Comments on: No-stress party planning http://www.frugalvillage.com/2008/08/29/no-stress-party-planning/ Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:53:12 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Thevail http://www.frugalvillage.com/2008/08/29/no-stress-party-planning/comment-page-1/#comment-25436 Thevail Tue, 03 Feb 2009 19:45:47 +0000 http://www.frugalvillage.com/?p=342#comment-25436 Throwing a party can be a real stress-fest, and I LOVE to have people over. My solution was to have MORE parties, but much lower key ones. I throw a small party every saturday for about a half dozen people. These are just a few tips I've found helpful. 1) Keep the cooking simple. This is no time for fussy recipes or fancy ingredients if you want to have time to have fun with the guests and not wake up tomorrow with a financial hangover. People honestly don't care what they eat as long as there is enough of it and it tastes good. (Fried chicken, made the day before or really amazing spaghetti sauce are both frugal and tasty)Do any baking the day before if you can. 2)Make three "tidying trips" through the party area in the course of the evening to pick up soda cans, wine bottles,napkins, plates, etc. This eliminates a lot of spills on the carpet, the dog ate WHAT?, and where's my ____? And that feeling you get when the party is over and it looks like your home was sacked by the Huns. 3) Base your decision to invite people on how many people you can reasonably seat (without people touching each other too much) at one time. No one wants to spend 5 hours standing up or leaning on the fridge or regretting Joe's choice in aftershave. 4) Let there be an activity or two, whether it's watching the superbowl, or board games, or crafts, or whatever you love. It's essential that there be something for people to do as a default, especialy if they don't all know each other well.It provides, at the minimum, a topic of conversation. Throwing a party can be a real stress-fest, and I LOVE to have people over. My solution was to have MORE parties, but much lower key ones.

I throw a small party every saturday for about a half dozen people. These are just a few tips I’ve found helpful.
1) Keep the cooking simple. This is no time for fussy recipes or fancy ingredients if you want to have time to have fun with the guests and not wake up tomorrow with a financial hangover. People honestly don’t care what they eat as long as there is enough of it and it tastes good. (Fried chicken, made the day before or really amazing spaghetti sauce are both frugal and tasty)Do any baking the day before if you can.

2)Make three “tidying trips” through the party area in the course of the evening to pick up soda cans, wine bottles,napkins, plates, etc. This eliminates a lot of spills on the carpet, the dog ate WHAT?, and where’s my ____? And that feeling you get when the party is over and it looks like your home was sacked by the Huns.

3) Base your decision to invite people on how many people you can reasonably seat (without people touching each other too much) at one time. No one wants to spend 5 hours standing up or leaning on the fridge or regretting Joe’s choice in aftershave.

4) Let there be an activity or two, whether it’s watching the superbowl, or board games, or crafts, or whatever you love. It’s essential that there be something for people to do as a default, especialy if they don’t all know each other well.It provides, at the minimum, a topic of conversation.

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