How to Have a Dazzling Dolly Parton Party

Dolly Parton: Our Most Endearing Icon and Musical Star

Dolly Parton has mesmerized generations with her incredible talent and heart of gold. The impact she’s made with her music, genius and generosity is remarkable. Whether you love country music or simply adore Dolly, hosting a party in Ms. Parton’s name is a terrific way to celebrate both her music and her legacy of being a true diamond in a world full of rhinestones! So let’s dig into some fun ideas for hosting a sparkling-diamond Dolly Parton party.

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How to Throw a Dolly Parton Party

1. Create the Scene with Dolly Parton Party Decorations

Close-up photo of two diamonds on top of a sea of crushed glass — Photo by Bas van-den Eijkhof

Anything that sparkles and shines makes for perfect Dolly décor! Fill a glass vase with acrylic diamonds or scatter them about whimsically. Rhinestone-studded anything is definitely fitting. Play tribute to her music by displaying acoustic guitars, if you have any, or country music-inspired materials like denim, fringe, and cowboy hats/boots. Pink is a fun and playful colour choice, though white is her favourite. Have fun with decorating! Below are some fun Dolly-inspired finds to get you started:

2. Cook Dolly Parton Party Food (Curtesy of Her Own Recipes)

Three photos attached: one of a tall glass of sweet tea, one of the words 'hey yall' written in cursive on a shiplap wall, and one of four Southern biscuits stacked on top of each other. Biscuits and sweet tea are must-have refreshments at a Dolly Parton party — Photos by Crystal Tubens, Jon Tyson, Jodie Morgan

The only way to eat at a Dolly Parton party is Southern style. So cook plenty of Ms. Parton’s well-renowned specialty: soul food! Be sure to include her favourite, which is potatoes. Whip up some mashed potatoes, baked potatoes or fry up French fries. For drinks, keep things sweet and Southern with sweet tea and lemonade, as well as the basic beverages she enjoys: coffee, tea, and red wine.

It’s easy to spend a lot on food. If you want to keep it economical, you can always budget by inviting guests to BYOB and/or bring edible items to share. Most people are happy to contribute (see 6. Guest Participation). But regardless, be aware of any invited guests’ dietary restrictions and provide at least one or two decent food/drink options for them as well. If any confirmed guests are vegan, for example, you can find recipes for vegan biscuits and gravy and other vegan alternatives.

Close-up photo of half of a peach sliced open with the pit sticking out and four rhinestones stuck to the crevice leading down from the pit — Photo by Laker

Here are some recipes to get you started that will surely keep your guests comfortably fed:

3. Play Dolly Parton’s Music

You have an extensive discography for Dolly Parton party music! If you’re overwhelmed with choices and afraid you’ll accidentally spend hours crafting the perfect Dolly playlist, just play a compilation of greatest hits to start. If you want to include a visual component, play videos of live performances. Here are a few playlists of some greatest hits, newest album, and more:

Two attached photos: one of a pink-fringed and pink rhinestone-bedazzled cowboy hat, and the other of a pink heart-shaped rhinestoned perfume bottle — Photos by Matt Benson and Sophie Shui

4. Add Dolly Parton-Inspired Scents

We covered the sights, the flavors, and the tunes of a Dolly Parton party. Now, consider the scents! The best way to create a Dolly Parton atmosphere that includes the evocative sense of smell is to spray her own signature scents. You can also burn Dolly-inspired scented candles:

5. Play Dolly Parton Party Games

Test your guests’ Parton knowledge with trivia and other fun activities! Download and print off any of these digital games to get everyone playing (and learning a thing or two):

An acoustic guitar rests on a silver/white whicker chair in front of a field of brush, with many artificial flowers adhered to the it - a beautiful way to decorate a guitar to play at a Dolly Parton party — Photo by Jen Theodore

If you or another guest can play guitar, take this opportunity to learn some Dolly Parton music and take the party stage as honorary party musician! Shy of Ms. Parton’s own personal concert, this is the next best way for everyone to enjoy her music.

6. Establish Guest Participation

Guest participation involves how you’d like your guests to participate or contribute to your party. If cooking a whole menu of party food is intimidating or impractical in any way, make it a Parton Potluck and request that everyone brings a soul food dish to share. You could also opt to make it BYOB and provide the basic nonalcoholic refreshments.

Two attached photos, one of woman in a hat with a large rhinestone-bedazzled brim and the other of a woman wearing a pink feather jacket and a pink cowboy hat - perfect things to wear to a Dolly Parton party — Photos by Carli Jeen and Pawel Szvmanski

Another fun way guests can participate is to come dressed Parton-style. Encourage sparkling costume jewelry (the bigger the bling, the better!) and fun apparel like rhinestone-studded denim or fringe. Ms. Partin has shared that her favourite colour is white, so anything white and flowy is a fitting choice.

Of course, always choose your guests mindfully and with their interests in mind. Prioritize friends who also love Dolly Parton. But don’t shy away from others who may not know much about her. You never know, you may turn someone on to her music!

Checklist of Items You Need

A black cowboy hat covered in rhinestones — Photo by Antreina Stone (@antreinas)

Now that we’ve covered what you’ll need to do for a Dolly Parton party, here’s a list of all the tangible items you may need to acquire for it:

Dolly Parton party decorations
Southern-style food and beverages
Dolly Parton music
Dolly Parton-inspired scented candles and/or her signature scents
Dolly Parton party games
Dolly Parton party outfit

Preparation Checklist for Your Dolly Parton Party

Most of these steps for party preparation apply to any type of party you host. So while we covered Dolly-specific details and ideas above, below are basic party planning guidelines to neatly order each step of the process (you can find more thorough details in the Best Party Practices posts):

1. First, confirm that people can come on any chosen date

Choose party date/time, and preferably alternative date(s) as well
Choose guest list and establish minimum number of guests you’d like (to make it worth your effort)
Six weeks out, confirm guests’ interest in the party and availability on chosen party date(s). The only details you’ll need to share at this time include what type of party it will be (Dolly Parton-themed); any requested participation; party date and general time of day; and your address (or other location if elsewhere)
This first step is just to get people to confirm that, barring unforeseen circumstances, they are able and willing to attend and will save the date to do so. If your preferred minimum number of guests confirm interest and availability, have them secure the calendar date for your terrific Dolly Parton party!

Two photos attached, one of a woman's leg wearing a tall white cowboy boot with pink flowers sticking out of the top, and the other of a person wearing eccentric boots under shiny black pants with rhinestones at the bottom - perfect footwear options for a Dolly Parton party — Photos by Karley Saagi and Skylar Kang

2. Then, proceed with the fun planning

Once you have your Dolly Parton party date established, you first need to get out your calendar and map out when you plan to do every step of preparation. This means you schedule time for each preparation activity that you’ll need to do. If you don’t schedule time on your calendar early enough, you may find yourself overwhelmed and unprepared the day of the party. Don’t do that to yourself! Check out the How to Be a Good Party Host post for more clarification on exactly what you can do to be confident, prepared, and ahead of the game. Party planning isn’t rocket science, but it naturally requires some thought and effort (which people do notice). Here’s a general overview of what you can expect to do leading up to the party:

First, sit down and schedule time on your calendar for each step of party prep as listed below
Create invitations with all the details and send them out 4 weeks before the party
Order any party supplies and decorations 3 weeks out (so they arrive in time to set up)
Shop for any party supplies/decorations you don’t order online, as well as non-perishable food/drinks
Acquire perishable food/drinks early enough in advance to prepare in time
Set up decorations
Prepare food/drinks (depending on how long things keep)

A pink frosted donut with a bite taken out is covered in large rhinestones — Photo by DS stories

3. Day of Party

It’s very important to get as much party prep done far enough in advance that you have some time to yourself to relax come party day, especially if you’ve been busy. So be sure to plan your day-of-party preparations early enough to have that time and space to yourself as well. Within those amply planned/set-aside time slots, you can expect to do these preparations during the day of your party:

Complete any last-minute food/drink prep that are too fresh to do any earlier
Set up any quick/easy last-minute supplies and decorations (if not up already)
Prepare music and scents (audio/visual, candles/fragrance)
Get dressed with plenty of time in your favourite Dolly-inspired outfit
Once everything’s ready, take the time to meditate or do any preferred self-care activities that get you in a good head space if you aren’t already. An easy way to do this is to find inspirational quotes from Ms. Parton herself. If anyone’s rooting for your own well-being and success – both as a happy host and in general, it’s her!

Dolly Parton's Rockstar album cover pictures Ms. Parton wearing a metal studded jacket and black leather gloves in a car with a fuzzy leopard print steering wheel cover - an awesome image to put up at a Dolly Parton party

All Set to Host a Delightful Dolly Parton Party

Every part of the party planning process is meant to be enjoyable, from planning the menu to putting up decorations. At the end of the day, the goal is for you and your guests to have an awesome time – even if that looks different than you envisioned. As long as you put thought and care into party preparation and keep a flexible mindset that allows grace for when things turn out differently, your Dolly Parton party will be an incredible time that everyone will love and remember!