A Professional Party Planner’s Guide to Hosting a Cocktail Party

One of the most fashionable parties for adults to have these days is a cocktail party.  Even though their popularity waned over the last few decades, cocktail parties have reappeared on the party scene and are now even more fashionable than they were before.

While many adults in the United States today enjoy beer and wine, the mixed drinks of the past are really starting to become more and more in vogue again.  Nowadays when you walk into a typical bar, you will see many more people ordering mixed drinks than they have in the last decade or two.  Some of the most popular today are the apple martini, chocolate martini, dirty martini, and the cosmopolitan.

One of the best things about planning a cocktail party is that they generally only last a few hours.  In addition, your guests will be wandering around mingling and snacking rather than sitting around a table eating a full meal with each other.  This makes the cocktail party perfect for inviting people who may or may not already know each other.

One of the easiest things about planning a cocktail party is the fact that you can have just about any menu your want as long as the food is complementary to the most popular mixed drinks.  Guests who come to a cocktail party know that they are only there to snack, have a drink or two, and mingle.  Because of this, you can supply a wide variety of finger foods and be confident that everyone present will find something agreeable to them.

Here are some professional party planner’s tips on hosting an amazing cocktail party that everyone will remember and be talking about.

Tip #1 – You will need much more ice for your cocktail party than you think you will.  The standard rule of thumb is to have about a pound of ice per guest who will be in attendance.  However, I believe even a bit more is advisable.

Tip #2 – Different beverages are consumed from different glass styles.  Make sure that you have a large assortment of the appropriate glasses for your guests.  And, it is always a good idea to have many extras.  If you will be serving wine, it is a good idea to use wine glass charms so people will stick to using their same glass throughout the night.

Tip #3 – The most important part of your cocktail party planning is making sure you have enough supplies on hand.  And the most important of these supplies are your alcoholic beverages.  A good bar should be stocked with the ingredients for each of your friends’ favorite drinks, or as a basic level at least those used to make the most popular drinks of the day, plus beer and wine.

Tip #4 – If you do not know anything about mixing drinks, you can always enlist the skills of one of your friends or relatives to play bartender for the evening.  However, if you will be having a very large cocktail party then you might want to consider hiring a professional bartender for the night.   Many local catering services will have bartenders who can work for you at your party.  They are not terribly expensive and do a wonderful job.

Tip #5 – When you are hosting a party where alcohol is consumed, you should always offer food and coffee to your guests and make sure they have a designated driver to get them home safely.  Please do not ever let your guests drink and drive.  It’s not safe for them and the other people on the road.  And, it can also land you in jail if they get in an accident after drinking at your home.  It simply isn’t worth it!

As you can clearly see, hosting a cocktail party is not complicated and can offer you a wonderful excuse to have your friends and family over for an evening of adult fun.

Many people don’t throw parties simply because they don’t want to do a ton of work and then end up missing all of the fun because they are stuck in the kitchen or running around the house doing last minute necessary things.  However, this doesn’t have to be the way it is!  You can throw a party and enjoy it at the same time.  The trick to hosting a party where you can enjoy yourself is called organization.  If you are organized then you can run your party without it running you ragged.   Make sure you follow the tips already listed in this book.  And here are some final tips to help you out:

Party Planning Tip – Decide if you will be making your own food or buying it prepared.  Some things, like veggie trays, meat trays, and even cakes can be purchased inexpensively from stores like Costco for about what you could make them for.  Decide early in the process if you will be making your food or buying it ready made to save time.  Look at the actual costs as well as your time when you are making the decision.

Party Planning Tip –   Take advantage of anyone’s offer to bring something for the party.  Having many people bringing just one simple dish to share can save you a ton of time and energy.  If your party will be all good friends and family you can even suggest they bring something with them if they have a signature dish that everyone in attendance just loves.

Party Planning Tip – If you do not have table linens, but don’t want to use the paper ones, sheets work very well as alternatives.  Also, make sure to place some felt or other heavy material under your table linens so your tables will not be damaged by heat or moisture.

Party Planning Tip – If you hate to clean your house, or your party is approaching and you are running out of time, arrange to have your home professionally cleaned the day before your party.  In addition walk around your home and remove any unnecessary clutter from shelves and other surfaces.

Party Planning Tip – Let your spouse and children help you prepare for the party.  Assign each a task and then simply make sure that it was completed.  Remember that your guests are not coming over to inspect your home; they are coming over to enjoy your company.

Party Planning Tip – If you have a pet, make sure that you have plans for how to handle their needs during your party.  For a cat, you may wish to close a door to their favorite room and allow them to stay away from your guests.

Once the big day of your party arrives, if you find yourself running around and not enjoying yourself, start delegating out tasks to people who ask if they can help you, or to your spouse or children – don’t try to do everything yourself!

As you can see, the key to an enjoyable party is to organize, do the best you can, and then let others help you when they ask.  Follow these simple tips and you will have a great party that even you as the host can enjoy.

When you are planning a party, or even planning an entire event, being well organized can set you apart from those who have a difficult time of it.  Organization is your best friend when it comes to successfully planning and having a party or event of any size.  And, the key to having successful organization skills lies in your shopping list.  When you have an excellent shopping list, then you are sure to have all of the supplies you need on the day of your party or event.

It is very easy for most people to become overwhelmed when they enter a store or mall.  You walk in thinking that you know exactly what you want, and then you find yourself amongst so many amazing things that you start to question your original thoughts and decisions.  This often leads to purchasing things you hadn’t planned on.  In a worst case scenario this means you forget vital items.  In a best case scenario it generally means that you spend too much money and go over your budget.  The simple way to avoid having this happen is to make a good shopping list and then stick to it when you shop.

The first step in preparing your shopping list is to gather up a pencil and a pad of paper.  You want to label the first page of the notepad with the date of your event and any location information you might need later, such as an address or phone number if your party will not be held at your own home.

The second step in preparing your shopping list is to decide what the menu will be and what ingredients your menu requires you to have.  Take the time to go through each recipe for your menu and write down each of the ingredients you will need to purchase and the quantities you will need.  Each of these ingredients, with their amounts listed, will go under the heading of “food” on your master party shopping list.

The third step to preparing your shopping list is to decide on any beverages which you will be serving and the quantities you need to obtain.  Each of your beverages, with their amounts listed, will go under the heading of “beverages” on your master party shopping list.

The next step to preparing your shopping list is to decide what party and paper goods you will need for the event or party.  Consider things like plates, cups, silverware, serving bowls, centerpieces for tables, flowers, tables and chairs, etc.  Make sure to write down anything you could possibly need on your master party shopping list.

Now that you have an all inclusive master shopping list, it is a good idea to break that list down by stores and times when you will be buying the items listed.  For example, you will likely want to shop twice at the grocery store.  The first time you will want to shop for everything which will last until the date of your event; the second time you will want to shop for perishable items such as fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, and breads.  This means that you want one page for the items you will purchase on the first trip, and another page for the items which you will purchase at the last minute.

As you make your sub-lists, you will want to add in your shopping times to your master party planning calendar.  You will likely have two grocery shopping trips, a trip to the party store, a trip to the liquor store, and a trip to the florist as well.  By taking the time to schedule shopping at each of these venues, you can ensure that you do not forget to go to one store or another, and that you will have the time needed to obtain all of the things you will need to have a successful party or event.  As you can clearly see, creating a master shopping list is the only way to plan a successful party or event like a professional party planner.  And, through the use of sub-lists you can zero in on just what you want and ignore the other things in the store that might have otherwise tempted you.

The invitation to your party is the first glimpse into your celebration for your guests.  For this reason, your invitations should match the occasion in both style and theme as well.  Your invitation is meant to inform your invited guests about your event, but also they are to give your invitees a small glimpse into what is to come at your party.

You will want to send out your invitations at least four weeks before a smaller party and eight weeks prior for a larger event such as a wedding.  You may also want to make sure that your party or event is not held over a holiday weekend when many of your friends and family may already have other plans or will not want to deal with holiday travel.

The wording on your invitation should be done in a very standard way.  This means that it should include the following:

All phrasing should always be in the third-person.

Punctuation is never used at the ends of lines on an invitation, only on names and addresses which require them.

Try not to use any abbreviations on your invitations.  Spell out names, addresses, etc. fully.  The one exception to this is the use of Mr. And Mrs.  Both of these abbreviations are appropriate for an invitation.

Days, dates, and times should all be spelled out completely.

If you have a husband and wife couple who you will be inviting who happen to both be doctors, you can simply address your invitation to “The Doctors “Last Name” and it will be correct

It is always socially unacceptable to write “no children” or refer to gifts (even when specifying “no gifts”) on any invitations.

Each invitation should have the following information contained on it:

The name of the host or hosts.

The purpose of the event.

The name of the guest of honor.

The day, date and time of the event.

The location of the event.

The address of the event with the street address only, not the zip code.

Once you have your invitations completed, then it is time to get a friend to read over them for you and let you know if you have any mistakes in your text.  This is very important because the last thing you want to do is send out all of your invitations with the wrong date or time on them.  It is so much easier to catch and fix mistakes before the invitations are ever sent out.

You might find it surprising to know that in this day and age you can have your invitations printed at a very reasonable cost online.  In addition, if you have a good graphics program and printer, you can do them yourself.  If you will be having a smaller event, it is perfectly acceptable to purchase a package of the hand-written invitations from your local store and simply write in the information on them.

If you will be having a very informal party, you can have some fun and informal invitations.  If you are planning a much more formal party or event such as a wedding, then you are best to stick to professionally printed invitations.

Entertaining people in your home is always wrought with a bit of stress and anxiety.  Simply getting everything ready before the party is enough to make most people pull out their hair.  And, the self-doubt and worry about last minute details is enough to send most people over the edge.  However, planning your party does not need to be this way.  Here are nine time-tested tips to help you plan the best party with the least possible pre-party stress:

Tip #1 – The best thing you can do for yourself is to write down a master party shopping list and a list of what needs to be accomplished around your home before the date of the party.  Get out a calendar and mark off some time to shop and clean your home.  (See the previous section for more in-depth tips on this subject).

Tip #2 – Enlist the help of your spouse and/or children in the process of cleaning and de-cluttering your home for the party.  While they may not do the “perfect” job that you would, you can always go back with a quick vacuum or dust cloth and finish the job later.

Tip #3 – When your guests arrive, they will need a place to hang their coats and place their purses.  One of the easiest things you can do is to clean out your entry-hall coat closet for them to use.  If you have a bunch of stuff in there, you can find it a new home or box it up until after your party is over.

Tip #4 – When you shop, think about whether or not you will want to send home leftovers with your guests.  If you will, then you should pick-up some inexpensive containers which you can send food home in and not have to worry about retrieving your plates or bowls at a later date.

Tip #5 – It is also nice to plan for enough leftovers from your party that you will not have to cook or prepare food on the day after your party.  Let’s face it, the day after your party you will be exhausted, and by not having to cook you can relax and enjoy the day with your family.

Tip #6 –  When you go to the store to purchase the non-perishables for your party, you can leave them in the grocery bags until the day before the party.  Rather than unpack everything and put it away in your cupboards where people might mistakenly eat it, you can simply leave everything in the bags and keep them in an out of the way place until the day before the party.  (I highly suggest looking at everything the day before and making sure you didn’t forget something at the store which is vital.  This will keep you from having to make emergency store runs on the day of your party when you have other things to do.)

Tip #7 –  If you are having an evening party near the Christmas holiday season, you might want to get together ahead of time with your friends and organize a cookie exchange.  By doing this you can have tons of different cookies to offer your guests, even though you only had to make one kind of them.

Tip #8 – If your guests will be drinking wine, it is a great idea to use some inexpensive wine glass charms.  This will allow your guests to always know which glass is theirs and keeps them from using too many other glasses.  Put the charms on before your party to save time when you are serving your guest’s drinks.

Tip #9 – One of the best things you can do when planning your party is to ask other people to bring food or beverages.  Many times people ask what they can bring, and you should take them up on their offers.  Not only does this cut down on the budget for your party, it also allows you to spend less time cooking and more time with your guests.

One of the best things that you can have when planning a party or event of any size is a written party timeline.  By making yourself a good solid timeline, you can ensure that your party goes off without a hitch.

Here are five tips from professional party planners to get you on the right track in planning your shopping list and timeline:

Tip #1 – Before you can start to build your timeline and shopping list, first you must decide where your party or event will be held and how many people you will be inviting.  If you will be using an event location or a restaurant, you need to secure your space before moving on to anything else.

Tip #2 – Once you have secured your location for your party, then you can start to build your lists.  To start building your timeline think about the things you will need to do before the party, such as sending out your invitations.  If you will be having them custom printed you will need to allow extra time for the printing before you can mail them out to your guests.  (See section, “The Professional Party Planner’s Guide to Party Invitations”).

Tip #3 – Now that you have your date and location secured, and you have ordered your invitations, if necessary, it is time to think about what you will be doing at your party, what type of food and drinks will be on the menu, and how long you want the party to last.  Dedicate a single sheet of paper just to your party day and list everything you will need to do, in order by time.  For example, preparing food before guests arrive would be at the top of the sheet of paper, while giving out party favors may be at the absolute bottom.

Tip #4 – In addition to your timeline for the day of the party, you will also want to formulate a timeline for the two weeks or so leading up to the event.  Here you will need to block out time for cleaning, shopping, decorating, etc.

Tip #5 – Once you have your lists generated, then it is time to stick to them and make sure everything gets done.