I Don’t: Divorce Parties a Growing Trend

"The divorce party, a hybrid of a bachelor-bachelorette party and bacchanalian exorcism, is emerging as a celebratory occasion, complete with gift registries and a set of social protocols," says the New York Times. "[M]ore people are looking to commemorate the occasion, even on Valentine's Day, with friends and in public."

What is the divorce party about?

Reuniting with friends that get put on the back burner when one gets engaged, says Rachel Bendtsen, a young divorcee who two years earlier put on a $20,000 wedding.

Society's need for rituals and rites to mark life's important occasions, says David Popenoe at Rutgers University.

Some divorce parties are more pointed than others. At one party, the celebrant's mother gave back her maiden name amid ceremonial drumming.

"I figured when you get married it's supposed to be this wonderful occasion," said a recent divorcee. "Sometimes when you get divorced it is a wonderful occasion, too."

Businesses have jumped on the broken-heart bandwagon. You can buy breakup/divorce party supplies at Plum Party, including voodoo dolls, chocolate shot glasses and "she could no longer pretend" cocktail napkins, while www.theytookeverything.com offers gift registries for the romantically bereaved.

Divorce parties have become so popular that even Sylvia Weinstock, wedding cake maestro, makes masterful cakes for the occasion.

Read more about divorce celebrations here.