Hemlock Parlor · Ideas

Murder mystery party ideas

Pick a setting your guests can dress for, give each guest one costume piece, name the food and drinks after the story, and give a prize to the best detective. Those four touches make the night feel planned without much work.

Theme ideas

• A small-town shop anniversary. Cardigans, aprons and bow ties; a cake and a photo booth. This is our free mystery, and it works any time of year.
• A Halloween costume party. Everyone comes as a monster, and a blackout hides the murder. See our Halloween edition.
• A snowed-in Christmas Eve. A family dinner, a will and a house nobody can leave. See our Christmas edition.
• A 1920s speakeasy. Feathers, fedoras and a jazz playlist.
• A country-house weekend. Tweed, pearls and a library with a locked door.
• A movie premiere. Sunglasses, a red carpet runner and a director with enemies.

Costumes

Ask for one piece per character, not a full outfit: an apron for a baker, a notebook for a reporter, a cape for a vampire. Put the idea in each guest's invitation so they have a week to find it. Our character and costume list has thirty to borrow.

Food and drink

Name each dish after the story: "the butler's sandwiches," "poisoned punch" (it isn't), a cake shaped like the murder weapon. Keep it easy to eat standing up during the mingling rounds.

Small touches

• Name tags with character names, so guests can address each other in character.
• A clue table with a lamp, where each clue card goes when you reveal it.
• Accusation slips and a bowl to collect them.
• Two prizes: best detective and best costume.

Questions

Keep reading

• The free 6-player mystery
• Murder mystery party decorations
• Murder mystery character ideas, with costumes
• Murder mystery birthday party