For my 15th birthday I wanted to have a party with girls and boys as some of my closest friends are male. Therefore my options were limited. But a great idea is a party at the house with about 10 friends. Because I live in England pool parties are out but there's loads of stuff you can do, I'll go over what happened on the night. Days earlier I borrowed a chocolate fountain from a friend. Chocolate fountains are great because they create entertainment but also feed your guests. It is better to borrow one than buy one as they are rarely used. Make sure you have the right chocolate too! Me and my Mum went to the supermarket and picked up party food such as buns, sweets, swiss rolls and of course a cake. We also got some plates, serviettes and cups that matched the cake! We picked up balloons and banners too to set the mood.   My parents gave us the whole downstairs so we had loads of room. One room had my ipod plugged into the player where I had a playlist of cool tracks. In the same room I had my nintendo wii because although this is not a necessity it was great fun. I also had a twister game handy - ALWAYS get a twister game for your party. It's a MUST!  In the next room was a table full of food. I arranged chairs by walls so people could hang out and chat and not have to resort to formally sitting at the table. It gave it a party vibe. The PC was switched off- don't allow your guests on the PC it brings down the mood and it only allows one person to enjoy themselves.   The chocolate fountain was in the kitchen with plates of strawberries, bananas and biscuits. Make sure the fountain is on a wipeable surface because there is a 100% chance there will be a spillage.  In the back room was a PS2 with eyetoy. Eyetoy is always a laugh and allows your guests to be active and enjoy themselves more. Also I had microphones and Singstar in the PS2 so people could have more fun singing to cool songs (even if they sound rubbish!)  My parents were upstairs. If your parents are away try to keep the place quite tidy. Also it is recommended that pets stay away too because of the party food. I had 12 friends over from 6 til 9 and it was a blast. I had the video camera and camera out so I have some funny memories to keep. We all had a good time and the chocolate fountain went down a treat. So use these ideas and remember you can have a great party right in your very home! As an extra you could have a sleepover and sneak to the kitchen for a midnight feast!