Because Labor Day, Memorial Day and Independence Day all fall in or near summer, these holidays offer a great opportunity to incorporate beach-inspired elements into your party decor. You can really use any type of party theme you want for Labor Day in particular, but patriotic or all-white themes seem to be the most popular, so today I’m going to share a patriotic theme with some fun “beach house” elements thrown in the mix.

And because Labor Day also was created to celebrate the hard worker and give them a day of rest, it’s also important not to stress yourself out if you’re playing host/hostess, so everything pictured here is quick and easy – no labor-intensive centerpieces that will have you working ’round the clock on your weekend off! Scroll down for more details…

The beverage table is one place I always like to have some fun… An easy way to make a cool display is to serve drinks with stylish packaging. The new Sparkling drink by Hansen’s comes in a cool silvery-white can, and the Blueberry-Pomegranate flavor has touches of red and blue – so it’s a ready-made patriotic drink!  To go the extra mile, tie a straw to each can using red raffia or ribbon and line them up in neat rows.

For party decor & centerpieces, don’t even worry about arranging flowers at this party – just embellish vases with simple details that make a big impact – like the ribbon/starfish combos above, and fill them with beach-themed elements, such as tumbled white rocks, blue pebbles (pictured above – purchase at Michael’s), seashells or sand in natural, red, white, and/or blue colors.

In the large arrangement pictured in the top image, the vase was actually embellished the same beverage napkins used on the drinks table and in the place settings, then filled with inexpensive bleached mitsumata branches and layers of natural sand, blue pebbles, and white sea shells. Takes about 5 minutes to put together at most!

If you’re hosting a sit-down meal, start with a white tablecloth and cover it with natural fish netting – available online or in most craft or party supply stores (check the luau section). For a pop of color, use red and blue placemats and linens. If you don’t have regular colored linens or don’t want to be quite as fancy, it’s fine to use paper napkins and 12″ sheets of red & blue scrapbook paper in lieu of regular placemats.

For napkin rings, tie ribbon around rolled or folded napkins, using a contrasting color (red on blue or blue on red), and hot-glue a starfish or sand dollar to the ribbon for the embellishment.  To dress up wine glasses, wrap part of the stem with red or blue raffia and tie off at the ends. If you’re hosting a party outdoors and worried about party fouls, acrylic drinkware and melamine or paper plates are great alternatives to breakable materials.

More fun decorating ideas: red, white and blue paper lanterns, outdoor lanterns, and beach-themed decor with a “worn” look like boat pictured in the top image.

What are you guys doing to celebrate Labor Day? And special plans or party theme ideas?