Throwing a party is among the best ways to bring people together as you celebrate an important day or event in your life. It could be your birthday, graduation, house opening, or engagement – the list is rather endless. To ensure everything goes as smoothly as you would want it to be, hosting a party requires proper planning. You will need to put numerous considerations in mind. In most cases, these will depend on the type and size of the party you are holding. It’s even better if you’re a woman and you’re planning a night out with some bad boys.
The logistics can sometimes be a bit stressful. This is why people decide to hire event planners for the job. But you don’t always have to be an experienced event planner to host a successful party. Some creativity and information could also go a long way in slicing your budget, unless, of course, you’re a perfectionist.
Just to keep you informed, here are a few planning tips you could use when setting up a party.
1. Pick a Suitable Theme
When hosting a party, you want it to be fun and memorable to you and your guests. There is no better way to ensure this than picking a unique theme. The theme entails a variety of aspects, including the decoration, attire, furniture set up, and everything in between.
If you have a committee for your party, think about decorations that will set the pace for the theme you have in mind. The theme should be reflected by the colors, lights, tablecloths, mats, and tags you choose. Again, a little bit of creativity and brainstorming will come in handy when picking a theme for your bash.
2. Entertainment
A party is never complete without a good dose of entertainment. After all, parties are largely about bonding, having fun, and making lasting memories. For this reason, you will want to choose the best entertainment for the party based on your theme, your audience, and the kind of celebration you are holding. From renting a complete sound equipment setup to investing in several wireless speakers, the options are numerous.
You can choose to hire a DJ to take care of the music or even invite a live band depending on the event you are hosting. If your sessions will involve some dancing, renting a LED dance floor can be a great way to add some flavor and spice up your party. From LED-lit walkways to stanchions and typical red carpet these options can be an amazing way to give your guests a memorable experience.
3. Think Food and Refreshments
When inviting guests over to your party, you want to consider that they might spend hours there. It might get boring for someone on an empty belly or rusty throat. With plenty of food and drinks, however, you can bet that most of your guests will stick around until the fat lady sings.
In most cases, event hosts resort to hiring an event catering service to take care of things. Barbeques and snacks could also work for smaller parties held in a home’s backyard. In either case, just make sure you have lots of refreshments and drinks, from water to juices, hot beverages, beer, and whiskey. Your choice of food and drinks should be determined by your guests’ preferences, which brings us to the next important point.
4. Mind Your Guest List
Nothing can be more intimidating than hosting a party expecting more than a hundred guests, only for ten to show up. The losses can be colossal in various aspects, from the food to the event venue, equipment, entertainment, time, and effort spent preparing. It may also be a bit difficult to keep your guests entertained and catered for if too many show up at your party than you had anticipated or can accommodate. This is why it makes sense to plan your guest list early, following up with your invitees to find out who will and who won’t make it to the event.
Understanding your guests will also help you prepare better on things like your budget, venue space, amenities, food, and activities. Apart from these, a few more things to plan early for may include:
Furniture setup
Sitting arrangements
Photography
Activities
5. Make After-Party Arrangements
Parties can be extremely fun, but they always have an end or conclusion. Some of them are just downright frustrating, especially where the host is left with damages or messes to take care of. To avoid these, be sure to plan for after-party cleaning and other relevant arrangements ahead of time. The last thing you want is to miss work on Monday just because you spent your entire weekend cleaning after the messes from your Friday night backyard party.
Parties are great at connecting people and marking important dates or events in the host’s life as they share them with their loved ones. However, they are only as fun and successful as the planning efforts put in by the host. When throwing a party, the above few planning tips should come in handy.
