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The Top 7 Tips To Help You Plan A Surprise Party

mahony — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 11:03:34 +0000

Planning a surprise party can be very fun and enjoyable for all of the people who are involved. And, if you and your co-conspirators can keep up the charade until the party happens, then you can have one very surprised and happy guest of honor.

Even though the secret of your surprise party lays with all of the people who will be in attendance, there are some simple things which you can do, as the party planner and host, to help ensure the best outcome possible. Here are seven tips to get you started to planning a surprise party which your friends and relatives will be talking about for years to come:

Tip #1 – Find out from your guest of honor, or even better from their significant other, what their schedule is like within the timeframe you are considering for the surprise party. Use this valuable information to set the date for your surprise party.

Tip #2 – Enlist the help of someone who can devise a fictitious activity for the guest of honor to partake in on the day of the party. The closer to your home this activity is, the easier it is for your helper to "have to stop in at your home for a moment" on the day of the party.

Tip #3 – Extend your invitations to all of your invited guests. When you make your invitations make sure that each of your guests understand that the party is a surprise and should be kept that way. Ask them to please not share the information with your guest of honor or anyone else who might mention it to them.

Tip #4 – Come up with a planned event which everyone who may run into your guest of honor can use as a diversion if they need to. However, if your guests don't think they can "lie" to the guest of honor with a straight face, suggest that they avoid them for the time leading up to the party, whenever possible and practical.

Tip #5 – Ask all of your invited guests to arrive at least thirty minutes before you expect your guest of honor to arrive. If your guest of honor generally arrives early to events, then you might want to ask your invited guests to come a bit earlier, just in case.

Tip #6 – Ask your guests to park down the street and out of sight. The only caveat to this is if the guest of honor believes they are attending another event at your home on that day. If this is the case then it won't really matter much were people choose to park.

Tip #7 – Once you have done all of the other things suggested, then the only thing you can really do is pray and hold your breath that no one will slip-up and tell your guest of honor about your planned surprise party.

Planning a surprise party can be a lot of fun. If you take the time to build in some diversions into your plan, you are able to help those who might be asked questions by the guest of honor. This will ensure that they are not caught off-guard and without a good, solid, quick answer to give to any questions that they may be asked. By doing this you can have a wonderful surprise party. Good luck!

The Profesional Party Planners Guide To Party Invitations

mahony — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 10:31:34 +0000

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 exactly eight weeks prior for a larger event such as a wedding. You will also likely want to make sure that your party or event is not held over a holiday weekend where many of your friends and family may already have other plans, or who 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 style

* 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 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, or even 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, never the zip code as this is tacky

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.

Planning A Preschool Birthday Party With Success

mahony — Wed, 19 May 2010 14:54:34 +0000

Usually around the time that children get to be in preschool, they discover that there is a whole world of birthday parties out there which can be just for them. It usually starts with one child having a party and inviting the entire class. From there the party invitations start to come in by the droves for the rest of the preschool year. When it is your child's turn, there is no need to panic; you can plan a fantastic preschool party even on a low budget or without a lot of time commitment on your part.

The best way to start to plan your preschooler's party is to ask them what kind of party they want to have. This is important because they may want, or not want, a party similar to one which they have attended. By asking them what they want, you are on your way to being able to start your planning. You do not need to be fearful that if you ask what your child wants that they will tell you they want expensive options; most children have pretty simple wants such as a specific theme or color scheme they desire.

The next decision you need to make is the location for the birthday party. For young children, who are prone to being messy, you might want to have the party at a local fast-food restaurant or similar venue. This can have the effect of the kids having some fun, and you not having a large mess to clean up after the party has finished. Another good option is a local park if the weather in your area permits it.

If you dread the idea of spending hours with a pack of preschoolers on your weekend, you might choose to have the party in the evening or for just an hour or two on a Saturday afternoon. Preschoolers can only have a limited amount of fun before they become stressed out and start whining and crying. You can use this to your advantage by planning a relatively short but fun party.

If you will have more than a couple other children at the party you will need other adults to help you. Because preschoolers need lots of help and attention, you should have an adult for every three or four children in attendance. This will be a great help when children need help using the bathroom and other things as the party goes along.

When you are distributing invitations to your partiers, it is very important to remember that if you will be sending them to preschool to be passed out, you must invite each child in the class. To do otherwise is prohibited by most schools and just simply rude as well. Noting is more hurtful than a group of preschoolers all taunting another child for not being invited to a party.

For the day of the party you will want to have as much for your partiers to do as possible. While you do not want to overwhelm the children, it is important to keep them busy and occupied the entire time they are there with you. This will keep them out of trouble and having fun.

It is very important that you insist on good manners from your birthday party guests as well as your own birthday boy or girl. Everyone should use the words "please" and "thank you" as well as being courteous to others. In addition, you should go over how your child will handle opening presents and what is, and is not, appropriate to say to other people about gifts.

A Professional Party Planners Guide For Hosting A Murder Mystery Dinner Party

mahony — Wed, 19 May 2010 13:18:34 +0000

If you are looking to plan an amazing and memorable party for adult guests, consider the idea of hosting a murder mystery dinner party. I have had the pleasure of attending a murder mystery dinner party in the past, and I can tell you that we all simply had a blast.

You may be wondering exactly what a murder mystery party is about. If so, I can tell you that it was similar to a murder mystery dinner theater, except that we as the guests were the actors rather than simply observers trying to figure out who was the murderer. And, unlike professional dinner theater, all of the guests had a much easier time communicating their clues to each other.

When you are planning your murder mystery party, you have two options as for what to do about the storyline and characters. The first is that you can attempt to create your own murder mystery. The second, and much more common, is to purchase a kit from your local party store. The party kit will contain a murder mystery story, a specific number of characters (depending on how many people will be at your party), background information on the characters, costume suggestions for guests, a package of clues for each guest, and usually initiations to the party itself.

In addition, many kits come with a guide that you can follow to have a fun and successful party; and some even come with gifts to give to the winners of the game. Some guides let the party host know how the murderer is; other kits let that be a surprise.

When you are throwing a murder mystery dinner party it is vital that all of your characters attend and come on time as well. Let your guests know this ahead of time and require a simple RSVP for the evening early enough in the planning process that you can always find new characters to attend if you need to. The worst thing that could happen is that your murderer will be absent from the party – and how horrible would that be!

Once you know for sure who will be attending your murder mystery dinner party, then it is time to deliver to each person the information on who their character is, their costume suggestions and their specific background story to share with the other guests as part of the game. As the evening progresses your guests will be providing each other with information which has come from your kit.

It is common for a murder mystery dinner party to start out with each person introducing their character. Then, between courses, each person will again speak about their character and give hints which will be needed to solve the murder mystery. When you run your dinner in this fashion, you can count on your dinner lasting about two to three hours, and your mystery to be solved during, or directly after, your desert time.

The murder mystery dinner party I attended was a mob hit in Italy. We came to the party dressed as stereo-typical mob characters from the old days, and our location was in a local Italian Restaurant. We had all of the characters you can associate with the mob, and we shared our information and hints with each other between courses. Our murder mystery dinner party lasted about three hours and our murderer was given a small prize for the amazing acting they did that night.

A murder mystery dinner party can be a great escape for you and your friends to play one night while the kids are out of the house. The only real limitation on the evening is your own imagination and that of your friends and relatives who you invite. This is definitely an informal party and one which you will want to invite everyone you know to attend – especially the "odder" people in your life. To your party!

7 Professional Party Planner Tips For Clearing And Cleaning After A Large Meal

mahony — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 21:22:34 +0000

It is always fun to plan an elaborate party and see it come to life. However, in addition to the pre-work of the party, afterwards always comes the drudgery of the after meal clean-up, including clearing the table and washing up the dishes. Here are some professional party planning tips for dealing with your after meal clean-up and dish washing to help make your life a bit easier.

Tip #1 – Devise a simple plan ahead of time on how you will deal with such issues as storing your leftover food items, dishwashing, and trash disposal. If you will be keeping leftover food items for your family to eat at a later time, then make sure you have enough of the right sized bowls and platters to store them on in your refrigerator. If you will be sending leftovers home with other people take the time to purchase some appropriate disposable containers which you can give to them and not have to worry about them being returned. For the dishwashing component, decide ahead of your meal which items can go in your dishwasher and which cannot. For your trash and recyclable items, have bags inside containers placed at strategic locations around your home. Assign someone to look at them from time to time and empty them when necessary.

Tip #2 – One of the best things you can do to make your life easier post-meal is to start off with a clean kitchen and refrigerator. The day before your party take the time to clean out your refrigerator and remove all unnecessary clutter from your kitchen and countertops. By doing this you will be able to work on your counter tops and easily clean them. In addition, you will be able to simply open the refrigerator to store things without having to move things around to make room.

Tip #3 – Another one of the best things you can do for yourself is to clean up your dishes and messes as you are preparing the meal itself. Your goal should be to sit down at the table with your guests, with as little waiting in the kitchen to be cleaned up as possible. By doing this, you can ensure that the only dishes which will have to dealt with are those which are sitting on your table.

Tip #4 – Once your meal has concluded is the time where you should gather up all of the dishes from the table, scrape them, start soaking them in water while you continue to clear the table of leftovers, and then wash all of your dishes either in the dishwasher or by hand. While it is always very tempting to let the dishes sit until your guests have gone home, you will find the work is much easier if you do it right away at the conclusion of the meal. While you are clearing off the table gather up any leftovers and immediately put them into containers and into your refrigerator for safety.

Tip #5 – It is polite for people to ask to help clean-up after the conclusion of a meal. Allow your friends and family to help you out. This will make your clean-up go much quicker and smoother. It will also allow you to get back to enjoying your company as soon as possible.

Tip #6 – Your party day is not the time to deal too much with what goes in your dishwasher and what you hand wash. Things which are dishwasher safe should go in the dishwasher, and when it is completely full that is the time you should start hand washing what is left. Hand washing while everything is soaking makes it a very easy task, and your hand washed dishes can then rest on a drying rack while you get back to your party and guests.

Tip #7 – If you find a pot which is very miserable to wash and doesn't want to come clean, let it soak overnight with a solution of baking soda and dish soap. This will allow it to be easily cleaned the next morning.

While clearing the table and washing dishes is never the most fun part of a party, it can be relatively simple and pain free when you incorporate the tips above.

15 Professional Party Planning Tips For Corporate Events

mahony — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 05:11:34 +0000

One of the hardest events for most people to plan are corportate events. Even smaller events, for less than a couple hundred people, can be a real challenge if you are not a professional party planner. However, here are fifteen tips you can use to make your corporate party or corproate event a success:

Tip #1 Always take the time to plan ahead. If you will be renting a special venue you will need to secure it as far in advance as possible. Some places can book up even a year in advance. By finding your venue early, and placing your deposit, you can ensure that you get the venue that you want.

Tip #2 When you are planning a corporate event you need to set a very strict working budget and then make sure that you have extra cash for the unexpected expenses. You can be sure that every event will have some unexpected extra expenses, that is just simply part of planning an event.

Tip #3 If you have contracts, agreements, lists, or seating charts, make sure you keep extra copies of them incase they are misplaced or lost. Copying them is very simple and quick and can really save you later on if you loose your plans.

Tip #4 Make sure you send out your invitations at least 3 to 4 weeks ahead of your event. In addition, make sure that you ask your guests to RSVP so that you know how many people will be attending.

Tip #5 If you are creating a seating chart for your event, you can either set it up completely randomly or work with someone else in your company to come up with the best possible scenario.

Tip #6 If you want a good attendance at your event, it is a good idea to schedule it earlier in the week or a long way away from any major holidays. People tend to vacation over holidays and often have plans on weekends, making Friday and Saturday bad days to have a business function.

Tip #7 It is important to know when to use a theme and when not to. A child's birthday party is an appropriate time to use a theme, while a corportate event requires much less of a theme and more plain elegance than anything else.

Tip #8 When you are having a business event, keep the music mellow and something that everyone can enjoy.

Tip #9 If you will need equipment such as microphones, projectors, speakers, a video camera. etc… you want to make a list of the things you will need and make sure that you also have someone on site who can fix any techincal problems which may come up at the event.

Tip #10 When you are planning an event, especially a large event, make emergency and contingency plans in case of disaster, illness, or any other emergency.

Tip #11 It is important to take into account the special accommodations which will be needed by any disabled attendees. If you do not know what someone will need, you can always simply ask them. They will be happy that you cared enough to ask and understand that you didn't have any other way to get the information.

Tip #12 If you are planning a very large event, you might want to take a project management approach to it. Use a master plan, and delegate tasks to others where you reasonably can.

Tip #13 If your event will be longer than two hours, your guests will expect at least a snack to eat. You should have a meal if your event is longer than four hours. At all times, you should have at least water and coffee available to your guests.

Tip #14 Communication is a major key to the success of an event. If you are using vendors, make sure they have very clear and specific instructions of what you are expecting of them.

Tip #15 Whenever you plan an event, make sure you take things like transportation, parking, etc… into the equation. The last thing you want is for your guests to have to walk a long way to the event or to go home because they couldn't find a place to park.

Top 10 Tips For Planning Your Part Like A Pro

mahony — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 18:10:34 +0000

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 of comfort. However, planning your party does not need to be this way. Here are ten 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.

Tip #2 – Enlist the help of your spouse 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 up 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, then you should either find it a new home or box it up until after your party is over.

Tip #4 – When you shop, think about if 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 home food 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.

Party Planning Tips For Hosting Potluck Parties

mahony — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 05:08:34 +0000

The words "potluck party" probably conger up visions of your grandma or the old ladies from church having a party; however, in today's busy times having a potluck can be a great way to get together with friends without anyone having to do too much of the work themselves.

Just as you are busy each day dealing with getting the kids to school, going to work, shopping, running errands, taking the kids to their own activities, so are most of your friends and family. But, if you want to get together and enjoy each other's company for a day or evening, having a potluck party might be just the answer. A potluck allows the work of the party to be spread amongst many guests and a get together is much easier to plan this way.

However, to have a successful potluck, you need to do a bit of pre-planning upfront to ensure that not all of your guests all bring the same food, or the same type of food, to the party. While your guests might have no idea what they will bring, try giving each of them a category and ask that they choose something. Even going with random suggestions of drinks, main course, desert, or salad can help to ensure that you have enough variety in your foods so that everyone can enjoy their meal.

In addition to the course suggestions, there are a few other things which can make your party go much more smoothly. They are:

1. Ask all of your guests to prepare their dishes in advance and bring them in need of nothing more than a simple reheat in your microwave or oven.

2. Ask all of your guests to bring their dishes in containers which are easy to handle and will fit within the table space you have.

3. If you will be having a lot of people for your potluck, remind your guests that they do not have to feed everyone there, a normal family or 4 or 6 meal-sized portion of their food will be plenty. Most people will only take a small amount of the choices to be able to sample everything they want without being over-full.

4. Let your guests know that any simple dish is fine. Many people love to try other people's family recipes and these work nicely for a potluck party.

As the potluck host, you will want to set up the table for all of the food. This should include both linen as well as potholders for your guests to set their hot dishes on. In addition you will want to have some extra serving platters, bowls, baskets, and serving utensils available as not everyone will come with their dish ready to be served.

One important thing which you do not want to forget is the beverages. You can either provide these as the host, you can ask everyone to bring their own, or you can have one person who will only be bringing the drinks.

In addition to the above, as the host of the potluck you get to choose what you will bring to the party. If you are hosting a large party, simply providing the location, plates, and silverware, should suffice. However, if you are having a smaller get together, then you will want to provide a dish as well. Many times the host will provide the main course, such as a turkey or roast, and ask the guests to bring along other foods such as salads and desserts.

Party Planning Tips For A Sweet Sixteen Birthday Party

mahony — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:42:34 +0000

If you have a daughter who is turning sixteen soon, then you know the importance of having a sweet sixteen party for her. Contrary to what she might be seeing on MTV, sweet sixteen parties shouldn't look like a wedding; it should be a party simply to celebrate her sixteenth birthday and in some states her ability to get a driver's license.

The sweet sixteen party which you and your daughter plan should start with picking a theme for the party, if you will have one. The theme you choose may dictate where you will hold the party. If your daughter wants a bowling party, for instance, then the party would have to be held at the local bowling alley. Some girls with summer birthdays will want their party to be on the beach or at a local pool. And, other girls want their theme to be elegant and more adult. For this last type of party you might want to have it at a restaurant or at your home.

Once you have a theme and a location, then it is time for you to come up with a date for the party. Saturday or Saturday evening is generally the best times to host a party because people will be off of work and ready to do something fun for the day or evening. The time of day for your party will largely be dictated by the theme of the party you are having and its location.

Once you have a theme, location, and date for the party, then it is time to start looking for just the right initiations to fit the event. You have the choice of writing in your own store-bought invitations, printing your own on your home computer, or having invitations printed. Here again, it depends largely on the theme of your party and what you have available to you in your area and online. However, you might be pleasantly surprised at the low cost of quality professional printing these days and may want to opt to have the invitations printed.

Once you have your invitations addressed they should be mailed about four weeks before the party. Your goal is to give people the opportunity to attend, but not let them know so far in advance that they forget to come to the party. Generally, about four weeks is the standard as long as you are not having too lavish of an event. If there will be over a hundred people in attendance, then you might want to send out your initiations earlier, but never more than eight weeks prior to the party date.

Once your invitations are sent out then it is time to work on the menu and decoration needs for the party. If you will be having an informal, family type gathering, then informal foods work very well; however, if your event is more formal or there will be a lot of people in attendance, you need to look at what foods will be appropriate.

For decorations, simple elegance works very well to help to keep prices down but things appearing to be elegant. Some store-bought flowers placed in strategic places can do wonders for a room!

Planning a sweet sixteen party doesn't need to be complicated or stressful. The most important part is to plan a party everyone can enjoy and remember – especially the guest of honor.

The Top 10 Halloween Party Ideas For Children Of All Ages

mahony — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 23:59:34 +0000

Planning a Halloween party can be a very fun thing to do. Whether you will be hosting adults, children, or a mix of both, Halloween parties are fun and exciting to have and to attend.

To help plan your Halloween party, and have it be the event of the year, here are some ideas to get you started in your planning:

Halloween Party Idea #1 – The first thing you need to do is to decide on a budget for your party and if you will be having adults, children, or both in attendance. Once you have made these decisions then it is time to start planning your event.

Halloween Party Idea #2 – Food and drinks are always a big part of any Halloween party. Here you can be very creative with items such as "scabs" other wise known as dried cranberries. Items such as bleeding cupcakes or things which look like eyeballs are generally a hit. Or you can go with a more traditional fare of cookies and candy.

Halloween Party Idea #3 – For beverages for your party you can make a great slimy punch out of lemonade, sugar, meringue powder, and seltzer water. To this add some green food coloring and stir. The mix will be slimy and frothy.

Halloween Party Idea #4 – Always a fun idea at Halloween parties is the addition of dry ice to beverages. This will make them send off fog and is always a hit with both adults and children.

Halloween Party Idea #5 – Decoration for Halloween is fun. You can make tombstones in the yard with simple Styrofoam cutouts and even hang lights and ghosts in your trees. Inside your home you can decorate with spider webs and other spooky items which you can purchase at any local store during the Halloween season.

Halloween Party Idea #6 – For a Halloween party you want your home to be dimly lit but not too dark so that people are tripping over things. Also a fog machine or cauldrons with dry ice in them can give a great effect.

Halloween Party Idea #7 – Music is always nice for a Halloween party. However, rather than have it playing in the room your guests will be in, try setting your tunes in a near-by room so that people can still talk and enjoy themselves. If you have a adult party use scarier music than if you are hosting children.

Halloween Party Idea #8 – Playing games is always a hit at any party. A fun game for adults is charades using scary movies and themes. For children, bobbing for apples can be fun if the weather and space allow for it. Also, contests for the best costume always go over well. (Let your guests know this on your invitations.

Halloween Party Idea #9 – If you want to amaze your friends, you can write secret messages on your drinking glasses. To do this, take a mixture of dish soap and water and write messages with it, using your finger, on the outside of some drinking glasses. Once you are finished place them in the freezer to frost over. As your guests drink, and the glasses warm, your messages will come into view. This is always something people will be amazed at and talk about for a long time to come.

Halloween Party Idea #10 – One of the best things you can do while you are planning any party, especially one for Halloween, is to go online and search for creative ideas. You will find a wealth of creativity to help you make the most of your party experience.