I love parties. I love them, I love them, I love them.
I love throwing them, I love going to them, I love reading about them, I love planning them. Plus, after spending my entire working life as a party planner I know that I have seen it all and then some, and I want to share with you some of my tips to turn a blah party into the best party. There’s nothing worse than going to a special do for your friend and having a crummy time, all because they skipped out on some of the awesome stuff that makes a party fun. One of the biggest mistakes I have seen people make is to organise a party, and to just assume that when you put a bunch of people in a room together that they’ll automatically make a party happen. Well, throw in a generous splash of alcohol and you’re some of the way there, but you need to do a little more than just that. One of the key elements to having a great party is having something that bonds people together at your event. Whether it’s a cute retro party game to get people mingling, whether you’re going to get photo booth hire in Perth or whether you’re going to be whacking a piñata, you need to break the ice to early on.
Here are some of my top tips for making your party the most memorable possible!
Step One: Set the mood with a theme
There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who like themed parties and those who would rather eat something horrible than dress up for one. Well, I am happy to say that I fall into the first camp and that I love themed parties. When it comes to making your party memorable, it helps to set the theme right from the get-go. Consider using themed invitations, themed Facebook posts – themed everything. That way when people recall your party, they’ll say things like ‘Yeah, remember Kimberly’s party? It was the Waterworld-themed party and you went as Kevin Costner’s character and you had gills on your head?’ Very easy to remember.
Step Two: Make sure the tunes are on point
Nothing says party fail more than a terrible playlist. Make sure that you have a DJ friend or a musically-minded mate who will cast a loving eye over your selection prior to you dropping it at your party. That way, you’ll avoid any musical faux-pas and keep people dancing all night long. Also have some tunes for the pre- section of the party, and pump it up a notch when more people arrive. Also have some music for chilling out to after the festivities are over. Top tip as well, make a ‘cleaning up’ playlist for when you’re scrubbing red wine off the ceiling the next day to keep your spirits high and your hangover low.
Step Three: Deck out the food
Make sure that people have enough to nosh on for the entire evening. If you can’t feed people anything more than chips so be it, but something slightly more substantial will mean that people won’t be too scattered and not able to remember anything at all. A great choice here is something like a selection of cheeses and grilled vegetables, as well as hummus and bread.
Step Four: Keep the drinks simple
One of my go-to party tips is to make one huge punch or sangria, and then keep topping it up as need be. That way people will always have something to drink, and everyone loves punch, right?
