How to Throw A Grand Party: Party Hosting 101
I love to entertain... but that's no secret. I'd entertain all the time if I could, but due to time and energy and finances I can't. Not that it should cost much to entertain and one can still host a wonderful and memorable evening without breaking the bank. Oftentimes, the simpler the better. This is especially true if you are on a budget, or a bit unsure as to how to entertain, and worried about creating a memorable and good impression. Hosting a party should be as much fun as going to someone else's party. A party, whether small and intimate or grand on all scales is really an extension of you. I prefer the more intimate of gatherings. My husband prefers them larger, louder, longer. So we compromise and have both!
I love to have little get togethers with my girlfriends without my husband! An afternoon tea or cocktail, and my book club are great ways for me to entertain on a smaller, more casual scale. These are also great ways to ease gently into the world of entertaining. There are many wonderful entertaining and hostessing blogs, many of which I have in my blog roll for you to enjoy. But some of these can be daunting with all their glorious ideas. Sometimes there is too much to choose from. This is why I like to keep it simple initially.
First things first. Make sure your home is spotless. For many people, this will be the first time people come to your home. Children's rooms should be clean, not museum-like, but clean. Make sure all necessary surfaces are dusted. Windows, French doors and the like are finger print-free! In the bathrooms make sure fresh towels and soaps are placed for the guests. (I keep the good soaps tucked away so my kids don't destroy them.)
Get some fresh flowers if you can. Or decorate your home to reflect the season. Use fresh apples, pine cones and pumpkins. Don't get too fancy if this is not your thing, but a few pine cones or apples in a pretty bowl make a lovely statement. White pillar candles in hurricanes with acorns or Indian corn are simple, festive and fit right in with the season as well.
A couple of ideas if the girls are coming over for Morning Coffee...
Get yourself a nice coffee from Starbucks or a local coffee shop if they have high quality, specialty coffees. I like to serve sweet breads or light cakes. I'll offer a couple of varieties and decorate the platters with fresh fruit. This adds a lovely visual and gives your guests an opportunity to nosh on something healthy at the same time. This is really all you'll need. Let the conversation and the coffee and the food be the focus of your Morning Coffee.
Tea Time...
My grandparents had tea every day at 4pm sharp. The teas varied from Oolong, to Earl Grey to other less familiar varieties from the East and the West. There was always some sort of yummy treat. When they lived in France we'd have wonderful patisseries. When they lived in England the tea would often accompany a sweet scone or crumpet or cake. And when in Italy tea time was usually something quite light in order to save room for a rich and satisfying local dinnertime meal. My parents have tea every day. I enjoy it too, despite my love for Pumpkin Spice Latte! I have discovered Twinings Spiced Chai tea and it is my new go to afternoon treat! Yesterday we sat down, en famille, and enjoyed a nice warm cup of tea on a rainy day with the wonderful apple cake I wrote about on Saturday.
Should you want to have a Tea Party you'll just need some tea and some light fare. Perhaps a few cucumber or watercress sandwiches, or thin slices of zucchini bread, banana bread or a good fruit bread. If baking is not your thing, there is no reason not to stop by a favorite bakery to pick up a few sweet treats. If you have a pretty tea pot and china use them. Don't just let your 4 year old daughter have all the fun! If you have any favorite or special linens, enjoy them. If not, there are wonderful paper napkins out there too.
Or perhaps you'd like to have the girls over for a little Afternoon Delight! Serve Sangria, or Gimlets, or to accompany the fall season pick up a bottle of Pumpkin Liqueur and serve up some Pumpkin Spice Martinis! Again you don't need to get too fussy or too elaborate. You'll need to offer water, both sparkling and regular and perhaps some iced tea or soft drinks for those who don't drink. For little nibbles you don't have to go to extremes here either. Cheese and crackers, slices of apple, pear and figs are lovely accompaniments, spiced nuts, olives, bread sticks and pretzels are always good to munch on. Of course, you can get as fancy and as complex as you'd like. But keep it simple initially.
Ready to move on?
Host a dinner party. Invite 2 couples. The couples can either be friendly or not know each other at all. Just be sure that your guests will have something in common. As soon as your guests enter greet them warmly with a drink. Perhaps wine. Perhaps champagne. Perhaps a signature cocktail. Try to have all your prep work done so that you may focus your full attention (before you head back into the kitchen) on your guests. Music will always set the mood. I love to have a little Frank or Bing or Cole Porter... music of that generation in the background. You want the music to be happy and set the mood for the night. You want to always be able to carry on a conversation without shouting. As the night wears on the music can change and you may opt for something more modern.
I love small, intimate dinner parties. I like to keep the tone and mood casual. I want my guests to feel comfortable and relaxed. I want them to feel like they are at home.
As I mentioned before, my husband loves the larger, grander events. These do require a good bit more in the organizing and planning departments. And these require a larger budget as well. In the past we had yearly holiday parties. Then as we started having children, and more and more of them, these parties became too complicated. Last year we hosted a New Year's Day party. We invited our friends to a Brunch and Bowl. Kids were invited too. The younger set were in the play room and the older children and adults could wander around the house and tune in to whatever bowl game was on television. Televisions were turned on in all the downstairs rooms. We served brunch food and chili. It was a fabulous success. This year, however, I will hire a babysitter to look after all the children so there is less chaos and less mess for me to have to deal with the following day!
As we approach the holiday season, there are so many ways to entertain your friends and loved ones. If the idea of a Halloween Party is too frightening, consider a Thanks For Giving party where the guests come with non perishable food items that you will donate to a local food bank or shelter. You can host a Fall Evening of Food and Wine and offer various wines and hors d'oeuvres for sampling. Cookie Exchanges and Ornament Exchanges are always sure to result in a grand affair!
These are just a few ways to have fun and throw a grand party. I hope you'll do so. There's nothing like it!
If you need or desire any ideas or recipes do not hesitate to ask! If I don't have the answer you are looking for I can certainly send you in the right direction!
I love to have little get togethers with my girlfriends without my husband! An afternoon tea or cocktail, and my book club are great ways for me to entertain on a smaller, more casual scale. These are also great ways to ease gently into the world of entertaining. There are many wonderful entertaining and hostessing blogs, many of which I have in my blog roll for you to enjoy. But some of these can be daunting with all their glorious ideas. Sometimes there is too much to choose from. This is why I like to keep it simple initially.
First things first. Make sure your home is spotless. For many people, this will be the first time people come to your home. Children's rooms should be clean, not museum-like, but clean. Make sure all necessary surfaces are dusted. Windows, French doors and the like are finger print-free! In the bathrooms make sure fresh towels and soaps are placed for the guests. (I keep the good soaps tucked away so my kids don't destroy them.)
Get some fresh flowers if you can. Or decorate your home to reflect the season. Use fresh apples, pine cones and pumpkins. Don't get too fancy if this is not your thing, but a few pine cones or apples in a pretty bowl make a lovely statement. White pillar candles in hurricanes with acorns or Indian corn are simple, festive and fit right in with the season as well.
A couple of ideas if the girls are coming over for Morning Coffee...
Get yourself a nice coffee from Starbucks or a local coffee shop if they have high quality, specialty coffees. I like to serve sweet breads or light cakes. I'll offer a couple of varieties and decorate the platters with fresh fruit. This adds a lovely visual and gives your guests an opportunity to nosh on something healthy at the same time. This is really all you'll need. Let the conversation and the coffee and the food be the focus of your Morning Coffee.
Tea Time...
My grandparents had tea every day at 4pm sharp. The teas varied from Oolong, to Earl Grey to other less familiar varieties from the East and the West. There was always some sort of yummy treat. When they lived in France we'd have wonderful patisseries. When they lived in England the tea would often accompany a sweet scone or crumpet or cake. And when in Italy tea time was usually something quite light in order to save room for a rich and satisfying local dinnertime meal. My parents have tea every day. I enjoy it too, despite my love for Pumpkin Spice Latte! I have discovered Twinings Spiced Chai tea and it is my new go to afternoon treat! Yesterday we sat down, en famille, and enjoyed a nice warm cup of tea on a rainy day with the wonderful apple cake I wrote about on Saturday.
Should you want to have a Tea Party you'll just need some tea and some light fare. Perhaps a few cucumber or watercress sandwiches, or thin slices of zucchini bread, banana bread or a good fruit bread. If baking is not your thing, there is no reason not to stop by a favorite bakery to pick up a few sweet treats. If you have a pretty tea pot and china use them. Don't just let your 4 year old daughter have all the fun! If you have any favorite or special linens, enjoy them. If not, there are wonderful paper napkins out there too.
Or perhaps you'd like to have the girls over for a little Afternoon Delight! Serve Sangria, or Gimlets, or to accompany the fall season pick up a bottle of Pumpkin Liqueur and serve up some Pumpkin Spice Martinis! Again you don't need to get too fussy or too elaborate. You'll need to offer water, both sparkling and regular and perhaps some iced tea or soft drinks for those who don't drink. For little nibbles you don't have to go to extremes here either. Cheese and crackers, slices of apple, pear and figs are lovely accompaniments, spiced nuts, olives, bread sticks and pretzels are always good to munch on. Of course, you can get as fancy and as complex as you'd like. But keep it simple initially.
Ready to move on?
Host a dinner party. Invite 2 couples. The couples can either be friendly or not know each other at all. Just be sure that your guests will have something in common. As soon as your guests enter greet them warmly with a drink. Perhaps wine. Perhaps champagne. Perhaps a signature cocktail. Try to have all your prep work done so that you may focus your full attention (before you head back into the kitchen) on your guests. Music will always set the mood. I love to have a little Frank or Bing or Cole Porter... music of that generation in the background. You want the music to be happy and set the mood for the night. You want to always be able to carry on a conversation without shouting. As the night wears on the music can change and you may opt for something more modern.
I love small, intimate dinner parties. I like to keep the tone and mood casual. I want my guests to feel comfortable and relaxed. I want them to feel like they are at home.
As I mentioned before, my husband loves the larger, grander events. These do require a good bit more in the organizing and planning departments. And these require a larger budget as well. In the past we had yearly holiday parties. Then as we started having children, and more and more of them, these parties became too complicated. Last year we hosted a New Year's Day party. We invited our friends to a Brunch and Bowl. Kids were invited too. The younger set were in the play room and the older children and adults could wander around the house and tune in to whatever bowl game was on television. Televisions were turned on in all the downstairs rooms. We served brunch food and chili. It was a fabulous success. This year, however, I will hire a babysitter to look after all the children so there is less chaos and less mess for me to have to deal with the following day!
As we approach the holiday season, there are so many ways to entertain your friends and loved ones. If the idea of a Halloween Party is too frightening, consider a Thanks For Giving party where the guests come with non perishable food items that you will donate to a local food bank or shelter. You can host a Fall Evening of Food and Wine and offer various wines and hors d'oeuvres for sampling. Cookie Exchanges and Ornament Exchanges are always sure to result in a grand affair!
These are just a few ways to have fun and throw a grand party. I hope you'll do so. There's nothing like it!
If you need or desire any ideas or recipes do not hesitate to ask! If I don't have the answer you are looking for I can certainly send you in the right direction!