- Categories:
- Fun
- Tags:
- ActivitiesFriendship
- Where:
- United States
- Date change rule:
- Every May 9
- Holiday emoji:
- 🛏️
National Sleepover Day lights up May 9, celebrating decades of cherished friendships forged during late-night gatherings. It’s a perfect opportunity to relive those wholesome, memorable moments with your closest pals. Plan a night of movies, games, and heartfelt conversations to strengthen your bonds and create new memories.
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History of National Sleepover Day
National Sleepover Day was first celebrated in 2017 in the United States. It was created by a collaboration between four entities — the lifestyle magazine, “Cosmopolitan,” the beauty brand, Sephora, fashion influencer, Olivia Culpo, and the skincare brand, bareMinerals.
On May 9, 2017, the four of them teamed up to create the ‘ultimate slumber party,’ which they held in the middle of New York’s Times Square. The purpose was to show off bareMinerals Original Loose Powder Foundation, which they claimed was makeup so pure you could fall asleep in it. They created a giant bedroom on Broadway and invited women to enjoy makeovers, talk about their passions, frustrations, and needs, and engage in some pillow talk. They encouraged more people, especially women, to host their slumber parties the next year, and thus, National Sleepover Day was born.
A sleepover is a social occasion where one person stays overnight at a friend’s house. Think of a sleepover like a playdate, but overnight. The term is often used interchangeably with other terms like pajama party and slumber party, although they do not strictly mean the same thing. It’s a time for parents to have a night alone and for kids to enjoy a night in with their friends.
Sleepovers are typically associated with adolescents and teenagers, especially young girls, but there’s certainly no rule against adults having them. Sleepovers were a rite of passage from the 1950s to the 1970s. Sleepovers are characterized by ice cream, gossip, prank calls, pillow fights, truth or dare games, and movie marathons. Most teen movies in the 2000s had a sleepover scene.
National Sleepover Day timeline
Sleepovers really take off in the suburbs of the United States around this time.
Jackson writes a classic sleepover tale called “Pajama Party,” which revolves around the complexities of friendships at a sleepover.
In a 2004 movie, “Sleepover,” two cliques of middle school girls have an all-night scavenger hunt to win a sitting spot.
The first National Sleepover Day is held in New York by bareMinerals and Cosmopolitan.
National Sleepover Day FAQs
When is National Sleepover Day?
In 2027, National Sleepover Day is on Sunday, May 9. This makes it an ideal day to extend the weekend with a cozy night in, celebrating friendships before the new week begins.
How popular are sleepovers?
Despite the rise of digital communication, the tradition of sleepovers continues to thrive, with studies showing a consistent desire among young people for in-person social interaction. Their enduring popularity highlights their importance in fostering close friendships.
What are common sleepover activities?
Modern sleepovers often blend traditional fun with digital elements, incorporating online multiplayer games, social media challenges, and streaming parties. However, the core elements of shared food, conversation, and bonding remain central.
What is the origin of sleepovers?
The term ‘sleepover’ became widely used in the latter half of the 20th century, particularly in North America, to describe these overnight social gatherings. They quickly became a cultural phenomenon, celebrated as a key part of childhood and adolescent friendships.
National Sleepover Day Activities
Hold a slumber party
The most obvious way to celebrate National Sleepover Day is by organizing a slumber party with all your closest friends. It’s the perfect way to relive your childhood memories and create some great new ones. This time around, you could drink wine instead of ice cream — or even better, wine and ice cream.
Dish some hot gossip
Sleepovers are the perfect time to keep your friends up to date about your life. In our adult lives, it can be hard to keep up with each other and share random events in our lives. National Sleepover Day gives us the opportunity to catch up with our friends on anything, from career to crushes (you’re never too old for crushes) and partners.
Get crazy with pillows
Everyone knows pillows are a solid part of sleepover culture. You can use them to create a massive pillow fort or just go crazy and start random pillow fights. Either way, you’re going to have a ton of fun.
5 Things To Do At A Sleepover
Braid each other’s hair
Yes, it’s cliché, but it’s a traditional sleepover rite of passage that you must honor.
Have a movie marathon
You can pick a theme and watch as many movies as you can within the theme.
Learn how to make margaritas together
This isn’t a classic sleepover activity, but it’s one that certainly makes your adult sleepovers a lot more interesting.
Sing your heart out
Even if you don’t have a karaoke machine, you can just play some music and have a lip-sync competition.
Design your own pillowcase
Get a bunch of plain white pillowcases and some fabric markers, and you and your friends can let out all your creativity by designing them.
Why We Love National Sleepover Day
It’s great for bonding
Sleepovers are some of the best ways to get closer to people and form deeper connections. People feel freer and more relaxed at night when they’re preparing to sleep, which makes it the perfect time to catch up, unwind, and share secrets.
It reminds us of a simpler time
National Sleepover Day reminds us of a time when all we worried about was whether our crush liked us back. With all the troubles of adulthood, we need days like National Sleepover Day where we can relax and hang out with friends without worrying about deadlines or responsibilities.
Sleepover friends last forever
Some of the best long-lasting friendships are built through sleepovers. The bonding allows for deeper friendships based on mutual trust, openness, and a fun night of pillow fighting. The friends we make whispering under the bedsheets or in a pillow port are sometimes the friends that stay with us through life.
