Set the mood. Choose one of these
party invitations to create and send your invitation.
If you’re having a theme party, the décor should follow the lead of your theme. That said, there are certain go-to decorations that do up almost any do, balloons and streamers aside. If you only decorate with one thing, for instance, make it lots of flirt-friendly tea lights. Add flowers, plants (potted palms are cheap and work particularly well with tropical or retro themes) and/or bowls of edibles — think clementines, grapes or nuts in the shell with a nutcracker, for example.
Want to encourage dancing or mingling? Push furniture against the wall and/or move it into the bedroom.
Finally, don’t forget those forgettable necessities: extra toilet paper and at least one hand towel in the bathroom (no one wants to dry their hands on your bath towel, thanks anyway) and napkins, trash can and recycling bin near the food and drinks.
Visit the Evite Party Store to get more ideas and buy supplies! A theme makes it easier to plan everything from décor to menu and helps your party pull away from the pack. A few ideas:
Once you've settled on the type of party you want to have, it's time to decide on your guest list. Include some fresh faces among the old friends to give guests a chance to meet new people as well as catch up with long-standing pals; just invite 25 percent more people than you'd like to be in your party to make up for those who can't make it. If you're planning a big bash you expect to go well into the wee hours, print out your Evite invitation and drop it off at nearby neighbors' with a note saying you hope they'll drop in. After all, a neighbor with an invite (and advance warning) is less likely to call in the boys in blue when your party soundtrack blares on past their bedtime.
Unless you're planning a late-night blowout with a large crowd (and you have really cool neighbors), set an end time to the shindig using the "Include an End Time" option on your invitation to ensure critical mass during the party. Otherwise, you're likely to get a few people early, a few people late, and never the crowd that makes a party really come to life — not to mention the fact that you may get stragglers arriving long after you wish the last guest had said goodbye. The length of the party depends on the kind of party you're throwing, but three to four hours is usually about right. Send out your invitation two weeks ahead of time for maximum turnout; if it's the holidays and/or a special occasion like a shower, make that four weeks instead.
Next, make getting organized easy with Evite's
party-planning checklist, set a budget using our
party budget estimator (allowing at least 10 percent for unexpected last-minute expenses), and figure out how much alcohol to buy using our
drink calculator.
A week before the party, start clearing space in your refrigerator and freezer to make plenty of room for food and drinks — now is not the time to stock up at the supermarket on anything but party supplies. Clean your house, shop, figure out music, pick out your party outfit and do everything else you possibly can well before the big day. Prioritize everything into must-dos and would-be-nices, get the must-dos done first and tackle as many would-be-nices as you can before the doorbell rings.
Once the first guest arrives, take a deep breath, open the door and let whatever's not done go. A stressed host is no fun. Besides, your job as host is not just to provide food, drink and music. It's also to help your guests make connections and have a good time, and you can't do that if you're in your apron stuffing mushrooms in the kitchen.
Instead, greet your guests at the door with a tray full of drinks and introduce your cousin to your college roommate. But instead of just, "Nancy, Nathan; Nathan, Nancy," try building a bridge with "Nancy, you must meet Nathan. Nancy just booked a week in Niagara Falls, and Nathan's stepdad owns a souvenir shop there." Think hobbies, neighborhoods, musical tastes — whatever common ground you can come up with to launch strangers into conversation. Ask wallflowers to help fetch drinks for other guests, giving them something to do while still getting them to meet people.
Finally, do not under any circumstances clean up during the party. Pile up the glasses and dishes in the kitchen, soak the tablecloth with the syrah stain in the tub and deal with it all in the AM (or at least after the last guest is out the door). After all, nothing kills a swinging evening like a little Palmolive.
Stick to bite-size finger foods for the best party munchies. But unless you’re having the guys over to watch the big game, break out of the chips-and-salsa, veggie-platter-and-dip, mini-pretzel box (bor-ing!) in favor of something a little more out of the ordinary. Instead of cheddar and crackers, try camembert and fruit; instead of roasted peanuts, try smoked almonds.
And don’t put all your cards — or all your food — on the table by throwing down a full spread of everything you’ve got all at once. Instead, pace yourself — and your eats. Every party, whether a dinner buffet or a night of drunken revelry, benefits from a little buildup, so set your food out in stages. Think appetizers, main course, then dessert, even if you’re having a party where you’re only serving snacks. Start with the easy, room-temperature nibbles, like olives, nuts or chips. After an hour or so, bring out a couple of hot, bigger-deal dishes, like cheese fondue,
spinach balls or
baked baby spuds. Finally, finish with something sweet, whether it’s M&M’s,
cupcakes or a box of Krispy Kremes.
Featured Party Recipes from Epicurious.com
Sure, beer works. So does wine. But a signature cocktail (particularly a famous retro one with a funny name) puts the festive in your festivities and takes the pressure off your guests — no need to figure out what to ask for when there’s a get-the-party-started cocktail already ready and waiting for you. A premade pitcher also makes it easy for you, since you can limit the number of liquors you have on hand and leave the mixing during the party to the DJ.
Harvey Wallbanger (serves 6 to 8)
• 1 cup vodka
• ½ cup Galliano
• 4 cups orange juice
Combine all ingredients in a pitcher. Serve over ice and garnish with a maraschino cherry. |  |
Be sure to also have plenty of water on hand to keep partiers hydrated and a special nonalcoholic drink for teetotallers (no, a token two-liter bottle of Diet Coke doesn't count). If you're serving Harvey Wallbangers, for example, try a pitcher of half orange juice and half ginger ale. That way, those who’d rather stay sober don't have to stand out from the crowd — just be sure to keep the pitchers on opposite ends of your bar so they don't get confused.
| 1. | Celebration / Kool and the Gang
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| 2. | Hot Hot Hot / Buster Poindexter
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| 3. | Mony Mony / Tommy James & the Shondells
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| 4. | Come On Eileen / Dexy’s Midnight Runners
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| 5. | Twist and Shout / The Beatles
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| 6. | Dancing Queen / ABBA
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| 7. | Brick House / The Commodores
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| 8. | Kung Fu Fighting / Carl Douglas
|
| 9. | Wooly Bully / Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
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| 10. | Louie, Louie / The Kingsmen |
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