Photo booths are so fun and easy to make. Today I've got tip and tricks to show you How to Make a New Year's Eve Party Photo Booth Backdrop. This is a great design for New Year's Eve but will also work for other sparkly events as well. This New Year's Eve party idea is fun and easy to create. You don't need a ton of supplies and you can reuse the materials for other events if you'd like. Pick up decorating materials that you can mix and match, I'll share my favorite tips with you.
How to Make a New Year's Eve Party Photo Booth Backdrop
You don't need a huge, expensive pile of supplies to make a fun photo booth. A few layered materials, some lights and something sparkly will easily turn into a fun backdrop worth taking photos in front of. I am a big fan of mix-match and re-using materials. Pick up supplies that you can use again and again for different themes.
How to get startedFirst, let's talk about the basics, what you need to really set up a photo booth.
- Pick a color scheme – I think it's easier to make a cohesive setup when you pick a color scheme to follow. For this New Year's Eve photo booth I used gold and black.
- Choose mix and match materials – you don't need to buy a full set up kit. Instead, pick materials that you can mix and match that coordinate with your color scheme. Think of ribbons, decor accents like the stars I've used, garland and background papers or scenes.
- Layer for a fun look – once you have all your materials, layer them to create a finished look. Instead of a single flat layer of paper, add some garland, a bit of decor mesh and some ribbon and you'll have a backdrop ready for fancy photos.
- Photo props – the best part about a photo booth is the props. You can make your own, buy pre-made props or offer a combination. I like to have props that go with the theme along with some general use props that I can use for different events.
Shopping List
Here are all the things I used for this backdrop setup. You can get most of these items from Oriental Trading Company.
- Black plastic tablecloths
- Gold mesh ribbon
- String lights
- White tassel garland
- Gold stars
- Gold confetti balloons
Check out all the New Year's Eve Party decor at Oriental Trading
Don't forget the photo props! I have a couple different sets you can print. Check out these New Year's Eve photo props and these photo props I designed for MyPrintly. You can also buy photo props from Oriental Trading.
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More New Year's printables:
- Happy New Year photo props
- Happy New Year coloring page
- Happy New year crown – add your own date!
How to set it up
First, you'll need an open wall space for your photo booth backdrop. I like to hang a wooden dowel on the wall and then hang all the backdrop pieces on the dowel. You can use command strips to hang the dowel… just get the mini hooks, stick them on the wall and then hang the dowel on the hooks. For this set up I used screw-in hooks instead just because I use this same wall for multiple backdrops throughout the year.
Start with a background color. I used disposable tablecloths to create the base background color of my New Year's Eve photo booth. For this setup I used black tablecloths.
Next, hang standard holiday lights, draping them along the background using the dowel that you hung up.
Layer sparkly gold mesh over the lights. It's ok to hang the mesh a little uneven and let it just fall as it would like. This creates a more natural look. If you'd rather measure it all out and make everything lay flat and the same, that's ok too. I'm not that patient and I like the rough look.
Add garland and extra accents. I used a basic white tissue tassel garland and then hung gold sparkly stars to finish the photo booth backdrop.
Display the props near the photo booth. I like to set up a table nearby or just below the backdrop. For this setup I used cardboard boxes covered with more plastic tablecloths and then set the props on the boxes.
For extra fun: add in some balloons your guests can use as props and you can use as decor. I love these confetti balloons. They come with a special blower tip so you don't accidentally inhale the confetti while you're blowing up the balloons.
Remember: It doesn't have to be perfect. This is just a backdrop for all the fabulous people to take a photo. So you can have a couple loose ends or unfinished edges along the bottom. No one will see these imperfections in the photos… they'll be focuses on all the happy faces.
We didn't use any kind of year specific decor and props, but you absolutely could. Add a Happy New Year garland and year specific photo props if you'd like. You can have extra fun with your decor and add the year to all the things!
That's it. Then you just need the guests and the party fun! I bribed my family to take these photos with me… I love how funny they are when you hand then a few props and put them in front of a camera.
