8 Things That Make for a GREAT Party | EVENT TIPS
- By Adrien Martin
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- 10 Aug, 2017
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Last time, we discussed 5 Things That Make a Party Go BUST. Now, it's time to find out what will make you the superhero of parties. We all want our guests to leave smiling, thinking about how much fun they just had, and quite frankly, we want them to bring it up a week later and remind us of our success. So here are 8 things that will help guide you to being the greatest superhero of parties.
1. PLANNING & INVITATIONS
—LOTS OF PLANNING
Great parties don't just fall out of the clouds. It takes a lot of preparation to make sure everything is in order for the day of the event. Take out your notebook and start writing out ideas for themes, foods, drinks, and how the night will flow. Just like writing an essay, an outline will guide you so you're not lost in a vast jungle full of scary snakes and cool monkeys.
—ENTICING INVITATIONS
What better way to get people hyped for your party than creating a striking invitation? Okay, let's do a little throwback to our childhood. Remember when you'd hand out invitations to your friends for your next birthday party? Copy this practice. Invitations should answer the What (for), When, and Where questions. If you're planning a more formal party, you might want to take invitations to the next level by having them printed on nice card stock.
Great parties don't just fall out of the clouds. It takes a lot of preparation to make sure everything is in order for the day of the event. Take out your notebook and start writing out ideas for themes, foods, drinks, and how the night will flow. Just like writing an essay, an outline will guide you so you're not lost in a vast jungle full of scary snakes and cool monkeys.
—ENTICING INVITATIONS
What better way to get people hyped for your party than creating a striking invitation? Okay, let's do a little throwback to our childhood. Remember when you'd hand out invitations to your friends for your next birthday party? Copy this practice. Invitations should answer the What (for), When, and Where questions. If you're planning a more formal party, you might want to take invitations to the next level by having them printed on nice card stock.
2. PEOPLE
—WHO TO INVITE
Who you invite will have a big influence on the success of your party. If you're throwing an event that your parents will be attending, you might not want to invite Bottle-Busting Bobby. On the other hand, if you're throwing a rager, you'll want to invite fewer people like Wall-Flower Wallace and more people like Bottle-Busting Bobby.
—EXCLUSIVITY
If you're throwing an event for your birthday, graduation, or something similar, it always makes people feel good when they are "exclusive". So inviting just your closest friends or family will make for a fun time where everyone can relate and easily jump into one another's conversations. Again, if you're throwing a rager, exclusiveness is not necessary so post your address on Facebook!
Who you invite will have a big influence on the success of your party. If you're throwing an event that your parents will be attending, you might not want to invite Bottle-Busting Bobby. On the other hand, if you're throwing a rager, you'll want to invite fewer people like Wall-Flower Wallace and more people like Bottle-Busting Bobby.
—EXCLUSIVITY
If you're throwing an event for your birthday, graduation, or something similar, it always makes people feel good when they are "exclusive". So inviting just your closest friends or family will make for a fun time where everyone can relate and easily jump into one another's conversations. Again, if you're throwing a rager, exclusiveness is not necessary so post your address on Facebook!
3. PARTY THEME
—THEMES
Adding a theme to your party is a great way to mix things up. Themes allow for guests to show off their creativity with costumes, foods, and whatever else you can make them bring.
—COSTUMES
Costumes are awesome, but don't always have a costume party. You might want to stick this requirement for parties around holidays like Halloween and Christmas. To persuade people to go "all out", have a little prize for the best dressed.
—FOOD
If you're having a themed party, might as well have the food match. This adds a really fun element to the party and people aren't stuck with generic cookies. For example, if you're having a World Cup party and the Mexico team is playing, you could require people to bring taco-making items. Tasty!
Adding a theme to your party is a great way to mix things up. Themes allow for guests to show off their creativity with costumes, foods, and whatever else you can make them bring.
—COSTUMES
Costumes are awesome, but don't always have a costume party. You might want to stick this requirement for parties around holidays like Halloween and Christmas. To persuade people to go "all out", have a little prize for the best dressed.
—FOOD
If you're having a themed party, might as well have the food match. This adds a really fun element to the party and people aren't stuck with generic cookies. For example, if you're having a World Cup party and the Mexico team is playing, you could require people to bring taco-making items. Tasty!
4. CLEAN & DECORATE
—CLEAN THE HOUSE!
Okay, let's be honest here. Nobody... like seriously nobody wants to walk into your house and find dirty dishes stacked up on the counter, smelly laundry piled on the couch, and last weeks Mac n Cheese left on the coffee table. If you want to throw a great party, you're gonna have to make sure the place is clean. So grab a rag, some cleaning product, and Febreeze.
—DECORATE THE PLACE
Now that your house is clean, you can move to the fun part: DECORATING! Sure, you can get by without decorating but this blog post is about throwing GREAT parties. For example, if your party has a beach theme, go and buy some tiki torches, green hanging things, and maybe some sand?
Okay, let's be honest here. Nobody... like seriously nobody wants to walk into your house and find dirty dishes stacked up on the counter, smelly laundry piled on the couch, and last weeks Mac n Cheese left on the coffee table. If you want to throw a great party, you're gonna have to make sure the place is clean. So grab a rag, some cleaning product, and Febreeze.
—DECORATE THE PLACE
Now that your house is clean, you can move to the fun part: DECORATING! Sure, you can get by without decorating but this blog post is about throwing GREAT parties. For example, if your party has a beach theme, go and buy some tiki torches, green hanging things, and maybe some sand?
5. HIRE A DJ
—PRE-PLANNING
Make sure to find yourself a DJ who will prepare for your event. You don't want them to show up and they had only spoken to you for 5 minutes prior to the event. Make sure they have an idea of who is attending the party. Your friends? Family? How old are they?
—MUSIC
Music is going to be a BIG DEAL. Make sure you and your DJ get on the same page about this. If you're having a themed party, might as well incorporate it in the music too! You should include many different genres in the music requests so all your guests are happy (dancing). Oh, and you should definitely make it required that your DJ TAKE REQUESTS during your party. If he doesn't, your party will not be GREAT!
—LIGHTING
Just like music, lighting is EXTREMELY important! In many ways, the lighting will determine how GREAT your party is. Ask your DJ if they've got awesome moving lights and maybe even some lighting to shine up the walls (*cough *cough Like we do 👍😎 ). Next, you will want to make sure your DJ has a way to "show off" those lights. Ask them if they have fog or haze. Look below to see the difference a couple clouds can make!
Make sure to find yourself a DJ who will prepare for your event. You don't want them to show up and they had only spoken to you for 5 minutes prior to the event. Make sure they have an idea of who is attending the party. Your friends? Family? How old are they?
—MUSIC
Music is going to be a BIG DEAL. Make sure you and your DJ get on the same page about this. If you're having a themed party, might as well incorporate it in the music too! You should include many different genres in the music requests so all your guests are happy (dancing). Oh, and you should definitely make it required that your DJ TAKE REQUESTS during your party. If he doesn't, your party will not be GREAT!
—LIGHTING
Just like music, lighting is EXTREMELY important! In many ways, the lighting will determine how GREAT your party is. Ask your DJ if they've got awesome moving lights and maybe even some lighting to shine up the walls (*cough *cough Like we do 👍😎 ). Next, you will want to make sure your DJ has a way to "show off" those lights. Ask them if they have fog or haze. Look below to see the difference a couple clouds can make!
6. GUEST CONVERSATIONS
—INTRODUCE PEOPLE
It's very possible that a lot of people you invite won't know one another. It will be in your best interest to introduce them to each other otherwise you might have "pods" of people who are friends scattered around your house - not a good look (parties are where you should meet new people!).
—PLAN AN ICEBREAKER
What better way to get people talking than an ice breaker? Just grab a block of ice and hand everyone an ice pick. Just kidding... (I laughed). No, but you could plan a fun game where everyone could get involved and naturally start talking to each other. #friendsforlife
It's very possible that a lot of people you invite won't know one another. It will be in your best interest to introduce them to each other otherwise you might have "pods" of people who are friends scattered around your house - not a good look (parties are where you should meet new people!).
—PLAN AN ICEBREAKER
What better way to get people talking than an ice breaker? Just grab a block of ice and hand everyone an ice pick. Just kidding... (I laughed). No, but you could plan a fun game where everyone could get involved and naturally start talking to each other. #friendsforlife
7. BONFIRE OR GAMES
—START A BONFIRE
Bonfires are a great place to have people circle around and talk about whatever they please. Just note, if you go this route, you are expected to have s'mores ingredients otherwise your guests will be disappointed. Make sure you have enough wood to burn through the length of your party and drinks to stay hydrated.
—VARIOUS GAMES
It's never a bad idea to have a couple different games. If you have a ping-pong table— not going to write what you might be thinking— have a tournament with teams. You can also play card games, board games, or whatever might get everyone one involved and smiling.
Bonfires are a great place to have people circle around and talk about whatever they please. Just note, if you go this route, you are expected to have s'mores ingredients otherwise your guests will be disappointed. Make sure you have enough wood to burn through the length of your party and drinks to stay hydrated.
—VARIOUS GAMES
It's never a bad idea to have a couple different games. If you have a ping-pong table— not going to write what you might be thinking— have a tournament with teams. You can also play card games, board games, or whatever might get everyone one involved and smiling.
8. EXIT PLAN
—GIVING PEOPLE THE BOOT
You might not want all your parties to end at 4 AM. A good exit strategy should be at least considered so guiding people to the front door won't be as hard. Pre-determining an end time on your invitation is an easy way for people to know when they should leave. Otherwise, you can tell your guests that you have work tomorrow or you need to get some sleep.
You might not want all your parties to end at 4 AM. A good exit strategy should be at least considered so guiding people to the front door won't be as hard. Pre-determining an end time on your invitation is an easy way for people to know when they should leave. Otherwise, you can tell your guests that you have work tomorrow or you need to get some sleep.
Thank you for reading 8 Things That Make for a GREAT Party! Next time I'll be going over how to pick a good DJ in depth.
COMMENT BELOW: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE THAT MADE FOR A GREAT PARTY?
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