Submitted by LKVM

Break-up blues are now being done away with easily, with most Kiwi women holding separation or divorce parties to mark the end of the relationship.

Christchurch woman Dale Smith, 43, whose husband of 10-years left her, decided to hold a separation party in her backyard, complete with male stripper, food, wine and even her former mother-in-law.

She got male stripper, Leon, from UgotMale, and 15 girlfriends to help celebrate.

"It was a really good release, and the laughter – oh, there was just so much laughter," Stuff.co.nz quoted Smith as saying.

"It had just been a really sad time and the s… had been huge, and we thought, ‘Why not let loose and have some fun?’" she stated.

The party stemmed from a joke between Smith and a 22-year-old co-worker about hiring a stripper to mark being newly single.

"Then I decided to make some calls, and before we knew it we had a date, he [the stripper] was booked and it was happening," Smith said.

"And I’ll be doing it all again in two years or so when my divorce comes through," she added.

Lee Amor, managing director of Whirl Productions event organisers, said divorce and separation parties were growing in popularity in the South Island, while North Island women had been enjoying them for some time.