It's My Party & I'll Plan If I Want To
Party Tips for Happy Hosting
It’s no secret that I LOVE to host parties and dinners. Since Linden’s been born, they have been few and far between, but… I had the absolute pleasure of co-hosting my best friend Chelsea’s baby shower with our friend Jess. We had so much fun planning, everything went smoothly and I believe Chelsea had a great time (the most important part!). So I thought, why not write a blog all about my party planning tips and tricks (well mostly tips!).
Plan early. Set a timeline. Follow it. This is my most important tip. The earlier you can get your plan done, the better. It gives you more time to prep, organize and make changes. It also makes it easier to stay on budget, stay on theme and enlist help when needed. When I typically start planning any event I begin with pen and paper notes or a word document. I then begin to write all the important information: date, time, theme, things to do, people involved, etc.
Think of the reason/the guest. Sometimes when events are planned, they can become overwhelming and we can lose sight of the reason for the event. In this instance, it was a baby shower for my best friend. She wanted friends to get together and have a nice simple, casual event to celebrate her baby to be. IF I had hosted an over-the-top high-tea with fancy formal plates and a platter dinner, Chelsea would have hated that. So always keep in mind the reason for your event and stick to that. We host a New Year’s Eve Dinner party at our house every year. In the past, we used to get dressed up and make it more formal (with a 6-course dinner and wine pairing), but now each year it becomes a little more casual to accommodate busy schedules, growing families, and mothers-to-be. Think of the reason for your event and stay true to what you are trying to accomplish.
Set a budget, and stick to it. This is crucial. For any event, you’ll want to decide how much you are wanting to spend (everything adds up quickly) and then divide that into different categories and decide what fits and what doesn’t. I normally take my entire budget and then break down into other categories from there to make “mini-budgets” like how much on food, alcohol, decor, favors, etc. This way, when you are making decisions later, you have a budget in mind to make sure you stay on track.
Theme. I always find that picking a theme can help tie everything together and help the creative ideas flow. For this party, the theme was “Baby Fireman on The Way” because Chelsea’s fiance is a fireman and when Chelsea and I were shopping for baby items, she was ALWAYS looking for fireman outfits, lol! By picking a theme, it makes it easier and more natural to pick decor, favors and color schemes! When looking for themes I always think about the person and the thinks they enjoy but I often look on Instagram and Pinterest for inspiration.
Guest List. I personally, like to keep parties smaller and more intimate. I always find it easier to accommodate (if doing at your house), and also a lot less stressful. You can also easier plan things like food allergies for a smaller group. Sometimes though, like a baby shower or bridal shower, that might not be possible. So, the easiest way to get the guest list is to ask the guest of honor. Who do they want at the party? Who don’t they? Then plan for the number of guests but then add a few for padding in case other people get added. For example, if the guest list is 30 people, I typically would start the planning process for 35 people. I would put the RVSP on the invitation for the guests to let me know one month prior to the event, that way I can add or remove items from the plan (order more or fewer desserts, add more favors, etc.).
Little Guests* or Dates. Decide early if invitees are going to be allowed to bring children or dates and make it clear at the time of sending out the invitation so that there are no grey areas when people are RSVP’ing and it gives them time to make alternate plans like book a babysitter. Some things I have used in the past are
Kids welcome: This party is kid/baby friendly so please feel free to bring your littles. We will have activities and toddler-friendly snacks.
No kids: This is an intimate/adult party. Please book your babysitters and enjoy a night out without the kids!
Dates welcome: If you are planning on bringing a date, please let us know so that we can make sure to say hello when they arrive!
*If you are planning on having an event with babies/children invited its always nice to have things ready for them to make the parent's life easier. When the parents arrive, let them know the best location to change diapers, nurse, and which snacks are nut-free/dairy-free, etc. It's also EXTRA nice if you can have some activities for the kids like coloring books and toys.
7. Invites. Depending on the formality of the event, you can send paper invitations or digital invitations. For a wedding, etc. I suggest sending physical paper invitations in the mail. For a shower/party, etc. I typically do digital invitations. I try to stay away from Facebook Invites, as we already all receive so many online notifications, it's nice to have a separate area to keep track of RSVPs. I have lately been using Punchbowl and have found it easy to use and a great way to communicate with guests! Make sure you include all important information on the invitation like date, time (start and end time if applicable), address, parking information, registry information, and if the party is a surprise or not! I try to give guests as much time notice as possible, so I typically send out the invitations more than one month ahead and then ask to have RSVP’s in a month before so that I can plan according to the number of guests.
8. Decor. Planning decor can be hard, but it's always great to think about your important needs for your event. I knew that Chelsea would be opening gifts in the living room and lots of photos would be taken as she did so. So, therefore, I focused most of the decor in that area and then we spread decor throughout the rest of the entertaining space. I also made a graze platter which is not only great for feeding a crowd but is a beautiful piece of decor itself lending to double duty. Fresh flowers are always a great touch and can be a lovely gift to give away to the guests after the party or keep your own space looking fresh after the event!
9. Food. Of course, my most favorite part of any party is the food. When hosting parties for a crowd, I like to have an assortment of cold and hot foods. I try to prep as much ahead of time (the day before) as possible, such as making homemade dips, cutting all vegetables and getting all hot dishes ready and covered in the fridge. I then set a schedule for the day of what time items can go out and what time everything goes in the oven so that my timing is right. I also tend to put all my serving trays out the day before with sticky notes so I can prepare where everything will be going and make adjustments where needed. I also try my best to accommodate those with food allergies by offering vegetarian, vegan and dairy-free options when possible.
10. Games/Activities. Of course with a dinner party, you might not need any games or activities, but for a bridal shower or event of that nature of, course games are a must-do. Therefore I try my best to find games that are good for a group but don’t take too long so that people don’t get bored.
11. Enlisting Help. Showers and parties are a lot of work, so when people ask to help —-take them up on it Whether it be helping you pick up an order, helping you set up decor or bringing an appetizer, take all the help you can get. I always find the easiest way to get help is that if someone offers and they don’t have a specific thing they want to help with, tell them what you need help with like bringing an appetizer, setting up a balloon arch or picking up a pre-paid order from the bakery. Often times people want to help but they are not sure what is actually a help to you, so being as straightforward as possible on your needs is almost always better for everyone!
12. Take lots of photos. Or ask someone else to make sure they take lots of photos. Often times you will be caught up in getting everything done for the party and making sure everything goes smoothly that you might forget to have any photos yourself. I always try to ask others to take lots of photos and then text or airdrop them to me so I can collect them all.
13. Alcohol. Make a clear decision about alcohol before your event. If it’s a bridal shower or baby shower you may be providing mimosas, champagne, beer or wine and that’s not something you really need to note on the invitation… but if its a dinner party, a stagette, engagement party or regular old party, it's always good to let gets know your plans ahead of time. If you are providing all the alcohol, you can say something like “please join us for red and white wine and a selection of beer”, or “We will have a specialty cocktail available, but please feel free to bring anything else you would like to drink”, or a simple “BYOB” will suffice.
14. Surroundings. Be aware of all your surroundings before hosting a party. I prefer things to look clean and organized, so I remove my laptop computer and desktop off the desk, remove any cookware off the counters, etc. etc. I find having a clean space works better for a party so you have more room and backgrounds don’t look messy or cluttered. The less stuff you have out during the event — the better!
15. All the small things. The small things matter. Make sure you don’t forget those little things that might seem small but are really important, like extra seating, extra napkins, ice, music to play in the background, moving cars so you have more space in your driveway, etc. etc. Also, little touches you can add to make the event extra special can go a long way, like custom badges on favors, custom desserts or name seating cards for a sit-down dinner. I’ve even gone as far as to print menu cards for a dinner and it was a nice extra touch that made it seem like we weren’t just eating dinner at home. Those little things elevate the evening and will have your guests ranting and raving. Another thing to keep in mind is to remove all jackets and shoes from your entryway to leave as much room for guests items as possible.
16. The day before the event. I try to do as much as I can the day before the event as possible. That way you’re not running around the morning of trying to get everything done. Things like food prep, setting up decor, blowing up balloons, etc. can all be done the day before and can really alleviate stress on the day of. I go through my checklist and do everything I can the day before.
17. Day of. If you do as much as possible the day before, the day of you will be left with just putting everything out. I try to put out cold food half an hour before guests arrive and then have the hot food ready for about 5 minutes before guests arrive and place them into chafing dishes. If all goes according to plan, with everything done ahead of time, you’ll be able to host, chat and really enjoy the party yourself!
