the party planners a direction for decorative elements.
After the slogan is decided upon, you add an event description. Inclusion of the location, time and what to wear is essential. The best part of the event description is creating 21 funny fake rules for partygoers according to what the birthday girl is known for doing. Lists usually start with, “Only come if …,” and include obvious and surprising details.
Leading up to the event, friends on the page can post photos of the girl they are excited to celebrate. These posts are usually funny or slightly embarrassing.
2. Artistic Elements
The sign is supposed to be a complete surprise and representative of the birthday girl. Recently, signs have been in the shape of “21.” On the “2,” the person’s favorite places and things are added. For instance, one’s favorite food or stores, sorority or campus involvement, college (UF), hometown and hobbies are added to personalize the sign. On the “1,” it is usually the person’s favorite drink. To wear the sign, people attach a boa, string or beaded chain.
On the back of the sign, 21 surprise tasks are written. These are supposed to be completed by the end of the night. Make sure to include achievable tasks so that the night isn’t too challenging. For instance, sign 21 people with marker, take 21 selfies, make a drink behind the bar, take a picture in every bar, take a picture with a bouncer, dance on an elevated surface, make a TikTok and request a particular song are common tasks.
Many people make signs as a job, but one can create one using online software. You can print the signs at Target Copy, a printing service on University Avenue right by campus. Target Copy’s many services help to host a great night.
Besides the sign, one should create stickers with a funny photo and the party’s slogan. These stickers can be made online, too, and also printed at Target Copy for convenience. Everyone attending the event takes a sticker and puts it on their outfit to wear throughout the night. There are usually two to three different stickers created for the night.
A painted banner is a pretty element for the night. The slogan is painted on a large brown paper banner. This preppy stylistic choice is at just about every sign night one will attend. Find your most artistic friend and ask them to design this custom element.
3. Decorative Pieces
Beautifying the apartment or house where the event is hosted is essential for tying in the theme of the party. Fringe backdrops can be found at Target, Walmart, Amazon and almost any party store, and they are hung behind birthday banners on brown paper. Large balloon arches are placed above and around the birthday banner to create the perfect photo backdrop for the evening.
Tablecloths for the countertop, balloons to put around the place and other birthday decor can also be used. One can also add printed-out photos of the birthday girl. These photos can be scattered throughout the place, on a fridge or on a wall to constantly remind partygoers of who they are celebrating.
4. Food and Drinks
Since the pre-game is hosted in the early evening, usually around 7:00 or 8:00 PM, it is nice to have a few different snacks and drinks. These could be the birthday girl’s favorite items, follow the theme or be a particular color.
5. Music
Before the pre-game, create a playlist with the birthday girl’s favorite music. This music can be played throughout the night. Having music makes the pre-game more fun and will boost everyone’s mood.
6. Camera
A sign night is a night you will want to remember. When the apartment or house is beautifully decorated, and all of your favorite people surround you, why wouldn’t you want to take incredible photos? Having a digital camera to capture the night is super important. Not only will you want to take pictures in front of the adorable backdrop, but you will also want to have photos taken throughout the night.
7. Where To Go
Before you leave the pre-game, ask the birthday girl for the order of the bars she’d like to attend and the places she would like to go to make the evening flow smoothly. Sometimes, the birthday girl has a particular random place she’d like to visit or go to eat. Remember to ask these questions before it gets too busy.
8. Have Fun!
Sign nights can be a lot to organize but remember that they are meant to be so much fun. Try not to get too stressed out over all of the little details. Organize the event with the birthday girl and a few other friends, delegate tasks, communicate regularly and keep the birthday girl’s desires a priority. Remember that the night will be spent with people who want to be there, and it will be fun no matter what!
Organizing and planning a sign night for yourself or a friend is fulfilling. There are not many better experiences than making one feel loved and appreciated. Remember to pay attention to the small details and add personal touches to make the sign night a night to remember. I hope this guide will help you have or host the most special 21st birthday sign night!