Every time I host a party I do these 10 things
Over the last ten years I have hosted dozens of parties. From bridal and baby showers to dinner parties and holiday-themed events, I have learned how to make prepping and recovering from a party easier. Below are the tasks and practices I never skip because I have found they are essential to helping a party go smoothly and guests feel welcome. I may earn a small commission on some of the affiliate links if you purchase products using those links. You can view our disclosure policy here.
Make an inspiration board on Pinterest. Step one of planning any party is making a Pinterest board that includes ideas for drinks, food, and decorations. I find that having some visual inspiration helps me when creating the invitation and everything else that follows, so that it feels cohesive. To see my previous boards and inspiration by party, you can find my Pinterest here.
Text the day before reminding them of the party: You would be surprised at the difference this makes, it is like a welcome before they arrive to your party. Typically I’ll say something like, “Excited for tomorrow! Park in front of our house or across the street if you need to!” I sometimes will remind people of my address to people who have never or rarely been to my house. Otherwise they are likely to text me in the hour before the party which is the busiest and I’m most likely to miss.
Get myself ready an hour before. I am slightly embarrassed to admit that I have greeted guests more than once still wearing my pajamas, and had to step away to get ready as guests are arriving. It is much easier to still be pulling stuff together, but have yourself ready when guests arrive than to disappear for ten minutes to put on clothes and makeup. Give yourself more time if you take longer to get ready.
Take out the trash. Get rid of any weird smells by starting with an empty trash. I guarantee it will fill up throughout the night, and you won’t have to worry about emptying it mid-party.
Start with an empty dishwasher and dish rack. You will never regret starting with an empty dishwasher and dish rack. Clean up is so much easier, and helps your kitchen feel more tidy throughout the party.
Greet each guest and show them where to leave their things. Helping guests feel acclimated and comfortable in your home starts with them not having to do the weird shuffle to decide where to leave their coat/purse/keys, etc, and avoids random clutter building up around your home.
Make each guest a drink. This is something I actually love because it does two things: 1) It helps guests have something to “do” because they have a drink in their hand, which helps them feel less awkward. If all else, they know what to do with their hands (hold the drink), and do (sip the drink), if they don’t know what to do; & 2) Serving drinks to each guests guarantees that you get to talk to them. When the host talks to the guest, it affirms that you care they came to your party.
Play music, often a custom playlist for the event. Recently I heard my mother-in-law talking about a wedding she went to recently. She had arrived while they were still setting up the reception and had yet to turn on the music. She said that it felt weird that it was silent, but her eyes sparkled with delight when she explained how much more fun the reception felt when they turned on the music. My husband has excellent taste in music, and usually is the one to make the playlists for our parties. You can view all of our playlists on Spotify here.
Make sure there are options for people with food allergies. Food allergies often bring up feelings of annoyance in people, but I can assure you no one is more annoyed by food allergies than the people who have them. At a party where the main focus is the food, nothing makes a guest feel more left out than not being able to try the food that everyone is talking about. While I do not cater my entire menu to a specific food allergy or preference, I always make sure that the person can eat the main, or an allergy friendly version of it and a side. For an event like the coffee shop, I will make sure 1-2 of the 4-5 options are allergy friendly.
Plan an activity if there are kids. I will be honest, this one is new for me, but I regret that I didn’t start doing it sooner. This point is less because I think that kids “need” constant stimulation and structure, but more to help them not fully run amok in your home. When inviting small children, you do have to let go of having your house and toys stay organized, or decide that you want to monitor the toy situation if small children are invited (I think your time is better spent elsewhere hosting than reminding kids to clean up after themselves).
Having an activity where they will need a little, but not a lot of help from their parent is ideal. If you can’t come up with anything, you can always throw some butcher paper, chalk, or white paper on a table or the ground to color. I like to add doodles for the kids to color in when I do this.
Other things I sometimes do:
Light candles. Electric candles are the most reliable for outdoor parties since the wind can blow them out, but day time parties don’t usually need candles.
Put on a simmer pot. For cooler months, throwing on a pot or crockpot filled with water and ingredients like oranges, cinnamon sticks, apple slices, star anise, ginger, etc is a great way to help a party feel more festive. See my post here on making a low waste simmer pot.
Make name cards. What do people love almost more than anything else? Seeing their name written. You can have the name cards on the plates to designate seating, or have them attached to a twine so they can mark their beverage.
Put out a brown bag next to the drinks for recycling and trash. Avoid having people go through your kitchen to find the trash, and leave this bag in an obscure, but easy to describe location.
Need help planning the rest of your party? Check out my menu planner and dinner party guides for step by step directions to prepare for your party.
