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Sisterhood events were my favorite part of my collegiate sorority experience. I loved being able to take a few hours every week to relax and bond with sisters. Even during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, programming/sisterhood chairs were working hard to plan new and innovative ways to bring sisters together even during unprecedented times. If you want examples of some sorority sisterhood events (or maybe are a chair trying to think of some new ideas), take a look at this list below.

Do-it-yourself (DIY):

Canvas Exchange:

This sisterhood is perfect to choose as a budget-friendly idea. The accessibility of items is key!  Most of the women will have a growing craft box with all the tools they need to use. Canvases are relatively cheap and easy to come by. Have everyone sign up on a spreadsheet and then create a random generator to arrange who everyone will be exchanging canvases with. Set up a paint night area in a chapter or campus-based facility. Allow members to chat while they paint or play a movie or rock out to some music. Once everyone has completed their canvas, let the exchange begin.

Letter Stitch Night:

If you or any of your sisters know how to sew, this would be an easy sisterhood to do! You can have those who know how to sew help teach the other sisters how to do it. Crafting nights are my favorite, and this event allows you to make something that you can use all the time. This sisterhood would be perfect before a Big/Little event so big sisters can make their littles their very own shirts or matching shirts. Just buy bulk shirts from your local craft store and some fun fabric designs for the letters. You can also visit a local thrift store to recycle materials and make your letters even more unique.

Tie-Dye:

No matter the age, everyone loves doing tie-dye crafts. Shirts can be bought in bulk at your local craft store, along with your tie-dye paints. Set up your area and play some music to create a fun vibe. A bonus idea – cut the shirts to create your own custom tie-dye piece.

Card-Making Nights:

This sisterhood is perfect around the holiday time. You and your sisters can get together and create homemade cards for the other fraternal houses, nursing homes and hospitals, soldiers who are deployed or your family. My chapter had card-making sisterhoods during the holiday season and I loved that I knew they were going to our local nursing home and some of us even had a chance to drop them off in person. All you need is markers/writing utensils, construction paper and stickers if you feel like adding a little something extra. Take a look at Write Letters – Operation Gratitude to learn how to send cards to military members and first responders or Cards for Kindness to learn how to write letters to nurses and caregivers.

Self-care

Spa Night:

If you have a local licensed esthetician, you can ask them and their team to come and host  a “Treat Yo Self” night. We had a local esthetician come to our chapter house before recruitment to give us an opportunity to get our eyebrows waxed or get spray tans if we wanted. It was such a fun time and gave the sisters waiting in line a chance to hang out with each other.

This is also something that you can make budget-friendly by creating a DIY spa night. You can buy some face masks from your local grocery store and pick out some nail polish options for the women to paint their nails or other’s nails. Body Butter is an easy two-ingredient recipe that takes just a small chunk of time to create. You and your sisters can take the night and make your very own batches.

Movie Night:

OK, so technically people might not consider this to be self-care but I’m still including it because taking two-three hours out of your week to just sit back and relax while watching a movie is great for your mental health. You can even go all out and grab some classic movie snacks like popcorn and chocolates. You can also make a fun game out of selecting the movie the chapter will watch together.

Book Club:

Again, self-care is about more than just your skin. A book club is a perfect idea to help you unwind. Reading has always calmed me and given me a chance to relax after a long day. You can set up a book club and then once a month come together to hang out and get each other’s opinions, and see things from someone else’s perspective. The best thing about book club is that you can do it year-round.

Working Out:

Grab yourself a gym buddy and get moving. The only times I would go to the gym was definitely when my sisters would go with me. Having your sisters there can give you that extra support and encouragement you may need to finish strong. Plus, working out will help you release endorphins and give you a natural euphoric feeling that will carry you through the rest of your day.

Like I said earlier, sisterhoods were one of my favorite things to do during my collegiate years. Sisterhood events allow the perfect opportunities to bond and form relationships with each other. These events are perfect for budget-conscious sisters to choose from. I hope that you will enjoy these event ideas as much as I enjoyed them.

Editor’s note: This article was updated in 2023 to reflect the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Written by Nicolette Fannin

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