She's holding the bow right and everything...

Seems kind of lame, actually. Spring for the quartet next time. It's not that much more expensive.

Some real pref night pictures/decor/themes from twitter

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BSsOZRACIAErSzu.jpg
Tiffany petit fours

http://distilleryimage5.ak.instagram...0a1f9e5b_7.jpg
ice sculptures

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mc...8tbfo1_500.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_mLDyXoCLRE...0/IMG_1360.JPG
Sigma Kappa at Illinois Wesleyan a few years back

http://distilleryimage6.s3.amazonaws...381b775d_7.jpg

I so recognize those petit fours - although, my chapter had diamond shaped ones made.


Most Panhellenic rules don't allow anyone who isn't a sister (be she active or alumna) at any of the parties.

I can remember posters being in awe of my pref parties in my recruitment thread. Seems like free-fall frills are back in town!

I had a chapter sister who played a harp at our pref party. One year, some clueless rush chair from another chapter tried to hire her for theirs.

And yes, it's like a wedding. We rented nice white chairs, because our regular dining room chairs weren't nearly fancy enough. Fountains. Mirrors. Ice sculptures. You name it, someone has it at their pref party.

That said, it's unsurprising that there aren't a TON of pictures out there...everyone acts like their pref party is some big secret, even though half or two-thirds of the women who see it every year won't ever be members.

I assumed the violinist is a sister.

Considering she was dressed like everyone else, I imagined so. Nevertheless...

I don't mind the big decorations that can be carried over year after year, or even getting some balloons or lesser-priced items that have to be bought every year (which can still make a huge impact)... but fountains and ice sculptures? I found these two pictures below on Pinterest and was shocked that anyone would buy one of these. I wasn't part of a huge recruitment system, but things like this seem like a waste of money, and a superficial way to impress the PNMs.

Just my opinion...

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/73...6cabb334c1.jpg

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/73...08b84a7ed1.jpg

Well the ice anchor for Delta Gamma (or at least, if I'm assuming everyone's prefs are the same, which I'm pretty sure they should be?) play a part in our preferences ritual. So while it seems excessive, we really use it and it doesn't just sit there.

You can see more examples on EO's preferences Pinterest board: http://pinterest.com/deltagamma/recr...e-party-ideas/

And then after our final party the seniors get to go outside and smash it :)

Edit:// Here's our's from formal recruitment this past January

http://i40.tinypic.com/2wf1w7r.jpg

Wow, these parties are so fancy! The party I went to last night looked NOTHING like this! It was still lovely, of course, but there were no ice sculptures or balloons or even food for that matter. And there were definitely no violins. I'm going to try to find some pictures on Facebook that don't have any actives' faces in them.

When I was in school we would use "etched" stickers to put the PNMs name on her "champagne flute".

I know we don't have a single national pref party template. More like a handful of different options to fit your school and the level of formality.

Sen, was it just decorations you were curious about or what happens? Like it's been said, the events aren't actually secret so we won't go to sorority hell for sharing.

For what it's worth, neither of my colleges had pref parties like this. Both were no frills schools, so ice sculptures were out of the picture.

Lol, Sorority Hell. I imagine a place with our awful poodle skirt costumes and "Grease" themed skit from my junior year and building a never-ending balloon arch.

I'll have to ask my chapter to take pictures next month. Our suite has 22' tall arched ceilings, and they used to cover the one room's ceiling with clear & white balloons, with streamers. Incredible!

SEN I JUST FINISHED MY LAST PREF PARTY AND THERE WAS A BISH PLAYING A VIOLIN AND THAT WAS ALL I COULD THINK OF SO THANKS A LOT

:D:D:D:D:D